Proactivity

Sue bleachers.jpg

Proactivity involves individuals taking anticipatory action to impact themselves and/or their environments.

Research on proactivity stands in contrast to our field’s long-standing portrait of individuals as “human resources” to be acted upon, shaped, and molded. Proactivity research recognizes individuals’ agency and suggests that it is important for us in organizations to understand that agency so we can promote more of it.

Feedback seeking and issue selling are examples of proactivity. But researchers have also emphasized understanding the general category – when do individuals acting proactively? When does proactivity have a particular payoff? My research, for example, suggests that when individuals are new to an environment, proactivity is particularly important. Here, individuals not only try to fit in but also try to make their jobs fit who they are, allowing them to adjust more quickly to new environments. We also have shown that the motivation for the proactivity (intrinsic versus extrinsic) also matters. Individuals who engage in proactive behavior because they like to live that way and it is fun experience the biggest payoff. In a world where individuals more and more have to make it on their own, being proactive can be a real differentiator and one worth understanding better.

rELEVANT puBLICATIONS

 

The Dynamics of Proactivity at Work

Research in Organizational Behavior, 2008

Adaptions to Work Transitions: An Integrative Approach

Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management, 1990