An Exploratory Study on Employee Social Network's Structural Influence on IM

• 作 者: Tao Zhu
• 机 构: Department of Marketing Fudan University
• 出 处: 营销科学学报编辑部
• 发表日期: 2007年5期
• 关键词: Network Structure IM WoM Social Network Analysis

　　This paper tries to find out the relationship between employees social network structural factors and IM (IM) mechanism.The purpose of this paper is therefore threefold: (1) to prove the effect of social network on IM;(2) to find out the leverage in this effect, (3) and an IM conceptual model based upon social network structural analysis tested by an empirical study.In this research, organizational commitment, a key element in IM, are found to be negatively related with affective and communication dimensions in the employees social network.The logic is when employees are engaged in their own society and grow more enthusiastic about their own social interactions, their organizational involvement will be weakened;as their sense of their independence becomes stronger with a intensification of collective structural positions in their own social network, their will lose alignment with organization objective and well-being, hence detrimental to IM.Another interesting finding is that there seems to have no relationship between employee commitment and their word of mouth behavior as first customer of their organization.