| This dissertation examined the relationships between three work setting characteristics, namely work group goals, managerial behavior, and job design, and six categories of specific job behaviors. Furthermore, the moderating effects of involvement in boundary spanning activity on the above relationship were also explored. It was hypothesized that involvement in boundary activity weakens the relationships between the work setting characteristics and behavior. A survey of 107 non-supervisory employees in two organizations provided the data for the study. Regression analysis was the primary method used to evaluate ten specific hypotheses. Major conclusions from the study include the following. First, goal characteristics are strongly related to the frequency of this set of behaviors only among boundary spanners. Second, the managerial behaviors assessed are strongly related to the frequency of these employee behaviors only among non-spanners. Third, job design is not related to the frequency of these behaviors among either group. Finally, among boundary spanners only, the degree to which their behavior can be accurately predicted from these three work setting characteristics, separately and combined, is negatively related to how much they engage in one type of boundary interaction. This final conclusion provides support for the major premise of this thesis, that involvement in boundary activity reduces the impact of an individual's work setting on his or her behavior. |
