A 6-year study tracked the effects of a group-level absence control program within a Midwestern urban bus company. By modeling employee time-use options systemically, effects were examined graphically with daily precision. Short-term nonlegitimate absence decreased and time worked increased, but unintended substitution effects occurred as employees discovered legitimate ways to exploit absence and time scheduled off. Propositions for future research and methodological insights are noted.
BARMBY, T. A., ORME, C. D., & TREBLE, J. G.Worker absenteeism: An analysis using microdata. The Economic Journal, 1991, 101(405), 214-229.
2.
BAUM, J. F., & YOUNGBLOOD, S.Impact of an organizational control policy on absenteeism, performance, and satisfaction. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1975, 60, 688-694.
3.
BREAUGH, J.Predicting absenteeism from prior absenteeism and work attitudes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1981, 66, 555-560.
4.
BROOKE, P. P., Jr., & PRICE, J. L.The determinants of employee absenteeism: An empirical test of a causal model. Journal of Occupational Psychology, 1989, 62, 1-19.
5.
BYCIO, P.Job Performance and absenteeism: A review and meta-analysis. Human Relations, 1992, 45, 193-220.
6.
CHADWICK-JONES, J. K., BROWN, C., NICHOLSON, N., & SHEPPARD, C.Absence measures: Their reliability and stability in an industrial setting. Personnel Psychology, 1971, 24, 463-470.
7.
CHADWICK-JONES, J. K., NICHOLSON, N., & BROWN, C.Social psychology of absenteeism. New York: Praeger, 1982.
8.
COOK, T. D., & CAMPBELL, D. T.Quasi-experimentation: Design and analysis for field settings. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1979.
9.
DALTON, D. R., & MESCH, D. J.The impact of flexible scheduling on employee attendance and turnover. Administrative Science Quarterly, 1990, 35, 370-387.
10.
FARRELL, D., & STAMM, C. L.Meta-analysis of the correlates of employee absence. Human Relations, 1988, 41(3), 211-227.
11.
FICHMAN, M.A theoretical approach to understanding Employee Absence. In P. Goodman and R. Atkin (Eds.), Absenteeism. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1984, pp. 1-46.
12.
FICHMAN, M.Motivational consequences of absence and attendance: Proportional hazard estimation of a dynamic motivation model. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1988, 73(1), 119-134.
13.
GLASSER, B. G., & STRAUSS, A. L.Discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for Qualitative Research. Chicago: Aldine, 1964.
14.
HACKETT, R. D.Age, tenure and employee absenteeism. Human Relations, 1990, 43(7), 601-619.
15.
HACKETT, R. D., & GUION, R. M.A reevaluation of the absenteeism-job satisfaction relationship. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 1985, 35, 340-381.
16.
HAMMER, T., & LANDAU, J.Methodological issues in the use of absence data. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1981, 66, 574-581.
17.
HARRISON, D. A., & HULIN, C. L.Investigations of absenteeism: Using event history models to study the absence-taking process. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1989, 74(2), 300-316.
18.
ILGEN, D. R.Attendance behavior: A reevaluation of Latham and Purcell's conclusions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1977, 62(2), 230-233.
19.
JOHNS, G., & NICHOLSON, N.The meanings of absence: New strategies for theory and research. In B. M. Staw and L. L. Cummings (Eds.), Research in Organizational Behavior. (Vol. 4). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, 1982, pp. 127-172.
20.
LATHAM, G., & PURCELL, E.Measuring absence from the opposite side of the coin. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1975, 60(3), 369-471.
21.
MARKHAM, S., & SCOTT, K. D.Controlling absenteeism: A national study of union and non-union differences. Personnel Administrator, 1985, 30(2), 87-102.
22.
MARKHAM, S. E., & MCKEE, G. H.Declining organizational size and increasing unemployment rates: Predicting employee absenteeism from within and between-plant perspectives. Academy of Management Journal, 1991, 34(4), 952-965.
23.
PRICE, J. L., & MUELLER, C. W.Absenteeism and turnover of hospital employees. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, 1986.
24.
SCHIAPPI, J.Improving job attendance. Washington, D.C.: Bureau of National Affairs, 1988.
25.
SCOTT, K. D., & MARKHAM, S.Absenteeism control methods: A survey of practices and results. Personnel Administrator, 1982, 27(6), 73-84.
26.
SCOTT, K. D., MARKHAM, S., & ROBERTS, R.Rewarding Good Attendance: A comparative study of positive ways to reduce absenteeism. Personnel Administrator, 1985, 30(8), 71-85.
27.
SMULDERS, P.Comments on employee absence/attendance as a dependent variable in organizational research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1980, 65(3), 368-371.
28.
STEERS, R., & RHODES, S.Major influences on employee attendance: A process model. Journal of Applied Psychology, 1978, 63, 391-407.
29.
YORKS, L., & WHITSETT, D. Hawthorne, Topeka and the issue of science versus advocacy in organizational behavior. Academy of Management Review, 1985, 101, 21-30.
