, correctly identify error variance. Due to imputation error, reporting beta weights alone typically destroys 95% to over 99% of the information originally held by a full correlation matrix. For fields that almost exclusively report betas, such as economics, it necessarily hampers them from becoming cumulative sciences. We recommend that all previous uses of Peterson and Brown be reevaluated, future aggregations of standardized beta weights use our provided imputation techniques, and correlation matrices be routinely reported. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
For reducing adverse impact, the diversity-validity tradeoff curve approach (De Corte et al., 2007) provides sets of selection predictor weights that can often substantially enhance diversity (i.e., increase adverse impact ratio and number of minority job offers), with no loss of job performance in comparison to unit weights (Wee et al., 2014). A key limitation of this diversity-enhancing approach is the tendency for tradeoff curves to shrink, leading to lesser job performance and diversity outcomes upon cross-validation (Song et al., 2017). The current article evaluates and compares tradeoff curve shrinkage (both validity shrinkage and diversity shrinkage) using three types of validity evidence/calibration studies: (a) a local validity study, (b) a meta-analysis (Schmidt & Hunter, 1977), and (c) a Bayes analysis with empirical priors, which is a weighted combination of a local study with a meta-analysis (Newman et al., 2007). Using simulation, we show conditions where each approach performs best, offering recommendations on ideal methods for diversity improvement (reducing shrinkage and maximizing cross-validity) in local selection settings. Results guide selection practitioners in novel methods (integrating the advantages of meta-analysis, Bayes analysis, and Pareto-optimal weighting) to best combine predictors to simultaneously achieve job performance and diversity objectives in local selection settings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Women continue to be underrepresented in numerous occupations and in the highest echelons of many organizations.This may be due, in part, to disadvantages they face in referral-based hiring and promotion processes, as women are less inclined to ask for referrals and less likely to be referred than men for maledominated jobs.We integrate insights from the goal-setting and creativity literatures to propose an intervention to boost referrals of women: requesting a greater target number of referrals (e.g., at least four instead of at least two referrals).This strategy sets a motivating goal to provide more referrals, which should mechanically increase the number of women referred.In addition, requesting more referrals in maledominated contexts may lead to prototype divergence, which should increase the rate at which women are referred as people generate additional recommendations.Across two primary studies (a field experiment and an online experiment) and four supplemental studies (another field experiment and three online experiments; all preregistered, total N = 12,615), requesting double the number of referrals increased the number of women referred by 17%-88%.We found evidence that setting more ambitious referral goals mediated the effect of asking for more referrals on the number of women referred, supporting a goals-based account.However, we found inconsistent support for prototype divergence as a mechanism across our studies.Our work establishes a theoretically motivated intervention organizations can use to bolster women's representation in recruitment pipelines in male-dominated settings, and our full-cycle approach establishes its generalizability across contexts.
Perceptions of motivation play a critical role in shaping workplace treatment, yet little is known about how such perceptions are socially constructed. Drawing on social exchange theories and perspectives on interdependent versus independent self, we propose an ethnic-stereotype perspective of perceived motivation, suggesting that Asian employees are perceived as having higher controlled motivation-being driven by external pressures and expectations rather than personal volition-which leads supervisors to anticipate greater conformity from Asian employees and subsequently exploit them. Across one experiment (Study 1), one multiwave survey (Study 2), and one preregistered experiment with a behavioral measure (Study 3a), we consistently found that Asian employees were perceived as having higher controlled motivation compared to White and Black employees, leading to greater anticipated conformity and exploitation. A second preregistered experiment (Study 3b), in which we directly manipulated perceived controlled motivation, provided causal evidence that higher perceived controlled motivation increased exploitation through anticipated conformity, whereas lower perceived controlled motivation reversed this effect relative to a neutral baseline. We conclude by discussing theoretical implications for research on workplace mistreatment, Asian employees' work experiences, and motivation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
= 203 data sets was analyzed to examine these relationships. The results of this work highlight that personality facets vary substantially in their relationships to leader effectiveness and emergence. This variability can be used to advance theory regarding specific personality-leader outcomes relations and to improve the prediction of leader outcomes when the effects of facets are considered in regression weighted composites. The results also suggest that certain facets' validities differ in student samples or depending on a leader's hierarchical level within an organization. This work contributes to understanding regarding when and why narrow dimensions of personality may be useful to consider in relation to leader outcomes and helps clarify distinctions between traits relevant for leader emergence and leader effectiveness. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
In recent decades, many organizations have been restructuring in ways that formally decentralize the necessary resources, information, and sociopolitical support, which is labeled "structural empowerment." Although prior research suggests that structural empowerment enhances resource exchanges, I challenge this conventional wisdom by theorizing its potential drawbacks for resource sharing. Integrating the evolutionary perspective of work design and the dominance-prestige model, I developed a comprehensive model of how and when structural empowerment can hinder employees' resource sharing via psychological entitlement. I employed multiwave (Study 1) and multisource (Studies 2 and 3) field surveys and experimental methodology (Study 4) to test my hypotheses. The results reveal that dominance-oriented individuals are more likely to feel entitled in response to structural empowerment. Moreover, psychological entitlement decreases resource sharing. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Leadership transitions are a fact of organizational life, yet the impact of successors' leadership behavior on organizational outcomes is little understood. Building on change readiness, uncertainty management, and romance of leadership theory and research, we propose a novel theory describing the distinctive effects of successors' versus incumbents' leadership behavior in driving change in collective engagement and organizational performance. We theorize that when employees perceive a great need for organizational change, successors' vision communication and coaching are more likely than incumbents' to yield improvements in collective engagement and organizational performance. But when employees perceive little need for change, successors' vision communication and coaching are more likely than incumbents' to yield declines. To test our model, we conducted a longitudinal, quasi-experimental study of principal succession in a sample of 113 U.S. elementary schools. As predicted, when employees perceived a great need for change, successors' coaching sparked gains in collective engagement and organizational performance. When employees perceived little need for change, successors' coaching backfired, spurring declines in collective engagement and organizational performance. As predicted, the effects of incumbents' coaching were muted. Finally, contrary to our predictions, neither successors' nor incumbents' vision communication drove change in collective engagement and performance. Our theory and findings illuminate the distinctive risks and benefits of successors' leadership behavior in driving change in collective engagement and organizational performance. For good and for bad, successors' coaching changes their organizations in ways that incumbents' leadership does not. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Organizational research often deals with unobservable (latent) variables such as, for example, job satisfaction or leadership styles. When comparing these latent variables across groups, a comparability of the measurements is important-so-called measurement invariance (MI) considered a prerequisite. Common methodology to test whether MI holds or to explore noninvariance can only be used with established measurement models and specific hypotheses about potential violations of MI in mind. Therefore, exploratory factor analysis trees and confirmatory factor analysis trees have recently been developed. They promise to be an effective tool for early investigations of MI during the development of measurement models (e.g., scale development) and with many (continuous) covariates defining countless groups for which MI may be violated. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Fulfilling the promise of greater workplace inclusion increasingly hinges on advantaged group employees' oppositional courage (OC)-a nonnormative form of allyship involving significant risk to the actor. Research suggests OC may not only offer instrumental benefits to marginalized employees but also convey a powerful "message of value" from the actor. Yet these courageous acts do not occur in a vacuum, suggesting they may carry social consequences for marginalized employees. Drawing from theory on helping relations and research on social cognition, we argue these risky acts can inadvertently signal unique strength in the actor, triggering marginalized employees' diminished image belief-a concern others see them as weak and unable to stand up for themselves. We further propose that this perceived "image cost" depends on the actor's humility as it relates to OC-what we term OC-specific humility-and that these dynamics have implications for marginalized employees' avoidance reactions. Our investigation utilized data from 959 trans employees. In Study 1, a qualitative analysis identified three behavioral themes reflecting humility in relation to OC (i.e., OC-specific humility) and provided initial support for its role in shaping how OC is perceived. In Study 2, we tested our hypotheses experimentally. In Study 3, we sought to replicate the results with a time-lagged survey. Three supplemental studies included a scale development effort aimed at validating a measure of OC-specific humility and two additional experiments. Overall, results provided partial support for our model. We conclude by discussing the implications of our research, as well as avenues for future work. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Food insecurity-insufficient access to safe and nutritious foods-is one of the most crucial societal grand challenges the world faces today. It affects 2.3 billion people globally, and addressing it is one of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals of 2030 (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations et al., 2025). Despite its prevalence and importance, the field of applied psychology has ignored this problem with the implicit assumption that food insecurity is not an issue relevant to the workplace. Contrary to this view, we hypothesize and demonstrate that food insecurity is detrimental to the three core work outcomes: task performance, work engagement, and organizational citizenship behaviors. To test our hypotheses, we employed a multimethod design across three empirical studies: (a) an experimental recall study, (b) a within-person diary study, and (c) a field experiment. Our findings consistently demonstrate that food insecurity leads to higher anxiety, which subsequently has a negative effect on task performance, work engagement, and organizational citizenship behavior. In our field experiment, we further demonstrated that providing food to those experiencing food insecurity can improve work outcomes. This research highlights that food insecurity is a significant issue with important implications for the workplace that requires greater attention from both researchers and business leaders. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).