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Article
Publication date: 20 October 2023

Klavdia Markelova Evans, Ashley Salaiz and Rob Austin McKee

This paper aims to address an important question of what makes companies succeed or not in their attempt to empower employees. As this study answers this question, the arguments…

248

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to address an important question of what makes companies succeed or not in their attempt to empower employees. As this study answers this question, the arguments suggest that coordination is essential to creation of employee empowerment climate in organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

This is conceptual paper rooted in extensive research on both – empowerment (culture, climate and organizational structure) and coordination (formal and informal).

Findings

To help managers to be effective in their roles, this study presents four insights to creating empowerment climate. The arguments conclude that coordination provides a vessel for successful realization of empowerment. Specifically, only informal coordination (vs formal) will fully realize empowerment’s benefits. Given that the topic of empowerment is highly germane to managers in today’s context of the increasing number of employees working remotely, this work presents an important and actionable advance for managers.

Originality/value

This study represents original research that has not been published and is not currently under review at any other journal.

Details

Journal of Business Strategy, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0275-6668

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 May 2024

Dinesh Kumar, Hamed Taherdoost and Sunil Kumar

The objective of this research is to examine the connections between mindfulness, psychological empowerment and the manifestation of ostracism in the workplace, particularly…

Abstract

Purpose

The objective of this research is to examine the connections between mindfulness, psychological empowerment and the manifestation of ostracism in the workplace, particularly instigated ostracism, among university professors.

Design/methodology/approach

The study relies on data from 746 professors from a renowned university located in northern India. The researchers utilized pre-established scales to measure latent variables, and a seven-point Likert scale for evaluation purposes. The data were analyzed using PLS-SEM.

Findings

The results indicate a positive correlation between mindfulness and psychological empowerment, explaining 42.20% of its variance. Additionally, a negative correlation between psychological empowerment and workplace ostracism is observed, accounting for 1.70% and 5.20% of their variances, respectively. These findings suggest associations but do not imply causality, highlighting the need for further research to explore these relationships.

Research limitations/implications

Its focus on university professors limits the study’s insights from a specific region, potentially affecting the findings' generalizability. Future research should encompass a broader demographic and geographic range to enhance the applicability and relevance of the results across diverse academic contexts.

Practical implications

This study contributes to the existing literature by highlighting a correlation between mindfulness and perceived psychological empowerment among university professors. It also suggests a potential association between psychological empowerment and reduced perceptions of the workplace and instigated ostracism. These preliminary findings, while not indicative of causality, could inform future research and the development of policies promoting mindfulness and empowerment in academic environments.

Originality/value

This study examines the correlations between mindfulness, psychological empowerment and ostracism within academic settings. It uniquely highlights the positive correlation between mindfulness and psychological empowerment and how this relates to reduced perceptions of workplace ostracism among university faculty. These findings suggest that universities could enhance work environments by focusing on these areas, potentially enriching higher education management practices.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 April 2024

Tanushree Mahato and Manish Kumar Jha

This study aims to assess the impact of participation in self-help group (SHG) on the psychological empowerment of rural tribal women.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to assess the impact of participation in self-help group (SHG) on the psychological empowerment of rural tribal women.

Design/methodology/approach

Primary data was collected using multistage random sampling from the rural women of Jharkhand, India. The propensity score matching method was adopted using the psmatch2 command in STATA.

Findings

The results show a significant positive change in women’s self-esteem, self-confidence, self-efficacy, autonomy, knowledge and skills, reduction in agony and quality of life after participation in SHG. This reveals that participation in SHG has a significant positive impact on the psychological empowerment of rural tribal women.

Originality/value

Despite the numerous studies on rural women’s empowerment, there is little evidence of literature focusing on the impact of participation in SHG on psychological empowerment, specifically in the tribal context. This study primarily focuses on women belonging to the scheduled tribe category of Jharkhand, one of the poorest states of India.

Details

International Journal of Development Issues, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1446-8956

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 April 2024

Suneel Kumar, Varinder Kumar and Nisha Devi

This study aims to investigate the connection between digital literacy and women’s empowerment in the rural Himachal Pradesh. It explores how improved digital skills contribute to…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the connection between digital literacy and women’s empowerment in the rural Himachal Pradesh. It explores how improved digital skills contribute to increased empowerment among women with a specific focus on the role of education in enhancing digital literacy.

Design/methodology/approach

This study included 250 rural participants who completed structured questionnaires. Analytical tools, including independent-sample t-tests and partial least squares structural equation modeling, were applied to the data to gain insights into the relationship between digital literacy and women’s empowerment.

Findings

This study revealed a significant positive link between digital literacy and women’s empowerment in the rural Himachal Pradesh context. Education has emerged as a key factor that influences women’s digital skills and empowerment levels.

Originality/value

This research adds novelty by examining the digital literacy–women’s empowerment nexus in rural Himachal Pradesh and emphasizing the impact of education. The combination of statistical methods offers a robust approach to understanding this relationship and underscores the importance of digital inclusion and education for gender equality and women’s progress.

Details

Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-9342

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 30 September 2014

Steven H. Appelbaum, Robin Karasek, Françis Lapointe and Kim Quelch

The purpose of the paper is to uncover and synthesise the main factors that affects and determines the success or failure of empowerment initiatives from a macro and micro…

4101

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of the paper is to uncover and synthesise the main factors that affects and determines the success or failure of empowerment initiatives from a macro and micro perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

A thorough review of scholarly articles and empirical evidence was conducted on the topic of empowerment in order to bring to light the correlation between the different factors affecting structural empowerment, psychological empowerment and the effect of leadership style.

Findings

It has been determined that a team based structure and a culture based on trust and open communication are the key factors affecting the successful implementation of empowerment. Furthermore, although, many positive points can be made for transformational leadership, transactional leadership cannot be discounted as the research shows that the right combination of incentives and rewards, coupled with a certain organisational culture can breed empowerment among certain types of employees.

Research limitations/implications

Going forward in terms of research on the increasingly popular concept of empowerment, it is believed that a more fully integrated model should be developed. Although some models do incorporate analysis of various macro and micro variables a more comprehensive and encompassing model would prove useful. Such a model would allow for a far more in-depth understanding of empowerment and its defining factors and would provide an invaluable tool to organisations wishing to implement empowerment in the most optimal way.

Practical implications

In applying a combination of theories on empowerment, leadership and individuals as part of an organisation, the authors posit that empowerment initiatives are predisposed to either success or failure. In order for empowerment to permeate the corporate culture and prove successful, the predispositions of decentralised management and personal ambition are strong factors of success.

Social implications

The authors postulate that the deciding factors regarding the success or failure of empowering an employee originate from the employees themselves. Even though employees can adopt new corporate cultures and be transformed by their leaders, their core traits remain the same and will have a decisive impact on the eventual success or failure of empowerment initiatives.

Originality/value

Going forward in terms of research on the increasingly popular concept of empowerment, it is believed that a more fully integrated model should be developed. Although some models do incorporate analysis of various macro and micro variables, a more comprehensive and encompassing model would prove useful.

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. 46 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 November 1998

Jay Klagge

Empowerment has been added to the long list of environmental hazards facing the organizationally endangered species known as “middle managers”. For the sake of balance and…

2659

Abstract

Empowerment has been added to the long list of environmental hazards facing the organizationally endangered species known as “middle managers”. For the sake of balance and interest, the author asked middle managers for their views regarding empowerment. This article presents the views of middle managers along with those found in the literature. Definitions are set forth, pros and cons are covered, and dos and don’ts are delineated. The author closes with the following advice for those seeking to implement empowerment: organizations should set the unifying vision for empowerment at the top management level; organizations should train and develop their line employees prior to giving them full empowerment; and organizations should rely on middle managers to provide two‐way communication and coaching for line employees as they are trained for empowerment. The article concludes that organizations should view middle managers as “bridges” rather than “blockages” to the implementation of empowerment.

Details

Journal of Management Development, vol. 17 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0262-1711

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2003

Manuela Pardo del Val and Bruce Lloyd

This paper aims to contribute to the empowerment literature by providing a concrete definition of the topic and thus a way of measuring the empowerment level in organisations. The…

7649

Abstract

This paper aims to contribute to the empowerment literature by providing a concrete definition of the topic and thus a way of measuring the empowerment level in organisations. The tool designed to measure empowerment – resulting from the previous theoretical definition – has been proved to be a scale, fulfilling the necessary properties: reliability and validity. It has been tested on a sample of Spanish firms, concluding that it follows a Normal distribution, whereas 20 per cent of the companies apply a less participative style and 20 per cent could be described as empowered. Measuring empowerment not only serves to know how many companies use empowerment practices but also can be used to delve deeper into relationships between empowerment levels and other managerial concepts, such as the effects of empowerment on organisational change, on quality, or even on organisational performance.

Details

Leadership & Organization Development Journal, vol. 24 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7739

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1997

Joanne C. Neher and Samuel M. Natale

The concept of empowerment is very familiar to the human services world where the goal is to empower clients to manage their own lives as much as possible. In the corporate world…

1430

Abstract

The concept of empowerment is very familiar to the human services world where the goal is to empower clients to manage their own lives as much as possible. In the corporate world, however, empowerment is a fairly new concept. There are issues involved in the infusion of empowerment into the corporate structure which are addressed in this paper. These include the process of developing an empowerment structure that will continue to function, the identification of qualified employees who can manage their workloads within an empowerment system, and the commitment of managers to empowerment as a way of meeting production goals. Within the human services system, empowerment is an accepted form of practice. The corporate world is trying to develop this practice in an era of downsizing and redefining of structures. This paper maintains that the development of empowerment found in human services can be transferred to the corporate system because the process of infusing empowerment into each system is relatively the same.

Details

Empowerment in Organizations, vol. 5 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4891

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 December 1997

Margaret Erstad

Among the many fashionable management terms, empowerment refers to a change strategy with the objective of improving both the individual’s and the organization’s ability to act…

11906

Abstract

Among the many fashionable management terms, empowerment refers to a change strategy with the objective of improving both the individual’s and the organization’s ability to act. Reviews the various themes of empowerment with particular reference to articles published between 1994‐1996 in the journal Empowerment in Organizations. The main themes are: creating an empowerment culture; empowerment as a management strategy; training and development for empowered employees; empowered teams and implementation techniques and empowerment and organizational change in the hospitality industry.

Details

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 9 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-6119

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 February 2015

Steven H. Appelbaum, Robin Karasek, Francis Lapointe and Kim Quelch

The purpose of this paper is to uncover and synthesise the main factors that affects and determines the success or failure of empowerment initiatives from a macro and micro…

3766

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to uncover and synthesise the main factors that affects and determines the success or failure of empowerment initiatives from a macro and micro perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

A thorough review of scholarly articles and empirical evidence was conducted on the topic of empowerment in order to bring to light the correlation between the different factors affecting structural empowerment, psychological empowerment and the effect of leadership style.

Findings

It has been determined that a team based structure and a culture based on trust and open communication are the key factors affecting the successful implementation of empowerment. Furthermore, although, many positive points can be made for transformational leadership, transactional leadership cannot be discounted as the research shows that the right combination of incentives and rewards, coupled with a certain organisational culture can breed empowerment among certain types of employees.

Research limitations/implications

Going forward in terms of research on the increasingly popular concept of empowerment, it is believed that a more fully integrated model should be developed. Although some models do incorporate analysis of various macro and micro variables a more comprehensive and encompassing model would prove useful. Such a model would allow for a far more in-depth understanding of empowerment and its defining factors and would provide an invaluable tool to organisations wishing to implement empowerment in the most optimal way.

Practical implications

In applying a combination of theories on empowerment, leadership and individuals as part of an organisation, the authors posit that empowerment initiatives are predisposed to either success or failure. In order for empowerment to permeate the corporate culture and prove successful, the predispositions of decentralised management and personal ambition are strong factors of success.

Social implications

The authors postulate that the deciding factors regarding the success or failure of empowering an employee originate from the employees themselves. Even though employees can adopt new corporate cultures and be transformed by their leaders, their core traits remain the same and will have a decisive impact on the eventual success or failure of empowerment initiatives.

Originality/value

Going forward in terms of research on the increasingly popular concept of empowerment, it is believed that a more fully integrated model should be developed. Although some models do incorporate analysis of various macro and micro variables, a more comprehensive and encompassing model would prove useful.

Details

Industrial and Commercial Training, vol. 47 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0019-7858

Keywords

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