Issue Information

• Date: 01 September 2017
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21820
• Published date: 01 September 2017

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2017 VOLUME 56, NUMBER 5

ARTICLES

HRM SYSTEM STRENGTH AND HRM TARGET ACHIEVEMENT—TOWARD

A BROADER UNDERSTANDING OF HRM PROCESSES

SVEN HAUFF, DOROTHEA ALEWELL, AND NINA KATRIN HANSEN 715

For some time, HRM researchers have paid attention to the process dimensions of HRM systems,

especially to the question of how HRM system strength impacts on HRM outcomes. However,

contributions tend to be theoretical, and empirical analyses are still rare. This article contributes to

the discussion on HRM system strength by empirically analyzing the links between HRM system

strength and HRM target achievement. We differentiate between single components of strength

and their partial effects on two HRM target groups: the targets focusing on employee attitudes

and the targets focusing on availability and effectiveness of human resources. Findings from a

German data set with more than 1,000 observations indicate that HRM system strength has a

positive influence on average HRM target achievement. Expectations regarding the differentiated

effects of single components of HRM system strength are only partially supported. Nevertheless,

our analyses give reason to consider a broader conception of HRM system strength than what has

been explored to date.

OLDER AND MORE ENGAGED: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF AGE-LINKED

RESOURCES ON WORK ENGAGEMENT

NAJUNG KIM AND SEUNG-WAN KANG 731

In the era of a graying workforce, individuals and their employers are concerned with the impact

of the graying workforce on the level of engagement at work. Contrary to the myths about older

workers being less engaged, statistics have shown that the level of engagement is higher as

people age. Within the broad framework of conservation of resources theory in the area of work

engagement, the current study aims to clarify how older workers are more engaged at work than

younger workers. Building upon socioemotional selectivity theory and continuity theory from

a life-span perspective, we explain how individuals gain more resources as they age, including

the abilities to regulate emotion and to maintain a career identity. We argue that this positive

relationship between age and resources explains why older people have high levels of work

engagement. We tested our predictions with a sample of 613 workers in the United States. The

study demonstrates that well-regulated emotion and strong commitment to career mediate the

positive relationship between age and work engagement simultaneously. These findings contribute

to the understanding of an aging workforce’s engagement in the workplace.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

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Volume 56, Number 5 was mailed the week of September 25, 2017