Resumo

Organization members seek information from different sources in order to interpret and respond to the sequence of events they experience at work. The sources of information on which organization members rely to handle different events at work are known in the literature as ‘Sources of Guidance (SOGs)’ (Peterson et al., 1990). Work events include anything that triggers an employee’s conscious attention (Smith et al., 2002). The idea of event is frequently found in organization theories, which view social processes as episodes that can be given many meanings (Martinko and Gardner, 1984).

Even though there is strong evidence in the literature that the use of sources of guidance to handle work events might be influenced by an individual’s psychological profile, its possible internal antecedents have never been deeply investigated. Although previous studies have been conducted to investigate the influence of personality on values (Bilsky and Schwartz, 1994; Furnham, 1984), the study of the simultaneous effect of both on the use of guidance sources at work still constitutes a theoretical gap. So, in this scenario, we aim at proposing a theoretical framework on this matter.

Values are considered by many theorists as criteria used by people to evaluate their actions, other individuals, and events (Williams, 1968; Kluckhohn, 1951). They are socially shared conceptions of what is good, right, and desirable (Knafo et al., 2011). Personality traits are enduring characteristics of the individual that summarize trans-situational consistencies in characteristic styles of responding to the environment (Allport, 1937; Costa and Mccrae, 1992a; Goldberg, 1993). Over the last three decades, personality traits have emerged as one of the main predictors of work outcomes.

The rationale of the proposed theoretical framework was based on six pilars: 1- The importance of studying sources of guidance; 2- Theoretical gap; 3- Both personal values and personality traits might influence attitudes and behavior; 4- Personal values and personality traits complement each other; 5- Personal values and personality traits might influence each other; 6- Personal values and personality traits are relatively stable. We propose that personality traits and personal values influence each other and both might influence the employees’ use of guidance sources at work (behaviors).

By discussing the relationship among three variables that have never been analyzed simultaneously, the present article has contributed to the advancement of the theory of three main knowledge fields to which it is related: Organizational Behavior, Personality Psychology, and Social Psychology. Two hypotheses were raised: personal values are expected to be better predictors of work behaviors over which individuals have cognitive control, and personality traits of spontaneous and intuitive ones.

Knafo, A., Roccas, S. and Sagiv, L. (2011), “The value of values in cross-cultural research: A special issue in honor of Shalom Schwartz”, Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, Vol. 42 No. 2, pp. 178-185. Peterson, M. F., Smith, P. B., Bond, M. H. and Misumi, J. (1990), “Personal Reliance on Event-Management Processes in Four Countries”, Group & Organization Studies, Vol. 15 No. 1, pp. 75-91. Smith, P. B., Peterson, M. F. and Schwartz, S. H. (2002), “Cultural Values, Sources of Guidance, and their relevance to managerial behavior: a 47-Nation Study’, JCCP, Vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 188-208.