Affective Trust in the Supervisor and Innovative Work Behavior: The Effects of Proactive Skill Development and Learning Goal Orientation.

The main objective of this study was to examine the relationship between affective trust in the supervisor and innovative work behavior. In addition, this paper investigated the mediating role of proactive skill development in the affective trust - innovative work behavior relationship and the moderating role of learning goal orientation in the affective trust - proactive skill development relationship. Data for this study were collected from 220 employees drawn from four FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) companies based in Pakistan. Multiple regression analyses and the bootstrapping procedure were used to test the research hypotheses. Results revealed that proactive skill development partially mediated the effects of affective trust in the supervisor on innovative work behavior. Furthermore, we found that learning goal orientation strengthened the direct effect of affective trust in the supervisor on proactive skill development and also strengthened its indirect effect on innovative work behavior. The theoretical and practical implications of our results and the limitations of this research are discussed.

Ecological aspects of online learning in higher education: a qualitative multi-level exploration in a developing country.

Using 22 undergraduate business students' online learning experiences during the COVID-19 lockdown in Pakistan (as the pandemic was the only time these students were enrolled as online students in Pakistan), this study demonstrates that online learning is a multi-level phenomenon and a practice situated within the environment. Despite online learning being a heavily researched area, research has under-examined the interaction of the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework with the context. By adopting an ecological perspective, and by examining the interaction of micro, meso, and macro levels, this qualitative research provides useful insights into the interaction of the individual (micro-level) captured through the CoI framework, with the broader environment in which learners are located (meso and macro levels). It contributes to research on online learning broadly, and the CoI framework specifically, by revealing that each element of the CoI framework (micro-level), is influenced by macro (developing country), as well as meso (institutional policies and institutional preparedness) levels. It also spotlights the negotiated relationship between the individual and the systemic forces. The findings of this study are particularly relevant given that online education has the potential to become a norm in higher education in developing countries.