How a Multidimensional View of Perceived Organizational Support Impacts Self-Efficacy and Task Understanding during Training for Boundary Spanning Tasks

Abstract

Perceived organizational support (POS), defined as how much employees feel the organization they work for cares for them and assists them in their needs, has been traditionally characterized in a single dimension. This study examines the implications of a multidimensional view of POS. POS was separated into three different dimensions based on the organizational level from which support can be viewed to originate: corporate headquarters, the home office, or the training environment. These dimensions of POS were tested to discover their effect on the self-efficacy and task understanding of individuals training for boundary-spanning tasks. These tasks are those that place the employee in an environment, culture, and/or duties outside of their organization. For this study, the perceptions of United States Air Force Airmen deploying overseas to perform Army duties were researched. Results of the study showed that home office POS had a direct positive effect on both the self-efficacy and task understanding of these boundary-spanning individuals.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2008
Accession Number
ADA480745

Entities

People

  • Ronald S. Wallace

Organizations

  • Air Force Institute of Technology

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Applied Psychology
  • Boundaries
  • Data Analysis
  • Education
  • Engineers
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Organizational Structure
  • Personnel Management
  • Psychology
  • Regression Analysis
  • Stress (Physiology)
  • Students
  • Trainees
  • Training
  • United States
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Defense Acquisition Program Management
  • Military Leadership and Professional Education.
  • Polymer Science and Technology