Advisors: Professor Dr Nor Ghani Md Nor
Associate Professor Dr Maisarah Ahmad
Chairperson: Dr Mohd Rizal Palil
Co-chairperson: Lt Cdr (Retd) Dr Lokhman Hakim Osman
Secretary: Miss Normaziah Zaini
Finance: Dr Mara Ridhuan Che Abdul Rahman
Marketing and Publicity: Dr Norlin Khalid
Protocol and Reception: Dr Mohd Mohid Rahmat
Working Papers and Publication: Associate Professor Dr Hawati Janor
Certificates and Souvenirs: Associate Professor Dr Mariani Abdul Majid
Logistics: Mr Mohd Dzul Azzwan Mohd Nor
Technical and Special Tasks: Dr Hazrul Izuan Shahiri
Website and Technology: Dr Khairul Azman Aziz
Keynote Speaker and VIP Invitation: Associate Professor Dr Noorasiah Sulaiman
Sub-Committee Members
Associate Professor Dr. Mohd. Azlan Shah Zaidi
Associate Professor Dr. Nor Liza Abdullah
Dr. Abu Hanifah Ayob
Dr. Amizawati Mohd. Amir
Dr. Mohd. Hasimi Yaacob
Dr. Rozita Amiruddin
Mr Hairunnizam Wahid
Miss Siti Ngaesah Ab. Hamid
Miss Veelaiporn Promwitchit
Mr Muhammad Shah Rizal b. Mohd. Ghazali
Mrs Haslina Hamdan
Miss Hasni Arshad
Mr Muhamad Azrin Supar
Mr Mohammad Zukry Ahmad
Mrs Noorsyam Noordin
Miss Nor Nadia Nordin
Professor Dr. Rahmah Ismail
Associate Professor Dr. Aini Aman
Associate Professor Dr. Aisyah Abdul Rahman
Associate Professor Dr. Azhar Ahmad
Associate Professor Dr. Azman Ismail
Associate Professor Dr. Basri Abdul Talib
Associate Professor Dr. Che Aniza Che Wel
Associate Professor Dr. Doris Padmini Selvaratnam
Associate Professor Dr. Hawati Binti Janor
Associate Professor Dr. Madeline Berma
Associate Professor Dr. Maisarah Ahmad
Associate Professor Dr. Mariani Abdul Majid
Associate Professor Dr. Mohamat Sabri Hassan
Associate Professor Dr. Mohd Azlan Shah Zaidi
Associate Professor Dr. Mohd Hizam Hanafiah
Associate Professor Dr. Nor Asiah Omar
Associate Professor Dr. Nor Liza Abdullah
Associate Professor Dr. Norazlan Alias
Associate Professor Dr. Norlida Hanim Mohd Salleh
Associate Professor Dr. Romlah Jaafar
Associate Professor Dr. Rosmah Mat Isa
Associate Professor Dr. Ruhanita Maelah
Associate Professor Dr. Ruzita Abdul Rahim
Associate Professor Dr. Shahida Shahimi
Associate Professor Dr. Sofiah Md Auzair
Associate Professor Dr. Syed Shah Alam
Associate Professor Dr. Zafir Mohd Makhbul
Associate Professor Dr. Zakiah Mohammaddun Mohamed
Associate Professor Dr. Zizah Che Senik
Associate Professor Dr. Zulkefly Abdul Karim
Dr. Abu Hanifah Ayub
Dr. Harlina On
Dr. Hazrul Izuan Shahiri
Dr. Hendon Redzuan
Dr. Lohhman Hakim Osman
Dr. Mara Ridhuan
Dr. Mohd Adib Ismail
Dr. Mohd Daud Ismail
Dr. Mohd Hasimi Yaacob
Dr. Norsiah Aminudin
Dr. Roshayati Abdul Hamid
Dr. Rosiati Ramli
Dr. Rozita Amiruddin
Dr. Rubaayah Yaakob
Dr. Shifa Mohd Nor
Dr. Zaleha Yazid
Mr. Ahmad Raflis Che Omar
1
TABLE OF CONTENT
Action Research: The Methodology of Choice for Muslim Researchers? ... 3
The Role of Communication Openness in Performance Appraisal Systems in Enhancing Appraisees’ Job Satisfaction... 14
Empirical Investigation of Five-Factor Model of Personality ... 26
The Effects of Shopping Lifestyle, Fashion Involvement, and Self Confidence on Impulse Buying Behavior on the Generation Y Banjarmasin ... 40
Cross-Cultural Adjustment among Foreign Expatriates of Oil and Gas Industry in Kuala Lumpur ... 47
External Factors Affecting Indonesians for Islamic Spiritual Tourism: A Conceptual Model ... 69
Prison Officers in Highly Stressful Organisation: The Relationship Between Wellness, Stress and Personality ... 80
The Effect of Religiosity on Purchase Decision towards Halal Foods with Awareness as Intervening Variable ... 99
The Implementation of Corporate Governance Mechanism on Earnings Management of Jakarta Islamics Index (JII) and LQ-45 Index ... 113
Lending Interest Rates Relationships of Malaysia and Other Countries ... 130
Identification of Elements that Promote the Linkage between Information Technology Strategy and Business Strategy ... 142
Psychological Resilience, Agreeableness, Attitude and Behaviours toward Organizational Change: A Study of Academics in Malaysian Research Universities ... 153
Using Behavioral Online Intention to Create Customer Trust at Shopping Online in Bengkulu Indonesia ... 165
The Impact of Transformational Leadership Dimensions on Organizational Innovation: A Case of Higher Education in Iraq ... 175
Interaction Effect of Leadership Styles And Regulatory Pressure as Predictor of Organizational Performance: A Study on Port Supply Chain Activities at Port Klang .... 187
Legal Protection on Consumers’ Right to Information under the Consumer Protection Legislations of Malaysia and Indonesia ... 219
Halalan Toyyiban Concept in Retailing Management: A Conceptual Paper ... 229
The Finance Performance of the Autonomous Areas in Bengkulu Province ... 243
Ownership Structure and M&A Long–Term Performance ... 261
Spiritual Company as a Company Culture for Competitive Advantage of the Company . 274 Halal and Tayyib Certification on Processed Food Products of Indonesia’s (SMEs): Strategy for Improving The Quality Standard of The SMEs Products ... 283
2 Model Development Potential of Entrepreneurial Management Capacity through PNPM and P2KP Program in Bengkulu City ... 299 The Effects of Attitude toward Money and Credit Card Usage Behaviour on Compulsive Buying Behaviour ... 314 The Survey of Online Mediation in South-East Asia ... 326 Service Quality Factor for the Success of Home Stay Agro Tourism in Malaysia ... 338 Analysis of the Efficiency of Nigerian Insurance Companies: A DEA and LGCM Approach ... 353 Psychological Capital, Performance and Growth Intentions of Entrepreneurs: Some
Propositions ... 370 Risk Management Efficiency and Organizational Form: Takaful Versus Conventional Insurance ... 394 The Mediating Role of Psychological Contract Violation on the Relations Between
Psychological Contract Breach and Workplace Deviance ... 410 The Experience of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Managing Halal Supply-Chain ... 420 Efficiency-Profitability Mapping of Privatized State-Owned Enterprises : the Case of Indonesia ... 426 Literature Review on Relationship between Islamic Work Ethics (IWE) and Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) ... 440 An Examination of the Demand for Family Takaful Protection ... 449 Does Goal Attainment Influence Intention to Remain in the Business? A Study of Small Business Owner in Malaysia ... 463 Behavior of Reading Nutrition Fact Label on Undergraduate Students of Bogor
Agricultural University, Indonesia ... 488
Relationship between Appraisers’ Communication Styles in Performance Appraisal System
and Appraises’ Job Satisfaction... 504 Religiosity and Purchase Intention for Halal Labeled Non-Food Products: Case of
Malaysian Gen Y’s ... 516 Understanding the Infuence of Shopper-Based Mall Equity On Loyalty ... 525 The Effectiveness of Supply Chain Management Programme: An Evaluation
3
Action Research: The Methodology of Choice for Muslim
Researchers?
RORDRIGUE ANCELOT HARVEY FONTAINE
Department of Business Administration
Kulliyah of Economics and Management Sciences
International Islamic University Malaysia
PO Box 10, 50728, Kuala Lumpur,
MALAYSIA
ridhwan_fontaine@iium.edu.my
Abstract
This paper documents one researcher’s paradigm shift with regards to academic research. As a
young researcher, I used surveys and quantitative methods to complete my PhD and publish papers in SCOPUS and ISI journals. Although I got promoted, I had no positive impact in the community surrounding my university. This presented me with an ethical dilemma. Muslims are encouraged to change themselves first, then their own family, than their own district, then their own town and then their own state. After reading the work of Chris Argyris, I embraced the logic of action research. I am currently doing an action research project in two public schools in the Gombak area and I share the difficulties, the joys and the results. Realistically, researchers still need to meet the key performance indicators of their university. However, action research seems a better methodology for solving social problems. As a Muslim researcher, the limitations of conventional research have become very apparent and action research resolves most of them. Apart from resolving the ethical dilemma, action research forced me to develop a more holistic perspective of the problem being investigated. This paper is not meant to present a theoretical discussion on this subject as others have already done that. Ultimately, I hope to inspire one or several researchers in Malaysia and Indonesia to take on the challenge of action research.
Key Words: action research, ethics, oral history, Islamic methodology
INTRODUCTION
As a Muslim researcher, I have always wondered about my accountability on the Day of Judgment with regards to my academic research. Typically, management academic research uses quantitative techniques to document a problem. Once a problem has been documented, the researcher publishes an article - preferably in an ISI-refereed international journal - but the actual problem does not get solved. In practice, the only benefit of documenting the problem is achieving the key performance indicator of the university and (hopefully) earning a promotion. Can we imagine that the Prophet (ﷺ) or the Companions would observe a social problem and not do something to solve it?
4 my PhD, I was very hopeful that my research would benefit Malaysians. Fifteen years later, my PhD had no meaningful impact on Malaysian society. Since then, I have published a number of articles in academic journals. As far as I can tell, my research has had no social impact. I am now 44 years-old. I have found that writing and publishing quantitative papers is
easy. But how will Allah assess my intentions and my efforts in my research and publication? Why publish papers that have no social impact when there are other methodologies that have greater social impact?
THE WORK OF CHRIS ARGYRIS
As I was reflecting on these issues, I came across some of the writings of Chris Argyris. He said,
“I am interested in producing knowledge that is actionable. My claim is that most good social science research is not actionable. By good, I mean it follows the rules of rigorous methodology.” (Fulmer & Keys, 2004, p.17)
The idea that knowledge should be actionable seems very Islamic as we know that knowledge is either beneficial or is not beneficial. I do not intend discuss the theory of action research as many scholars have already done that. I would like to share my personal experience. The key principles in doing action research are:
You identity a community and negotiate the scope of the action research with the stakeholders
You go through the first action research cycle
After the first cycle, you will learn something new about the problem. With this new knowledge, you modify your action research approach
You go through the second action research cycle
You will learn something new and modify your approach again. You continue going through this cycle until the problem disappears
Although action research is often linked to Kurt Lewin, I was more interested in the work of Checkland (1999) and Senge (1990). Conventional management practice is based on the principle of reductionism (Checkland, 1999). Reductionism breaks a complex problem into its components parts and investigates every component independently. Although that gives practitioners an idea of the nature of the problem, they lose sight of the bigger picture. In a social system where the actors are interdependent, this reductionist approach to problem solving creates unintended consequences. It is necessary to use a systems-thinking approach to see the bigger picture to produce a sustainable change (Senge, 1990, Checkland, 1999). Senge (1990) argues that a problem exist because stakeholders have an invalid mental model and most people are not aware of their mental model.
A mental model is how stakeholders think about the problem. It reflects their perceptions and their past experiences in trying to solve a problem. Mental models are often based on assumptions that are i) never questioned and ii) partially true (and therefore partially false).
The aim of action research is to discuss the current mental model (i.e. create awareness), allow stakeholders to discuss it (i.e. create a discourse) and replace it with a better mental
model if necessary (i.e. create lasting change). Any attempts at “solving the problem” without
5 In practice, individuals often see all the problems inside as a series of unrelated problems.
Senge (1990) argues that in reality, these “small problems” are symptoms and the root cause
of all these problems is the mental model. The current mental influences the current system (such as the promotion system) and this influences the behaviour of employees. This is shown in figure 1.
Figure 1: The Iceberg Model
Source: www.google.com/imghp (key word: iceberg model)
The analogy with the iceberg is that most people only see people’s behaviour. They generally don’t see how this behaviour is shaped by the current system and even less by the current mental model. Although the concept of “mental model” has already been
defined, additional information is useful. Mental models include
The way employees perceive the limits of their system
The way employees understand cause and effects in their system The way they attribute success and failure in their system
Mental model reflect the values of the individuals in their system, especially of top management.
In my experience that I will describe below, identifying the current mental model and proposing an alternative mental model are the two keys to a successful action research.
BACKGROUND TO THIS ACTION RESEARCH
6 be involved in such activity. From these sessions, it became clear that these students were confused about Islam but they really wanted to know more.
This experience in schools made me reflect on the problem of the youth in Malaysia. I started doing a literature review to understand the theory underpinning teenage behaviour. I found that there is no convincing theory to explain teenage thinking and behaviour. However, the literature did point to two different paradigms:
Some researcher focused on the individuals Some researchers focused on the group
In particular, I was intrigued by the work of Zimbardo (2007). Prof. Zimbardo is a social
psychologist. He argues that social psychologists don’t deny the role of individuals but
they have found that the power of social groups is much greater than most people assume. In practice, many teenagers are influenced by their friends.
I was also influenced by Falomir and Perez (1999). They point out that many people refuse to change because their identity is threatened. For examples, in many anti-smoking campaigns, non-smokers tell smokers that their behaviour is wrong. They say that such campaigns threaten the social identity of smokers. A more effective campaign might be if ex-smokers share their experience of stopping smoking with current smokers.
In September 2012, I told all of my students to focus on making videos of Malay teenagers who got themselves into trouble and then got themselves out of trouble. The purpose of these videos was to document the process that these teenagers used to solve their problems. My students had to find real stories. They were not allowed to invent
scenarios. The concept of these videos was, “Teenagers sharing their stories with other teenagers”. Some of these videos are presented in table 2. .
Table 2: Some Videos Made By IIUM Students
Name of
the Video Description
MIP 6 The story of a student who failed his PMR. He decides to change his behaviour and does well in his SPM.
MIP 22 Testimony of a former drug addict. He learns about Islam and uses its spiritual strength to overcome his addiction.
MIP 35 Testimony of an ex-addict to pornography. He learns about Islam and then finds the spiritual energy necessary to overcome his addiction.
MIP 77 Testimony of a woman who was raped in Form 4 by her "boyfriend". She became pregnant and delivered twins. She shares her trials. The story has an happy ending
#MIP80 Testimony of a former drug addict. He repents and comes back to school "clean". Shunned by his friends, he gets depressed and falls again into the trap of drugs. He attempts suicide but survives. He then repents again and sorts himself out
Source: The Author
All of these videos are available on YouTube. I decided to call this the Productive Teens project. In March 2013, I started thinking about whether these videos can be used for an action research project in secondary schools. I make these observations because an action
7 (in my case, whether the focus should be on the individual or on the group) or it emerges from what happens in the classroom (e.g. an outreach project or a PBL project).
PLANNING THE ACTION RESEARCH
Planning an action research project is not done in isolation. It requires choosing a social setting (e.g. a school). The social setting determines the key stakeholders (e.g. the principal) and it is the main stakeholder than determines the scope of the project. The Productive Teens methodology can be used to help good students become better or to help under-performing students. The principals I met insisted on helping their students with discipline problems (as will be explained below). The point is that the planning has to be negotiated with stakeholders. In March 2013, I visited four secondary schools. I met the principal, I explained the scope of the Productive Teens project and volunteered my service. Within a short period of time (about 30 minutes), I had secured an agreement to work together. This surprised me because I was expecting a lot more resistance. Here is my conclusion
In these meetings, I showed them videos made by IIUM students while explaining my ideas. If you want to persuade people, you often have to show them something concrete. You have to tell them about successful projects you have done in the past, rather than projects you hope to do in the future.
Researchers must first create a “success story” and that use that to secure
permission to do action research. A simple way is to volunteers to do something for the school for free.
We agreed that I would focus on helping students with discipline problems. At this stage of the project, I had no exact methodology as I had yet to meet the students. However, the early stage was about meeting the principal, meeting teachers and building relationships. We agreed that I would train selected teachers in October 2013 and that the actual project would start in January 2014. In my mind, I assumed that my role would be to advise the teachers and that the teachers themselves would be the facilitators.
TRAINING TEACHERS
The workshop to train teachers was conducted in October 2013 in IIUM. Unfortunately, the workshop was a disaster. Although I had made many preparations to ensure that the material was clear and logically organized, the teachers were uncertain with the whole idea. Wanting to save the project, I volunteered to spend one hour per week in the schools and facilitate the students myself. They agreed. This was an important lesson.
8
FACILITATING AT SECONDARY SCHOOL
In 2013, I had the agreement of four school principals but two pulled out by the end of 2013. By January 2014, I had the commitment of only two schools: SMK Seri Gombak and SMK Hillcrest. We agreed that I would focus on Form 2 students in Seri Gombak and Form 4 students in Hillcrest. The counsellors would identify the students involved. In February 2014, I met 25 Form 2 students at Seri Gombak (Photo 1) and 25 Form 4 students at Hillcrest (Photo 2).
Photo 1: Form 2 Students at SMK Seri Gombak
Source: The Author
Photo 2: Form 4 Students at SMK Hillcrest
Source: The Author
9 friends. Since the age of 7, they have done everything together. They have often been punished together as well. Breaking that kind of social bound is very difficult. The students know that their current behaviour is counter-productive but they have to meet the expectations of their friends. This reinforced my perception that the focus should be on the group rather than on individuals. Quickly, I changed my initial plans. I asked them to work in small groups to make their own videos. We worked with these students from February 2014 until May 2014 (1st cycle).
The 25 students at Seri Gombak were divided into three groups to create an element of competition between groups. The same was done with the students at SMK Hillcrest. By mid-February, all groups were working reasonably well although one group at Hillcrest never took off. Although many teachers use group works, our approach was quite different. Many teachers use groups for academic work only. These groups stay together for a very short duration (40 minutes). At the end, their output is nothing for the students to be proud of. We were using groups for a complex project. The group would work together for three months and the output (i.e. a video uploaded on YouTube) was something to be proud of. The IIUM facilitators acted as facilitators, directors, cameramen and editors of the videos. A key milestone was when one group produced their first video (Photo 3).
Photo 3: Hitam Putih on YouTube
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqyOr0YFNHY
10 Photo 4: Inilah Kisahku - Aiman
Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mdezy9z9c58
Making the videos was not the purpose of the project. The purpose of the project is to get the students to change. Making the videos was simply a means to achieve this objective. We could observe the positive changes in the students in the classroom (especially after the Hitam Putih video was uploaded) but what happened outside the classroom?
THE FEEDBACK FROM PARENTS
By March 2014, my facilitators and the school counsellors could observe improvement in
the students’ behaviour. Their group dynamics had improved. Their feeling of achieving
something meaningful seemed to have given them a new sense of purpose and increased their self-efficacy. Another milestone was the first meeting with the parents of the
students’ involved. The meeting at SMK Seri Gombak was held in March 2014 and the
meeting at SMK Hillcrest was held in April 2014. The meetings were held during the week so only a handful of parents could come. However, the results were encouraging.
At SMK Seri Gombak, 5 out of 5 parents reported that their child’s behaviour at home
had changed positively and that they new looked forward to going to school. At SMK Hillcrest, 6 out of 7 parents reported similar results. But what had actually happened to make the school students change?
RETHINKING THE CONCEPTS
From February 2014 to May 2014, I had plenty of time to observe the behaviour and the attitudes of various all stakeholders in these two schools. Here is a summary of my observations.
11 useful. Generally, teachers and students tend to think in terms of two social classes: good students and bad students. Some teachers are more open-minded but often, these labels have been associated with specific students for many years. Part of the challenge of doing action research is ignoring the current performance of students but focusing on the potential performance of these students.
Typically, students can only socialise with their own “social class”. When students start
having academic problems, they are identified by teachers and sent for counselling. After the counselling, they re-enter their social group. Once they return to their group, they return to the values, the norms and the behaviour of their social group.
With the Productive Teens concept, we did not focus on individuals. We focused on the entire group. Rather than trying to change individuals, we relied on the group to change
the individuals. Instead of using the group’s energy and creativity for destructive goals
(usually skipping school and illegal motorbike racing), we encouraged the group to use its energy and creativity to focus on something productive, something the students can be really proud of. In practice, only three out of eight students were busy completing the
project. As the project progressed, the group leader “converted” passive members into active members. When videos were uploaded to YouTube, all of them felt a sense of achievement.
Interestingly, the quality of the last video made (“Inilah kisahku Aiman”) was beyond
my expectation. The videos themselves became a product that allowed the principals to explain the benefits of the project to teachers and parents. Table 2 presents the differences between the current approach in schools and the approach of the Productive Teens projects. Table 2 describes the mental model, the systemic structures that underpin these two approaches. The end-goal of the project was to identify the existing mental model (focus on individuals) and propose an alternative mental model (focus on the group).
Table 2: Analysis of the project
The Current Approach in Schools An Alternative Approach in Schools
Event Lack of commitment to school Higher commitment to school
Pattern of Behaviour
No change in patterns of behaviour. Children with discipline problems get counseled and often expelled from school after two serious offences.
New pattern of behaviour. Principal uses membership of Productive Teens as a reward for good behaviour.
Systemic structures
When students don’t perform, they are
taken out of their social group and given counseling. They re-enter their social group and often return to their old ways.
Facilitators focus on the potential of students. A complex project is given to
the group so the group has to “tay
together for several months. Mental
model
The focus is on the individual. Try to change the attitude of individuals when
they don’t perform.
The focus is on the group. Use group dynamics to change the attitude of individuals
12
COMMUNICATING WITH STAKEHOLDERS
At the end of the first cycle, I had lots of time to think about the challenge of communication with stakeholders. Here are a few tips I would share with people doing action research for the first time,
Be humble: You don’t have all the answers. Frame the pilot as an experiment
that may or not work. Respect the advice of the teachers and the principal. Focus on learning: Most of my initial ideas didn’t work because I didn’t know
the students. I had to improvise a lot. Don’t be afraid to change the tactics.
Get feedback from stakeholders quickly: We got feedback from the counsellors all the time, the principals regularly and the parents once. The more feedback you can get, the better you can modify your tactics to achieve the desired goal. Stick to the facts: I know that the students changed - I observed it, the teachers
and the parents observed it. I don’t really know why they changed. Depending on
which theory of psychology you believe in, there are multiple ways of explaining
the change. Parents, teachers and the principal don’t really care why they changed - they simply care that they changed.
DISCUSSION
Having presented the action research so far, I would like to share my reflections. In the introduction, I explained my frustration at doing academic research that has no obvious social impact. Once I started this project, I seemed to have some kind of immediate social impact. As a Muslim, I feel that I am better able to justify my effort in research and publication and I believe that the methodology of action research is more in line with the Islamic principle of helping others.
Having said that, I don’t think that action research is for new researchers. There are many
issues of methodologies that need to be well understood. I found it particularly confusing because there are individual factors (e.g. the personality of certain students), group factors (e.g. letting the group leader discipline the other students) and organizational factors (e.g. the school expelling some students) that were working simultaneously. In writing this paper, I tried to be very honest about the process. There is a lot of trial and
error. There are many theoretical models that don’t work in practice. Only an
experienced researcher can successfully navigate the fluid nature of a real social setting. As a PhD supervisor, I would strongly discourage any PhD students to use action research as a methodology. I would recommend it to the experienced researchers.
There is also the possible trap of doing “voluntary social work” (i.e. providing the school
with free manpower) rather than doing real action research (i.e. questioning the existing mental model and offering an alternative).
At the same time, the reality is that researchers need to publish in ISI journals. My advice is that researchers can easily have two parallel research strategies: one focuses on conventional academic research and one focuses on action research projects. These two strategies can complement one another. For example, I am still amazed at the behavioural changes that the students underwent when they worked in teams. After all, we created
teams with the “worst” students in every school. That should have been a recipe for
13
CONCLUSIONS
In this paper, I have tried to show several things:
For researchers wanting to have a positive social impact, action research is an effective methodology. I have found it much more emotionally rewarding than doing conventional research.
Action research is not easy. It requires a good understanding of the literature (i.e. there are multiple and often conflicting theoretical models). It requires regular discussions, negotiations and re-negotiations with stakeholders. An action research project generally takes more time than a normal project and it tends to grown in multiple and often unexpected directions.
Action research is empowering as long as one thinks about understanding the current mental modl and proposing an alternative mental model (Senge, 1990). It helps if the action researcher has an understanding of systems thinking.
In practice, to meet the KPIs of universities, researchers still need to do conventional research that can be published in ISI journals. They can do action research in parallel. I believe that this combination of conventional research (theory-centric) and action research (practice-centric) is in fact an ideal combination to develop all rounded researchers.
Lastly, I encourage Muslim researchers to consider action research as a research strategy.
References
Checkland, P. (1999) Systems Thinking, Systems Practice (Revised Edition). London: John
Wiley.
Falomir, J.M. & Perez, J.A. (1999) “Social influence and identity conflict”. In Terry & Hogg (Eds) Attitudes, behavior and social contexts: The role of norms and group membership. New
York: Psychology Press.
Fulmer, R.M. & Keys, J.B. (2004) “A Conversation with Chris Argyris: The Father of Organizational Learning”. In Starkey, Tempest and McKinlay (Eds) How Organizations Learn: Managing the Search for Knowledge (2nd edition), London: Thomson Learning,
pp16-28
Madigan, S. (2010). Narrative Therapy. Washington DC: American Psychological
Association.
Senge, P. M. (1990) The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of The Learning Organization. New York: Doubleday.
Zimbardo, P (2007). The Lucifer Effect: How Good People Turn Evil. London: Rider.
Department of Business Administration, KENMS International Islamic University Malaysia
14
The Role of Communication Openness in Performance
Appraisal Systems in Enhancing Appraisees’ Job
Satisfaction
Nek Kamal Yeop Yunus
1,
Azman Ismail
2& Rozanariah Mohd Sani
31
Faculty of Management & Economics, Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Tg Malim,
Malaysia
2,3
Faculty of Economics & Management, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi,
Malaysia
(corresponding author: nkamal @fpe.upsi.edu.my)
Abstract
This paper aims at investigating the relationship between appra
isers’ communication
openness and appraises’ job satisfaction. A survey method was employed to gather
data from employees who work in a privatized postal company in Sarawak, Malaysia.
The outcomes of testing research hypotheses using SmartPLS path model analysis
displayed two important findings: first, explanation was positively and significantly
related to job satisfaction. Second, feedback was positively and significantly related to
job satisfaction. This finding demonstrates that the capability of appraisers to clearly
explain performance appraisal practices and adequately provide feedback in
performance appraisal systems acts as an important predictor of appraises’ job
satisfaction in the organizational sample. Further, discussion, implications and
conclusion are elaborated.
Keywords:
Explanation, feedback, job satisfaction
INTRODUCTION
Performance appraisal is a vital issue in management (Bacal, 2012; Daft, 2012),
human resource management (Dessler, 2013; Mondy & Mondy, 2012), and
organizational behaviour (George & Jones, 2012; Kreitner & Kinicki, 2013). It is
often designed by employers to assess the ability of employees in performing duties
and responsibilities, recording employee assessment results and providing solutions to
enhance employee performance in organizations (Daft, 2012; Mondy & Mondy, 2014;
Sabeen & Mehboob, 2008).
Results of this appraisal system will usually be used by
employers to build employees’ strengths and minimize deficiencies, plan employees’
career development, provide better recognitions to high performing employees, and
make decisions about staff services such as promotion, demotion, termination, layoffs
and/or transfer (Kavanagh
et al.,
2007; Mondy & Mondy, 2014; Noe
et al.,
2014;
Walsh & Fisher, 2005).
A recent literature on organizational management highlights that the design
and administration of performance appraisal systems is much affected by employers’
15
appraisal systems were much affected by a classical management approach as upheld
by Taylor’s (1856 to 1915) scientific management, Fayol’s
(1841 to 1925)
administrative principles, and Weber’s (1864 to 1920) bureaucratic organization. This
classical approach emphasizes more on evaluating employee productivity based on
objective measurements (Daft, 2012; Muchinsky, 2006).
Under a performance
appraisal based classical management approach, the nature of performance
measurements is usually conducted using single-source feedback, non-participation
style in decision-making, and boss cenntered approach. For example, appraisers (
e.g
.,
managers and/or supervisors) are given much power and authorities to assess
employee abilities, identifying employees’ strengths and weaknesses, determining the
types of punishment and neglecting developmental aspects of employees (Daft, 2012;
Erdogan, 2002; McCarthy & Garavan, 2001).
Many scholars view that
implementation of this appraisal system only suitable to measure employee
productivity in organizations that operate in stable and less competition environments
(Daft, 2012; Ismail
et al.,
2013).
In an era of globalization, many employers have shifted the paradigms of
performance appraisal from a single rater to multiple rater perspectives in order to
obtain accurate and reliable information about employee performance
(Daft, 2012;
Erdogan, 2002; Noe
et al.,
2014). This new appraisal system is strongly designed
based on a contemporary management approach as upheld by humanistic perspective
(i.e. human relations movement, human resources view, and behavioural sciences),
system thinking and contingency view (Daft, 2012; Mondy & Mondy, 2014). This
management approach gives more attention on the role of human needs, behaviour
and attitudes, effect of interrelationship between subsystems in an organization, and
adaptability with different situations as important factors in determining the
effectiveness of management techniques (Daft, 2012). Under this management
approach, the nature of performance appraisal systems allows appraisers to promote
communication openness as an important instrument to increase transparency and
decrease inequality gap among appraisers, as well as decrease unclear responsibilities
and biasness among appraises and appraisers in determining employee scores. Further,
this appraisal practice may lead employees to support organizational and human
resource ma
nagement’s strategies and goals
(Cloutier, & Vilhuber, 2008; Daft, 2012;
Mondy & Mondy, 2014; Noe
et al
., 2014).
A review of the workplace performance management literature shows that
communication openness in performance appraisal systems consists of two effective
components: explanation and feedback (Cook & Crossman, 2004; Kavanagh
et al.,
16
new responsibilities to be undertaken and involve appraises in setting up performance
goals in an environment of respect and encouragement. The ability of appraises to
clearly understand and accept the value of feedback that they receive from their
appraisers may strongly motivate them to support the implementation of performance
appraisal systems in organizations (Mondy & Mondy, 2014; Noe
et al.,
2014
).
Interestingly, recent studies in the workplace performance appraisal highlight
that the ability of appraisers to properly implement communication openness in
managing performance apprais
al systems may have a significant impact on appraises’
attitudes and behaviour, especially job satisfaction (Cloutier, & Vilhuber, 2008;
Kavanagh
et al.,
2007). According to an organizational behaviour perspective, job
satisfaction
is often related to employees’ affective and/or cognitive attitudes about
overall job and/or job facets may lead to induce their enjoyable feelings in
organizations (Ambrose
et al.,
2008; Judge
et al.,
2009; Locke, 1976; McShane &
Von Glinow, 2005; Maathis & Jackson, 2014).
Within a performance appraisal model, many scholars think that explanation,
feedback and job satisfaction are different, but strongly interconnected concepts. For
example, the ability of appraisers to clearly explain and adequately provide feedback
in determining employees’ performance scores can lead to an enhan
ced job
satisfaction in the workplace (Sabeen & Mehboob, 2008; Sogra
et al.,
2009).
Although the nature of this relationship is interesting, not much is known about the
role of communication openness as an important predicting variable in the workplace
performance appraisal model (Cloutie & Vilhuber, 2008; Sogra
et al.
, 2009). Many
scholars argue that the predicting variable of communication openness is given less
attention in the previous studies because they have much described the general
characteristics of communication openness, employed a simple correlation method to
assess general respondent attitudes toward specific communication openness styles,
and neglected to measure the magnitude and nature of the relationship between
communication openness and appraises’ attitudes and behavior in res
ponsive
organizations (Obisi, 2011; Sabeen & Mehboob, 2008; Sogra
et al.,
2009).
Therefore,
this situation encourages the researchers to further discover the nature of this
relationship.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
This study has two fold objectives: first, is to examine the relationship between
explanation and job satisfaction. Second, is to examine the relationship between
feedback and job satisfaction.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Correlation between communication openness and job satisfaction supports the notion
of org
anizational behavior theory. For example, Vroom’s (1964) expectancy theory
17
receives from another person may affect his/her feelings of justice. The essence of
these theories suggest that perceive high value of outcome and fair treatment will exist
if appraisers able to clearly explain about the performance appraisal systems and
adequately provide feedback in determining performance scores. The essence of these
theories had gained strong support from performance appraisal research literature. For
example, several extant studies were done using a direct effects model to investigate
communication openness based on different samples, such as perceptions of 70
managers of the manufacturing organizations listed in Indonesian Capital Market
Directory (Lau & Sholihin, 2005), perceptions of 77 staff at the faculty of medicine in
UZ (Ndambakuwa & Jacob, 2006), perceptions of 2,377 public sector employees
(Kavanagh
et al.,
2007), perceptions of 297 Canadian workers (Cloutier & Vilhuber,
2008), perceptions of 229 workers of public listed companies in Klang Valley,
Malaysia (Sudin, 2011) and perceptions of 133 employees of multinational companies
in Malaysia (Darehzereshki, 2013). Outcomes of these studies found that perceived
value of outcome and perceived fair treatment had increased when the appraisers able
to clearly giving explanations about the appraisal system goals, policies and
procedures, as well as adequately providing feedback in determining employee
performance scores. As a result, it could lead to enhanced appraises’ job satisfaction
in the organizations (Cloutier & Vilhuber, 2008; Darehzereshki, 2013; Kavanagh
et
al.,
2007; Lau & Sholihin, 2005; Ndambakuwa & Jacob, 2006; Sudin, 2011).
Based
on the literature, it was hypothesized that:
H1: There is a positive relationship between explanation and job satisfaction.
H2: There is a positive relationship between feedback and job satisfaction.
METHODOLOGY
This study used a cross-sectional research design where it allowed the researchers to
integrate performance appraisal research literature, the pilot study and the actual
survey as a main procedure to gather data for this study. The main advantage of using
this method may gather accurate data, less bias data and quality data (Sekaran &
Bougie, 2010; Zikmund
et al.,
2010). This study was conducted in a privatized postal
company in Sarawak, Malaysia. The name of this company is kept anonymous for
confidential reasons. The core business of this company is to provide day-to-day
mailing services, courier and postal services for general public and retail customers. In
order to maintain its competitiveness in a global economy, this company has
implemented a performance appraisal related reward as a mean to improve
organization and employee performance. Under this appraisal system, management
employees (
i.e.,
managers and supervisors) are exposed with proper technical and
18
economy. The achievement of this appraisal system is not recorded empirically and
this situation has provided an opportunity to further explore its impact on employee
outcomes in the organization.
At the initial stage of data collection, the survey questionnaire was drafted based
on the information gathered from the workplace performance appraisal literature.
Next, the pilot study was conducted by discussing the survey questionnaire with 10
managerial staff and experienced supporting staff who had worked in the
organization. Their views were used to verify the content and overall format of survey
questionnaire for an actual study. Hence, a back translation technique was employed
to translate the survey questionnaires into English and Malay versions in order to
increase the validity and reliability of research findings (Lovelock
et al.,
2004;
Sekaran & Bougie, 2010).
The survey questionnaire consisted of three sections. Firstly, explanation had 4
items and feedback had 3 items that were developed based on the workplace
performance appraisal literature (Brown
et al
., 2010
;
Cook & Crossman, 2004)
.
The
dimensions used to measure explanation are clarification, praise, advice and rapport.
Secondly, The dimensions used to measure feedback are suggestion, support,
attention, and discussion. Finally, job satisfaction was measured using 5 items that
were modified from
Warr, Cook, and Wall’s (1979) job satisfaction scale
.
The
dimensions used to measure job satisfaction are supervision, job security, recognition,
opportunity to use abilities in doing job, and promotion. All items were measured
using a 7-
item scale ranging from ‘strongly disagree/dissatisfied’ (1) to ‘strongly
agree/satisfied’ (7).
Demographic variables were used as controlling variables because
this study focused on employee attitudes.
The unit of analysis for this study is employees who work in the organization. A
convenient sampling technique was employed to distribute 300 survey questionnaires
to employees who were ready to participate in this study. This sampling technique
was chosen because the list of registered employees was not given to the researchers
because of confidential reasons and this situation did not allow the researchers to
choose randomly participants in the organizations. Of the total number, 129 usable
questionnaires were returned to the researchers, yielding 43% response rate.
Participants answered these questionnaires based on their own consent and on a
voluntarily basis. This figure met the requirements of inferential statistics, therefore it
could be properly analyzed to produce valid and reliable research findings (Hair
et al
.,
2010; Sekaran & Bougie, 2010).
Further, the SmartPLS version 2.0 as recommended
by Henseler
et al
. (2009)
was employed to determine the validity and reliability of
19
RESULT
In terms of sample profile, the most respondents were males (76.7%), aged between
26 to 35 years old (29.5%), SPM holders (53.5%), served more than 18 years (27.1%),
and non-management employees (54.3%).
Table 1 shows the results of convergent and discriminant validity analyses. All
constructs had the values of AVE larger than 0.5, indicating that they met the
acceptable standard of convergent validity (Barclay
et al.,
1995; Fornell & Larcker,
1981; Henseler
et
al.,
2009). Besides that, all constructs had the values of
√
AVE in
diagonal were greater than the squared correlation with other constructs in off
diagonal, showing that all constructs met the acceptable standard of discriminant
validity (Henseler
et al.,
2009; Yang, 2009).
Table 1. The results of convergent and discriminant validity analyses
Variable
AVE
Explanation
Feedback
Job Satisfaction
Explanation
0.7200
0.8485
Feedback
0.7725
0.6953
0.8789
Job Satisfaction
0.6352
0.5731
0.5149
0.7970
Table 2 shows the validity and reliability of constructs. The correlation between
items and factors had higher loadings than other items in the different constructs, as
well as the loadings of variables were greater than 0.7 in their own constructs in the
model are considered adequate (Henseler
et al.,
2009). This result met the criteria of
validity of measurement model. Besides that, the values of composite reliability and
Cronbach’s Alpha for all constructs were greater than 0.8, indicating that the
instrument used in this study had high internal consistency (Henseler
et al.,
2009;
Nunally & Bernstein, 1994).
Table 2.
The results of factor loadings and cross loadings for different constructs
Construct/
Item
Explanation
Feedback
Job
Satisfaction
Composite
Reliability
Cronbach
Alpha
Explanation
b1
0.875669
b2
0.901223
b3
0.849555
b7
0.761224
Feedback
b8
0.889669
b9
0.899210
b11
0.847040
Job Satisfaction
f3
0.764096
f4
0.798345
f8
0.865447
f9
0.822733
20
Table 3 shows the results of Pearson correlation analysis and descriptive
statistics. The means for all variables are from 5.1 to 5.3, showing that the levels of
explanation, feedback and job satisfaction are ranging from high (4) to highest level
(7). The correlation coefficients for the relationship between the independent variable
(i.e., communication and treatment) and the dependent variable (i.e., job satisfaction)
were less than .90, indicating the data were not affected by serious collinearity
problem. Hence, all the constructs had value 1 that were shown in a diagonal, showing
that these constructs met the requirements of reliability standard (Hair
et al.,
2010;
Nunally & Bernstein, 1994). Thus, these statistical results provide further evidence of
validity and reliability for the constructs used in this study.
Table 3: Pearson correlation analysis and descriptive statistics
Variable
Mean
Standard
Deviation
Pearson Correlation
Coefficients
1
2
3
1. Explanation
5.2
1.3
1
2. Feedback
5.1
1.3
.77
**1
3. Job Satisfaction
5.3
1.1
.57
**.52
**1
Note: Significant at *p<0.05;**p< 0.01 Reliability estimation is showed in a diagonal
Figure 1 presents that the value of R2 is used as an indicator of the overall
predictive strength of the model. The value of R
2is considered as follows; 0.19
(weak), 0.33 (moderate) and 0.67 (substantial) (Chin, 1998; Henseler
et al.,
2009).
The results of
showed that the inclusion of explanation and feedback in the analysis
had explained 35 percent of the variance in job satisfaction. Specifically, the result of
testing this model displayed that explanation was positively and significantly related
to job satisfaction (
β=0.42; t
=3.91;
β=0.23; t=2.26, respectively
), therefore H1 and H2
were supported. This result demonstrates that communication openness does act as an
important predictor of job satisfaction in the hypothesized model.
Independent Variable
Dependent Variable
R²=0.35
H1: B=0.42 (t=3.91)
H2: B=0.23 (t=2.26)
Note: Significant at *t >1.96
Figure 1
.
The outcomes of SmartPLS Path Model Show on the relationship
between communication openness in performance appraisal systems and job
satisfaction
Explanation
21
In order to determine a global fit PLS path model, we carried out a global fit
measure (GoF) based on Wetzels
et al.’s
(2009) guideline as follows:
GoF=SQRT{MEAN (Communality of Endogenous) x MEAN (R²)}. This measure
can explain the power of SmartPLS path model in comparison with the baseline
values (GoF small=0.1, GoF medium=0.25, GoF large=0.36). The outcome of GoF
test showed that the value of GoF was 0.50, showing that it exceeds the cut-off value
of 0.36 for large effect sizes of R². This result provides strong support to validate the
PLS model globally (Wetzels
et al.,
2009).
DISCUSSION
This study shows that communication openness in performance appraisal systems
does act as an important predictor of job satisfaction in the studied organization. In the
context of this study, appraisers (i.e., managers and/or supervisors) implement
performance appraisal systems based on their organization’s policies and rules.
According to majority respondents, the levels of explanation, feedback and job
satisfaction are highly practiced in their organizations. This situation explains that the
ability of appraisers to clearly explain about performance appraisal goals, policies and
procedures, as well as adequately provide feedback in determining performance
scores may lead to an enhanced appraises’
job satisfaction in the organization.
The implications of this study can be divided into three major categories:
theoretical contribution, robustness of research methodology and practical
contribution. In terms of theoretical perspective, the findings of this study show that
explanation and feedback have been important predictors of job satisfaction in the
studied organization. This result also has supported and broadened studies by Lau and
Sholihin (2005), Ndambakuwa and Jacob (2006), Kavanagh
et al.,
(2007), Cloutier
and Vilhuber (2008), and Sudin (2011)
and
Darehzereshki (2013).
With respect to the robustness of research methodology, the survey
questionnaires used in this study met the acceptable standards of validity and
reliability analyses, this could lead to the production of accurate and reliable research
findings. Regarding on the practical contributions, the findings of this study may be
used as guidelines by management to improve the administration of performance
appraisal systems in organizations. In order to achieve these objectives, some
improvements need to be done in the particular aspects: firstly, training content and
methods should be customized according to the organizational strategy and goals may
help employees to understand, respect and obey the policies, rules, and work cultures
practiced in the organizations. Secondly, recruitment and selection policies should
give a priority to hire knowledgeable and experience people to hold management
positions and their expertise may be used to coach junior managers and/or supervisors
in planning and implementing performance appraisal systems in organizations.
Finally, level of pay for individual and group performance should be revised based on
external organizational competitiveness may help to capture employees’ hearts and
22
CONCLUSIONS
This study suggested a conceptual framework based on the workplace performance
appraisal research literature. The instrument used in this study met the acceptable
standards of validity and reliability analyses. The outcomes of SmartPLS path model
generally confirmed that the implementation of communication openness in
performance appraisal systems does act as an important predictor of job satisfaction in
the studied organization. This result also has supported and broadened the workplace
performance appraisal literature mostly published in Western countries. Therefore,
current research and practice within the performance management model needs to
consider explanation and feedback as crucial elements in the workplace performance
appraisal domain. These findings further suggest that the ability of appraisers to
clearly explain the performance appraisal goals, policies and procedures, as well as
positively and constructively provide feedback in determining performance scores
will strongly induce positive subsequent employee attitudes and behavior (
e.g
.,
justice, commitment, performance, ethics, trust and teamwork). Thus, these positive
outcomes may lead to maintained and enhanced organizational growth and
competitiveness in an era of globalization.
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26
Empirical Investigation of Five-Factor Model of Personality
Fahrudin JS Pareke & Rina Suthia Hayu
Department of Management Faculty of Economics and Business University of Bengkulu Email: fahru_jsp@yahoo.com; zathia_111@yahoo.com
Abstract
The concept of Five-Factor Model (FFM) of Personality describes the basic
dimension of human behavior, thinking, and emotions that related to the job.
The FFM currently getting popular and reach more attention to from the
scholars and practitioners as well, particularly in the area of human resource
management. Therefore, the main goal of current research is to compile and to
test the dimensions of FFM and its measure empirically. Eighty-four self
report measures distributed to the 238 employees who work both for public
and private organizations at the Northern Sumatera Island, Indonesia. The
respondents are currently completing their graduate programs at the University
of Bengkulu. Two-hundred-and-eighteen questionnaires completed and
returned by respondents, and analyzed using Factor Analysis with Varimax
Approach to extract them in to the several components. Based on the
analyses, research confirmed the 5 dimensions for FFM, which is
conscientiousness (18 items), extraversion-introversion (18 items),
agreeableness (12 items), openness to experience (14 items), and emotional
stability (12 items). The result strictly recommended that the use of FFP as a
means of Human Resource Practices such as selection, promotion, training,
and the like.
Keywords:
Personality; Conscientiousness; Extraversion; Agreeableness; Emotional
Stability; Openness to Experiences
INTRODUCTION
Personality refers to the way someone reacts and interacts with others (Robbins and
Judge, 2009: 139). Personality is defined as the patterns of behavior, thought, and
unique emotion and relatively stable which is shown by someone (Greenberg and
Baron, 2009: 97). Mount (2005) concluded that personality refers to traits of
characteristics that are stable over time,
the reason underlying the one’s behavior.
Personality reflects the owner and generally determine one’s affective style,
behavioral, and cognitive.
27
explain human behavior in different situations (Elanain, 2007). Personality differeces
between individuals explain someone gives different responses with others in the
same situation. Personality differences also explain why someone tends to show a
certain behavior for a particular situation, while others show a different behavior for
the same situation.
Basically, classify individuals in a certain personality group is very difficult.
Because it is hardly find 2 individuals who have identical thoughts, emotions, and
behaviors, even 2 twin siblings. But experts in the field of organizational behavior has
made great efforts to formulate a personality pattern that is able to gather a few people
of a certain personality group. Associated with it, has appeared various
conceptualizations of personality that is quite popular, such as
the big 5 of personality
(Costa and McCrae, 1992),
possitive and negative affective
(Isen and Baron, 1992),
type A and type B behavior
(Friedman and Rosenman, 1974), and
morning-evening
person
(Guthrie
et al.
, 1995).
Among various personality conceptualizations above, the most popular and ge
