Understanding internet recruitment via signaling theory and the elaboration likelihood model

Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 1949–1959

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Understanding internet recruitment via signaling theory and the elaboration likelihood model Christina K. Gregory 1, Adam W. Meade ⇑, Lori Foster Thompson 1 North Carolina State University, Department of Psychology, Campus Box 7650, Raleigh, NC 27695-7650, United States

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Article history: Available online 30 April 2013 Keywords: Internet recruitment Online recruitment Web recruitment Employee recruitment

a b s t r a c t A detailed model specifying the linkages between Internet recruitment websites and organizational attraction was examined. Participants (N = 581) viewed Fortune 500 company websites and responded to questions about the content and design of these websites and their resulting attitudes, fit perceptions, and organizational attraction. Results showed that recruitment website content and design influence attitudes toward the recruitment websites, organizational attitudes, and subsequently organizational attraction. The moderating effects of person-organization (P-O) and person-job (P-J) fit were examined. Two sets of hypotheses based on signaling theory (Spence, 1973, 1974) and the elaboration likelihood model (Petty & Cacioppo, 1981) were largely supported. Consistent with signaling theory, the amount of job and organizational information on a recruitment website interacted with website usability, such that when less job information was presented, website usability played a greater role in predicting favorable attitudes towards the organization. Consistent with the elaboration likelihood model, when P-J fit was high, website aesthetics were less important in predicting attitudes towards the organization. Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction With the exponential growth in technology in recent years, organizational websites now play a central role in applicant recruiting (Allen, Mahto, & Otondo, 2007). This is unsurprising as organizational websites are one of the most cost and time efficient ways of attracting and hiring employees (Cappelli, 2001; Cober, Brown, Blumental, Doverspike, & Levy, 2000; Kay, 2000; Marcus, 2001; Millman, 1998). Estimates published in 2006 suggest that over 50% of all new hires originate from the Internet, with the greatest number coming from organizational recruitment websites in particular (Cober & Brown, 2006). Estimated savings of web-based recruiting (or e-recruiting) over alternates can be as high as 87% (Maurer & Liu, 2007). Trailing the rapid implementation of online recruitment, researchers have searched for models investigating how website features affect potential applicants’ decisions to apply for a position with the organization. Much of the early work in this area focused on aspects of the websites themselves, such as usability and aesthetics (Braddy, Thompson, Wuensch, & Grossnickle, 2003; Cober, Brown, Levy, Cober, & Keeping, 2003; Cober et al., 2000; Coyle & Thorson, 2001; Scheu, Ryan, & Nona, 1999; Williamson, Lepak, &

⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 919 513 4857; fax: +1 919 515 1716. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (C.K. Gregory), ncsu.edu (A.W. Meade), [email protected] (L.F. Thompson). 1 Tel.: +1 919 513 4857; fax: +1 919 515 1716.

awmeade@

0747-5632/$ - see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2013.04.013

King, 2003; Zusman & Landis, 2002) and the effects of employee testimonials (Braddy, Meade, & Kroustalis, 2008; Highhouse, Hoffman, Greve, & Collins, 2002; Van Hoye & Lievens, 2007; Walker, Feild, Giles, Armenakis, & Bernerth, 2009). More recent work has investigated a series of other variables not directly associated with the website, such as person-organization (P-O) fit (De Goede, Van Vianen, & Klege, 2011; Pfieffelmann, Wagner, & Libkuman, 2010), the role of previous information such as industry stereotypes (De Goede et al., 2011), and organizational familiarity (Walker, Feild, Giles, Bernerth, & Short, 2011). Perhaps the most comprehensive study to date was that of Allen et al. (2007) which examined organizational brand and amount of information on attitudes towards the organization and website, and ultimately employment intention. As organizations must hire from available job applicants, generating a strong applicant pool is essential for organizational success. Because of the central role of the internet in employee recruitment, it is essential to better understand the features and content of recruitment websites that are more likely to attract job applicants. This study compliments and extends prior research in two ways. First, we provide a considerably more extensive model of factors that affect applicants’ attitudes towards organizations based on their reactions to the organizations’ websites, directly incorporating website content (i.e., information provided), website design features, P-O and person-job (P-J) fit perceptions, and attitudes about the recruiting website than has any previous study. While other studies have examined aspects of this model, this study is the first to examine these aspects simultaneously. Second, this

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study adopts a more nuanced theoretical approach to investigating the interplay between website characteristics (content and design) and the dynamics of applicants’ perceived fit with an organization. Specifically, we utilize both signaling theory (Spence, 1973, 1974), and the elaboration likelihood model (ELM; Petty & Cacioppo, 1981) in order to understand the interactions among website content and design, as well as perceptions of fit, moving beyond the study of main effects. In this study, we propose a series of hypotheses that together compromise the relationships presented in Fig. 1. Many of the hypothesized relationships are based on previous work, while others are based on the application of signaling theory and the ELM to posit a series of interactions. 1.1. Website design and website attitudes Most research on Internet recruitment has focused on the relationships of usability and aesthetics of recruitment websites and organizational attraction (e.g., Braddy et al., 2003; Cober et al., 2000, 2003; Coyle & Thorson, 2001; Scheu et al., 1999; Sylva & Mol, 2009; Walker et al., 2011; Williamson et al., 2003; Zusman & Landis, 2002). Website usability refers to individuals’ perceptions of how effective and efficient a computer-based tool is in helping them reach their goals (Karat, 1997). Aspects of usability such as the navigational ease of finding information have been shown to relate to organizational attractiveness (Cober et al., 2003; Davis, Bagozzi, & Warshaw, 1989; Pfieffelmann et al., 2010; Venkatesh & Davis, 1996; Williamson et al., 2003; Zusman & Landis, 2002). Poor usability can have serious consequences. Karr (2000) found that 26% of participants chose not to apply for positions in organizations due to the ineffective design of their recruitment websites alone. Similarly, Sylva and Mol (2009) found that ease of use played a much larger role in applicant satisfaction than did personal characteristics (e.g., Internet savvy). Design features, such as website aesthetics and website usability, provide indirect cues about an organization that can impact job seekers’ perceptions regarding the attractiveness of an organization (Williamson et al., 2003; Zusman & Landis, 2002). Hypothesis 1. Website usability will positively affect job seeker attitudes toward the website.

To capture the attention of the job seekers, recruitment websites also need to have appealing aesthetic features that invite further exploration (Coyle & Thorson, 2001). Grabbing the attention of job seekers enhances the likelihood that they will be attracted to and interested in the organization. Aesthetic characteristics generally include visual elements such as attractive colors, pleasing text images and fonts, and multimedia presentations (Braddy et al., 2003; Cober et al., 2000; Williamson et al., 2003). By evoking positive reactions to a recruitment website, aesthetics can prompt a job seeker to further explore the website to gather additional information about the organization. Much as with a building façade, the design of an information system conveys clues as to what the user is likely to experience inside (Cober et al., 2004; Tractinsky, Katz, & Ikar, 2000). Moreover, a pleasing aesthetic implies that the organization takes pride in how it presents information and is willing to spend resources to create a pleasant experience for potential job candidates. Cober et al. (2004) argue and empirically demonstrate that aesthetics are an important determinant of initial viewer reactions as well as subsequent attitudes and behaviors towards not only the website, but also the organization. Hypothesis 2. Website aesthetics will positively affect job seeker attitudes toward the website. 1.2. The effect of information on attitudes Whiles recruitment websites may differ with respect to the aesthetics and usability of the site, they may also vary substantially with respect to the amount of information provided. For instance, some websites may provide only relatively generic descriptions of the organization or job descriptions consisting of one or two sentences. Conversely, other recruitment websites may provide detailed organizational information such as organizational values statements, explicit information regarding organizational norms, as well as detailed job descriptions. Generally speaking, the more job and organization-relevant information job seekers are given during recruitment, the more attracted they are to the organization (Allen, Van Scotter, & Otondo, 2004; Barber, 1998; Barber & Roehling, 1993; Cable, Aiman-Smith, Mulvey, & Edwards, 2000; Cable & Judge, 1994; Chapman, Uggerslev, Carroll, Piasentin, & Jones,

P-E Fit P-J Fit

P-O Fit

Website Design Website Usability

Attitudes toward Organization

Website Aesthetics Attraction to Organization

Website Content Job Information

Attitudes toward Website

Organizational Information

Note: Dashed arrows indicate hypothesized moderation. Fig. 1. Hypothesized relationships.

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2005; Cober et al., 2003; Rynes, Bretz, & Gerhart, 1991). Similarly, the greater the amount of job and organizational information offered, and the more detail the information provides, the higher a job seeker’s satisfaction and willingness to apply for a job (Feldman & Klaas, 2002; Herriot & Rothwell, 1981; Mason & Belt, 1986). Williamson et al. (2003) found that when viewing Internet recruitment websites, job seekers were especially concerned with gathering information about the organization and the job. In turn, job seekers used this information to determine whether they would fit well within the organization. Similarly, previous research has found that job seekers use the information provided on organizational recruitment websites (e.g., pictures, employee testimonials) to determine their overall fit with the hiring organization (Braddy, Meade, Michael, & Fleenor, 2009; Dineen, Ash, & Noe, 2002). Thus, the job and organizational information provided on Internet recruitment websites may be used as informative signals by prospective applicants in determining their fit and attraction to the organization. As noted by Allen et al. (2007), there is a lack of research related to the optimal amount of job and organizational information in the Internet recruitment context. This is surprising considering that a large advantage of Internet recruitment ‘careers’ websites is the ability to provide much more information about organizational and job attributes compared with more traditional recruitment media. Allen et al. (2007) found that including more organization and job information on a recruitment website makes this recruitment medium particularly useful to potential applicants. Specifically, the authors found that providing ample information on these websites influences the attitudes individuals have toward the recruitment website and, ultimately, their attraction to the hiring organization. Hypothesis 3. The amount of job information on an organizational recruitment website will positively affect job seeker attitudes toward the website.

Hypothesis 4. The amount of organizational information on an organizational recruitment website will positively affect job seeker attitudes toward the website. 1.2.1. Signaling theory According to signaling theory (Spence, 1973, 1974), when individuals do not have complete data, or are uncertain of the position they should take on a matter, they will draw inferences based on cues from whatever information is available. Job seekers often have limited knowledge of organizations, and recruitment materials may be their primary source of information about the hiring company (Rynes & Miller, 1983). Variables that do not seem to have a direct connection to a job or organization (e.g., website aesthetics, usability) can serve as signals for the properties of the organization (Rynes et al., 1991; Turban, 2001; Turban, Forret, & Hendrickson, 1998). Internet recruitment websites help shape the first impressions job seekers form during the early stages of recruitment by providing information not only about current open positions within the organization, but also information regarding the culture of the organization (Braddy et al., 2003). Common features include organizational policies, mission and value statements, employee testimonials, and information regarding benefits, rewards, and organizational programs and initiatives (Cober et al., 2000). Signaling theory implies that website usability and aesthetic appeal should have a greater influence on organizational attitudes when limited job and organizational information are presented on the recruitment website. That is, without direct information regarding the job and organization, more assumptions must be

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made on the basis of superficial cues such as usability and aesthetics of the website. For instance, if little is explicitly stated regarding how the organization values its employees, appealing aesthetic and a highly usable web interface may imply that the organization takes pride in how it is perceived by others and that it is willing to allocate resources to impress potential employees. However, when more explicit information is available, signaling theory implies that utilization of superficial cues such as usability and aesthetics will play a less prominent role in determining attitudes. Thus, having more job and organizational information on a recruitment website should reduce the influence of usability and aesthetics in determining potential applicant attitudes towards the organization. Hypothesis 5. The amount of job information presented on a recruitment website will moderate the effect of website usability and aesthetics on organizational attitudes, such that website usability and aesthetics will play a greater role in predicting favorable organizational attitudes when less job information is presented.

Hypothesis 6. The amount of organizational information presented on a recruitment website will moderate the effect of website usability and aesthetics on organizational attitudes, such that website usability and aesthetics will play a greater role in predicting favorable organizational attitudes when less organizational information is presented. 1.3. Fit perceptions and attraction Person-environment (P-E) fit generally refers to the compatibility between individual and work environment characteristics (Kristof-Brown et al., 2005). P-E fit encompasses a variety of manifestations (e.g., person-organization fit, person-job fit); and fit between an employee and the work environment has been shown to increase the likelihood of maximum work efficiency (e.g., Tziner, 1987). The P-E fit literature highlights the attraction aspect of Schneider’s (1987) attraction-selection-attrition model and Byrne (1971) similarity-attraction paradigm, suggesting that people are attracted to organizations which have characteristics congruent with their own. There are many benefits of fit for both the organization and employees, including decreased turnover (e.g., Bretz & Judge, 1993; O’Reilly, Chatman, & Caldwell, 1991; Schneider, 1987), increased performance (e.g., Schneider, 1987; Tziner, 1987), pro-social behaviors (e.g., O’Reilly & Chatman, 1986), and positive attitudes (e.g., Chatman, 1991; Dawis & Lofquist, 1984; Meglino, Ravlin, & Adkins, 1989). 1.3.1. Person-organization fit One of the most commonly examined aspects of P-E fit is person-organization (P-O) fit. Perceived P-O fit can be defined as individuals’ overall judgments of how compatible they are with an organization (Judge & Cable, 1997; Kristof, 1996; Kristof-Brown et al., 2005). This congruence can be perceived through shared values (Chatman, 1989; Kristof, 1996; Verquer, Beehr, & Wagner, 2003), goals (Vancouver & Schmitt, 1991; Witt & Nye, 1992) and personality-climate compatibility (Christiansen, Villanova, & Mikulay, 1997; Ryan & Schmitt, 1996). Greater P-O fit has been associated with higher organizational commitment and job satisfaction, and lower turnover intentions (Kristof-Brown et al., 2005). Prior to entry into the organization, P-O fit perceptions have a strong influence on organizational attraction, job acceptance intentions, and rates of job acceptance (Chapman et al., 2005; Kristof-Brown et al., 2005).

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Because perceived P-O fit is a measure of an individual’s perceived congruence with the organization, the organizational information that is provided on an Internet recruitment website may allow potential applicants to determine whether their personal characteristics fit well with the organization’s characteristics. Recently De Goede et al. (2011) found that P-O fit perceptions based on organization websites correlated (r = .38) with organizational attraction, suggesting the importance of perceived fit in a recruitment context. Dineen et al. (2002) found that providing customized fit information to individuals on a website with good aesthetic properties led to lower attraction for poorer fitting potential applicants. P-O fit should moderate the effects of the organizational information presented such that receiving more information about an organization is unlikely to enhance positive feelings about that organization when fit is poor. Hypothesis 7. P-O fit will moderate the effect of organizational information on attitudes towards the organization, such that the amount of organizational information leads to more favorable attitudes when perceived P-O fit is high.

to recruitment, Jones, Shultz, and Chapman (2006) found that higher quality candidates tended to focus more on central route arguments than peripheral cues in print ads. Recently Maurer and Cook (2011 have advocated for a stronger role of the ELM in Internet recruitment research. In the context of Internet recruiting, the ELM implies that information about the job and organization should play a larger role in determining attitudes for persons for whom there is good P-E fit (i.e., the information is more relevant) (Maurer & Cook, 2011). Conversely, for persons for whom information is less relevant (i.e., P-E fit is low), the effects of more peripheral cues such as usability and aesthetics should be more pronounced. Hypothesis 9. P-E (both P-O and P-J) fit will moderate the effect of website usability on attitudes towards the organization such that the effect will be stronger for persons with lower P-E fit. Hypothesis 10. P-E (both P-O and P-J) fit will moderate the effect of website aesthetics on attitudes towards the organization such that the effect will be stronger for persons with lower P-E fit. 1.4. Website attitudes, organizational attitudes, and attraction

1.3.2. Person-job fit Perceived P-J fit is defined as individuals’ judgment of the congruence between their personal characteristics and the characteristics of a job (Kristof-Brown et al., 2005). This type of P-E fit is typically characterized by either a congruence between demands and abilities or supplies and values (Edwards, 1991). Demandsabilities fit refers to a perceived compatibility between an individual’s knowledge, skills, and abilities and those required by the job. Supplies-values fit refers to situations in which the job meets an individual’s needs, desires, or preferences. Previous research on P-J fit has found that when potential applicants perceive P-J fit, there is an increase in job and organizational attraction, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment, as well as a decrease in intentions to turnover (Chapman et al., 2005; Kristof-Brown et al., 2005). Similar to P-O fit, perceptions of P-J fit may shape the degree to which increasing the amount of information on a recruitment website enhances prospective applicants’ attitudes toward a hiring organization. Therefore, it is proposed: Hypothesis 8. P-J fit will moderate the effect of job information on attitudes towards the organization, such that the amount of job information leads to more favorable attitudes when perceived P-J fit is high.

1.3.3. Elaboration likelihood model The ELM (Petty & Cacioppo, 1981) posits that information that is more personally relevant is more likely to be processed via a ‘‘central’’ route in which the merits of the information are deliberately evaluated. That is, information presented is critically evaluated and judged on the merit of its content. In contrast, less relevant information is more likely to be processed via a ‘‘peripheral’’ route in which more superficial cues (e.g., appearance) play a larger role in attitude formation. In the context of internet recruitment, ELM suggests that recruitment information that is highly relevant to a viewer would likely be evaluated on its merit. For instance, a serious job seeker viewing the website of an organization with a relevant job in his or her field would likely evaluate the website based on information related to the organization and the job. In contrast, job seekers examining the website of an organization in which the fit of the organization or job was poor would be less motivated to attend to the specifics of the content and may be more likely to form an opinion based on more peripheral cues such as website appearance. In one of the few studies applying the ELM

We expect that attitudes towards the recruitment website will impact attitudes towards the organization. Drawing on similarities between consumer advertising and recruitment, consumers’ feelings about advertisements influence their attraction to products (see Kim & Hunter, 1993a, 1993b for a review) in the same manner that recruitment materials influence job seekers’ attitudes toward an organization. As Allen et al. (2007) state, Internet recruitment websites are a form of advertising for jobs within an organization. Thus the attitudes individuals form about a recruitment website should influence their attitudes about the organization itself and, in turn, influence attraction toward the organization. Allen et al. (2004) found that recruitment information influenced organizational attitudes and subsequent intentions and behaviors to pursue employment. Hypothesis 11. Website attitudes will be positively correlated with attitudes toward the organization. Additional evidence from meta-analytic research from Chapman et al. (2005) has shown that attitudes-mediated models of job choice antecedents and organizational attraction fit better than models with direct effects of these antecedents on organizational attraction. Allen et al. (2007) found that the Internet recruitment attitudes-mediated models fit better with organizational familiarity, image, as well as organizational information. However, attitudes did not fully mediate the effects of job information on organizational attraction as job characteristics and job information directly affected employment intentions. To better understand the effects of recruitment media and organizational attitudes on attraction in the Internet recruitment realm, it is proposed: Hypothesis 12. Attitudes toward the organization will mediate the relationship between the predictors and attraction to the organization, where the predictors are website content and design features, website attitudes, and the moderating effects of P-E fit.

2. Materials and method As the incorporation of real websites is important for the ecological validity of Internet recruitment research (De Goede et al., 2011; Pfieffelmann et al., 2010; Selden & Orenstein, 2011), we utilized actual websites of Fortune 500 companies as our stimulus materials. A four-step process was followed to ensure that the

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websites included as stimulus materials in this study varied sufficiently with regard to the website characteristics under investigation. First, we randomly selected 100 Fortune 500 company websites for examination. Second, an industrial-organizational psychology doctoral student evaluated the ‘careers’ section of each company’s site, assessing the aesthetics and usability as well as the amount of job and organizational information provided. The 24 websites rated highest (N = 12) and lowest (N = 12) with respect to aesthetics, usability, and the provision of job/organizational information were chosen as candidates for possible inclusion in our study. Third, data were collected from 610 university students who each examined and rated two websites drawn at random from the pool of 24 organizations. Fourth, the 10 websites to be used in this study were selected as those that had the highest (N = 5) and lowest (N = 5) average rating across the criteria of usability, aesthetics and quantity of job and organizational information provided.

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information was used (a = .77). Participants responded to Likerttype questions on a seven-point scale ranging from 1 = not much at all to 7 = a very great amount. 2.2.4. Attitudes toward the website Chen & Wells, 1999 three-item measure of website attitudes was used (a = .96) to assess participants’ attitudes toward the organizational websites they viewed. Participants responded to Likerttype questions on a seven-point scale ranging from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree. 2.2.5. Attitudes toward the organization Participants’ attitudes toward the organization were assessed with Allen et al.’s (2004) five-item measure of attitudes toward the organization which was adapted from a survey of affective responses developed by Fishbein and Ajzen (1975; a = .94). Each participant responded to the questions on a Likert-type scale ranging from 1 = very negative to 7 = very positive.

2.1. Design and procedure Participants were undergraduate students asked to assume they were job seekers who had just graduated from college and were asked to review the websites of two randomly selected organizations drawn from a pool of ten Fortune 500 companies. Note that 294 new participants were selected to participate in the final study. However, as the designs of the pilot and final studies were identical, 287 persons in the pilot study that responded to stimuli used in the final study were merged with the new participants resulting in a total sample size of 581. Analyses involving only the new 294 participants resulted in virtually identical results and results from the larger sample size are reported as the estimated relationships contain less sampling error. Each participant was asked to search for a job of his or her choosing within the organization. Participants were asked to base all responses on what was seen on the organizations’ websites only. Participants were asked to view both the homepages of the Fortune 500 company websites and also the ‘careers’ portions of the Fortune 500 company websites. No manipulations were made to the websites; participants viewed the actual websites and searched for real job openings with the organization. After participants viewed the organizational websites, they were directed to a series of questionnaires to assess their perceptions of the amounts of job and organizational information, website aesthetics and usability, and other study variables. Websites were monitored to verify that they did not change over the duration of the study. 2.2. Measures 2.2.1. Usability and aesthetics Website usability was assessed with Williamson et al.’s (2003) four-item measure of ease of use (a = .91). Eight aesthetic items were developed based on Cober et al.’s (2003) measure of website style (a = .87). Both scales utilized a seven-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree. 2.2.2. Amount of job information To assess participants’ perceptions of amount of job information on the Fortune 500 company websites, a three-item measure from Allen et al.’s (2007) scale of job information was used (a = .75). Participants responded to Likert-type questions on a seven-point scale ranging from 1 = not much at all to 7 = a very great amount. 2.2.3. Amount of organizational information To assess participants’ perceptions of amount of organizational information on the Fortune 500 company websites, a four-item measure from Allen et al.’s (2007) scale of organizational

2.2.6. Perceived P-O fit Perceived P-O fit was examined as the participants’ overall selfreported perception of fit with the organization. Participants’ perceived P-O fit was measured with a three-item questionnaire taken from Cable and Judge (1996; a = .75). The response scale ranged from 1 = not at all to 7 = completely. 2.2.7. Perceived P-J fit Perceived P-J fit was assessed with a five-item measure developed by Lauver and Kristof-Brown (2001; a = .91). The five items assessed different conceptualizations of P-J fit, including perceived congruence of skills, abilities, and personality with the job. The response scale ranged from 1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree. 2.2.8. Organizational attraction In order to assess participants’ attraction to the organization, a five-item measure was taken from Highhouse, Lievens, and Sinar (2003; a = .91), using a seven-point response scale (1 = strongly disagree; 7 = strongly agree). 2.2.9. Control variables Organizational familiarity, attractiveness of the industry the organization is in, attractiveness of the organization’s benefits, prior attitudes toward the organization, and organizational image were all used as control variables in the study. Familiarity with the organization was assessed with a single item ‘‘In general, how familiar are you with this organization?’’ using a 1 = not at all familiar to 7 = very familiar scale. Similarly, attractiveness of the industry was assessed as responses to ‘‘In general, how would you rate the attractiveness of the industry of this organization?’’ using 1 = very unattractive to 7 = very attractive. Attractiveness of benefits was measured with a similar item. Prior organizational attitudes was measured with ‘‘Before participating in this study, what were your prior attitudes toward this organization?’’ using 1 = very unfavorable and 7 = very favorable. Lastly, organizational image was assessed using five items with the common stem: ‘‘How does this organization compare to other organizations you know on the following’’ with five dimensions: concern for the environment, high ethical standards, overall public image, community involvement, and product quality (adapted from Turban & Greening, 1997). 3. Results Descriptive statistics and correlations among study variables are shown in Table 1. A series of regression equations were used

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Table 1 Means, standard deviations, and correlations among study variables. Variable

M

SD

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

1. Familiarity 2. Benefits 3. Industry 4. Prior attitudes 5. Organizational image 6. Job information 7. Org. information 8. Usability 9. Aesthetics 10. Website attitudes 11. Organizational attitudes 12. P-O fit 13. P-J fit 14. Organizational attraction

3.17 4.40 4.12 3.99 4.55 4.32 4.60 5.14 5.11 5.18 4.91 4.41 4.02 3.68

1.76 1.32 1.53 1.11 1.09 1.35 1.21 1.44 1.13 1.46 1.27 0.95 1.34 1.42

1.00 .12 .20 .30 .18 .19 .23 .15 .19 .14 .27 .15 .18 .22

– .53 .28 .42 .52 .48 .48 .45 .51 .50 .38 .36 .46

– .40 .47 .28 .35 .33 .33 .37 .53 .42 .51 .62

– .38 .22 .24 .22 .19 .21 .40 .28 .30 .34

– .45 .56 .49 .48 .51 .68 .56 .34 .40

– .68 .53 .43 .61 .55 .31 .25 .32

– .59 .58 .64 .62 .43 .30 .31

– .69 .69 .60 .41 .30 .28

– .63 .56 .40 .28 .24

– .75 .44 .33 .37

– .57 .43 .51

– .38 .42

– .68

N = 581. All correlations significant at p < .01.

Table 2 Regression analyses predicting attitudes toward the website, Hypotheses 1–4. R2 (DR2)

Variable

B

SE B

b

Model 1: Control variables Familiarity Benefits Industry prior attitudes Org. image

.04 .39 .03 .07 .48

.03 .04 .04 .05 .05

.05 .35** .03 .05 .36**

.51 .54 .43 .53

.04 .05 .04 .05

.51** .42** .40** .44**

R2 = .37** Added predictor in model 2 H1: Usability H2: Aesthetics H3: Job information H4: Org information

.37

.54 .49 .47 .48

(.17**) (.12**) (.10**) (.11**)

Note: Models for H1, H2, H3, and H4 are not sequential with one another. p < .05 ** p < .01 

to evaluate Hypotheses 1–4 which examined whether website design (i.e., website aesthetics, H1, usability, H2) and website content (i.e., amount of job information, H3, and organizational information, H4) predicted website attitudes. In each regression model, the five control variables were entered into the first block of predictors. Next, each hypothesis was tested by adding a single additional predictor to the model and examining the significance of the change in R2 values. Each model included only one predictor other than the control variables and each was compared to the baseline model of only control variables. Each of the hypotheses were supported as each predictor explained additional variance in attitudes towards the website above and beyond that explained by the control variables (see Table 2). Moderated regression analyses were used to test Hypotheses 5–6. Hypothesis 5 examined the interaction between the amount of job information and website design (i.e., aesthetics and usability) on attitudes toward the organization. The control variables (familiarity, benefits, industry, prior attitudes, and organizational image) accounted for 56% of the variance. The addition of job information, usability, and the job information-usability cross-product terms accounted for a total of 64% of the variance, DR2 = .08, F(3, 572) = 40.80, p < .001.2 More importantly, the job informationusability interaction was significant (b = .08, t = 3.06, p = .002). To interpret the interaction, values of amount of job information

2 Throughout the study any variable used to compute interaction terms was standardized prior to forming the cross-product term (see Cohen, Cohen, West, & Aiken, 2003).

Fig. 2. Effects website usability and job information on attitudes towards the organization.

and usability were plotted at one standard deviation below and above the mean (see Fig. 2). In a separate model, the addition of job information, aesthetics, and the job information-aesthetics cross-product terms accounted for a total of 63% of the variance, DR2 = .07, F(3, 572) = 37.77, p < .001. Additionally, the job information-aesthetics interaction was significant (b = .081, t = 2.93, p = .004). Thus, Hypothesis 5 was supported. Values of amount of job information and aesthetics were also plotted (see Fig. 3). As predicted by signaling theory, when the amount of job information on a recruitment website was lower, website usability and aesthetics played a greater role in predicting favorable organizational attitudes. Hypothesis 6 examined the influence of organizational information, aesthetics and usability, and the organizational information cross-products on attitudes towards the organization. The full regression model using organizational information, usability, and the cross product of these two variables accounted for 64% of the variance, DR2 = .07, F(3, 572) = 39.37, p < .001. The interaction between amount of organizational information and website usability was found to be significant (b = .06, t = 2.36, p = .018). To interpret the significant interaction found for Hypothesis 6, values for amount of organizational information were plotted (see Fig. 4). As predicted by signaling theory, when the amount of organization information was lower on a recruitment website, website usability played a greater role in predicting favorable organizational attitudes. The model including organizational information, aesthetics, and the cross-product of the two accounted for 62% of the variance, DR2 = .06, F(3, 572) = 31.15, p < .001, however, the interaction between amount of organizational information and website

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Fig. 3. Effects website aesthetics and job information on attitudes towards the organization.

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Fig. 5. Effects job information and P-J fit on attitudes towards the organization.

Fig. 6. Effects website aesthetics and P-J fit on attitudes towards the organization. Fig. 4. Effects website usability and organizational information on attitudes towards the organization.

aesthetics was not significant (b = .02, t = .88, p = .38). On the whole, Hypothesis 6 was partially supported. Hypothesis 7 suggested that P-O fit would moderate the effect of organizational information on organizational attitudes such that more information about the organization will not enhance favorable attitudes when fit is poor. While the model that included P-O fit, organizational information, and the interaction term accounted for additional variance above the control variables, DR2 = .06, F(3, 572) = 31.25, p < .001, the interaction between P-O fit and organizational information was not significant. Thus, there was no support for Hypothesis 7. Hypothesis 8 examined the same effect using P-J rather than P-O fit. The model that included P-J fit, job information, and the interaction term accounted for additional variance beyond the control variables, DR2 = .05, F(3, 572) = 126.04, p < .001. The interaction between job information and P-J fit was significant (b = .08, t = 2.88, p = .004) in determining the effect of job information on attitudes towards the organization. Plotting the interaction in Fig. 5 indicates that attitudes towards the organization are more uniformly high when more job information is presented. Somewhat contrary to our expectations, job information was more important for determining attitudes towards the organization when P-J fit was low. Put differently, it would seem that high job information may compensate for poor P-J fit in determining attitudes towards the organization. Hypothesis 9 investigated the role of both P-O and P-J fit as a moderator of the relationship between website usability and attitudes towards the organization. While the regression model including P-O fit, P-J fit, usability, and the two P-E fit-usability cross product terms did account for significantly additional variance, DR2 = .07, F(5, 570) = 23.12, p < .001, than the model with

only control variables as predictors, neither of the interaction terms were significant. Therefore, Hypothesis 9 was not supported. Hypothesis 10 examined both P-O and P-J fit as a moderator of the website aesthetic relationship with attitudes towards the organization. The change in R2 of .06 above the control variable only model was significant, F(5, 570) = 19.33, p < .001. However, evidence was mixed such that the interaction term involving P-O fit was not significant (b = .02, t = .67, p = .50), while the P-J fit-aesthetics interaction term was significant (b = .08, t = 2.12, p = .03). Thus, Hypothesis 10 was partially supported. Plots of the interaction appear in Fig. 6. As can be seen, consistent with the ELM, when P-J fit was high, aesthetics exerted less influence on attitudes towards the organization. Conversely, the influence of aesthetics on attitudes toward the organization was more pronounced when P-J fit was low. Hypothesis 11 predicted a significant relationship between website attitudes and organizational attitudes. This was assessed both via zero-order correlation and hierarchical regression. The zero-order correlation between website attitudes and organizational attitudes was large and significant (r = .75). The hierarchical regression also supported Hypothesis 11 in which adding website attitudes to the control/base model resulted in an increase in R2 from .57 to .73, DR2 = .16, F(1, 574) = 347.05, p < .001. Finally, Hypothesis 12 posited that attitudes towards the organization would mediate the relationships between other predictors (website content and design, attitudes towards the website, as well as P-E fit) and organizational attraction.3 A multivariate R version of 3 While there was a moderated relationship between some variables and attitudes towards the organization, these effects happen prior to the proposed mediation in the model. Thus, we did not hypothesize moderated mediation, in which mediation happens under some conditions but not others, nor did we hypothesize mediated moderation as the moderated variable in this study is attitudes towards the organization (the mediator) not the criterion of organizational attraction.

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Table 3 Final regression model predicting organizational attraction. Variable Control variables Familiarity Benefits Industry Prior attitudes Prior org. image Hypothesized mediator Attitudes towards organization Other predictors Job information Organizational information Usability Aesthetics P-O fit P-J fit Website attitudes Job information  Usability P-J fit  Job Information P-J fit  Aesthetics

B

SE B

b

.04 .13 .23 .01 .02

.02 .04 .03 .04 .05

.05 .12** .25** .01 .01

.17

.06

.15**

.09 .11 .09 .16 .09 .62 .03 .04 .11 .01

.06 .06 .06 .06 .05 .05 .05 .04 .04 .04

.06 .08 .07 .11** .07 .44** .03 .03 .09** .01

Note: Job Information, organizational information, usability, aesthetics, P-O fit, P-J fit, and interaction terms are standardized variables. p < .01

**

Baron & Kenny, 1986 procedure was followed, where (1) the multiple regression of organizational attraction on the predictors job information, organizational information, website usability, website aesthetics, and previously significant cross-products (Job Information-Usability, Job Information-P-J fit, Aesthetics-P-J fit) must be significant, (2) the multiple regression of attitudes toward the organization on job information, organizational information, website usability, website aesthetics, website attitudes, and cross-products must be significant, (3) attitudes toward the organization significantly predict attraction to the organization, and (4) when the influence of attitudes toward the organization are held constant, a nonsignificant effect should be found between attraction and job information, organizational information, website usability, website aesthetics, website attitudes, and relevant cross-products. All models included the control variables. These analyses suggested that full mediation was not supported, though partial mediation for some variables was supported. A model including only control variables was significant, R2 = .43, F(5, 575) = 86.18, p < .001. A model including these variables plus the hypothesized mediator, attitudes towards the organization, resulted in a significant but small increment in variance accounted for, DR2 = .02, F(1, 574) = 19.03, p < .001. The final model including all other model variables resulted in a large significant increase in R2, DR2 = .16, F(10, 564) = 23.49, p < .001. Table 3 presents the regression coefficients for control variables, organizational attitudes, and other predictors for the final model in the procedure. As can be seen, while some predictors were not significant once the control variables and attitudes towards the organization were in the model, website aesthetics, P-J fit, and the P-J fit-job information interaction remained significant predictors of organizational attraction (as did control variables attractiveness of benefits and attractiveness of the industry). Thus, attitudes towards the organization only partially mediated the effects of the other predictor variables on organizational attraction. 4. Discussion The use of the Internet has become a routine part of employee recruitment practices for most large organizations. We examined 12 hypotheses drawn from previous literature, signaling theory (Spence, 1973, 1974) and the elaboration likelihood model (Petty

& Cacioppo, 1981). The first four hypotheses supported previous work (e.g., Allen et al., 2007; Selden & Orenstein, 2011) showing that website usability, aesthetics, amount of job information, and amount of organizational information all impact viewers’ attitudes towards organizational recruitment websites. Support for these hypotheses are also consistent with past research in the consumer psychology literature, where individuals’ attitudes toward advertisements have been among the best predictors of advertisement effectiveness (e.g., Brown & Stayman, 1992). Attitudes formed toward advertisements are positively associated with further exploration of the advertisement source (Olney, Holbrook, & Batra, 1991), and more information provided on a website influences website attitudes (Allen et al., 2004, 2007). These results further delineate the importance of effective website design and the inclusion of useful content on recruitment websites. In another confirmation of previous findings (e.g., Allen et al., 2007), support was found for the relationship between attitudes toward the recruitment website and attitudes toward the organization, underscoring the importance of recruitment websites in forming attitudes towards the organization and eventually organizational attraction. Another interesting finding was that when examining the correlations among the control variables (organization familiarity, attractiveness of benefits, attractiveness of industry, prior attitudes towards the organization, and organizational image) and organizational attitudes, prior image of the organization typically played a large role and correlated quite highly with attitudes towards the organization. However, once website-related variables were factored in, the effects of prior image and prior attitudes were much reduced (typically to non-significance). These findings suggest that recruitment websites can overturn prior opinions towards an organization. One of the strengths of this study was the nuanced examination we gave to our study variables via moderation hypotheses. For instance, we posited that more information leads to more favorable attitudes when P-E fit is good. In other words, we hypothesized that when fit was poor, more information would not necessarily enhance positive feelings toward the organization. While we did find a significant interaction involving P-J fit, examining the interaction in Fig. 5 indicates that when P-J fit is low, high levels of job information can compensate such that the attitude towards the organization is high despite poor fit. While this was counter to our hypothesis, it indicates the crucial role of information availability in determining attitudes towards an organization. Similarly, both organizational and job information was associated with more positive attitudes towards the organization regardless of P-E fit. Thus, a practical implication is that organizations can improve their image among viewers by providing more content even for persons who are a poor fit for the job in question. Signaling theory suggests that organizations willing to divulge more information on its public website may be perceived as more open and transparent, which may be perceived as a positive attribute by all viewers, even when fit is poor. Given this, we might expect that viewers have favorable impressions of an organization that provides a lot of information yet will still not be attracted to it if fit is poor. This may also help explain why attitudes towards the organization did not fully mediate the relationship between the predictors and organizational attraction. P-J fit remained a unique predictor of organizational attraction once attitudes towards the organization were entered into the model. This result is consistent with Allen et al. (2007), who found that an attitudes-mediated model fit better with every antecedent studied except job information. On the whole, the recommendation to organizations from these findings is clear. More information is better than less information, particularly information related to the job. While we did not pose formal hypotheses on the matter, we also found that when P-E fit was high, attitudes towards the

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organization were more favorable. These findings of effects of P-O and P-J fit complement the limited studies incorporating P-E fit into Internet recruitment research (i.e., Dineen et al., 2002; Pfieffelmann et al., 2010). 4.1. Theoretical implications, signaling theory, and the ELM Perhaps the primary contribution of this study was the incorporation of two sets of hypotheses with particularly important theoretical implications. This is the first study of which we are aware to simultaneously incorporate both signaling theory and the ELM in the Internet recruitment context to form empirically tested hypotheses. As the determinants of viewer opinions of internet recruitment websites and their corresponding organizations are complex, it is important to take a more nuanced view of these determinants in order to better understand them. Signaling theory provided a lens through which the impact of website features and content can be viewed. We reasoned that when information about the job and the organization is lacking, signals in the form of website usability and aesthetics are more important for determining attitudes towards the organization (Hypotheses 5 and 6). Conversely, when more information about the organization and job is directly provided, website characteristics should be less important in determining potential applicants’ reactions. Three of four of these relationships were supported such that website usability displayed the hypothesized relationships for both organization and job information while aesthetics displayed this pattern for job information. In another set of hypotheses, the ELM (Petty & Cacioppo, 1981) provided rationale for the influence of website content and features under different levels of P-E fit. The ELM can be applied to the context of Internet recruitment such that when P-E (job and organization) fit is high, viewers will be motivated to take a more central route to information processing. In this case, the actual content related to the job and organization serves as the central route as explicit information can be evaluated in a deliberate way. Conversely, the ELM posits that when relevance is low in the form of poor P-E fit, viewers’ impressions are more likely to be driven by peripheral cues such as aesthetics and usability. Our findings only partially supported this view. Specifically, when P-J fit was high, aesthetics played a less important role in determining attitudes towards the organization. However, there was no effect of P-O fit, nor was there a moderating effect of fit on the usability-attitudes link. On the whole, we believe there was some tentative support for the notion that better fit between viewers and the organizations and jobs being investigated results in more central information processing, though more research is needed to examine the boundary conditions under which the ELM may and may not apply. 4.2. Other findings and trends One finding throughout the study was that P-J fit seemed to play a stronger role than did P-O fit in determining the relationships among the variables. This could be due to the stronger role that job fit plays in attraction to the organization for potential applicants. In this study, P-J fit correlated with organizational attraction at .68 which was significantly larger than the P-O fit correlation with organizational attraction of .42 (Steiger’s z = 7.35, p < .001; see Meng, Rosenthal, & Rubin, 1992). This was also apparent in our final set of analyses in which P-O fit effects appeared to be mediated by attitudes towards the organization while P-J effects were not mediated. In other words, the fit of the job was more closely related to organizational attraction than was fit of the organization for most viewers. This may be due to the random assignment of participants to Fortune 500 company. Our control variable results indicated that industry of the organization

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correlated more highly with organizational attraction than any variable other than P-J fit. In practice, it is likely that job seekers would target organizations in their primary field of interest, which would presumably result in a search with more similar jobs than the variety used in this study. In these cases, when the type of job being investigated is effectively held constant, organizational information may be a more important factor. 4.3. Limitations and future research Results of this study provide further insight into the relationships between organizations’ websites and viewers’ perceptions; however, some limitations should be noted. Student participants may not have taken the task as seriously as might an actual job seeker. Additionally, the young age of the participants, coupled with the fact that many were not seeking a career during the time in which this study occurred may have limited the generalizability of the study. Additionally, it would have been preferable to have not only actual job seekers, but also behavioral outcomes such as sending a resume to the organization rather than attraction measures. The participants’ lack of experience in the workplace may have limited results related to fit perceptions. Without experience in multiple workplaces, many of the participants may not have known what they prefer in a job or whether they would fit well within an organization. Experience working with different organizations and exposure to different organizational cultures and jobs allows individuals to more accurately assess what they do and do not value in the workplace. Although the participants in the study may have lacked experience in the workplace, they were very familiar with the Internet, as participants indicated they spent an average of approximately 18–19 h/week on the Internet. Additionally, many organizations target their recruitment at younger applicant pools. Thus, participants in this study are aligned with the population of workers that many large organizations are targeting. Although important findings have been discovered through Internet recruitment experiments based on fabricated, fictitious websites, the external validity of such research may be called into question. Accordingly, recent studies have called for more utilization of actual organizational websites in research (De Goede et al., 2011; Pfieffelmann et al., 2010; Selden & Orenstein, 2011). While the use of actual Fortune 500 company websites increased the realism of the study, the tradeoff for this increased realism is a lack of experimental control. Thus, no unequivocal cause-and-effect conclusions can be drawn from the study. Likewise, the fact that only Fortune 500 company websites were used may have limited the generalizability to larger organizations with potentially more resources to invest in Internet recruitment. However, the use of actual Fortune 500 company websites allowed for meaningful control variables, such as organizational familiarity and organizational image, to be investigated as sources of influence on organization attitudes and attraction. Results of this study increase the external validity of past studies that have examined Internet recruitment website characteristics via random assignment to fictional websites and have found similar results (e.g., Braddy et al., 2009). Correspondingly, the internal validity of this study is bolstered by the consistency between this study’s findings and those obtained in past randomized trial studies. Another potential limitation of this study is the single-source self-report nature of the measures. Common methods variance (CMV) is a complex topic and one can never be certain of the extent to which correlations are inflated or attenuated due to the method of measurement. Some authors have found very little empirical evidence of bias as a result of CMV. For instance, in an extremely large meta-analysis, Crampton and Wagner (1994) found that self-other correlations were rarely lower in magnitude than

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self-self correlations. Spector (2006, p. 228) argues, ‘‘CMV is an urban legend, and the time has come to retire the idea and the term.’’ As Richardson, Simmering, and Sturman (2009) summarize, Spector does not argue that method cannot influence measurement, but rather that common conceptualizations of CMV incorrectly assume (a) method alone is sufficient to produce bias and (b) all constructs measured with the same method share the same biases. Similar arguments have been made by Bagozzi and Yi (1990), Crampton and Wagner (1994), Doty and Glick (1998), and more recently Conway and Lance (2010). Despite skepticism of the role of CMV from methodologists, we conducted a Harman’s single-factor test (see Mossholder, Bennett, Kemery, & Wesolowski, 1998) on our two most similar constructs with the highest observed correlation. We selected the three item website attitudes measure and the five item organizational attitudes measure and estimated confirmatory factor models. The first model was a two factor model in which each set of measures loaded onto their appropriate construct. This model fit the data quite well (v2ð19Þ ¼ 168:60, p < .01; CFI = .97; TLI = .96; SRMR = .042; see Hu & Bentler, 1999 for suggested model evaluation criteria). The second model was a single factor model which was nested within the two factor model by constraining the correlation between the factors to 1.0. This model fit the data much more poorly (v2ð20Þ ¼ 1505:35, p < .01; CFI = .74; TLI = .64; SRMR = .086), supporting discriminant validity among the constructs despite their similarity. We also note that there are several correlations in Table 1 that are quite small in magnitude despite measuring related constructs. On the whole, while we cannot rule out the impact of common method variance on our correlations, we do not see evidence that hypotheses were supported solely due to common methods variance. 4.4. Conclusions The use of technology in the workplace has impacted all areas of work. Moreover, technical innovations have provided advantageous avenues for enhancing organizational recruitment practices. Enhancing recruitment practices through the use of the Internet can provide beneficial outcomes for both the organization and job seeker. However, additional research is needed to fully understand how recruitment websites impact potential job applicants. This study has taken an important step in that process by examining how recruitment website content and design influence website attitudes, organizational attitudes, and ultimately attraction to the organization. This study expanded previous frameworks examining Internet recruitment in two ways. First, we incorporated a larger number of variables into a more comprehensive model than have previous studies on the topic. Second, we proposed several hypotheses of moderation drawn from signaling theory and the ELM, which were largely supported. The result is a more nuanced investigation of the role of website features and fit perceptions on the recruitment process. Continuing research of this kind can help organizations understand how to technologically enhance their current practices in the most effective and efficient way possible. References Allen, D. G., Mahto, R. V., & Otondo, R. F. (2007). Web-based recruitment: Effects of information, organizational brand, and attitudes toward a web site on applicant attraction. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92, 1696–1708. Allen, D. G., Van Scotter, J. R., & Otondo, R. (2004). Recruitment communication media features: Impact on pre-hire outcomes. Personnel Psychology, 57, 143–171. Bagozzi, R. P., & Yi, Y. (1990). Assessing method variance in multitrait–multimethod matrices: The case of self-reported affect and perceptions at work. Journal of Applied Psychology, 75, 547–560. Barber, A. E. (1998). Recruiting employees: Individual and organizational perspectives. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

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