Article Review (Research Paper Sample)

Article Review Name Institutional Affiliation Course Name and Number Course Instructor Date Article Reviewed: ‘Should HR Managers Allow Employees to Use Social Media at Work? Behavioral and Motivational Outcomes of Employee Blogging’ Introduction and Background of the Study Bizzi (2020) investigated the benefits and limitations of blogging in the workplace as associated with intrinsic motivation and proactive behavior. The author based their primary argument on the dilemma of human resource (HR) managers when it comes to social media policies in the workplace. Social interaction using internet media platforms has emerged as a crucial tool in reinforcing trust, solid relationships, and cohesion over the past decade. Moreover, it plays a central role in augmenting workplace engagement and influencing employee attitudes and perceptions towards their duties and responsibilities. However, the negative aspects of social media usage in the workplace limit its efficacy and hence become a critical dilemma for human resource managers. Bizzi (2020) centers his investigation on blogging due to its growing popularity on social media platforms to develop feasible recommendations for HR managers. He tests the effects of blogging on employees’ motivation to develop accurate inferences and make practical recommendations on whether HR managers should encourage or limit the use of internet media in the workplace.  Research Question The article posits that while blogging has numerous benefits in the workplace, lack of its control limits its efficacy and has detrimental implications on the employees’ performance and productivity. While Bizzi (2020) does not pose a research question directly, the central inquiry is whether HR managers should allow or restrict social media usage in the organization. Several hypotheses provide solutions to the inquiry in question. * Employees’ blogging with outsiders adversely affects their motivation and proactive behavior. * Blogging with co-workers positively influences employees’ behavior in the workplace and enhances motivation. * The formality of employee interactions correlates with their social media usage and blogging activities.   Data Used in the Study The research was informed by empirical data gathered through a Canadian Healthcare services provider survey. Bizzi (2020) sampled the firm’s 450 employees and gained insights from employees working in diverse departments. He used 269 participants since the questionnaire response rate was 61%. The respondents had a mean age of 30 and an average of two years working for the Canadian firm. In addition, 75% were female, and 46% had undergraduate education (Bizzi, 2020). 38% of the participants disclosed that they engaged in personal blogging in the workplace, while 24% reported blogging with co-workers (Bizzi, 2020). It is crucial to indicate that the employees initiated the blogging activities since the organization did not provide explicit support, influence, or encouragement to engage in social media usage. The study collected data regarding the employees’ blogging activities and social media use. It concentrated on the number of hours spent blogging, who the employees blogged with, and the social media platforms they used. Bizzi (2020) used the Four-Item Scale to measure the respondents' intrinsic motivation and the individual task proactivity three-item scale to gauge their proactive work behavior.  ANOVA Statistical Analysis Bizzi (2020) capitalized on Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) to perform correlation and regression analysis and thus make sense of the gathered information. The analyses supported the developed hypothesis by indicating the correlation between blogging with outsiders and adverse effects on employee behavior and motivation. However, the regression analysis failed to how blogging activity influences motivation or proactive behavior. Bizzi (2020) used the ANOVA test to develop insights into the behavior of employees who blog with co-workers and those that do not. The ANOVA test showed that employees who blog with co-workers exhibit different behavior than those who blog with outsiders. The test was used to test the general variance of behavior between respondents who blogged with outsiders and those that blogged with co-workers (Eisenberg, 2011). Bizzi (2020) used the test to augment the research results by investiga...