Title:
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Organizational socialization tactics, individual differences, and the relationship building process in early socialization : a personal network change perspective
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The organizational socialization field has received considerable attention in both
academic and popular writing. Accounts take either an organizational view - focusing on
the socialization tactics organizations use to bring about desired change in the individuals
they recruit - or a newcomer view - focusing on how individuals integrate successfully.
The literature suggests that the mechanisms whereby both processes are achieved is
carried out through social interaction. However, the nature of this relationship-building
process lacks a clear conceptual and empirical underpinning.
The principal objective of this thesis is to develop a framework explaining/suggesting
how newcomers build relationships with others and how their personal networks change
in early organizational socialization. Drawing on the socialization and social network
literatures, the framework proposes a four stage framework - Newcomers' uncertainty in
a new organization, Relationship initiation process, Relationship straightening and
persistence over time and Newcomers' network change.
Longitudinal empirical evidence, of forty newcomers' personal networks, suggests that
self-monitoring, extraversion and protean career behaviour influence newcomers'
selectivity in adding support providers in their personal network, however uncertainty is
important only for predicting relationship building to get social support. Overall,
newcomers need more informational than social support in the early organizational entry.
Organizational socialization tactics explained the extent of social support received, but
not the extent of informational support. Finally, the willingness of support provider to
give help and similarity of support provider based on age determined which support
provider was contacted.
The thesis contributes to the organizational socialization literature by showing the
selectivity of newcomers in building relationship in the early organizational entry. It
shows the importance of socialization tactics and the perception of uncertainty
newcomers perceive for the extent of support received. It also acknowledge the dyadic
role of other socialization agents in the relationship building process. Lastly, the thesis
also contributes to the social network literature by looking at the effect of individual
differences and contextual variables in the personal network dynamics.
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