Dear colleagues,
On behalf of the editorial team and the guest editors, I'm excited to let you know that OBHDP is calling for papers for a new special issue! Below please see the detailed info on the special issue. Attached is a flyer specifically made for the call (in colorJ). We are looking forward to receiving your submissions!
Call for Papers
Special issue
Leveraging phenomenon-based research in China for theory advancement
Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes
Guest Editors:
Kwok Leung, City University of Hong Kong, China
Ray Friedman, Vanderbilt University, USA
Chao C. Chen, Rutgers University, USA, and Nanjing University, China
China is now the second largest economy in the world and is poised to be the largest within two decades. Many interesting, relatively unique social and behavioral phenomena exist in China. Studying these phenomena will not only deepen our understanding of Chinese culture, but also provide new insights about how humans are shaped by, adapt to and transform social and cultural forces. The different cultural and institutional context of China vis-à-vis that of the West provides immense opportunities for evaluating, extending, and creating psychological theories.
An illustrative, but not exhaustive list of phenomena in China that fall within the scope of this special issue is provided below:
1. Generations born after 1980 are quite different from their parents in values, beliefs, norms, and behaviors. What are those values? How do they affect work behavior? Are stark inter-generational differences creating different challenges for China than the West in the work context?
2. A very large percentage of university graduates cannot find jobs upon graduation and remain unemployed for a long period of time. In contrast, there is a shortage of low level workers in many industries. How does an extreme imbalance of training and economic needs influence organizations, and the motivations of both high- and low-skilled workers?
3. A huge number of migrant workers flock to the more prosperous cities to seek better jobs, and Chinese organizations develop differential employment relations at the workplace. How does being distant from family members affect worker expectations and employee relations? Are there particular socio-psychological dynamics created in the workplace by such differential employee relations?
4. The number of employees with overseas education is rising rapidly. Does exposure to the West change values and workplace skills and expectations? To what extent can Western-educated Chinese understand and abide by local norms for workplace behavior?
5. Grass root entrepreneurship, especially in rural areas, has exploded and created numerous tiny entrepreneurial entities. What are the psychological dynamics underlying the entrepreneurial activities of this type of entrepreneurs?
6. The large firms are mostly state-owned, although many are listed in stock markets. Does state ownership affect the way managers and employees relate to each other? Does it enhance or diminish psychological flexibility? In these firms there is a dual track leadership system with one leader appointed by the Communist party and another leader appointed to run the firm. Does dual leadership change the nature of leadership? Do employees expect more or less from leaders when there is a dual leadership structure?
7. There is a national policy for Chinese firms to become international, but many firms are accruing losses in their overseas operations and investments. What are the psychological issues involved when Chinese managers are sent overseas to manage an operation in a foreign nation?
8. Consumers have low trust in products of some Chinese firms, such as baby formula. How has rampant consumer mistrust affected employee motivation, organizational commitment, and organizational identification?
9. The central government emphasizes sustainability, but pollution and environment degradation are severe in many regions. Does this make employees more aware of health risks at work? Does pollution affect work-place energy and effort? Does it restrict employee willingness to be geographically mobile within a company?
10. Materialism is at a high level in China. What are its major consequences in the workplace? How is the widening gap between the rich and the poor affect psychological processes in the work context?
11. China is a developing country with an aging population, while most other aging countries are developed. Does demographic imbalance have a different set of risks and problems for developing than developed economies? Are psychological effects of aging different under these circumstances?
- Creativity is receiving a great deal of attention in China. What are the issues and hurdles confronting Chinese employees, especially R & D personnel, in their creative pursuit? What role does Chinese culture play in the promotion of employee creativity at all level? What role does creativity play in the attempt by Chinese employees to achieve desired outcomes and deal with institutional constraints?
The research must address a well-defined phenomenon in China and falls within the general scope of OBHDP. It is important that the research demonstrates clearly and explicitly how phenomenon-based research results in the extension and modification of current constructs, models, theories, and perspectives, or the creation of new constructs and theories. We accept both quantitative and qualitative studies and inductive and deductive approaches, and we especially welcome mixed methods. We will not consider theory papers.
The deadline for submission is December 31, 2014. Instructions for preparing manuscripts are provided in:
http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/622929/authorinstructions.
For questions, please contact the special issue editors or Xiao-Ping Chen, the editor of OBHDP (xpchen@uw.edu).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Xiao-Ping Chen, Ph.D.
Philip M. Condit Endowed Chair Professor
Head, Department of Management & Organization
Michael G. Foster School of Business
University of Washington
Editor, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes
Executive Editor, Chinese Management Insights
Seattle, WA 98195-3226
Tel: 206-543-2265
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~