The Role of Trait Competitiveness and Entrepreneurial Alertness in the Cognitive Process of Entrepreneurship Among Students: A Cross-Cultural Comparative Study Between Vietnam and Poland

Our study aims to explore the influences of trait competitiveness and entrepreneurial alertness on the cognitive process of entrepreneurship in the cross-cultural context of Vietnam and Poland, two emerging nations with different levels of economic and social development. To achieve this research goal, two student questionnaire surveys were carried out at universities and institutes in Vietnam and Poland. Structural equation modelling (SEM) with a bootstrapping approach was utilised to test the proposed hypotheses and conceptual model. Eight hypotheses were statistically supported by the Vietnamese dataset, confirming the significant and positive effects of both trait competitiveness and entrepreneurial alertness on the cognition process of entrepreneurship. However, for the Polish data, trait competitiveness was not found to be associated with an entrepreneurial attitude, perceived behaviour control, or entrepreneurial intention, while entrepreneurial alertness was positively related to perceived behavioural control. Our study has significantly contributed to the entrepreneurship literature by increasing the knowledge about the central role of trait competitiveness and entrepreneurial alertness on the cognitive process of business ventures in two emerging countries, where to the best of our knowledge, few studies related to our topic have been researched. Moreover, practical contributions are also offered for educational institutions and practitioners to stimulate university students’ business venturing activities.

Thriving at work but insomniac at home: Understanding the relationship between supervisor bottom-line mentality and employee functioning

Bottom-line mentality (BLM) describes a one-dimensional frame of mind revolving around bottom-line pursuits, which pervades most organizations today. But how does working with high BLM supervisors affect employees’ functioning both at work and at home? Guided by this question, we draw on social information processing theory and insights from the person–environment fit literature for a nuanced understanding of the effects of supervisor BLM. Using data from two field studies conducted in China (340 employees) and the United States (174 employees), we find that supervisor BLM increases employee perceptions of a competitive climate that ultimately increases employee thriving at work and insomnia outside work. We further find that employee trait competitiveness moderated the indirect relationship (via perceived competitive climate) between supervisor BLM and thriving at work but not for insomnia; employees high (versus low) in trait competitiveness were found to thrive at work under the competitive climate stimulated by high BLM supervisors. Taken together, our findings highlight the need for organizational leaders to be cautious of being too narrowly focused on bottom-line outcomes and aware of the wider implications of BLM on different domains of their employees’ lives.

How and when intragroup relationship conflict leads to knowledge hiding: the roles of envy and trait competitiveness

Purpose Although studies have demonstrated that knowledge hiding is an important inhibitor of organizational innovation, current research does not clearly address how intragroup relationship conflict influences knowledge hiding. This study aims to identify the underlying mechanism between intra-group relationship conflict and knowledge hiding. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on affective events theory (AET), the authors propose a theoretical model and empirically test it by applying hierarchical regression analysis and a bootstrapping approach to data from a multi-wave survey of 224 employees in China. Findings Consistent with AET, the empirical results show that envy mediates perceived intragroup relationship conflict and knowledge hiding. As predicted, trait competitiveness moderates the indirect effect of perceived intragroup relationship conflict on knowledge hiding via envy. Originality/value The results support an AET perspective whereby knowledge hiding is shaped by relationship conflict, envy and trait competitiveness. This study introduces the novel proposition that relationship conflict and competitiveness influence envy, and consequently knowledge hiding.

The Dark Triad of personality and attitudes toward cognitive enhancement

Background Cognitive enhancement (CE) refers to the voluntary improvement of human cognitive capabilities. Few studies have examined the general attitude of the public towards CE. Such studies have suggested that the use of CE is considered largely unacceptable by the public. In parallel, past research indicates that individuals scoring high on the Dark Triad of personality (Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy) and competitiveness have atypical views of ethical questions. In this study, we examined (a) whether attitudes towards CE are associated with individual differences in the Dark Triad of personality as well as in trait and contextual competitiveness and (b) whether the Dark Triad moderates the effect of trait and contextual competitiveness on attitudes towards CE. Method US employees (N = 326) were recruited using Mechanical Turk. Participants completed a web survey. Data were analyzed by means of (robust) hierarchical regression and (robust) ANCOVAs. Results The Dark Triad of personality and one of its subscales, Machiavellianism, predicted positive attitudes towards CE. Neither trait competitiveness nor contextual competitiveness were linked to general attitudes towards CE, but the DT was a positive moderator of the association between contextual competitiveness and positive attitudes. Conclusion Our findings extend the incipient knowledge about the factors relating to favourable views of CE by highlighting the role of dark personality traits in shaping such views. Our study further shows contextual factors can play a differentiated role with respect to such attitudes depending upon dark personality traits. Implications for policy-making are discussed.

Building brand loyalty and endorsement with brand pages: integration of the lens of affordance and customer-dominant logic

PurposeNumerous companies have launched brand pages (BPs) on social networking sites to enhance customer-brand communication, cultivate the customer-brand relationship and promote brand loyalty. This study aims to investigate how BP affordances support social commerce.Design/methodology/approachThe study devises a theoretical model linking the proposed BP affordances (visibility, selectivity, persistence and interactivity) to three customer values (relationship quality, brand experience and smart shopping feeling [SSF]) to encourage brand loyalty and BP endorsement on the part of the customer.FindingsData collected from 591 respondents support all proposed hypotheses. The model explains high variances in brand loyalty and BP endorsement, indicating that relationship quality plays a more salient role in producing brand loyalty, while SSF plays a more important role in eliciting BP endorsement.Originality/valueThe study is unique in four ways. First, drawing on the lens of affordance, it proposes specific affordances for BPs and offers empirical results for their applicability. Second, by incorporating CDL into the research model, it illuminates the high explanatory power of these proposed BP affordances on the three customer values. Integrating the S-O-R model with the affordance perspective and CDL provides a more complete picture of the BP phenomenon. Third, it extends the reach of existing work by examining BP endorsement in social media as a dependent variable beyond brand loyalty, with SSF included as another source of values to shed more light on the relationships depicted in the model. Fourth, by taking trait competitiveness into account, it sheds further light on relationships between customer values and BP endorsement.