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WELCOME TO THE EMPLOYEE REACTIONS LAB

Performance Management, Organizational Justice, and Employee Reactions to AI in HR Practices

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PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT/APPRAISAL, ORGANIZATIONAL JUSTICE, AND EMPLOYEE REACTIONS TO AI IN HR PRACTICES

My research program focuses mainly on three research areas, two of which I have spent many years studying and a new one. Early in my career, I also focused on team processes but now I mostly investigate teams in either performance appraisal or organizational justice contexts. Recently, one of my interests related to performance appraisal has led me to also focus on employee reactions to the use of AI in human resources practices.  Below I describe my interests in more depth:

 

Performance Appraisal/Management 

Most of my current projects relate to the debate whether to eliminate performance ratings in organizations. For the past several years, academics and practitioners have been debating whether organizations should abolish performance ratings – a debate driven not by academics but by the many organizations that have eliminated performance ratings. In addition to investigating how employees react to organizations potentially eliminating performance ratings, I have also been investigating employee reactions to calibration meetings, widely used in organizations. Instead of supervisors deciding employee performance ratings, in many organizations performance ratings are decided in a meeting in which the supervisor discusses subordinate performance with relevant others. Lastly, I also have a long standing interest regarding how to improve justice perceptions of performance management practices.

 

Organizational Justice

In addition to exploring organizational justice perceptions of performance management practices, I also have more theoretical research interests involving organizational justice. Several researchers have criticized the use of Social Exchange Theory as a blanket explanation for why employees reciprocate just treatment and support from organizations and their representatives (supervisors) with attitudes and behaviors benefiting the organization.  My lab is currently investigating Social Exchange Theory by focusing specifically on employee felt obligation to reciprocate justice treatment by supervisors and the organizations with behaviors benefiting the organization. 

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Employee Reactions to AI in HR Practices  

AI is fundamentally changing how organizations select employees and perhaps will also change how employee performance ratings are determined. In response to the explosion of the use of AI in employee selection, I have started a new line of research investigating reactions to AI-based evaluations of applicant performance on selection exercises.  I received a grant from the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology this spring to investigate whether applicants view AI generated ratings in an assessment center as less fair than ratings assigned by human beings, and whether any perceived fairness differences have implications for how well applicants perform on assessment center exercises.

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SOME RECENT ARTICLES AND PRESENTATIONS
* INDICATES STUDENT AUTHORS

 Published Articles since 2019

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Roch, S. G. (2024). Perceptions of assessment center exercises: Between exercises differences and interventions. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 17(2), 220–232. doi:10.1017/iop.2024.4


Roch, S. G., Zhuang*, W., Park*, J., Jin*, F., & Brooks*, R. R. (2024). Do just trainer behaviors matter? An investigation of felt obligation, affect, and endorsement of the just world hypothesis. Journal of Personnel Psychology, 23(2), 96–107. https://doi.org/10.1027/1866-5888/a000334


Rubin, E., Roch, C. H. & Roch, S. G. (2023). Grading teacher performance appraisal systems: Understanding the implications of student test scores and performance information use.  Public Performance and Management Review, 46(2), 257-285


Roch, S. G., Zhuang, W., Hunt, S. T., & Bidwell, L. (2022). Employee groups and performance trends over time: Exploring the value of performance ratings for identifying high performers and other employee groups. Psychology of Leaders and Leadership, 25(2), 65–89. https://doi.org/10.1037/mgr0000125    (May)


Dalal, D. K., Randall, J.G., Cheung, H.K., Gorman, B. C., Roch, S.G., & Williams, K. J. (2022). Is there bias in alternatives to standardized tests? An investigation into letters of recommendation, International Journal of Testing, 22 (1), 21-42, DOI:10.1080/15305058.2021.2019751

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Ciancetta*, L., & Roch, S. G. (2021). The role of gender in performance feedback: Uncovering new areas of the backlash effect. Human Resource Management, 60(4), 641-657. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.22059  


Roch, S. G., & Braddock*, K. L. (2020). Do employees prefer to receive ratings? The role of justice perceptions and justice-related factors. Journal of Personnel Psychology, 19(3), 103–112. https://doi.org/10.1027/1866-5888/a000243 

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Roch, S. G., Shannon*, C., Martin*, J., Swiderski*, D., Agosta*, J., & Shanock, L. (2019) Role of employee felt obligation and endorsement of the just world hypothesis: A social exchange theory investigation in an organizational justice context".  Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 49(4), 213-225. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/15591816

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Conference Presentations since 2019

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Payne, S. C. (Co-chair), & Otero La Porte, Y. (Co-Chair), Drasgow, F. (Panelist), Henning, J. (Panelist), Horner, M. (Panelist), Roch, S. G. (Panelist), & Schmitt, N. (Panelist) (2024, April). Remaining true to our roots: Academic careers in psychology departments. [Panel]. Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Annual Conference, Chicago, IL, United States.


Sim, Wei Yang & Roch, S. G. (2023, April). Counterfactual thoughts and their relationship with justice perceptions. [Poster]. Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Annual Conference, Boston, MA, United States.


Shannon, C. & Roch, S. G. (2022, April). The organization as an entity: Implications for identification. [Poster]. Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Annual Conference, Seattle, WA, United States.


Roch, S. G., Zhuang, W., Park, J., Sim, W. Y., & Shaju, S. (2022, April). Performance management rater calibration meetings from the employee perspective [Poster]. Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Annual Conference, Seattle, WA, United States.

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Roch, S. G., Zhuang*, W, Shaju*, S., Park*, J., Jin*, F., & Brooks*, R. (2021, April). Performance rating calibration meetings, rating preference, and rating format. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, virtual

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Roch, S. G., Shaju*, S., & Ash*, J. (2021, April). Social Exchange Theory: Justice, felt obligation, and individual differences. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, virtual

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Roch, S. G. (2020, June).  Understanding social and contextual factors in performance management.  Discussant for symposium conducted for the annual meeting of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, virtual.

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Zhuang*, W., Park*, J., Jin*, F., Brooks*, R. R., & Roch, S. G. (2020; June). Training and justice: Role of felt obligation and trainer just and unjust behaviors. Poster presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, virtual

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Hunt, S., Haaland, D., Karavis, P., Levy, P., & Roch, S. G. (2019, April). Talent reviews: comparing performance rating research to "real-world" rating methods.  Roundtable Discussion presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Washington D.C.

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Roch, S. G., Ayman, R., Mitchell Gibbons, A., Pool, G., Shahani-Denning, C., & Stoptaugh, C. (2019, April).  IO Psychology master's program issues and challenges: Program Director perspectives. Panel Discussion presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Washington D. C.

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Rubin, E., Roch, C. H., & Roch, S. G. (2019, April) Grading teacher performance appraisal systems: Understanding the implications of fairness perceptions.   In Behavior of Street-Level Bureaucrats Symposium conducted at the annual meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, Il.

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*** In case you are wondering, the picture is from our cabin in WY where I spend summers

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