Person-situation navigation mechanisms at work

Abstract

Rather than focusing on their dynamic interplay, research in I/O psychology has mostly focused on either person-level variables as predictors of work behaviors or the impact of situational variables on employees’ behaviors. By studying person and situation variables independently or by treating the situation as fixed, previous studies have largely failed to capture the active role employees take in affecting and managing their work situations. This raises the question of how adequately current research that focuses on either the person or the situation captures the reality of work life. To address this issue, this paper aims to provide a starting point for the integration of person-situation interactions at work into an overarching process model (i.e., Person-Situation Navigation Mechanisms Framework; Rauthmann & Sherman, 2016), and illustrates how previous research on I/O constructs can be positioned within this framework.We call for explicit attention to person-situation navigation mechanisms at work. As a first step, we provide an overarching person-situation navigation process model and illustrate how several I/O constructs can be positioned within this framework. Employees engage with their work environment through situation management. Situation management pertains to a series of intertwined strategies. Individual work situations result from ongoing dynamic person-environment interactions. Situations cannot be studied independently from individuals experiencing them.