Failure and Learning Behavior: The Role of Supervisory Support

국문 초록 (Abstract)

최근 글로벌 기업들은 실패 경험이 학습과 혁신을 이끈다고 판단하여 직원들에게 실패에 대한 두려움 없이 도전할 것을 장려하고 있으나 직원들은 실패 후 얻게 되는 부정적인 결과물 때문에 실패를 꺼려한다. 본 연구에서는 실패의 이러한 부정적 영향력을 위협 경직성 이론으로 설명하며 위협 경직성을 줄이기 위한 맥락적 요인으로 상사지원을 분석한다. 실패 경험은 직원들의 자기효능감을 떨어뜨리고 부정적인 감정을 일으킴으로써 학습 행동을 가로막을 것이다. 즉, 자기효능감과 부정적인 감정은 실패 경험과 학습 행동의 관계를 매개할 것이다. 반면 상사지원은 이 실패와 학습행동의 부정적 관계를 약화시키는 조절 역할을 할 것이다. 가설을 검증하기 위해서 본 연구는 한국 IT 부품제조 기업의 직원들을 대상으로 데이터를 수집하였다. 우선 프로젝트의 성공 및 실패를 확인하기 위해서 회사의 성과관리시스템에서 데이터를 추출하였다. 또한 직원들의 태도와 행동을 측정하기 위해서 설문을 실시하여 총 419명의 자기보고식 응답결과를 수집하였다. Mplus 7.4로 구조방정식 모델을 검증한 결과, 자기효능감은 실패 경험과 학습 행동의 부정적 관계 사이에서 매개역할을 수행함을 확인하였다. 그러나 부정적인 감정의 매개역할 가설은 기각되었다. 상사지원은 실패경험과 자기효능감의 부정적인 관계를 약화시키고 자기효능감과 학습 행동의 긍정적 관계를 강화시키지만, 부정적 감정에서는 상사지원의 조절효과가 유의하지 않았다. 본 연구는 실패와 학습 행동간 관계를 위협 경직성 이론을 사용하여 실증했을 뿐 아니라, 실패로 인한 학습 행동의 위축을 완화하는 데 있어 상사의 지원적 역할이 중요함을 확인했다는 점에서 실무적 의의가 있다. 그러나 본 연구는 실패의 강도나 유형 등 실패의 특성을 고려하지 못했다는 한계점을 가지고 있다. 실패의 크기가 학습 행동에 미치는 영향력이 달라질 수 있으며 직접 경험한 실패보다 타인의 실패가 위협 경직성 강도가 낮기 때문에 직원의 학습 행동을 더욱 촉진할 수도 있을 것이다. 향후에는 이러한 실패의 특성을 고려한 연구가 필요하다.

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Even though some scholars and CEOs have praised the merits of failure in innovation, employees often experience failure as a threat and shrink away from learning new things. Relying upon discussions of threat rigidity and social support, this paper aimed to examine two research agendas. The first was to clarify the cognitive and affective mechanisms of threat rigidity after a failure experience, while the second was to explore how supervisory support would alleviate the negative rigidity process. Using multisource data composed of objective failure measures and self-reports from 419 engineers in a Korean manufacturing company, this study employed a structural equation modeling method with Mplus 7.4 to analyze a moderated mediation model. Analysis provided evidence that perception of self-efficacy mediated the path from failure to learning behaviors, while the negative affect path was not significant. Moreover, supervisory support was found to attenuate the path from failure to learning behaviors via self-efficacy. However, a moderating effect was not found in the case of negative affect. The present research enriched the threat rigidity view by incorporating views on social learning and social support. It also expanded the realm of social support studies by incorporating failure and learning for employees. In addition, the present research contributed to knowledge on failure by utilizing an individual’s objective measures. Practical implications include the importance of supervisors in managing employees who have undergone failure.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Ⅰ. Introduction Ⅱ. Research Hypotheses Ⅲ. Research methods Ⅳ. Results Ⅴ. Discussion References

참고문헌 (Reference)

1 김태홍, "적응성과 및 지속적 학습활동에 대한 학습목표성향, 실책관리풍토 및 변화지향적 팀 리더십의 영향" 한국인사조직학회 17 (17): 117-159, 2009

2 공혜원, "감정노동 및 정서상태가 직장 내 행동에 미치는 효과에 대한 연구: 일지조사법을 이용한 정서상태의 매개효과" 한국인사조직학회 24 (24): 9-38, 2016

3 Kossek, E. E., "Workplace social support and work-family conflict : A metaanalysis clarifying the influence of general and work-family-specific supervisor and organizational support" 64 (64): 289-313, 2011

4 Ng, T. W., "Within-individual increases in innovative behavior and creative, persuasion, and change self-efficacy over time : A social-cognitive theory perspective" 101 (101): 14-34, 2016

5 Tucker, A. L., "Why hospitals don’t learn from failures" 45 (45): 55-72, 2003

6 Shanock, L. R., "When supervisors feel supported : Relationships with subordinates perceived supervisor support, perceived organizational support, and performance" 91 (91): 689-695, 2006

7 Kim, J., "Vicarious learning from the failures and near-failures of others : Evidence from the U. S. commercial banking industry" 50 (50): 687-714, 2007

8 Staw, B. M., "Threat rigidity effects in organizational behavior : A multilevel analysis" 26 (26): 501-524, 1981

9 McGregor, H. A., "The shame of failure : Examining the link between fear of failure and shame" 31 (31): 218-231, 2005

10 Chen, G., "The roles of self-efficacy and task complexity in the relationships among cognitive ability, conscientiousness, and work-related performance : A meta-analytic examination" 14 (14): 209-230, 2001

11 Seo, M. G., "The role of self-efficacy, goal, and affect in dynamic motivational self-regulation" 109 (109): 120-133, 2009

12 Fredrickson, B. L., "The role of positive emotions in positive psychology : The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions" 56 (56): 218-226, 2001

13 Cron, W. L., "The role of goal orientation on negative emotions and goal setting when initial performance falls short of one’s performance goal" 18 (18): 55-80, 2005

14 Seo, M. G., "The role of affective experience in work motivation" 29 (29): 423-439, 2004

15 D’Aunno, T., "The responses of drug abuse treatment organizations to financial adversity : A partial test of the threat-rigidity thesis" 18 (18): 117-131, 1992

16 Amabile, T. M., "The power of small wins" 89 (89): 70-80, 2011

17 Judge, T. A., "The power of being positive: The relation between positive self-concept and job performance" 11 (11): 167-187, 1998

18 Levinthal, D. A., "The myopia of learning" 14-, 1993

19 Farson, R., "The failure-tolerant leader" 80 : 64-71, 2002

20 Harvey, J., "The effectiveness of training to change safety culture and attitudes within a highly regulated environment" 30 (30): 615-636, 2001

21 DeConinck, J. B., "The effect of organizational justice, perceived organizational support, and perceived supervisor support on marketing employees’ level of trust" 63 (63): 1349-1355, 2010

22 Amabile, T. M., "The dynamic componential model of creativity and innovation in organizations : Making progress, making meaning" 36 : 157-183, 2016

23 Talukder, A. K. M., "Supervisor support and work-life balance : Impacts on job performance in the Australian financial sector" 47 (47): 727-744, 2018

24 Cummings, J. N., "So many teams, so little time : Time allocation matters in geographically dispersed teams" 33 (33): 316-341, 2012

25 Weick, K. E., "Small wins : Redefining the scale of social problems" 39 (39): 40-49, 1984

26 Caraway, K., "Self‐efficacy, goal orientation, and fear of failure as predictors of school engagement in high school students" 40 (40): 417-427, 2003

27 Bandura, A., "Self-efficacy mechanism in human agency" 37 (37): 122-147, 1982

28 Mascolo, M. F., "Self-conscious Emotions: The Psychology of Shame, Guilt, Embarrassment, and Pride" Guilford 64-113, 1995

29 Lam, S. S., "Responses to formal performance appraisal feedback : The role of negative affectivity" 87 (87): 192-201, 2002

30 Sitkin, S. B., "Research in Organizational Behavior" JAI Press 231-266, 1992

31 Staw, B. M., "Research in Organizational Behavior" JAI Press 39-78, 1987

32 Edmondson, A. C., "Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams" 44 (44): 350-383, 1999

33 Spreitzer, G. M., "Psychological empowerment in the workplace : Dimensions, measurement, and validation" 38 (38): 1442-1465, 1995

34 Eisenberger, R., "Perceived supervisor support : Contributions to perceived organizational support and employee retention" 87 (87): 565-573, 2002

35 Wayne, S. J., "Perceived organizational support and leader-member exchange : A social exchange perspective" 40 (40): 82-111, 1997

36 Stinglhamber, F., "Organizations and supervisors as sources of support and targets of commitment : A longitudinal study" 24 (24): 251-270, 2003

37 Levitt, B., "Organizational learning" 14 (14): 319-340, 1988

38 Mäder, I. A., "Nonlinear associations between job insecurity and adaptive performance : The mediating role of negative affect and negative work reflection" 30 (30): 231-253, 2017

39 Bandura, A., "Negative self-efficacy and goal effects revisited" 88 (88): 87-99, 2003

40 Shepherd, D. A., "Negative emotional reactions to project failure and the self-compassion to learn from the experience" 46 (46): 923-949, 2009

41 O’Leary, M. B., "Multiple team membership : A theoretical model of its effects on productivity and learning for individuals and teams" 36 (36): 461-478, 2011

42 Muthén, L. K., "Mplus Users Guide" Muthén and Muthén 2015

43 Shepherd, D., "Moving forward from project failure : Negative emotions, affective commitment, and learning from the experience" 54 (54): 1229-1259, 2011

44 Kanfer, R., "Motivation in organizational behavior : History, advances and prospects" 136 (136): 6-19, 2016

45 Edwards, J. R., "Methods for integrating moderation and mediation : A general analytical framework using moderated path analysis" 12 (12): 1-22, 2007

46 Chuang, Y., "It’s all in the name : Failure-induced learning by multiunit chains" 48 (48): 33-59, 2003

47 Hughes, M., "Innovative behaviour, trust and perceived workplace performance" 29 (29): 750-768, 2018

48 Baer, M., "Innovation is not enough : Climates for initiative and psychological safety, process innovations, and firm performance" 24 (24): 45-68, 2003

49 Isen, A. M., "Influence of positive affect on the subjective utility of gains and losses : It is just not worth the risk" 55 (55): 710-717, 1988

50 Carmeli, A., "High-quality relationships, psychological safety, and learning from failures in work organizations" 30 (30): 709-729, 2009

51 Bohns, V. K., "Guilt by design : Structuring organizations to elicit guilt as an affective reaction to failure" 24 (24): 1157-1173, 2013

52 Gladstein, D., "Group decision making under threat : The tycoon games" 28 (28): 613-627, 1985

53 Madsen, P. M., "Failing to learn? The effects of failure and success on organizational learning in the global orbital launch vehicle industry" 53 (53): 451-476, 2010

54 Cannon, M. D., "Failing to learn and learning to fail intelligently : How great organizations put failure to work to innovate and improve" 38 (38): 299-319, 2005

55 Blau, E. M., "Exchange and Power in Social Life" Wiley 1964

56 Yoon, J., "Employees’self-efficacy and perception of individual learning in teams : The cross-level moderating role of team-learning behavior" 37 (37): 1044-1060, 2016

57 Oldham, G. R., "Employee creativity : Personal and contextual factors at work" 39 (39): 607-634, 1996

58 Tai, W. T., "Effects of training framing, general self-efficacy and training motivation on trainees’ training effectiveness" 35 (35): 51-65, 2006

59 Watson, D., "Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect : The PANAS scales" 54 (54): 1063-1070, 1988

60 Scott, S. G., "Determinants of innovative behavior : A path model of individual innovation in the workplace" 37 (37): 580-607, 1994

61 Fredrickson, B. L., "Cultivated emotions : Parental socialization of positive emotions and self-conscious emotions" 9 (9): 279-281, 1998

62 Russell, J. A., "Core affect and the psychological construction of emotion" 110 (110): 145-172, 2003

63 Cannon, M. D., "Confronting failure : Antecedents and consequences of shared beliefs about failure in organizational work groups" 22 (22): 161-177, 2001

64 Podsakoff, P. M., "Common method biases in behavioral research : A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies" 88 (88): 879-903, 2003

65 Preacher, K. J., "Asymptotic and resampling strategies for assessing and comparing indirect effects in multiple mediator models" 40 (40): 879-891, 2008

66 Lant, T. K., "Aspiration level adaptation : An empirical exploration" 38 (38): 623-644, 1992

67 Campbell, C., "An integrative attributional perspective of empowerment and learned helplessness : A multimethod field study" 24 (24): 173-200, 1998

68 Forgas, J. P., "Affective influences on judgments and behavior in organizations : An information processing perspective" 86 (86): 3-34, 2001

69 Wright, T. A., "Affect and favorable work outcomes : Two longitudinal tests of the happy-productive worker thesis" 20 (20): 1-23, 1999

70 Preacher, K. J., "Addressing moderated mediation hypotheses : Theory, methods, and prescriptions" 42 (42): 185-227, 2007

71 Amazon, "2015 Letter to shareholders"