Abstract

Organizations are increasingly looking to hire employees who are willing to take initiative and go above and beyond expectations (Campbell, 2000). To that aim, proactive behaviors have been increasingly considered as a potentially important characteristic of today's workers (Campbell, 2000). With workplaces becoming more decentralized and work becoming increasingly innovative and self-directed, organizations require employees who are able and willing to be proactive (Campbell, 2000; Frese & Fay, 2001). Researchers have found many benefits to proactive behavior, including increases in individual performance and innovation (Seibert, Kraimer, & Crant, 2001; Tornau & Frese, 2013). While proactive behavior may have many benefits, there is some research that suggests, under certain circumstances, proactive behavior may have negative consequences for the enacting employee (Fuller, Marler, Hester, & Otondo, 2015; A. M. Grant, Parker, & Collins, 2009). This study investigated boundary conditions on the relationship between proactive behavior and positive outcomes for enacting employees. Specifically, it looked at the role of employee gender and organizational crisis on leader reactions to proactive behavior. A sample of college students participated in a laboratory experiment, where they role played as managers working with proactive employee confederates. With increased emphasis being placed on proactive behavior in the workplace, it is greatly important to understand conditions in which proactive behavior may be negatively received by leadership. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2018

Semester

Fall

Advisor

Shoss, Mindy

Degree

Master of Science (M.S.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

Psychology

Degree Program

Industrial and Organization Psychology

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0007317

URL

http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/CFE0007317

Language

English

Release Date

December 2021

Length of Campus-only Access

3 years

Access Status

Masters Thesis (Open Access)

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