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• Organizational Behavior Topics
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Organizational Behavior Topics

Organizational Justice

What causes employees to feel fairly treated by organizational authorities, and the importance of those feelings to workplace attitudes and behaviors.

• Relevant Faculty: Jason Colquitt, Marie Mitchell, Jessica Rodell
• In Their Words: “Every one of us has reacted to some decision event with the sense that ‘this isn’t fair!’ Our research focuses on what causes people to feel that way, and how they respond when they do.” J.C.
• Sample Paper: Colquitt, J. A., LePine, J. A., Piccolo, R. F., Zapata, C. P., & Rich, B. L. 2012. Explaining the justice-performance relationship: Trust as exchange deepener or trust as uncertainty reducer? Journal of Applied Psychology, 97: 1–15.

Organizational Commitment

What causes employees to feel attached to and involved with their employers, and the consequences of those attitudes in the workplace.

• Relevant Faculty: Robert Vandenberg
• In Their Words: “All employees are psychologically attached to the workplace with varying degrees and for different reasons. My research focuses not only on what causes commitment to weaken or strengthen over time, but also how that impacts the employee and the organization.” R.V.
• Sample Paper: Bentein, K., Vandenberg, R., Vandenverghe, C., & Stinglhamber, F. 2005. The role of change in the relationship between commitment and turnover: A latent growth modeling approach. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90: 468–482.

Employee Deviance & Unethical Behavior

What causes employees to engage in behaviors that are harmful to organizations, and the consequences of such actions to other employees, the organization, and society more generally.

• Relevant Faculty: Marie Mitchell
• In Their Words: “An unfortunate reality in today’s organizations is that people sometimes engage in behaviors that are counterproductive and sometimes unethical. My research seeks to understand the causes and consequences of such behaviors, and to examine which individual and work factors influence the nature of such destructive behaviors.” M.M.
• Sample Paper: Mitchell, M. S., & Ambrose, M. L. (in press). Employees' behavioral reactions to supervisor aggression: An examination of individual and situational factors. Journal of Applied Psychology.

Employee Volunteering

Why employees give their time and skills to charitable and volunteer groups, and the trends associated with such activities.

• Relevant Faculty: Jessica Rodell
• In Their Words: “More and more Gen-Y and Facebook generation employees are turning to volunteering to look for more meaning in their working life. What kind of an effect does that have in their attitudes toward their employer?” J.R.
• Sample Paper: Rodell, J. B. (under review). Finding meaning through volunteering: Why do employees volunteer and what does it mean for them and their jobs? Academy of Management Journal.

Emotion Regulation

How employees regulate feelings at work. This includes their own emotions as well as how employees help others regulate emotions.

• Relevant Faculty: Laura Little
• In Their Words: “Emotions are a big part of organizational life; understanding how to manage one's own emotions as well as how to help others' manage emotions can give employees an edge in most work environments. My research seeks to understand the consequences of such regulation for employees and for organizations.”, L.L.
• Sample Paper: Little, L. M., Kluemper, D., Nelson, D. L., & Ward, A. (in press). More than happy to help: Customer-focused emotion management strategies. Personnel Psychology.

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Strategic Management Topics

Corporate Governance

How organizations are governed, including the responsibilities, oversight and balance of power between executives, directors and shareholders.

• Relevant Faculty: Scott Graffin, Mike Pfarrer, Christy Shropshire
• In Their Words: “Even in very large firms, relatively few people at the top have a huge impact on organizational outcomes. Our research investigates these individuals and groups through such topics as CEO compensation, executive succession, and the composition and effectiveness of boards of directors.” C.S.
• Sample Paper: Shropshire, C. 2010. The role of the interlocking director and board receptivity in the diffusion of practices. Academy of Management Review, 35: 246–264.

Mergers and Acquisitions

Why firms acquire, and what factors make for more effective acquisitions.

• Relevant Faculty: John Haleblian
• In Their Words: “Even though firms have long been making acquisitions, we still don't fully understand why firms acquire, and the conditions that allow for more effective acquisitions. My research attempts to better understand when firms acquire, and which firms are the most successful.” J.H.
• Sample Paper: Kim, J., Haleblian, J., & Finkelstein, S. 2011. When firms are desperate to grow via acquisition: The effect of growth patterns and acquisition experience on acquisition premiums. Administrative Science Quarterly, 56: 26–60.

Corporate and Executive Reputation

How reputation influences stakeholders, such as shareholders, and their perceptions of a firm's or executive's quality.

• Relevant Faculty: Scott Graffin, Mike Pfarrer
• In Their Words: “Making sense of how well a firm or executive is performing at any given point in time is an uncertain endeavor. Our research examines how reputation or status may lead to very different outcomes, even for firms or executives experiencing comparable levels of performance.” S.G.
• Sample Paper: Graffin, S., Wade, J., Porac, J., & McNamee, R. 2008. The impact of CEO status diffusion on the economic outcomes of other senior managers. Organization Science, 19: 457–474.

Stakeholder Management

How organizations manage diverse interests of stakeholder groups, including shareholders, customers, employees, suppliers, government, communities, and the media.

• Relevant Faculty: Mike Pfarrer, Christy Shropshire
• In Their Words: “Crisis. Reputation. Responsibility. All are keywords that reflect stakeholders’ perceptions of the 21st-century organization and its impact on society. Thus, building, managing, and repairing relationships with its stakeholders has become central to the modern organization’s success, and a focus of our research.” M.P.
• Sample Paper: Pfarrer, M.D., DeCelles, K.A., Smith, K.G., & Taylor, M.S. 2008. After the fall: Reintegrating the corrupt organization. Academy of Management Review, 33: 730–749.

Top Management Teams and Strategic Decision-Making

How the composition and decision making processes of the top management team affect strategy, the organization and organizational performance.

• Relevant Faculty: Allen Amason
• In Their Words: “All strategies start with strategic decisions, and all strategic decisions are influenced by factors like urgency, resource levels and the interests of the managers who make them. This research examines those processes and seeks to understand the antecedents of effective decision-making and effective top management teams.” A.A.
• Sample Paper: Amason, A.C. & Mooney, A.C. 2008. Icarus’ paradox revisited: How strong performance sows the seeds of dysfunction in future strategic decision-making. Strategic Organization, 6: 407–434.

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