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New-employee organizational socialization: adjusting to new roles, colleagues, and organizations.

Ellis AM; Bauer TN; Erdogan B

Handbook of socialization: theory and research, second edition. Grusec JE, Hastings PD, eds. New York, NY: Guilford Press, 2014 Nov; (Pt IV):301-322

https://www.guilford.com/books/Handbook-of-Socialization/Grusec-Hastings/9781462525829

20048474

The process of socialization is one that occurs throughout the life span as we enter into new phases of our lives, new relationships, and new locations. And, without a doubt, entry into a new job is no exception because it constitutes a major transition each time a person changes organizations to start a new job. In fact, census data indicate that, on average, at least in the United States, this type of new job transition occurs 11.3 times in a person's lifetime (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012). It is not surprising, then, that considerable research on organizational behavior and industrial/organizational psychology has been concerned with the specific socialization process that occurs when one enters into a new job or new organization. Organizational socialization refers to the "process by which newcomers [to an organization] make the transition from being organizational outsiders to being insiders" (Bauer, Bodner, Erdogan, Truxillo, & Tucker, 2007, p. 707). In other words, it is the process of learning the ropes within a new organization (Van Maanen & Schein, 1979). In practice, this refers to the extent to which newcomers acquire the knowledge, skills, and functional understanding of their new jobs, make connections with others in the organization, and garner insight into the culture, processes, and people in their new organization. Importantly, organizational socialization has been recognized as a joint process wherein organizations encourage newcomers to accept and adapt to aspects of the organizational culture and established way of doing things, while newcomers actively seek information in an effort to understand and facilitate their own adjustment (Bauer, Morrison, & Callister, 1998). In other words, it relates to the individual, job, group, and organizational levels of analysis. In this chapter, we review the research on organizational socialization, pointing out important trends and findings, and highlighting the many levels of socialization within organizations. SUMMARY: Distal outcomes of the socialization process include both employee job attitudes and performance on the job. Job attitudes include organizational commitment and job satisfaction, as well as intentions to stay with or leave the organization, all of which have implications for employee behavior. Behaviors including task performance and helping behaviors at work are commonly assessed and conceptualized as outcomes of effective organizational socialization practices. Other behaviors, such as whether or not employees actually leaves the organization, are considered important outcomes of effective socialization practices.

Management personnel; Communication systems; Communication research; Humans; Work organization; Work practices; Workforce development; Sociological factors; Employees; Work environment; Lifespan; Life stages; Psychological adaptation; Adaptation; Attitude; Behavior; Work operations; Work organization; Psychological processes; Psychology; Workplace studies; Task performance; Employee satisfaction

20141124

Chapter

Grusec JE; Hastings PD

Grant

2015

9781462518340

Grant-Number-T01-OH-008435

Handbook of socialization: theory and research, second edition

OR

Portland State University