Speak with your manager
Underestimating the importance of expressing intrinsic motivation in job interviews
Kaitlin Woolley & Ayelet Fishbach
Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, September 2018, Pages 1-11
Abstract:
Across five studies (N = 1428), we documented an important prediction problem in recruitment: Job candidates mispredicted how much recruiters valued expressions of intrinsic motivation (e.g., learning that a candidate desired meaningful work). In contrast, candidates more accurately predicted how much recruiters valued expressions of extrinsic motivation (e.g., learning that a candidate desired opportunities for career advancement). Social distance produced this discrepancy: People failed to realize others cared about intrinsic motivation as much as they did; therefore, they underestimated how much expressing that they valued intrinsic motivation mattered to others. Indeed, recruiters giving recruitment pitches also mispredicted how much admitted candidates valued learning that a company emphasized intrinsic motivation. As a consequence of the misprediction, candidates chose suboptimal pitches that failed to express their intrinsic motivation during job interviews, unless explicitly encouraged to take the recruiters’ perspective.
Not as bad as it seems: When the presence of a threatening humanoid robot improves human performance
Nicolas Spatola et al.
Science Robotics, August 2018
"In session 1, all participants performed the [attention] task alone. In session 2, they performed the task either alone or in the presence of a humanoid robot with which they had previously interacted either positively (a 'good' robot responding in a nice way, with empathy) or negatively (a 'bad' robot responding with contempt, lack of empathy, and negative evaluations about participants’ intelligence)...[I]ndividuals’ attentional control improved notably in the presence of the bad robot."
How intermittent breaks in interaction improve collective intelligence
Ethan Bernstein, Jesse Shore & David Lazer
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 28 August 2018, Pages 8734-8739
Abstract:
People influence each other when they interact to solve problems. Such social influence introduces both benefits (higher average solution quality due to exploitation of existing answers through social learning) and costs (lower maximum solution quality due to a reduction in individual exploration for novel answers) relative to independent problem solving. In contrast to prior work, which has focused on how the presence and network structure of social influence affect performance, here we investigate the effects of time. We show that when social influence is intermittent it provides the benefits of constant social influence without the costs. Human subjects solved the canonical traveling salesperson problem in groups of three, randomized into treatments with constant social influence, intermittent social influence, or no social influence. Groups in the intermittent social-influence treatment found the optimum solution frequently (like groups without influence) but had a high mean performance (like groups with constant influence); they learned from each other, while maintaining a high level of exploration. Solutions improved most on rounds with social influence after a period of separation. We also show that storing subjects’ best solutions so that they could be reloaded and possibly modified in subsequent rounds — a ubiquitous feature of personal productivity software — is similar to constant social influence: It increases mean performance but decreases exploration.
“It’s Not a Tumor”: A Framework for Capitalizing on Individual Diversity to Boost Target Detection
Jennifer Corbett & Jaap Munneke
Psychological Science, forthcoming
Abstract:
Even experts routinely miss infrequent targets, such as weapons in baggage scans or tumors in mammograms, because the visual system is not equipped to notice the unusual. To date, limited progress has been made toward improving human factors that mediate such critical diagnostic tasks. Here, we present a novel framework for pairing individuals’ estimates to increase target detection. Using a wisdom-of-crowds approach that capitalizes on the visual system’s ability to efficiently combine information, we demonstrated how averaging two noninteracting individuals’ continuous estimates of whether a briefly presented image contained a prespecified target can significantly boost detection across a range of tasks. Furthermore, we showed how pairing individuals’ estimates to maximize decorrelated patterns of performance in one task can optimize performance on a separate task. These results make significant advances toward combating severe deficits in target detection using straightforward applications for maximizing performance within limited pools of observers.
The Limits of Meritocracy
John Morgan, Justin Tumlinson & Felix Várdy
University of California Working Paper, August 2018
Abstract:
We show that too much meritocracy, modeled as accuracy of performance ranking in contests, can be a bad thing: in contests with homogeneous agents, it reduces output and is Pareto inefficient. In contests with sufficiently heterogeneous agents, discouragement and complacency effects further reduce the benefits of meritocracy. Perfect meritocracy may be optimal only for intermediate levels of heterogeneity.
Dark Motives and Elective Use of Brainteaser Interview Questions
Scott Highhouse, Christopher Nye & Don Zhang
Applied Psychology, forthcoming
Abstract:
Brainteaser interview questions such as “Estimate how many windows are in New York” are just one example of aggressive interviewer behaviour that lacks evidence for validity and is unsettling to job applicants. This research attempts to shed light on the motives behind such behaviour by examining the relation between dark‐side traits and the perceived appropriateness of brainteaser interview questions. A representative sample of working adults (n = 736) was presented with a list of interview questions that were either traditional (e.g., “Are you a good listener?”), behavioural (e.g., “Tell me about a time when you failed”), or brainteaser in nature. Results of a multiple regression, controlling for interviewing experience and sex, showed that narcissism and sadism explained the likelihood of using brainteasers in an interview. A subsequent bifactor analysis showed that these dark traits shared a callousness general factor. A second longitudinal study of employed adults with hiring experience demonstrated that perspective‐taking partially mediated the relationship between this general factor and the perceived helpfulness and abusiveness of brainteaser interview questions. These results suggest that a callous indifference and a lack of perspective‐taking may underlie abusive behaviour in the employment interview.
Effects of office workstation type on physical activity and stress
Casey Lindberg et al.
Occupational & Environmental Medicine, October 2018, Pages 689-695
Objective: Office environments have been causally linked to workplace-related illnesses and stress, yet little is known about how office workstation type is linked to objective metrics of physical activity and stress. We aimed to explore these associations among office workers in US federal office buildings.
Methods: We conducted a wearable, sensor-based, observational study of 231 workers in four office buildings. Outcome variables included workers’ physiological stress response, physical activity and perceived stress. Relationships between office workstation type and these variables were assessed using structural equation modelling.
Results: Workers in open bench seating were more active at the office than those in private offices and cubicles (open bench seating vs private office=225.52 mG (31.83% higher on average) (95% CI 136.57 to 314.46); open bench seating vs cubicle=185.13 mG (20.16% higher on average) (95% CI 66.53 to 303.72)). Furthermore, workers in open bench seating experienced lower perceived stress at the office than those in cubicles (−0.27 (9.10% lower on average) (95% CI −0.54 to −0.02)). Finally, higher physical activity at the office was related to lower physiological stress (higher heart rate variability in the time domain) outside the office (−26.12 ms/mG (14.18% higher on average) (95% CI −40.48 to −4.16)).
Conclusions: Office workstation type was related to enhanced physical activity and reduced physiological and perceived stress. This research highlights how office design, driven by office workstation type, could be a health-promoting factor.
A double-edged sword: How and why resetting performance metrics affects motivation and performance
Hengchen Dai
Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, September 2018, Pages 12-29
Abstract:
Inside and outside of workplaces, individuals’ performance on a metric (e.g., sales) is often decoupled from past performance (rather than being tracked as a continuation of past performance). How do people respond to such performance resets, a type of fresh start on performance records, particularly when resets are not anticipated? Three laboratory experiments and one field study analyzing 40 years of data from professional baseball players demonstrate their impact. Specifically, unanticipated resets increase self-efficacy and thus boost motivation and future performance when they follow weak performance. However, such resets decrease self-efficacy and thus harm motivation and future performance when they follow strong performance. By identifying the conditions that determine whether performance resets improve or harm motivation, and highlighting the role of self-efficacy, this paper provides novel insights into how different ways of tracking performance influence motivation, as well as how fresh starts change behavior.
Rapid Response Measurement: Development of a Faking-Resistant Assessment Method for Personality
Adam Meade et al.
Organizational Research Methods, forthcoming
Abstract:
While rating-scale-based assessments have been shown to be useful for measuring a variety of workplace-relevant constructs, assessment length and response distortion present practical limitations on their use. We describe a new type of measurement method termed rapid response measurement (RRM) in which stimuli are presented on a computer screen one at a time in rapid succession and respondents are asked to quickly provide a dichotomous response. Two personality assessments using RRM were developed and reliability and validity evidence across four independent samples were evaluated. Both RRM assessments showed adequate reliability, even at short test lengths, with acceptable levels of convergent and discriminant validity with traditional survey-based measures. Analyses based on a within-participants design indicated that the RRM was significantly more difficult to fake when instructed than was a survey-based measure of personality. The second RRM was related to several aspects of job performance. While initial results show promise, further research is needed to establish the validity and viability of the RRM for organizational and psychological measurement.
To lead or to be liked: When prestige-oriented leaders prioritize popularity over performance
Charleen Case, Katherine Bae & Jon Maner
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, October 2018, Pages 657-676
Abstract:
Leaders often are faced with making difficult decisions for their group, such as when a course of action preferred by group members conflicts with one that is likely to optimize group success. Across 5 experiments (N = 1110), we provide evidence that a psychological orientation toward prestige (but not dominance) causes leaders to adhere publicly to group members’ desires at the expense of group task outcomes — to prioritize popularity over performance. Experiments 1–3 demonstrated that, in private, prestige-oriented leaders chose what they saw as best for group performance but that, in public, they chose whichever option was preferred by members of their group. In private, prestige-oriented leaders’ tendency to choose the performance-enhancing option was mediated by group performance motives; in public, their adherence to group preferences was mediated by social approval motives. Experiments 4 and 5 advanced the investigation by using experimental manipulations to prime an orientation toward prestige. Findings replicated those from the earlier studies: participants primed with a prestige orientation prioritized popularity over performance. Results illuminate the conditions under which “good” leaders might make poor decisions.
Startup Founders and their LinkedIn Connections: Are Well-Connected Entrepreneurs More Successful?
Devika Banerji & Torsten Reimer
Computers in Human Behavior, January 2019, Pages 46-52
Abstract:
For the past 40 years, entrepreneurs and researchers have assumed that entrepreneur networks are important for startup ventures. This study takes this notion further by testing whether these benefits translate into tangible financial outcomes for a startup. For this purpose, the study integrates two extensive databases that have not been studied together in previous research: Crunchbase.com, which provides information on the financial success of startup companies, and LinkedIn, which provides social network information of founders. The analysis revealed that several variables in LinkedIn profiles were positively correlated with the amount of funds raised by startup companies establishing a link between social networks and entrepreneurial success. Moreover, the average number of followers that the founders of a company had according to their LinkedIn profile was the strongest predictor of the amount of funds raised by companies.
Can I see the real me? Leadership ability and the better-than-average effect
Craig Foster, Jennifer Clarke & Gary Packard
Military Psychology, September/October 2018, Pages 390-397
Abstract:
Military organizations typically emphasize the importance of leadership. The quality of military leadership might be inhibited because individuals tend to overestimate their respective leadership abilities. We hypothesized that military professionals generally overestimate how well they lead compared to their peers (Hypothesis 1). We also hypothesized that an egocentric bias, where self-ratings are weighted more strongly than other-ratings, contributes to this better-than-average effect (Hypothesis 2). The results obtained across two studies supported both hypotheses. Most notably, 242 of 251 United States Air Force Academy cadets and 31 of 34 United States Air Force officers rated themselves as above average compared to their peers. The obtained results have important implications for understanding the better-than-average effect generally and leadership in military and nonmilitary organizations.
Fairness and Frictions: The Impact of Unequal Raises on Quit Behavior
Arindrajit Dube, Laura Giuliano & Jonathan Leonard
NBER Working Paper, August 2018
Abstract:
We analyze how separations responded to arbitrary differences in own and peer wages at a large U.S. retailer. Regression-discontinuity estimates imply large causal effects of own wages on separations, and on quits in particular. However, this own-wage response could reflect comparisons either to market wages or to peer wages. Estimates using peer-wage discontinuities show large peer-wage effects and imply the own-wage separation response mostly reflects peer comparisons. The peer effect is driven by comparisons with higher-paid peers — suggesting concerns about fairness. Separations appear fairly insensitive when raises are similar across peers — suggesting search frictions and monopsony are relevant in this low-wage sector.
It’s mine! Psychological ownership of one’s job explains positive and negative workplace outcomes of job engagement
Lin Wang et al.
Journal of Applied Psychology, forthcoming
Abstract:
Job engagement denotes the extent to which an employee invests the full self in performing the job. Extant research has investigated the positive outcomes of job engagement, paying little attention to its potential costs to the organizations. Integrating the extended self theory and the literature on psychological ownership as our overarching theoretical framework, we develop and test the double-edged effects of job engagement on workplace outcomes through the mediating role of job-based psychological ownership. Analyses of two survey studies with multisource multiphase data support that job engagement can lead to positive workplace outcomes including in-role performance and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) through job-based psychological ownership. At the same time, job engagement is also positively related to negative workplace outcomes including territorial behavior, knowledge hiding, and pro-job unethical behavior through the same mechanism of job-based psychological ownership. These indirect effects of job engagement on negative work outcomes are amplified by employees’ avoidance motivation. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Task scheduling and performance: Evidence from professional surf tournaments
Gonçalo Pina
Journal of Economic Psychology, forthcoming
Abstract:
Task scheduling can have a major impact on performance and economic outcomes. This paper estimates the causal impact of time between tasks on performance using data from professional surf tournaments. It exploits exogenous variation in surf conditions and predetermined characteristics of the tournament to obtain contests between highly paid professionals that differ with respect to when they last competed. Results show that larger rest times cause an increase in the probability of success. These results are driven by surfers that lost in the previous round, suggesting that, following a bad performance, more time between tasks increases performance.