A Time for Cognitive Change: The Reappraisal of Anger, Interpersonal Injustice, and Counterproductive Work Behaviors

Abstract

This dissertation looks to the emotional regulation literature, specifically the cognitive change stage (i.e. reappraisal) of Gross's (1998) process model of emotional regulation, to help employees adaptively regulate their justice perceptions. Thus, the focus of this dissertation is to explore the influence of reappraisal training on anger and interpersonal justice perceptions, and subsequently, on counterproductive workplace behavior. By extending Gross's (1998) work on reappraisal to the context of organizational justice, this dissertation contributes to theory by exploring adaptive forms of employee justice regulation and by being among the first to examine reappraisal in the context of organizational justice and deviance. In this dissertation, two studies were conducted to test the effect of reappraisal training on experienced anger, interpersonal justice perceptions, and counterproductive workplace behaviors. Significant moderating effects suggest that this dissertation helps to explain how reappraisal training may influence different groups of people. Post-hoc analyses revealed encouraging results for the theoretical model. To conclude, I provide theoretical and practical limitations of the dissertation and offer directions for future research.