Summary
The selection process within organizations is susceptible to shortcomings that can have profound implications for the newly hired individual as well as the organization. Yet overreward in the selection process has received very little attention in the literature. In this article we investigate the impostor phenomenon as an outcome of overreward and its influence on organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behaviors. It is further suggested that the influence of the impostor phenomenon on these outcomes will be influenced by an individual's core self-evaluations, as well as equity sensitivity. Implications for future research and practice are also suggested.
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Extract
Overreward and the Impostor Phenomenon
Overreward in the selection process potentially carries serious implications for organizations. Equity theory (Adams, 1963, 1965) proposes that individuals who feel underrewarded or overrewarded will experience tension (e.g., frustration in the case of underreward or guilt in the case of overreward) and will take steps to rectify the inequity. While much literature has been attributed to the study of underreward (e.g., GiIliland, 1993; Greenberg, 1990) and the multiple outcomes that are associated with this type of distributive justice, relatively little attention has been paid to overreward. This could be due to a generalized belief that overreward is not very common since there is a higher threshold of inequity (Miner, 2002; Adams, 1965). This higher threshold implies that overreward inequity will be tolerated more readily than underreward. While some may question the existence of overreward, research in the area of underreporting billable hours for personal satisfaction or to improve performance evaluations indicates that some individuals do feel a sense of and recognize the idea of overreward (Akers and Eaton, 2003). Although this viewpoint may be true, overreward may still cause problems for the employee and employer in the work environment.
Overreward in the selection process occurs when an individual receives an employment offer that exceeds the individual's expectations relative to the perception of his/her qualifications. This distributive injustice in the form of inequity causes feelings of unease within the applicant. Guilt is one potential response to the perceived inequity, and guilt may lead the applicant to reject the employment offer (Mowday, 1996; Miner, 2002; Gilliland, 1993). Alt...See the full content of this document
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