Organizational departures: the impact of separation anxiety as studied in a mergers and acquisitions simulation

Article Abstract:

This article explores the impact of impending layoffs on emotions, both theoretically and empirically, using a simulated mergers and acquisitions scenario in which 119 people participated. Root causes of layoff stress, emotional outcomes, and coping mechanisms, both useful and dysfunctional, are examined. A major focus of this research is on how the group context of a layoff or merger situation affects emotion and behavior. The research shows that anxiety is stimulated by the mere announcement that people in an organization are leaving and that the impact of this anxiety is expressed differently depending on the proportion of people staying in and leaving the organization. This article looks at the basic dynamic of separation anxiety - what it is and why it is stimulated. It explores how separation anxiety is manifested in several simple contexts. Psychodynamic concepts, such as denial, splitting, and projection, are introduced to help uncover some of the simpler dynamics surrounding separation anxiety as experienced in a group. Next, the article reports an experiment of a simulation in which work groups were formed and then people were chosen to leave their organizations. The experiment varied the number of people who stayed in or left their work groups. Anxiety and attitudes were measured over time, allowing the use of a repeated measures statistical analysis. Based on the theory presented and the research findings, ideas for managing separation anxiety are offered. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Psychological aspects, Acquisitions and mergers, Anxiety, Layoffs, Organizational behavior

---

Affective reactions to leadership education: an exploration of the same-gender effect

Article Abstract:

This study examines influences of the gender of participants and of small group leaders on the affective reactions of experienced managers attending a 1-week residential training program on leadership. A sample of 404 upper-level managers from the private and public sectors participated in eight offsite seminars held over a 3-year period. Three-month follow-up data were collected from 63% of participants. As expected, male managers were more likely than female managers to report positive affective reactions to this educational program. In addition, a "same gender" effect was found for women; the most positive affective reactions were reported by female managers with femal leaders. A combination of social systems and attitude theories provides an explanation of the obtained differences. The results suggest that greater involvement of female group leaders and participants in educational programs is needed to enhance affective reactions by managers in an increasingly heterogeneous workplace. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Demographic aspects, Sex differences (Psychology), Sex differences, Management training, Professional socialization

---

Reactions to women in authority: the impact of gender on learning in group relations conferences

Article Abstract:

A study was made of the impact of gender on learning in group relations conferences. Questionnaires were sent to 265 adults who participated in seven group relations conferences. The conferences varied in context and design, but each included a small group event highlighting reactions to consultant authority. Three-month follow-up data were collected from 60% of the participants. When the participants' self-assessed learning in relation to consultant and participant gender was statistically analyzed, 9 of 10 significant effects favored the women consultants. Using Eagly's theoretical model of gender role differences in adults and psychodynamic group theory, the authors conclude that a complete explanation of gender's effects on learning must consider the 'agentic' and communal dimensions of a group's task, the ambiguity of criteria for evaluating performance, women consultants' status, the gender composition of the group, and transference reactions. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Learning, Psychology of, Learning theory (Psychology), Women consultants, Group relations training, Sensitivity training

Similar abstracts:

• Abstracts: Organizational determinants of leader behavior and authority. Two (or More?) dimensions or organizational commitment: reexamination of the affective and continuance commitment scales
• Abstracts: Organizational attractiveness: an interactionist perspective. Supervisor-subordinate similarity: types, effects, and mechanisms
• Abstracts: Secular immortality and the American ideology of affluence. The consciousness of addiction: toward a general theory of compulsive consumption
• Abstracts: Impression management, social desirability, and computer administration of attitude questionnaires: does the computer make a difference?
• Abstracts: Development and validation of minicourses in the telecommunication industry. Appropriate critical percentages for the Schmidt and Hunter meta-analysis procedure: comparative evaluation of type 1 error rate and power

This website is not affiliated with document authors or copyright owners. This page is provided for informational purposes only. Unintentional errors are possible.