Department of Industrial Psychology

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Browsing Department of Industrial Psychology by browse.metadata.advisor "Cillie, Gawie"

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    The impact of job demands and job resources on the burnout and engagement of trade union representatives
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03) Middleton, Melissa; Cillie, Gawie; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Industrial Psychology.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY : In South Africa, trade union representatives, more commonly known as shop stewards, face the difficulty of having to fulfil two roles. Currently trade union representatives are elected and expected to perform their trade union duties over and above their duties and responsibilities as full-time employees of the organisation for which they work. Bearing this in mind, the aim of this study was to investigate whether or not job demands, job resources and personal resources have an impact on the engagement and burnout of trade union representatives. The primary objective of the study was to develop and empirically test a structural model that describes and explains the nature of the relationships between job demands, job resources and personal resources (exogenous latent variables), and the engagement and burnout (endogenous latent variables) of trade union representatives. For the purpose of this study, emotional intelligence was used as personal resource for trade union representatives. The study made use of partial least squares (PLS) analyses to test the hypothesised relationships between the latent variables. Using an electronic questionnaire, quantitative data was collected from 60 trade union representatives from various South African trade unions. In order to qualify to participate in the study, trade union representatives had to be full-time employees of an organisation as well as elected trade union representatives actively playing the role of trade union representative. The data collected was collected specifically for this study and participation was voluntary. The questionnaire-link was distributed via email by the trade union correspondents to the qualifying trade union representatives. The data was kept confidential and the participants were anonymous. The questionnaire consisted of six sections. The first was an informed consent template, in which participants were provided with information about the study and the implications of their participation were explained. There were no negative consequences from participation; however, the contact details of a professional clinical psychologist were provided should any of the participants have felt the need to talk to a professional after completing the survey. The informed consent was followed by questions on the biographical details of the participant and four sections that contained the measurement tools used to measure the various latent variables. These instruments were the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) (Demerouti, Bakker, Nachreiner & Schaufeli, 2001), the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) (Schaufeli & Bakker, 2003), the Job Demands-Resources Scale (JDRS) (Jackson & Rothmann, 2005) and the Genos EI concise version (Gignac, 2008; Gignac & Ekermans 2010; Palmer, Stough, Harmer & Gignac, 2009). The data was subjected to a range of statistical analyses. The study was able to identify a significant relationship between job resources and engagement for trade union representatives in South Africa. Through the proactive management of job resources, trade unions may be able to significantly increase the engagement of their trade union representatives and therefore increase the impact of the trade unions in the workplace on behalf of their members.
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    Investigating high turnover intention and a diminished level of organisational commitment as antecedents of accidents
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014-04) Burger, Elke; Cillie, Gawie; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Industrial Psychology.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: A study on intention to leave and efficiency that was conducted in the healthcare industry reported that an employee contemplating leaving an organisation cuts corners and compromises quality (Waldman, Kelly, Arora & Smith, 2004). In other words, employees with high intention to leave are more likely to disobey rules and procedures. Swain (2006) further argued that companies must weigh up the untold losses involved with an employee who has little to no loyalty towards an organisation, or no respect for the company’s equipment, against recruitment and development costs. It was therefore argued that a combination of high turnover intention and a diminished level of organisational commitment could influence an employee’s attitude towards safety procedures and, as a result, lead to an increase in accidents (Graham & Nafukho, 2010). This study utilised an extensive literature review on work climate, job satisfaction, organisational commitment, turnover intentions and accident rates and a conceptual model of safe driving dynamics in trucking to illustrate the notion that truck drivers with a diminished level of organisational commitment and the intention to leave may experience higher accident rates. A South African retail group made all their drivers available for the study, i.e. the entire population. The raw data was obtained through self-administered pencil-and-paper questionnaires. A response rate of 50% was achieved. Using Partial Least Squares analysis, the study found all three mindsets of organisational commitment to predict turnover intention. The practical implications of these findings could assist management in the improvement of an array of work behaviours such as job performance, work attendance and organisational citizenship, and decrease turnover rate. The study could not find any significant support for the predictive effect of turnover intention on risky driving behaviour. Future researchers, however, are encouraged to develop a model that could assist Human Resource professionals in the understanding, development, and implementation of interventions to increase organisational commitment, reduce intention to leave, actual turnover, and, consequently, costly truckload accidents.
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    The relationship between job demands, job resources, engagement, burnout and intention to quit
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014-04) Cole, Beatrix; Cillie, Gawie; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Industrial Psychology.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The increasing demand for client-services in a highly competitive business environment has resulted in a substantial increase in the number of call centres in South Africa and worldwide (Carrim, Basson & Coetzee, 2006). Within the call centre industry, turnover intentions have been identified as one of the most pressing problems in terms of cost and productivity. This research suggests that the exploration and then the alteration of job resources and job demands will help elicit factors that foster engagement and will help lessen and/or alleviate burnout experiences. This in turn will help to decrease turnover intentions in the South African call centre industry. This research attempts to investigate the proposed relationships between the constructs in a structural model. The literature review defines turnover, turnover intention, engagement, burnout as well as job demands and job resources, using the Job Demands- Resources model. It also discusses the importance for organisations to understand employees’ turnover intentions. The literature review aims to portray that there are relationships between the five constructs. The current research was conducted in 5 inbound/outbound South African call centres. The sample was comprised of 122 participants and a non-probability sampling technique, convenience sampling was utilized. A self-developed Biographical Questionnaire, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) and the Maslach Burnout Inventory Questionnaire (MBI) were used as measuring instruments. Job demands and job resources using the Work Design Questionnaire (WDQ) by Morgeson and Humphrey (2006) were used as well as a Turnover Intentions Questionnaire developed by Roodt (2004) cited in Adam and Roodt (2008). A reliability analysis was done to assess the measurement properties of the respective measures, and all scales showed highly acceptable reliability. The data wereanalysed using the soft approach to Structural Equation Modeling that is Partial least squares path modeling. The results indicate that all of the relationships tested are significant. A model testing engagement and burnout as mediators were also investigated. Both relationships were insignificant hence engagement is a mediator between job resources and intention to quit and burnout a mediator between job demands and intention to quit. This was also confirmed by two separate Sobel tests (Sobel, 1982). This study adds to existing literature on job resources, job demands, engagement, burnout and intention to quit by providing insights into the relationships among these constructs. This study also provides call centres with valuable information for the development and/or alterations of working conditions aimed at mitigating turnover behavior and maximizing organizational outcomes through an engaged workforce.
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    Transformation in higher education : perceptions of female academics at a distance education institution of higher education
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2008-03) Ragadu, Suzette C.; Minnaar, Suzette, C.; Cillie, Gawie; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Industrial Psychology.
    Females in academia remain concentrated in lower level positions, with limited and often no decision-making power. However, this is not only a South African phenomenon but it is also evident in the position of female academics in the United Kingdom, the United States and New Zealand. Within the South African context, higher education institutions are in a process of transformation and change in order to integrate with social transformation and change. Therefore, the Department of Education mandated certain higher education institutions to transform and merge, with implications for their human resource management. Universities are regarded as complex organisations and this complicates the management and leadership of such institutions. Moreover, South Africa has passed legislation (e.g. the Higher Education Act) that impacts its human resource management and the manner in which higher education institutions are transformed and managed. Higher education institutions employ the principles of corporate management and therefore the distinction between management and leadership is highlighted. Communication is discussed as a tool thereof and the differences of males and females in this regard are emphasised. The status of female academics in South Africa is discussed and the perceptions of female academics with regard to the dimensions used in the empirical inquiry are highlighted. The empirical inquiry gauged how females occupying academic positions at a South African distance education university perceived the management process of institutional transformation. The perceptions of female academics with regard to five dimensions: management and leadership; communication; diversity and employment equity; and transformation and change were gauged and compared to the perceptions of male academics and that of female professional/administrative personnel. It was found that female and male academics were relatively positive with only one significant difference: their perceptions of communication at the institution. There were also significant differences in the perceptions of white and of black female academics. Furthermore, when female academics were compared to female professional/administrative personnel, there were significant differences: female academics held generally more positive perceptions than those of female professional/administrative personnel. In addition, there was evidence of an ageing workforce.