Frequent business travel can be a burden for travelers' work and private life. We tested whether preventive coping (the proactive accumulation of resources in advance of potential stressors) makes such trips beneficial despite their potential to be stressful. In a longitudinal threewave study, we investigated whether frequent travel relates to an increase or decrease in work-life balance, emotional exhaustion, work engagement, and relationship satisfaction depending on preventive coping. Findings from a sample of 133 frequent business travelers revealed significant indirect effects for emotional exhaustion, work engagement, and relationship satisfaction through work-life balance. Among employees who engaged less in preventive coping, a higher number of business trips was related to a decrease in work-life balance, which, in turn, was related to more emotional exhaustion, less work engagement, and lower relationship satisfaction. Among those who reported higher preventive coping, we found opposing indirect effects: Frequent travel was related to an increase in work-life balance and, in turn, to less emotional exhaustion, more work engagement, and higher relationship satisfaction. These findings advance our knowledge in the field of business travel, future-oriented coping, and work-life balance. They highlight that travelers and their organizations should resort to preventive coping to make frequent travel more beneficial.
A BSTR ACT Socioemotional selectivity theory predicts shifts in social motives from resource acquisition to emotional well-being when endings are salient. In the work context, the theory has instigated much research on understanding age-related shifts in motivation, yet this research has exclusively relied on correlational paradigms. To provide experimental evidence for key tenets of the theory, we manipulated employees' occupational future time perspective in 2 scenarioexperiments (N1 = 150, N2 = 240) to understand why some employees prefer emotionally close social partners for a joint lunch break, while others prefer instrumental ones. We found that emotionally close companions were generally preferred for a joint lunch. At the same time, employees with a long-term perspective (those imagining a permanent employment contract or being far from retirement) preferred instrumental social partners relatively more often than employees with a limited time perspective (those imagining having resigned or being close to retirement). Having limited future goals (i.e., imagining low career ambitions) further led to preferring fewer instrumental and even more emotionally close companions. Overall, this research shows that the main tenets of socioemotional selectivity theory are directly applicable to the work context and, further, that work-related social contacts seem to change not only after retirement, but also before when this life event is approaching. In terms of practical implications, our findings suggest to consider that employees with different time horizons and career ambitions might have different social motivations at work.
SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research at DIW Berlin This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German SocioEconomic Panel study (SOEP) or using SOEP data as part of an internationally comparable data set (e.g. CNEF, ECHP, LIS, LWS, CHER/PACO). SOEP is a truly multidisciplinary household panel study covering a wide range of social and behavioral sciences:
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to take a new look at an old idea: since McGregor’s work in the 1960s, it is common knowledge that managers’ implicit theories about their followers can have self-fulfilling consequences. Surprisingly, McGregor’s work has largely remained within the bounds of employee motivation and has not met with a wide response in related fields such as service management. Assuming that managers do not only hold implicit theories of their followers but also of their customers (i.e. implicit customer theories), this paper transfers McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y to the service context. It further derives a framework of possible consistencies and inconsistencies between management styles and service strategies, depending on implicit managerial theories about the average employee and customer. Design/methodology/approach This conceptual paper integrates a management classic, current empirical findings, and media reports into a new line of thought. Findings This paper develops and undergirds the thesis that it is conducive to the development of trustful and productive relationships both with customers and followers if managers proceed from confident assumptions about them, thereby activating virtuous circles instead of vicious cycles. Originality/value This paper links concepts from the organizational domain to the service domain. It implies a normative component in arguing for the productive potential of positive and the destructive potential of negative assumptions about both followers and customers. The value of this idea lies in the potential for positive relational dynamics and better customer and workplace relationships.
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