I study how leaders can make workplace interaction more productive.
As work has become more complex and interdependent, individual and organizational performance increasingly depend on the success of crucial interactions: both developmental exchanges like advice, feedback, and voice, and collaborative ones, like communicating virtually. My research coalesces around one core idea: examining these challenging workplace interactions as situated, relational processes can shed light on how to improve their outcomes.
In one line of research, I investigate barriers to and opportunities for improving developmental interactions - both improving their relational consequences and the quality of their content. In a second stream, I investigate how employees can succeed in the challenging communication contexts of the future: virtual and global work. My research employs a mixed-methods approach that draws from field and experimental evidence. A sample of my papers in each of these streams is below.
Relational Consequences of Developmental Interactions
This area of research considers how developmental interactions can influence employees' work relationships.
Improving the Content of Developmental Interactions
In this area of research, I illuminate barriers to and opportunities for improving the content of developmental interactions.
In this line of research, I focus on how virtual and global work impacts employees, with a view toward improving their abilities to navigate these challenging contexts.
Last updated 08/2021
As work has become more complex and interdependent, individual and organizational performance increasingly depend on the success of crucial interactions: both developmental exchanges like advice, feedback, and voice, and collaborative ones, like communicating virtually. My research coalesces around one core idea: examining these challenging workplace interactions as situated, relational processes can shed light on how to improve their outcomes.
In one line of research, I investigate barriers to and opportunities for improving developmental interactions - both improving their relational consequences and the quality of their content. In a second stream, I investigate how employees can succeed in the challenging communication contexts of the future: virtual and global work. My research employs a mixed-methods approach that draws from field and experimental evidence. A sample of my papers in each of these streams is below.
Relational Consequences of Developmental Interactions
This area of research considers how developmental interactions can influence employees' work relationships.
- Blunden, H., Logg, J. M., Brooks, A. W., John, L. K., & Gino, F. (2019). “Seeker beware: The interpersonal costs of ignoring advice.” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 150, 83-100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2018.12.002
- John, L. K., Blunden, H., & Liu, H. (2019). “Shooting the messenger.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 148(4), 644. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000586
- Blunden, H. & Gino, F. (2018). “How the other half thinks: The psychology of advising.” In The Oxford Handbook of Advice, edited by E.L. MacGeorge and L.M. Van Swol. New York: Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190630188.013.3
- Blunden, H. & Steffel, M. “The downside of delegation: Interpersonal consequences of decision support requests.” Invited revision at Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.
- Brodsky, A., Blunden, H., & Burris, E. “The role of interaction frequency, mode, and target in predicting employee challenging voice.” Invited revision at Academy of Management Journal.
Improving the Content of Developmental Interactions
In this area of research, I illuminate barriers to and opportunities for improving the content of developmental interactions.
- Blunden, H., Green, P., & Gino, F. “Distance and detail: Psychological distance promotes specific feedback delivery.” Invited revision at Academy of Management Journal. (Job Market Paper)
- Blunden, H.*, Yoon, J.*, Kristal, A., & Whillans, A. “Feedback seeker’s folly: Requesting advice rather than feedback yields more developmental input.” *Both authors contributed equally to this manuscript. Invited revision at Management Science.
- John, L. K., Blunden, H., & Milkman, K. “The limits of inconspicuous incentives.” Invited fourth round revision at Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.
- Guenoun, B., Blunden, H., Zhang, T., & Gino, F. “When curiosity is generosity: Social curiosity increases advice quality.” Under review at Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.
- Blunden, H., Abi-Esber, N., & Guenoun, B. “How racial and gender diversity affect the developmental information delivered to entrepreneurial startup teams.” Data collection.
In this line of research, I focus on how virtual and global work impacts employees, with a view toward improving their abilities to navigate these challenging contexts.
- Blunden, H.* & Brodsky, A.* (2020). “Beyond the emoticon: Are there unintentional cues of emotion in email?” Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167220936054 *Both authors contributed equally to this manuscript.
- Blunden, H.*, Sohn, W.*, Brodsky, A., & Bernstein, E. “Time pressure and transitions in a new age of virtual work.” Under review at Academy of Management Journal.
- Blunden, H. & Brodsky, A. “When time is on your side: The influence of virtual communication on conflict escalation and de-escalation.” Working Paper.
- Cho, J., Morris, M.W., & Blunden, H. “Thinking like a chameleon: How diversity ideology shapes cultural adaptation.” Working Paper.
Last updated 08/2021