Factor Influence Organisational Change
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/0953-4814.htm
Factors influencing organizational change efforts
An integrative investigation of change content, context, process and individual differences
H. Jack Walker, Achilles A. Armenakis and Jeremy B. Bernerth
Department of Management, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, USA
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the integrative influence of content, context, process, and individual differences on organizational change efforts. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from employees involved in a recent de-merger. Using structural equation modeling, a hypothesized model that integrated individual differences with change content, context, and process factors was tested. Findings – Results led to the acceptance of a model indicating that change context mediated the relationship between individual differences and change process and content. Similarly, change content and process mediated the relationship between change context and organizational change commitment. Research limitations/implications – Owing to the nature of the study, inferences of causality cannot be made. Additionally, common method bias may be a concern because criterion and response variables were collected at the same time. Practical implications – An organization’s prior change history (i.e. context) has the potential to negatively influence change success. In order to counteract these effects, change agents should concentrate on clearly communicating the change details (i.e. process) to employees. Originality/value – This study is one of the first to integrate factors common to all change efforts, i.e. content, context, process and individual differences. Further, it elaborates on how these factors interact to influence change success. Keywords Organizational change, Employee behaviour, Change management, Corporate communications Paper type Research paper
Factors influencing organizational change efforts
An integrative investigation of change content, context, process and individual differences
H. Jack Walker, Achilles A. Armenakis and Jeremy B. Bernerth
Department of Management, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, USA
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the integrative influence of content, context, process, and individual differences on organizational change efforts. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from employees involved in a recent de-merger. Using structural equation modeling, a hypothesized model that integrated individual differences with change content, context, and process factors was tested. Findings – Results led to the acceptance of a model indicating that change context mediated the relationship between individual differences and change process and content. Similarly, change content and process mediated the relationship between change context and organizational change commitment. Research limitations/implications – Owing to the nature of the study, inferences of causality cannot be made. Additionally, common method bias may be a concern because criterion and response variables were collected at the same time. Practical implications – An organization’s prior change history (i.e. context) has the potential to negatively influence change success. In order to counteract these effects, change agents should concentrate on clearly communicating the change details (i.e. process) to employees. Originality/value – This study is one of the first to integrate factors common to all change efforts, i.e. content, context, process and individual differences. Further, it elaborates on how these factors interact to influence change success. Keywords Organizational change, Employee behaviour, Change management, Corporate communications Paper type Research paper
References: Armenakis, A.A. and Bedeian, A.G. (1999), “Organizational change: a review of theory and research in the 1990s”, Journal of Management, Vol. 25, pp. 293-315. Armenakis, A.A., Harris, S.G. and Feild, H.S. (1999), “Making change permanent: a model for institutionalizing change interventions”, Research in Organizational Change and Development, Vol. 12, pp. 97-128. Armenakis, A.A., Harris, S.G. and Mossholder, K.W. (1993), “Creating readiness for organizational change”, Human Relations, Vol. 46, pp. 681-703. Ashford, S.J. (1988), “Individual strategies for coping with stress during organizational transitions”, Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, Vol. 24, pp. 19-36. Atwater, L.E., Waldman, D.A., Atwater, D. and Cartier, P. (2000), “An upward feedback field experiment: supervisors’ cynicism, reactions, and commitment to subordinates”, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 53, pp. 275-97. Bentler, P.M. (1990), “Comparative fit indexes in structural models”, Psychological Bulletin, Vol. 107, pp. 238-46. Bray, D.W. (1994), “Personnel-centered organizational diagnosis”, in Howard, A. et al. (Eds), Diagnosis for Organizational Change, Guilford Press, New York, NY, pp. 152-71. Brown, J.S. and Duguid, P. (1991), “Organizational learning and communities-of-practice: toward a unified view of working, learning, and innovation”, Organizational Science, Vol. 2, pp. 40-57. Budner, J. (1962), “Tolerance of ambiguity as a personality variable”, Journal of Personality, Vol. 30, pp. 29-40. Byrne, B.M. (2001), Structural Equation Modeling with AMOS, Erlbaum, Mahwah, NJ. Integration of change factors 771 JOCM 20,6 772 Coch, L. and French, J. (1948), “Overcoming resistance to change”, Human Relations, Vol. 1, pp. 512-32. Damanpour, F. (1991), “Organizational innovation: a meta-analysis of effects of determinants and moderators”, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 34, pp. 555-90. Frazier, P.A., Tix, A.P. and Barron, K.E. (2004), “Testing moderator and mediator effects in counseling psychology research”, Journal of Counseling Psychology, Vol. 51, pp. 115-34. Galpin, T. (1996), The Human Side of Change: A Practical Guide to Organization Redesign, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA. Haveman, H. (1992), “Between a rock and a hard place: organizational change and performance under conditions of fundamental environmental transformation”, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 37, pp. 48-75. Herscovitch, L. and Meyer, J.P. (2002), “Commitment to organizational change: extension of a three-component model”, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 87, pp. 474-87. Hinings, C.R. and Greenwood, R. (1988), The Dynamics of Strategic Change, Basil Blackwell, Oxford. Holmbeck, G.N. (1997), “Toward terminological, conceptual, and statistical clarity in the study of mediators and moderators: examples from the child-clinical and pediatric psychology literatures”, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, Vol. 65, pp. 599-610. Hu, L-T. and Bentler, P.M. (1999), “Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives”, Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, Vol. 6, pp. 1-55. Joreskog, K.G. and Sorbom, D. (1993), LISREL 8: Structural Equation Modeling with the SIMPLIS Command Language, Erlbaum, Hillsdale, NJ. Judge, T.A., Thoreson, C.J., Pucik, V. and Welbourne, T.M. (1999), “Managerial coping with organizational change: a dispositional perspective”, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 84, pp. 107-22. Judson, A. (1991), Changing Behavior in Organizations: Minimizing Resistance to Change, Basil Blackwell, Cambridge, MA. Kelly, P. and Amburgey, T. (1991), “Organizational inertia and momentum: a dynamic model of strategic change”, Academy of Management Journal, pp. 591-612. Kotter, J. (1995), “Leading change: why transformation efforts fail”, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 73, pp. 59-67. Lewin, K. (1947), “Frontiers in group dynamics”, Human Relations, Vol. 1, pp. 5-41. McCrae, R.R. and Costa, P.T. (1986), “Personality, coping, and coping effectiveness in an adult sample”, Journal of Personality, Vol. 54, pp. 385-405. McLain, D. (1993), “The MSTAT-I: a new measure of an individual’s tolerance for ambiguity”, Educational and Psychological Measurement, Vol. 53, pp. 183-9. Meyer, A., Brooks, G. and Goer, J. (1990), “Environmental jolts and industry revolutions: organizational responses to discontinuous change”, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 11, pp. 93-110. Miller, D. and Friesen, P.H. (1984), Organizations: A Quantum View, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. Nutt, P.C. (1986), “Tactics of implementation”, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 29, pp. 230-61. Reger, R.K., Mullane, J.V., Gustafson, L.T. and DeMarie, S.M. (1994), “Creating earthquakes to change organizational mindsets”, Academy of Management Executive, Vol. 8, pp. 31-46. Reichers, A.E., Wanous, J.P. and Austin, J.T. (1997), “Understanding and managing cynicism about organizational change”, Academy of Management Executive, Vol. 11, pp. 48-59. Rush, M.C., Schoel, W.A. and Barnard, S.M. (1995), “Psychological resilience in the public sector: “Hardiness” and pressure for change”, Journal of Vocational Behavior, Vol. 46, pp. 17-39. Schneider, B. (1987), “The people make the place”, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 40, pp. 437-53. Schweiger, D.M. and DeNisi, A.S. (1991), “Communication with employees following a merger: a longitudinal field experiment”, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 34, pp. 110-35. Snyder, M. (1974), “The self-monitoring of expressive behavior”, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 30, pp. 526-37. Staw, B.M. and Ross, J. (1985), “Stability in the midst of change: a dispositional approach to job attitudes”, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 70, pp. 469-80. Tsoukas, H. (1996), “The firm as a distributed knowledge system: a constructionist approach”, Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 17, pp. 11-26. Vandenberg, R.J. and Lance, C.E. (2000), “A review and synthesis of the measurement invariance literature: suggestions, practices, and recommendations for organizational research”, Organizational Research Methods, Vol. 3, pp. 4-69. Wanous, J.P., Reichers, A.E. and Austin, J.T. (1994), “Organizational cynicism: an initial study”, Academy of Management Best Paper Proceedings, pp. 269-73. Watzlawick, P. (1978), The Language of Change, Basic Books, New York, NY. Weick, K. and Quinn, R. (1999), “Organizational change and development”, Annual Review of Psychology, Vol. 50, pp. 361-86. Wheaton, B., Muthen, B., Alwin, D.F. and Summers, G.F. (1977), “Assessing reliability and stability in panel models”, in Heise, D.R. (Ed.), Sociological Methodology 1977, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, pp. 84-136. Corresponding author H. Jack Walker can be contacted at: walkeh1@auburn.edu Integration of change factors 773 To purchase reprints of this article please e-mail: reprints@emeraldinsight.com Or visit our web site for further details: www.emeraldinsight.com/reprints