Papers by Kelsey Medeiros
Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts
Industrial and Organizational Psychology
Drawing on examples from published research, the authors offer a perspective on the side effects ... more Drawing on examples from published research, the authors offer a perspective on the side effects that are associated with organizational interventions. This perspective is framed in the context of the many hard-won positive influences that industrial and organizational (I-O) psychologists have had on individuals, groups, organizations, and social institutions over the last century. With a few exceptions, we argue that side effects tend to receive less attention from I-O psychology researchers and practitioners than they deserve. A systematic approach to studying, monitoring, and advertising side effects is needed to better understand their causes, consequences, and the contexts in which they are most likely to emerge. The purpose of this piece is to stimulate conversations within the field about the phenomenon of side effects as well as what might be done to improve our science and practice in this domain.
Personality and Individual Differences, 2022
The international scope of the 2020 COVID-19 crisis compelled a response from world leaders acros... more The international scope of the 2020 COVID-19 crisis compelled a response from world leaders across the globe. However, the nature of these responses was far from universal. These circumstances present a unique opportunity to study how leader style influences, and is influenced by, a common crisis. To explore these relationships, the present effort used a content analysis of weekly COVID-19 statements from world leaders spanning the first 19 weeks of the crisis. Results suggest that leaders shifted toward increasingly pragmatic sensemaking approaches as COVID-19 infections increased and that sustained use of pragmatic leadership styles was associated with fewer infections in the long term. In contrast, sustained use of the charismatic sensemaking style was associated with higher observed infection rates.
Ethics & Behavior, 2020
Researchers have increasingly acknowledged that affect plays a role in ethical decision making. H... more Researchers have increasingly acknowledged that affect plays a role in ethical decision making. However, the impact that specific affective states may have on the expression of decision biases in the context of ethical dilemmas has received limited empirical attention. To address this, the present effort examined the impact of happy and sad affective states on biases in ethical decision making. In an online experiment, undergraduate students read short stories that either induced happy, sad, or relaxed (neutral) affective states, followed by a covert measure of three types of biases (i.e., simplification, verification, and regulation) held to inhibit ethical decision making. Results demonstrated that happy affective states increased the expression of regulation biases, and sad affective states increased the expression of simplification biases, compared to relaxed (neutral) affective states. Implications are discussed for advancing research on ethical decision making and reducing unethical behavior in organizations.
Although traditional conceptions of creativity argue for the benefits of a free and unconstrained... more Although traditional conceptions of creativity argue for the benefits of a free and unconstrained creative process, recent research suggests that implementing constraints may enhance creative problem solving. Previous studies investigating this relationship, however, primarily examine the relationship between constraints and idea generation. The present effort aimed to add to our understanding of this relationship by examining the role of constraints at the process level. Approximately 300 undergraduate students completed an experimental task in which the type, number, and timing of constraints were manipulated. All participants engaged in four processes: problem identification, conceptual combination, idea generation, and idea evaluation prior to developing a final solution. Each process and the final proposal were coded and used as dependent variables in the analysis. Results suggest that introducing constraints prior to problem identification improves creative performance on final proposals and that constraints encourage engagement in evaluative processing. Findings regarding effects of types and amount of constraints on specific processes, as well as the implications of these results, are discussed.
Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 2021
Ethical Climate and Corporate Social Responsibility
Today is the day Julia has been dreaming about since the first day of her PhD program-it's interv... more Today is the day Julia has been dreaming about since the first day of her PhD program-it's interview day at the American Economics Association (AAEA) Annual Conference. As her phone plays her familiar morning alarm, Julia jumps out of bed, bright-eyed and hopeful for the 10 interviews she has scheduled for the day. She irons her power skirt and navy blouse carefully, ensuring she leaves no creases uncreased. She reviews her notes on each school, each committee member, and each job requirement, preparing her responses just enough to sound polished but not too much as to sound over rehearsed. She slips on her special interview heels that give her that extra boost of confidence and height she likes and walks out of her hotel room-shutting the door behind her and with it, imagining the start of her future as an assistant professor of economics.
The rise of Industry 4.0 – the proliferation of cyber-physical systems, artificial intelligence, ... more The rise of Industry 4.0 – the proliferation of cyber-physical systems, artificial intelligence, big data, and automation – has turned attention, once again, to the interaction between humans and robots . Captivating attention in both academic and public spheres, the debate on how humans and robots interact largely centres around the interplay between human and artificial cognition. The human-robot cognition interaction fuels practical inquiries into the formation of high-performing human-robot teams, leveraging robots to enhance human cognition, and the capacity for robots to overtake human cognition. At the heart of these conversations, however, lies a critical question – what does the Future of Work look like? (see, for example, OECD, 2017). As robots take on more and more tasks previously performed by humans, where does that leave the human worker?
Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 2018
Leaders have been classified as having charismatic, ideological, or pragmatic (CIP) leadership st... more Leaders have been classified as having charismatic, ideological, or pragmatic (CIP) leadership styles, each characterized by distinct patterns in cognition and interaction. Although each CIP style has been shown to facilitate certain aspects of the creative process for followers, questions remain regarding the impact of leadership style on overall follower creative performance. One factor likely to influence this relationship is leader distance, composed of the physical distance, perceived social distance, and perceived task interaction among leaders and followers. Past research has also emphasized the role of leaders’ mental models as they relate to follower performance. Less understood, however, is how the mental models of followers may affect this process. Using the CIP model of leadership, this study explores leader distance and leader–follower mental model congruence on follower creative performance. Results indicated that while leadership style does not directly influence foll...
The Journal of Creative Behavior, 2019
This study investigated the impact of mild shifts in affective tone (i.e., pleasant vs. unpleasan... more This study investigated the impact of mild shifts in affective tone (i.e., pleasant vs. unpleasant) and arousal (i.e., high vs. low) on three creative processes. Undergraduates read short stories designed to induce affective shifts and then were asked to generate solutions to a complex business problem. Shifts in affective tone and arousal interacted to influence idea generation and implementation planning, but not idea evaluation. The strongest creative performance was exhibited by participants who experienced a stable and pleasantly toned, low-arousal (i.e., relaxed) state and by those who shifted to an unpleasantly toned, high-arousal (i.e., angry) state. In contrast, those who shifted to an unpleasantly toned, low-arousal (i.e., sad) state or a pleasantly toned, high-arousal (i.e., happy) state tended to exhibit poorer creative performance. These results demonstrate the need to revisit the popular conception that organizations should promote intense levels of pleasant affect to enhance employee creativity.
Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 2019
Recent events in the workplace, government, and college campuses in the US have brought the issue... more Recent events in the workplace, government, and college campuses in the US have brought the issues of sexual harassment and assault to the forefront of media and public discussion. Industrial and organizational (I-O) psychologists are uniquely suited to help address these issues by aiding in intervention development. Specifically, I-O psychologists can provide key insight regarding the context, design, development, and evaluation of sexual harassment and assault training efforts. Although some empirical evidence suggests that trainings are effective in the short term, there is little evidence to suggest long-term attitudinal or behavioral change outside of the training environment. Much of the research in this area, however, has focused solely on the training intervention, excluding the pre- and post-training environment. Thus, the present effort focuses on designing trainings that promote transfer, as well as improving measurement of desired outcomes, to provide a framework for imp...
Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 2018
Journal of Academic Ethics, 2017
Requirements for business ethics education and organizational ethics trainings mark an important ... more Requirements for business ethics education and organizational ethics trainings mark an important step in encouraging ethical behavior among business students and professionals. However, the lack of specificity in these guidelines as to how, what, and where business ethics should be taught has led to stark differences in approaches and content. The present effort uses meta-analytic procedures to examine the effectiveness of current approaches across organizational ethics trainings and business school courses. to provide practical suggestions for business ethics interventions and research. Thus, the primary questions driving this research are as follows: (1) what course characteristics moderate the effectiveness of ethics instruction?, and (2) have ethics education and training efforts improved? Findings suggest that professional, focused, and workshop-based training programs are especially effective for improving business ethics. However, results also reveal considerable problems with many of the criteria used to evaluate the effectiveness of business ethics interventions. Practical suggestions for course design and evaluation in business ethics efforts are discussed along with future research needs.
Accountability in research, Jan 22, 2016
Although qualitative research offers some unique advantages over quantitative research, qualitati... more Although qualitative research offers some unique advantages over quantitative research, qualitative methods are rarely employed in the evaluation of ethics education programs and are often criticized for a lack of rigor. This systematic review investigated the use of qualitative methods in studies of ethics education. Following a review of the literature in which 24 studies were identified, each study was coded based on 16 best practices characteristics in qualitative research. General thematic analysis and grounded theory were found to be the dominant approaches used. Researchers are effectively executing a number of best practices, such as using direct data sources, structured data collection instruments, non-leading questioning, and expert raters. However, other best practices were rarely present in the courses reviewed, such as collecting data using multiple sources, methods, raters, and timepoints, evaluating reliability, and employing triangulation analyses to assess convergen...
Accountability in research, Jan 22, 2016
Although recent evidence suggests ethics education can be effective, the nature of specific train... more Although recent evidence suggests ethics education can be effective, the nature of specific training programs, and their effectiveness, varies considerably. Building on a recent path modeling effort, the present study developed and validated a predictive modeling tool for responsible conduct of research (RCR) education. The predictive modeling tool allows users to enter ratings in relation to a given ethics training program and receive instantaneous evaluative information for course refinement. Validation work suggests the tool's predicted outcomes correlate strongly (r = 0.46) with objective course outcomes. Implications for training program development and refinement are discussed.
Science and engineering ethics, Jan 7, 2016
Increased investment in ethics education has prompted a variety of instructional objectives and f... more Increased investment in ethics education has prompted a variety of instructional objectives and frameworks. Yet, no systematic procedure to classify these varying instructional approaches has been attempted. In the present study, a quantitative clustering procedure was conducted to derive a typology of instruction in ethics education. In total, 330 ethics training programs were included in the cluster analysis. The training programs were appraised with respect to four instructional categories including instructional content, processes, delivery methods, and activities. Eight instructional approaches were identified through this clustering procedure, and these instructional approaches showed different levels of effectiveness. Instructional effectiveness was assessed based on one of nine commonly used ethics criteria. With respect to specific training types, Professional Decision Processes Training (d = 0.50) and Field-Specific Compliance Training (d = 0.46) appear to be viable approa...
Accountability in Research, 2016
Training is a costly investment. As such, it is of great interest to know the extent to which tha... more Training is a costly investment. As such, it is of great interest to know the extent to which that investment is yielding a positive return. Recent meta-analytic efforts have observed that ethics training programs are, indeed, having a positive effect, leading to the conclusion that the programs are working. However, they have also uncovered considerable variability in the effectiveness of ethics training programs, which leads to the purpose of the present study-to review current practices in ethics training evaluation. Through this review of 243 studies, consisting of 380 ethics trainings, we identified major themes in evaluation practices and training design. The tradeoffs associated with these evaluation procedures and designs are discussed, along with directions for future research.
Ethics & Behavior, 2016
Given the growing public concern and attention placed on cases of research misconduct, government... more Given the growing public concern and attention placed on cases of research misconduct, government agencies and research institutions have increased their efforts to develop and improve ethics education programs for scientists. The present study sought to assess the impact of these increased efforts by sampling empirical studies published since the year 2000. Studies published prior to 2000 examined in other meta-analytic work were also included to provide a baseline for assessing gains in ethics training effectiveness over time. In total,this quantitative review consisted of 66 empirical studies, 106 ethics courses, 150 effect sizes, and 10,069 training participants. Overall, the findings indicated that ethics instruction resulted in sizable benefits to participants and has improved considerably within the last decade. A number of specific findings also emerged regarding moderators of instructional effectiveness. Recommendations are discussed for improving the development, delivery, and evaluation of ethics instruction in the sciences.
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Papers by Kelsey Medeiros