Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-6766d58669-kn6lq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-05-21T05:47:49.690Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

10 - The stress outcomes of downsizing

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 July 2014

By
M. Blake Hargrove ,
Cary L. Cooper  and
James Campbell Quick
Edited by
Cary L. Cooper ,
Alankrita Pandey  and
James Campbell Quick
M. Blake Hargrove
Affiliation:
University of Texas, Arlington
Cary L. Cooper
Affiliation:
Lancaster University Management School
James Campbell Quick
Affiliation:
University of Texas, Arlington and Lancaster University Management School
Cary L. Cooper
Affiliation:
Lancaster University
Alankrita Pandey
Affiliation:
University of Texas, Arlington
James Campbell Quick
Affiliation:
University of Texas, Arlington
Get access

Summary

Introduction

Too many managers and scholars alike may overlook post-downsizing. There are important considerations in the aftermath of a downsizing event, some of which very much need to be anticipated as the downsizing process begins. These considerations include:

  • effects on the organization,

  • outcome goals (e.g., surviving versus revitalizing), and

  • effects on individuals.

A key question here is: what are the impacts a downsizing climate has on people and their relationship to work? The primary concern of this chapter is the human side of the business and the effects of downsizing on individuals. There are five groups of individuals that are impacted by the downsizing process. These are:

  • employees and managers who are downsized and lose their positions as a result (primary casualties);

  • employees who survive the downsizing and remain within the organization (secondary casualties but survivors);

  • managers who orchestrate and execute the downsizing event (secondary casualties but survivors);

  • spouses, family members, and loved ones who have personal, intimate relationships with those who are let go in the downsizing process as well as those employees and managers who remain (secondary casualties);

  • external spectators, care givers, and community members who are witness to the downsizing event and may either have direct or indirect contact with any or all of the above-mentioned groups (tertiary casualties).

Information

Type
Chapter
Information
Downsizing
Is Less Still More?
 , pp. 293 - 325
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Book purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Armstrong-Stassen, M. 1994. “Coping with transition: A study of layoff survivors.” Journal of Organizational Behavior 15(4): 597–621.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Armstrong-Stassen, M. 1998. “Downsizing the federal government: A longitudinal study of managers’ reactions.” Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences 15(4): 310–322.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Armstrong-Stassen, M. 2002. “Designated redundant but escaping layoff: A special group of lay-off survivors.” Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 75(1): 1–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Armstrong-Stassen, M. 2006. “Determinants of how managers cope with organisational downsizing.” Applied Psychology: An International Review 55(1): 1–26.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Armstrong-Stassen, M. and Cameron, S. J. 2003. “Nurses’ job satisfaction and turnover intentions over a six-year period of hospital downsizing and amalgamation.” International Journal of Public Administration 26(14): 1607–1620.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bennett, N., Martin, C. L., Bies, R. J., and Brockner, J. 1995. “Coping with a layoff: A longitudinal study of victims.” Journal of Management 21(6): 1025–1041.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bies, R. J., Martin, C. L., and Brockner, J. 1993. “Just laid off, but still a ‘good citizen?’ only if the proess is fair.” Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal 6(3): 227–238.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brennan, A. and Skarlicki, D. P. 2004. “Personality and perceived justice as predictors of survivors’ reactions following downsizing.” Journal of Applied Social Psychology 34(6): 1306–1328.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bright, D. S., Cameron, K. S., and Caza, A. 2006. “The amplifying and buffering effects of virtuousness in downsizing organizations.” Journal of Business Ethics 64(3): 249–269.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brockner, J., Grover, S., O’Malley, M. N., Reed, T. F., and Glynn, M. A. 1993. “Threat of future layoffs, self-esteem, and survivors’ reactions: Evidence from the laboratory and the field.” Strategic Management Journal 14(Summer): 153–166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brockner, J., Grover, S., Reed, T. F., and DeWitt, R. L. 1992. “Layoffs, job insecurity, and survivors’ work effort: Evidence of an inverted-U relationship.” Academy of Management Journal 35(2): 413–425.Google Scholar
Brockner, J., Grover, S., Reed, T., DeWitt, R., and O’Malley, M. 1987. “Survivors’ reactions to layoffs: We get by with a little help for our friends.” Administrative Science Quarterly 32(4): 526–541.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brockner, J., Konovsky, M., Cooper-Schneider, R., Folger, R., Martin, C., and Bies, R. J. 1994. “Interactive effects of procedural justice and outcome negativity on victims and survivors of job loss.” Academy of Management Journal 37(2): 397–409.Google Scholar
Brockner, J., Spreitzer, G., Mishra, A., Hochwarter, W., Pepper, L., and Weinberg, J. 2004. “Perceived control as an antidote to the negative effects of layoffs on survivors’ organizational commitment and job performance.” Administrative Science Quarterly 49(1): 76–100.Google Scholar
Brockner, J., Wiesenfeld, B. M., and Martin, C. L. 1995. “Decision frame, procedural justice, and survivors’ reactions to job layoffs.” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 63(1): 59–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Camardella, M. J. 2002. “Legal considerations of a workforce reduction.” Employment Relations Today 29(3): 101–106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cascio, W. F. 2010. Employment Downsizing and Its Alternatives: Strategies for Long-Term Success. Alexandria, VA: Society for Human Resource Management Foundation.Google Scholar
Clarkson, K. W., Miller, R. L., Jentz, G. A., and Cross, F. B. 2006. West’s Business Law Text and Cases: Legal, Ethical, International, and E-Commerce Environment (10th edn.). Mason, OH: Thomson.Google Scholar
Colquitt, J. A. 2001. “On the dimensionality of organizational justice: A construct validation of a measure.” Journal of Applied Psychology 86: 356–400.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Colquitt, J. A., Conlon, D. E., Wesson, M. J., Porter, C. O., and Ng, K. Y. 2001. “Justice at the millennium: A meta-analytic review of 25 years of organizational justice research.” Journal of Applied Psychology 86: 425–445.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Colquitt, J. A., LePine, J. A., and Wesson, M. J. 2011. Organizational Behavior: Improving Performance and Commitment in the Workplace (2nd edn.). Burr Ridge, IL: McGraw-Hill Irwin.Google Scholar
Datta, D. K., Guthrie, J. P., Basuil, D., and Pandey, A. 2010. “A review and synthesis.” Journal of Management 36(1): 281–348.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Devine, K., Reay, T., Stainton, L., and Collins-Nakai, R. 2003. “Downsizing outcomes: Better a victim than a survivor?” Human Resource Management 42(2): 109–124.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dewe, P., O’Driscoll, M., and Cooper, C. L. 2010. Coping with Work Stress: A Review and Critique. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
DeWitt, R., Trevino, L., and Mollica, K. A. 2003. “Stuck in the middle: A control-based model of managers’ reactions to their subordinates’ layoffs.” Journal of Managerial Issues 15(1): 32.Google Scholar
Eby, L. T. and Buch, K. 1998. “The impact of adopting an ethical approach to employee dismissal during corporate restructuring.” Journal of Business Ethics 17(12): 1253–1264.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Folger, R. and Konovsky, M. A. 1989. “Effects of procedural and distributive justice on reactions to pay raise decisions.” Academy of Management Journal 32(1): 115–130.Google Scholar
Folger, R. and Skarlicki, D. P. 1998. “When tough times make tough bosses: Managerial distancing as a function of layoff blame.” Academy of Management Journal 41(1): 79–87.Google Scholar
Fox, S. and Spector, P. E. (eds.). 2004. Counterproductive Work Behavior: Investigations of Actors and Targets. Washington, DC: APA.
Freeman, K. W. 2009. “The right way to close an operation.” Harvard Business Review 87(5): 45–51.Google Scholar
Gandolfi, F. 2008. “Reflecting on downsizing: What have managers learned?” SAM Advanced Management Journal 73(2): 46–55.Google Scholar
Greenberg, J. and Colquitt, J. A. (eds.). 2005. Handbook of Organizational Justice. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Gillespie, N. A., Walsh, M. M., Winefield, A. H., Dua, J. J., and Stough, C. C. 2001. “Occupational stress in universities: Staff perceptions of the causes, consequences and moderators of stress.” Work and Stress 15(1): 53–72.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hamilton, V. 2000. “(In)Justice in waiting: Russian officers’ organizational commitment and mental distress during downsizing.” Journal of Applied Social Psychology 30(10): 1995–2027.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harris, M. M., Heller, T., and Braddock, D. 1988. “Sex differences in psychological well-being during a facility closure.” Journal of Management 14(3): 391–402.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hollander, E. P. 1995. “Ethical challenges in the leader-follower relationship.” Business Ethics Quarterly 5(1): 55–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hopkins, S. M. and Weathington, B. L. 2006. “The relationship between justice perceptions, trust, and employee attitudes in a downsized organization.” Journal of Psychology 140(5): 477–498.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Journal of Accountancy. 2009. “Layoff survivors’ relief turning to stress.” Journal of Accountancy 208(2): 13.Google Scholar
Kim, H. 2009. “Examining the role of informational justice in the wake of downsizing from an organizational relationship management perspective.” Journal of Business Ethics 88(2): 297–312.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Klunder, C. S. 2008. “Preventive stress management at work: The case of the San Antonio Air Logistics Center, Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC).” Managing and Leading, SPIM Conference and Institutes, San Antonio, February 29.
Konovsky, M. A. and Pugh, S. D. 1994. “Citizenship behavior and social exchange.” Academy of Management Journal 37: 656–669.Google ScholarPubMed
LaMarsh, J. 2009. “How companies reduce the downside of downsizing.” Global Business and Organizational Excellence 29(1): 7–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lamsa, A. M. and Takala, T. 2000. “Downsizing and ethics of personnel dismissal.” Journal of Business Ethics 23(4): 389–399.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lavelle, J. J., Brockner, J., Konovsky, M. A., Price, K. H., Henley, A. B., Taneja, A. et al. 2009. “Commitment, procedural fairness, and organizational citizenship behavior: A multifoci analysis.” Journal of Organizational Behavior 30(3): 337–357.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lavelle, J. J., Rupp, D. E., and Brockner, J. 2007. “Taking a multifocal approach to the study of justice, social exchange, and citizenship behavior: The target similarity model.” Journal of Management 33(6): 841–866.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lee, J. and Peccei, R. 2007. “Perceived organizational support and affective commitment: The mediating role of organization-based self-esteem in the context of job insecurity.” Journal of Organizational Behavior 28(6): 661–685.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lin, B., Lee, Z., and Peterson, R. 2006. “An analytical approach for making management decisions concerning corporate restructuring.” Managerial and Decision Economics 27(8): 655–666.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Maki, N., Moore, S., Grunberg, L., and Greenberg, E. 2005. “The responses of male and female managers to workplace stress and downsizing.” North American Journal of Psychology 7(2): 295–312.Google Scholar
Mansour-Cole, D. M. and Scott, S. G. 1998. “Hearing it through the grapevine: The influence of source, leader relations, and legitimacy on survivors’ fairness perceptions.” Personal Psychology 51: 25−54.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McKee-Ryan, F., Song, Z., Wanberg, C. R., and Kinicki, A. J. 2005. “Psychological and physical well-being during unemployment: A meta-analytic study.” Journal of Applied Psychology 90: 53−76.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McFarlin, D. B. and Sweeney, P. D. 1992. “Distributive and procedural justice as predictors of satisfaction wtih personal and organizational outcomes.” Academy of Management Journal 35(3): 626–637.Google Scholar
McMahon, T. F. 2000. “Lifeboat ethics in business.” Business Ethics Quarterly 10(1): 269–276.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meyer, J. P. and Allen, N. J. 1991. “A three-component conceptualization of organizational commitment: Some methodological considerations.” Human Resource Management Review 1: 61–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mishra, A. K. and Mishra, K. E. 1994. “The role of mutual trust in effective downsizing strategies.” Human Resource Management 33(2): 261–279.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mishra, A. K. and Spreitzer, G. M. 1998. “Explaining how survivors respond to downsizing: The roles of trust, empowerment, justice, and work redesign.” Academy of Management Review 23(3): 567–588.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Molinsky, A. and Margolis, J. 2006. “The emotional tightrope of downsizing: Hidden challenges for leaders and their organizations.” Organizational Dynamics 35(2): 145–159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moore, S., Grunberg, L., and Greenberg, E. 2004. “Repeated downsizing contact: The effects of similar and dissimilar layoff experiences on work and well-being outcomes.” Journal of Occupational Health Psychology 9(3): 247–257.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Moorman, R. H., Blakely, G. L., and Niehoff, B. P. 1998. “Does perceived organizational support mediate the relationship between procedural justice and organizational citizenship behavior?” Academy of Management Journal 41(3): 351–357.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nelson, D. L. and Quick, J. C. 2008. Organizational Behavior: Science the Real World and You (6th edn.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.Google Scholar
Organ, D. W., Podsakoff, P. M., and MacKenzie, S. B. 2006. Organizational Citizenship Behavior: Its Nature, Antecedents, and Consequences. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Patient, D. L. and Skarlicki, D. P. 2010. “Increasing interpersonal and informational justice when communicating negative news: The role of the manager’s empathetic concern and moral development.” Journal of Management 36(2): 555–578.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pfeifer, C. 2007. “The perceived fairness of layoffs in Germany: Participation, compensation, or avoidance?” Journal of Business Ethics 74(1): 25–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pompa, V. 1992. “Managerial secrecy: An ethical examination.” Journal of Business Ethics 11(2): 147–156.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Probst, T. M. and Lawler, J. 2006. “Cultural values as moderators of employee reactions to job insecurity: The role of individualism and collectivism.” Applied Psychology: An International Review 55(2): 234–254.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Probst, T. M., Stewart, S. M., Gruys, M. L., and Tierney, B. W. 2007. “Productivity, counterproductivity and creativity: The ups and downs of job insecurity.” Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 80(3): 479–497.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pugh, S., Skarlicki, D. P., and Passell, B. S. 2003. “After the fall: Layoff victims’ trust and cynicism in re-employment.” Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 76(2): 201.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Quick, J. C., Quick, J. D., Nelson, D. L., and Hurrell, J. J. 1997. Preventive Stress Management in Organizations. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scott, B. A., Paddock, E., and Colquitt, J. A. 2009. “An Actor-Focused Model of Justice Rule Adherence and Violation: The Role of Managerial Motives and Discretion.” Journal of Applied Psychology 94(3): 756–769.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shah, P. P. 2000. “Network destruction: The structural implications of downsizing.” Academy of Management Journal 43(1): 101–112.Google Scholar
Skarlicki, D. P., Barclay, L. J., and Douglas Pugh, S. S. 2008. “When explanations for layoffs are not enough: Employer’s integrity as a moderator of the relationship between informational justice and retaliation.” Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 81(1): 123–146.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sora, B., Caballer, A., Peiro, J. M., and de Witte, H. 2009. “Job insecurity climate’s influence on employees’ job attitudes: Evidence from two European countries.” European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology 18(2): 125–147.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spreitzer, G. M. and Mishra, A. K. 2002. “To stay or to go: Voluntary survivor turnover following an organizational downsizing.” Journal of Organizational Behavior 23(6): 707.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tillberg, T. S. 1998. “When structure and meaning break down: Taking responsibility in downsizing.” European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology 7(3): 355–371.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Trevor, C. O., and Nyberg, A. J. 2008. “Keeping your headcount when all about you are losing theirs: Downsizing, voluntary turnover rates, and the moderating role of HR practices.” Academy of Management Journal 51(2): 259–276.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ugboro, I. O. 2006. “Organizational commitment, job redesign, employee empowerment and intent to quit among survivors of restructuring and downsizing.” Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management 7(3): 232–257.Google Scholar
Vahtera, J. 2004. “Organisational downsizing, sickness absence, and mortality: 10-town prospective cohort study.” British Medical Journal 328: 555.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
van Dijke, M. and de Cremer, D. 2008. “How leader prototypicality affects followers’ status: The role of procedural fairness.” European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology 17: 226–250.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Viitasara, E., Sverke, M., and Menckel, E. 2003. “Multiple risk factors for violence to seven occupational groups in the Swedish caring sector.” Relations Industrielles/Industrial Relations 58(2): 202–231.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Virick, M., Lilly, J. D., and Casper, W. J. 2007. “Doing more with less: An analysis of work life balance among layoff survivors.” Career Development International 12(5): 463–480.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weide, S. and Abbott, G. E. 1994. “Murder at work: Managing the crisis.” Employment Relations Today 21(2): 139–151.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wiesenfeld, B. M., Brockner, J., and Thibault, V. 2000. “Procedural fairness, managers’ self-esteeem, and managerial behaviors following a layoff.” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 83: 1–32.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

Accessibility standard: Unknown

Why this information is here

This section outlines the accessibility features of this content - including support for screen readers, full keyboard navigation and high-contrast display options. This may not be relevant for you.

Accessibility Information

Accessibility compliance for the PDF of this chapter is currently unknown and may be updated in the future.

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×