Candidates’ attractiveness in selection decisions: a laboratory experiment

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 390-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matteo Cristofaro

Purpose Recruiters in today’s organizations, through social networks, have the opportunity to see a candidate’s overall figure, and from this, they gain a first impression of their personalities which in turn affects their decisions. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the biasing role of candidates’ attractiveness – in facial and bodily terms – on perceived main personality features (i.e. core evaluations (CEs)) in selection decisions. Design/methodology/approach An experimental study involving professional recruiters (n=150) was conducted. Participants were asked to rate bodily attractiveness (using the objectification construct), CEs, facial attractiveness and hiring scores of six candidates for an administrative position; then, a moderated mediation model was tested. Findings This study suggests that recruiters’ perception of candidates’ CEs mediates the relationship between objectification (i.e. body attractiveness) and the assigned hiring score, while facial attractiveness amplifies or reduces the effect of objectification on CEs. Originality/value The value added of this contribution lies in studying the biasing mechanism of candidates’ overall attractiveness (facial and bodily) and its effects on the perceived core personality features.

2019 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 376-392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hassan Ahmed Shah ◽  
Muhammad Yasir ◽  
Abdul Majid ◽  
Muhammad Yasir ◽  
Asad Javed

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the ways in which strategic orientation (SO) and strategic renewal (SR) could create the possibility for improving strategic performance (SP). The indirect effect of SO was also tested in this study. Furthermore, by using the moderated mediation model, the authors also investigated the moderating role of organizational ambidexterity (OA). Design/methodology/approach The results of this cross-sectional study are based on a survey conducted on 1,430 owner/managers of SMEs. To analyze the relationship among variables, this study used descriptive, correlation and hierarchical multiple regression approach. Findings Results revealed that SO positively affects SR and SP in SMEs. Furthermore, the mediating role of SR between the relationships of SO and SP was also confirmed. Moreover, OA strengthens the connection between SO, SR and SP. Practical implications The current study provides new insights for strategic planning and management by focusing on SO along with its different dimensions. Therefore, it provides new guidelines and a roadmap that would be helpful in achieving the objectives of SP. Originality/value The study makes significant contributions to the extant literature by adding new knowledge about the positive impact of SO on SP. Moreover, with the analysis of mediating role of SR in this relationship, the study has made significant addition to the existing literature on SP. Furthermore, moderated mediation model adds value to the existing body of knowledge.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhenyuan Wang ◽  
Jianghong Du ◽  
Herman H.M. Tse ◽  
Jun Gu ◽  
Hui Meng ◽  
...  

PurposeThis study aims to explore the relative importance of the subdimensions of total rewards satisfaction in predicting research and development (R&D) employee creativity. In addition, the study examines the indirect effects of the subdimensions of total rewards satisfaction on creativity via work engagement and the moderating role of challenge-related work stress in the first stage.Design/methodology/approachA two-wave design was used, in which total rewards satisfaction and challenge-related work stress were measured in the first wave. Work engagement and creativity were measured in the second wave. Dominance analysis and the latent moderated mediation model were used for the data analyses.FindingsThe analyses show that nonfinancial rewards satisfaction completely dominates indirect and direct financial rewards satisfaction when predicting creativity. Indirect financial rewards satisfaction completely dominates direct financial rewards satisfaction when predicting creativity. Work engagement mediates the relationships between the subdimensions of total rewards satisfaction and creativity. Challenge-related work stress moderates the relationships between the subdimensions of total rewards satisfaction and work engagement and the indirect effects of the subdimensions of total rewards satisfaction on creativity via work engagement.Practical implicationsThe results imply that managers should set challenge demands for R&D employees and try to improve their total rewards satisfaction, especially their nonfinancial and indirect financial rewards satisfaction, for them to be more creative.Originality/valueThis empirical study contributes to the literature by comparing the relative importance of the different dimensions of total rewards satisfaction in predicting creativity. The study also clarifies how (through work engagement) and when (based on challenge-related work stress) the subdimensions of total rewards satisfaction are positively related to R&D employees' creativity.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chang Chen ◽  
Zhe Zhang ◽  
Ming Jia

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the effect of stretch goals on unethical behavior and explore the mediating role of ambivalent identification and moderating role of competitive psychological climate.Design/methodology/approachA total of 350 MBA students from Northwestern China completed the two-phase survey. The bootstrapping analysis outlined by Hayes was used to assess a moderated mediation model.FindingsThis study found that stretch goals could trigger employees' unethical behavior via ambivalent identification. Competitive psychological climate intensified the relationship between stretch goals and ambivalent identification. Moreover, such a climate aggravated the indirect effect of stretch goals on unethical behavior via ambivalent identification.Practical implicationsOrganizations and managers should use stretch goals prudently and implement measures to reduce the ethical cost.Originality/valueThis study provides unique contributions by identifying ambivalent identification as an important mediator and competitive psychological climate as a boundary condition of stretch goals' disruptive effect on unethical behavior.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bhawana Maheshwari ◽  
Jatin Pandey ◽  
Aditya Billore

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to demonstrate the importance and influence of paternity leave on individual level organizational outcomes. Drawing on signaling theory, the study examines the relationship between paid paternity leave entitlement (PPLE) and organizational attractiveness (OA) through a mediating path of anticipated organizational support (AOS). Furthermore, the study proposes that this mediated relationship would be conditional on traditional masculinity ideology (TMI) such that the relationship would be stronger for individuals who score low on TMI.Design/methodology/approachThe study analyzed a moderated mediation model using the data from a survey experiment. Data were collected from 264 professionals enrolled in an executive education course and will soon be looking for employment.FindingsThe findings supported the mediating role of AOS between PPLE and OA. As predicted, the positive impact of PPLE on AOS and OA is stronger for individuals scoring low on TMI.Originality/valueThis study takes a multidisciplinary approach to understand the underlying mechanisms that impact decisions related to employers. It is one of the few studies that study paternity leave in the Indian context and makes important contributions to theory and practice.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Liu ◽  
Lei Ren

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between challenge-hindrance stressors and employees’ career initiative while incorporating the mediating role of positive affect and the moderating role of job autonomy.Design/methodology/approachFive proposed hypotheses were tested using path analysis with two waves of data collected from 136 part-time MBA students.FindingsThe findings show that challenge stressors indirectly facilitate career initiative, whereas hindrance stressors indirectly inhibit career initiative, both with positive affect as mediators. Job autonomy enhances the direct relationship between positive affect and career initiative, as well as the indirect relationships among challenge/hindrance stressors, positive affect and career initiative.Originality/valueThe study brings a new perspective to understanding why an employee conducts career initiative, thereby widening the scope of the antecedents of career initiative. The study discloses positive affect as the mediator that transmits the opposite effects from challenge-hindrance stressors to career initiative. It also identifies job autonomy as an important boundary condition for positive affect to exert its influence on career initiative, as well as challenge-hindrance stressors that influence career initiative via positive affect.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aihua Wu

PurposeThe impact of specific investments to performance has mixed arguments. This paper aims to clarify how and under what conditions specific investments made by manufacturer tailored to supplier affect the new product development (NPD) performance of the manufacturer itself.Design/methodology/approachThis study develops a moderated mediation model, testing the roles of supplier involvement and information technology (IT) implementation by regression and bootstrap analyses from 378 NPD projects.FindingsThe results show both physical and human specific investments positively affect NPD performance. IT implementation strengthens the mediated role of supplier involvement, i.e. the mediator role of supplier involvement between specific investments and NPD performance link is significantly weaker while IT implementation is lower.Originality/valueThe findings contribute to identify IT implementation and supplier involvement as two important constructs, together demonstrating how and when specific investments affect NPD performance.


2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 208-219
Author(s):  
Chao Chen ◽  
Xinmei Liu

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of team-member exchange (TMX) differentiation on team creativity by developing a moderated mediation model. The model focuses on the mediating role of team proactivity in linking TMX differentiation with team creativity and the moderating role of leader-member exchange (LMX) median in influencing the mediation.Design/methodology/approachA time-lagged field survey data from 331 employees and 68 team leaders in more than ten high-technology firms from Northern China was used to test the model.FindingsResults indicated that the negative relationship between TMX differentiation and team creativity was mediated by team proactivity. Moderated mediation analyses further revealed that team proactivity mediated the relationship between TMX differentiation and team creativity for only those teams with a low-LMX median.Originality/valueThe empirical study provides preliminary evidence of the mediating role of team proactivity in the negative relationship between TMX differentiation and team creativity. The moderated mediation model also extends the existing finding by showing that LMX quality can moderate the indirect impact of TMX differentiation on team creativity (via team proactivity).


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 443-456 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ngozi Adeleye ◽  
Evans Osabuohien ◽  
Simplice Asongu

PurposeThe study aims to analyse the role of finance in the agro-industrialisation nexus in Nigeria using annual data on manufacturing value added, agricultural value added and volume of finance availed to the agricultural sector from 1981 to 2015.Design/methodology/approachTo establish the presence of a long-run relationship, the error correction model and bounds cointegration techniques are employed. Likewise, the model is augmented to test whether the associated relationship between industrial output and agricultural output depends on access to finance by farmers with the inclusion of an interaction term.FindingsSome salient contributions to the literature are as follows: agriculture and finance are strong and positive predictors of industrialisation in the long run; in the short run, past realisations of industrial output and finance have significant asymmetric effects on industrial output; the explanatory power of agriculture decreases with the growth of the financial system; and the long-run results validate the role of finance in the agro-industrialisation nexus.Originality/valueGiven these findings, achieving growth in the agricultural sector that will induce desired industrialisation should be prioritised by the government through agencies such as the central bank, financial intermediaries and other stakeholders with a view to making agricultural financing a major concern for sustainable domestic consumption and industrial growth.


2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (7) ◽  
pp. 1333-1354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean Yim ◽  
Young Han Bae ◽  
Hyunwoo Lim ◽  
JaeHwan Kwon

Purpose The authors use signaling theory in proposing a conceptual framework that simultaneously incorporates both the mediating effects of corporate reputation (CR) and the moderating effects of marketing capability (MC) into the corporate social responsibility (CSR)–corporate financial performance (CFP) link and theorize a single moderated mediation model. The empirical results of the research confirm the theorized moderated mediation model among the four variables, where a firm’s CR plays a mediating role in the relationship between CSR and CFP, and a firm’s MC moderates the effect of CSR on CR exclusively in the first link. Both theoretical and practical implications of the moderated mediation model are discussed. Design/methodology/approach This study uses structural equation model estimations with the relevant secondary datasets collected from publicly available databases. Findings The empirical results confirm the theorized moderated mediation model in the conceptual framework that uses signaling theory. Specifically, the results identify the moderating role of MC in only the CSR- CR link (but not in the CR and CFP link), such that CR plays a moderated mediation role in the CSR–CFP link. Research limitations/implications The current research is not without limitations. These limitations mainly stem from data sets used in the empirical analyses. More details are discussed in the limitations and future research directions section. Practical implications The empirical findings suggest that a firm needs to develop a consolidated CSR-marketing program, simultaneously satisfying stakeholders’ needs for both the firm’s socially desirable business practices and value-creating marketing programs to increase its CR, which will, in turn, lead to better profitability for the firm. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the current research is the first to use signaling theory in building a conceptual framework that theorizes a moderated mediation model regarding the simultaneous effects of CR and MC on the relationship between CSR and CFP and to empirically test this conceptual framework of the single moderated mediation model. By doing so, the current research clarifies an unanswered question in the literature of whether the underlying mechanism in the CSR–CFP link is based on a mediated moderation or moderated mediation of CR and MC.


2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (6) ◽  
pp. 865-882
Author(s):  
Leiqing Peng ◽  
Shaohui Lei ◽  
Yulang Guo ◽  
Fei Qiu

PurposeAs an essential personality charm of leaders, humor can bring a series of positive outcomes to both users and receivers. However, there is also evidence that the impact of leaders’ humor (LH) is constrained by individuals, teams and organizational factors. The aim of this research is to investigate the relationship between LH and subordinates’ service creativity. Based on social learning theory and previous literature on LH, this paper identifies role modeling as the mediator and suggests that subordinates’ sensitivity to favorable interpersonal treatment (SFIT) moderates these relationships.Design/methodology/approachIn order to test the proposed moderated mediation model, this study employed hierarchical multiple regression and path analyses with valid data of 348 samples.FindingsResults revealed that LH positively affects role modeling and service creativity of subordinates, while subordinates' SFIT positively moderates the relationship between LH and subordinates' service creativity via role modeling.Practical implicationsIn compliance with these findings, this research suggests that enterprises should pay attention to the role of humor from middle managers and strengthen managers' role modeling through multiple measures to establish a relaxed and harmonious atmosphere in the workplace.Originality/valueBuilt on the conceptual framework, this study contributes to the literature on LH and employees’ service creativity by treating role modeling as the mechanism and SFIT as the moderator. This research is one of the first few empirical studies to investigate the relationship between LH and service creativity of service personnel in the service industry.


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