Finding one's own way: how newcomers who differ stay well
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/EBHRM-06-2022-0153 |
| Published date | 04 August 2022 |
| Date | 04 August 2022 |
| Pages | 143-157 |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Global HRM |
| Author | Jenny Chen,Helena D. Cooper-Thomas |
Finding one’s own way:
how newcomers who
differ stay well
Jenny Chen
Faculty of Business and Law, University of the West of England, Bristol, UK, and
Helena D. Cooper-Thomas
Faculty of Business, Economics and Law, Auckland University of Technology,
Auckland, New Zealand
Abstract
Purpose –Beingdifferent from otherscan be stressful,and this may be especiallysalient for newcomersduring
organizational socialization when they may be expected to fit in. Thus, drawing onconservation of resources
theory, the authors examine theeffects of newcomers’individual differentiation on their subsequent emotional
exhaustion.
Design/methodology/approach –The authors test a multiple mediation model with data from 161 UK
graduates collected at three times using structural equation modeling.
Findings –The results largely support the hypotheses, identifying individual differentiation as a motivational
resource associated with the proactive behavior of changing work procedures. In turn, changing work
procedures links with the personal resource of positive affect, which facilitates therelational resource of social
acceptance and predicts lower emotional exhaustion. Individual differentiation predicts lower social
acceptance also, but not via monitoring as anticipated.
Originality/value –The results provide novel insights into the effects of individual differentiation on
emotionalexhaustion in the context of organizational socialization.The study highlights that, while newcomers
high in individual differentiation face depletion of the relational resource of social acceptance, they can still
adjust well and avoid emotionalexhaustion through changing work procedures to foster positive affect.
Keywords Organizational socialization, Conversation of resources theory, Individual differentiation,
Emotional exhaustion, Newcomer
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Withorganizationsseeking to acquireand build uniquetalent, theymay look to newcomerswho
bring different skills and perspectives (Harris et al., 2014). However, being different can be
harmfulto newcomers’well-being. Forexample, employeeswho deviate fromgroup norms may
experience increased relationship conflict (Guillaume et al.,2013)and lower levels of well-being
(Findleret al., 2007). During organizational socialization, newcomers who differmay redefine or
even reject aspects of their work environment, yet this diversity of approach may not be
welcome (Hurst et al., 2012). Thus, when organizations take strategic risks by hiring new
employeesto capitalize on theirunique skills (Tharenou and Kulik, 2020), it is important for all
parties tounderstand the risks andput in place resourcesthat help such newcomersstay well.
Hence, a primary aim of the present study is to investigate how newcomers who differ
manage their differentness and maintain good health. We use the construct of individual
differentiation to capture the broad array of ways in which people view themselves as
different in terms of personal opinions, skills, beliefs, and unique perspectives on problems
(Janssen and Huang, 2008). Newcomers may be hired for their distinctive ideas (Harris et al.,
2014;Vogel et al., 2016), with individual differentiation motivating individual creativity
Newcomer
well-being
143
Funding: This research was supported by an early career researcher grant to the first author at the
University of the West of England.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/2049-3983.htm
Received 24 June 2022
Revised 10 July 2022
Accepted 10 July 2022
Evidence-based HRM: a Global
Forum for Empirical Scholarship
Vol. 11 No. 2, 2023
pp. 143-157
© Emerald Publishing Limited
2049-3983
DOI10.1108/EBHRM-06-2022-0153
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