Popular stereotypes suggest that generational differences among workers present challenges for workplace managers. However, existing empirical research provides mixed evidence for generational differences in important values and attitudes. The current study extends generational effects research by examining differences in actual workplace behaviors. Drawing from commonly held generational stereotypes, the authors hypothesized that Baby Boomers would exhibit (Hypothesis 1) fewer job mobility behaviors and (Hypothesis 2) more instances of compliance‐related behaviors in comparison with both GenXers and Millennials, while (Hypothesis 3) GenXers would be less likely to work overtime in comparison with Baby Boomers and Millennials. A sample of 8,040 applicants at two organizations was used to test these predictions. Results provided support for Hypothesis 1 and Hypothesis 3 and partial support for Hypothesis 2, but the effect sizes for these relationships were small. It appears the effects of generational membership on workplace behavior are not as strong as suggested by commonly held stereotypes. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

Although organizational change often places strain on employees, few studies have explored the impact of multiple organizational changes on their well-being and withdrawal, including organizational commitment and turnover intentions. To provide a means of directly investigating such issues, we developed a measure of change fatigue, and then empirically examined its implications for employees. Using data from change consultants and a manufacturing organization in the United States that had undertaken a number of organizational changes over the last three years, the authors developed a six-item measurement scale, obtained initial evidence of construct validity, and then investigated the relationship between change fatigue and harmful outcomes, including exhaustion, organizational commitment and turnover intentions. Results indicated that change fatigue was positively associated with exhaustion, and exhaustion was in turn negatively related to organizational commitment and positively related to turnover intentions. Implications for organizations and employees facing multiple changes are discussed.

SummaryIn the last 10 years, research devoted to the construct of leader-member exchange (LMX) has increasingly relied on the tenets of social exchange as a theoretical foundation to propose and test relationships between supervisor-subordinate dyads and variables of significant consequence. Despite the theory underpinning such relationships, researchers continue to measure LMX with scales developed to assess vertical dyad linkage (VDL), not social exchange. To address this concern, we investigated the content validity of LMX7 (the most widely cited measure of LMX) and LMX-MDM (a popular multidimensional measure of LMX). Findings from content validity assessments by 25 LMX experts revealed LMX7 and LMX-MDM items are not representative of the construct of social exchange. As such, we undertook a series of studies to develop a new scale we label, leader-member social exchange (LMSX). Results indicate LMSX is able to assess different, as well as the same, components of the supervisor-subordinate relationship as previous scales while being more theoretically consistent with the notion of social exchange.

Since its introduction to the social psychology literature 60 years ago, Festinger’s cognitive dissonance theory (CDT) has been frequently applied to the management literature to explain and predict the motivational nature of dissonance in producing attitude and behavior change in managerial decision making and the broader organizational context. Yet many of the popular constructs that stem from CDT have since lost touch with more recent developments in the field of origin. In this paper, we provide a review of the key constructs and predictions associated with CDT from Festinger’s early work to the latest developments. We then review key management research that has incorporated CDT. Drawing from the latest refinements to CDT, we describe how future management studies could benefit by integrating these refinements into their theoretical frameworks, rather than simply relying on Festinger’s seminal work on the 60th anniversary of its publication (1957).

Based on research conducted by organizational scientists dating to the 1940s, the authors identified five important precursors that determine the degree of buy-in by organizational change recipients. The authors assembled these independent precursors into a framework labeled organizational change recipients' beliefs and developed a psychometrically sound self-report questionnaire that can be used to gauge progress of organizational change efforts. The authors describe a series of four studies used to develop a 24-item assessment tool that can be administered at any stage of the change process. The information obtained can serve as (a) a barometer of the degree of buy-in among change recipients, (b) an assessment of deficiencies in specific beliefs that can adversely impact the success of an organizational change, and (c) a basis for planning and executing actions to enhance buy-in among organizational change recipients.