The Authentic Enterprise: Another Buzz Word, or a True Driver of Quality Relationships?

Abstract

Abstract This study contributes to relationship management research by introducing a new construct—authenticity—as the mediating variable between symmetrical communication and relationship quality, and investigating the behavioral outcomes of perceived organization–public relationship quality. We propose a structural model of symmetrical communication, authentic organizational behavior, organization–public relationships, and two behavioral outcomes—positive and negative messaging. The results support all the hypothesized linkages, and shed new light on the process of relationship management. Notes 1Positive and negative messaging are the likelihood of publics' voluntary information forwarding and sharing about organizational strengths (accomplishments) or weaknesses (problems). We derived positive and negative messaging from Rhee and Kim (Citation2009), who used the term megaphoning instead of messaging. 2Prior to the model modification, we conducted a confirmatory factor analysis to examine the possibility of perceived authentic organizational behavior as another dimension of perceived organization–public relationship quality. All items of perceived authentic organizational behavior and those of the four dimensions of perceived organization–public relationship quality were included in a second-order five-factor model with perceived organization–public relationship quality as the second-order factor and authentic organizational behavior as one of the five first-order factors. We compared this model with a second-order four-factor model that specified perceived organization–public relationship quality as the second-order factor and only the four relational dimensions as the first-order factors. Given that the two models were not nested, model Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) values were compared. The model with smaller AIC values is usually considered more tenable (Hancock & Mueller, Citation2007). The AIC values revealed that the second-order four-factor model (excluding authentic organizational behavior) had a better data-model fit. In other words, a four-dimensional framework representing perceived organization–public relationship quality was a more viable structure than a model that included authenticity as another dimension. In conclusion, our test found that perceived authenticity was not another dimension of perceived organization–public relationship quality. TableDownload CSVDisplay Table