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| Complex and Experimental Analyses of OBM Phenomena |
| Saturday, May 29, 2004 |
| 2:30 PM–3:50 PM |
| Liberty B |
| Area: OBM |
| Chair: Carter L. Smith (Temple University) |
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| Discounting Compensation: Evaluating the Differential Effects of Delay on the Value of Vacation Time and Salary |
| Domain: Applied Research |
| CARTER L. SMITH (Temple University), Donald A. Hantula (Temple University), Christen L. McDonald (Temple University), Rolanda Findlay (Temple University) |
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| Abstract: A major finding in the intertemporal choice literature is that different classes of reinforcers (domains) are discounted at different rates. It is also becoming apparent that reinforcers delivered in series, and the use of conditioned reinforcers that can be used at any time, may be discounted at different rates and according to different decay functions. Interestingly, the differential valuation of reinforcers has not been studied in the context of organizational behavior. The objective of the current study is to identify potential differences in the discount rates applied to two types of reinforcers that are commonly included in workplace compensation: vacation time and monetary compensation through salary. In an electronic decision-making task, thirty participants completed a series of intertemporal choice tasks framed job offers made by fictitious companies. Magnitude effects emerged for both compensation and vacation time packages, and the decay in subjective value of both types of reinforcers were best described by a hyperbolic decay function. Area under the curve data indicated large between-domain differences in the rate of discounting over identical time periods, with vacation time discounted more rapidly than monetary compensation. Additionally, patterns of discounting in vacation time were much more varied. Implications for organizational theory and for compensation systems used in organizations are discussed. |
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| Complex Repretoires and PM Methodologies |
| Domain: Applied Research |
| MANUEL A. RODRIGUEZ (Florida Institute of Technology), Kelly L. Therrien (Florida Institute of Technology), James E. Daniels (Aubrey Daniels International) |
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| Abstract: There are many businesses where the behaviors relevant to an effective PM intervention are covert. Nuclear power generation is one of them. The assumptions and processes that the individual engineer uses to produce work are a vital concern. How do we get at them in a manner consistent with the principles and practices of behavior analysis?The goal of the current project was the development of an observation form for the knowledge workers of a nuclear power plant. The project utilized the Microsoft Visio program to develop a visual inference of the covert verbal behavior the knowledge workers employ in their job tasks. After evaluation of what was known as the “mind maps,” the construction of the observation forms became more task specific and more task-oriented than the current observations forms being utilized. The project demonstrated the effective use of performance management methodologies and behavioral evaluations in developing a behavioral job observation form based on verbal analogues of behavior. |
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| Contingencies of Effective Leadership in Superior-Subordinate Dyads: A Replication and Extension |
| Domain: Applied Research |
| THOMAS C. MAWHINNEY (University of Detroit Mercy) |
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| Abstract: Subordinate performance rates under a leadership contingency (LC, i.e., superiors monetary rewards received contingent on subordinates' performances) minus their rates under a nominal leadership contingency (NLC, i.e., no programmed rewards delivered to superiors contingent on subordinates' performances) operationally defined leadership in this (Experiment II) and a previous laboratory experiment (I) (Rao & Mawhinney, 1991). In Experiment II leadership occurred across all four dyads as a function of high subordinate performance rates under the LC replicating results of Experiment I. The correlation between leader and follower response rates during the final LC condition across N = 4 dayds per experiment were .9976 and .4356 and levels of leadership averaged across the dayds were 169.12 and 161.30 respectively for Experiments II and I. Visual inspection of leader-follower interactions for both experiments provided clear evidence that leadership evolved in conformity with the correlation based law of effect (Baum, 1973; Mawhinney, 2001; Mawhinney & Ford, 1977). Results support practitioners’ conviction that "leadership" makes practically significant contributions to followers' performance rates whether or not its effects are readily apparent in field settings (Campbell, 1977). |
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