65
2023, olume 26, issue 1, pp. 65–77, DOI: 10.15240/ ul/001/2023-1-004
Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
PERSONALITY AS A KEY DETERMINANT OF
THE ORGANIZATIONAL SILENCE IN IRANIAN
STARTUPS
Seyedeh Samaneh Seyedi1, Abol azl Da oudi2
1 Alzah a Uni e si y, Facul y o Social Sciences and Economics, In o ma ion Technology Managemen Depa men ,
I an, ORCID: 0000-0002-1098-6737, [email p o ec ed];
2 Allameh Taba aba’i Uni e si y, Facul y o Psychology and Educa ional Sciences, Psychology Depa men , I an,
ORCID: 0000-0003-3711-2789, [email p o ec ed].
Abs ac : Add essing he lack o esea ch and knowledge abou o ganiza ional silence in he nascen
bu p omising I anian s a up ecosys em, his s udy examines he ela ionship be ween pe sonali y
ac o s and o ganiza ional silence in I anian s a ups. Da a we e collec ed using Vakola and
Bou adas O ganiza ional Silence Ques ionnai e and NEO Pe sonali y In en o y illed by 532 s a up
employees in I an, hen analyzed by Pea son and mul i a ia e eg ession es s. Hypo heses
we e es ed h ough SPSS. Da a analysis demons a ed ha pe sonali y ac o s p edic 17.0%
o he a iance o o ganiza ional silence, and he e is a signi ican ela ionship be ween each
pe sonali y ac o wi h o ganiza ional silence in s a ups. The s onges and weakes co ela ions
wi h o ganiza ional silence we e obse ed o openness o expe iences and conscien iousness,
espec i ely. The s udy is c oss-sec ional, so i s esul s canno be casually in e ed; longi udinal
s udies a e needed o ob ain mo e comp ehensi e in o ma ion. Access o quali ied esponden s
was challenging because o s a up manage s’ o e all conse a i eness spi i and endency o
wi hhold in o ma ion abou hei employees. This s udy has implica ions o s a up manage s and
decision-make s. Since i has examined a des uc i e o ganiza ional phenomenon in he speci ic
con ex o s a ups, his knowledge will help manage s ecognize and esol e o ganiza ional silence.
This s udy has illed he esea ch gap by examining he o ganiza ional silence in I anian s a ups
o he i s ime and has implica ions o heo e ical de elopmen in his no el con ex ; u he mo e,
i helps s a up manage s o deal wi h o ganiza ional silence mo e e ec i ely.
Keywo ds: O ganiza ional silence, o ganiza ional oice, pe sonali y, s a ups, knowledge-sha ing.
JEL Classi ica ion: M12, M13, M51, J24, L25.
APA S yle Ci a ion: Seyedi, S. S., & Da oudi, A. (2023). Pe sonali y as a Key De e minan
o he O ganiza ional Silence in I anian S a ups. E&M Economics and Managemen , 26(1),
65–77. h ps://doi.o g/10.15240/ ul/001/2023-1-004
In oduc ion
One o he mos c i ical phenomena in mode n
economics is he po en ial impac o s a ups on
inno a ion, economic g ow h, and employmen
a es a he egional, na ional and indus ial
le els (Sedláček & S e k, 2017). While s a ups’
collec i e con ibu ions a e c i ical, he high- isk
s a egies hey pu sue lead o s a ups’ high
ailu e a es, up o 90% in some indus ies
(A o a e al., 2018; Can amessa e al., 2018;
Ma me e al., 2011), so imp o ing o ganiza-
ional pe o mance is i al o hese businesses.
This s udy examines one c i ical o ganiza ional
phenomenon – o ganiza ional silence – in I a-
nian s a ups.
O ganiza ional silence, i s in oduced in
2000 by Mo ison and Milliken, is one o he mos
signi ican ba ie s o pe o mance, g ow h, and
inno a ion in o ganiza ions, whe e employees
become silen consciously, e using o exp ess
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66 2023, olume 26, issue 1, pp. 65–77, DOI: 10.15240/ ul/001/2023-1-004
Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
ideas, c i iques, sugges ions, and opinions
abou o ganiza ional ope a ions o in luen ial
pe sons in he o ganiza ion (Mo ison & Mil-
liken, 2000). Employees’ silence is mani es ed
h ough a oidance o sha ing accumula ed aci
knowledge, ge ing conse a i e, and deple ing
in a-o ganiza ional communica ion o app o-
p ia e in o ma ion (Aca ay & Ak u an, 2015;
Pinde & Ha los, 2001), leading o educed
o ganiza ional pe o mance and job sa is ac-
ion, inancial losses, isola ion o inno a ion and
es ic ion o o ganiza ional en ep eneu ship
(B ins ield, 2013; De e & Bu is, 2007; Gam-
ba o o & Cammozzo, 2010).
Fac o s impac ing o ganiza ional silence
can be di ided in o ou ca ego ies: pe sonali y,
manage ial, o ganiza ional, and social (B ins-
ield, 2013). A he mic o-le el, o ganiza ional
silence is e lec ed in pe sonali y ai s. P io
s udies ha e e ealed ha pe sonali y ac o s
a e among he signi ican ac o s in he o ma-
ion o employees’ silence in o ganiza ions
(A khami A dakani & Khalili Sad abad, 2013;
Asadi, 2017; A e y, 2003; LePine & an Dyne,
2001; Nikolaou e al., 2008; Zeba das & Na-
de ian Jah omi, 2016). As a c ucial numbe o
s a ups ail (Ma me e al., 2011), p e en ing
he sp ead o o ganiza ional silence among
employees and p omo ing knowledge and
opinion-sha ing p ac ices can help imp o e
company su i al a es and business pe o -
mance (Lai inen & Senoo, 2019; Oe & Mi su-
hashi, 2013; Wang & Noe, 2010).
Speaking o I an, despi e many luc ua ions
in he pas en yea s, he s a up a e has con in-
uously isen abo e 10% (Global En ep eneu -
ship Moni o , 2018). To ou bes knowledge, no
in e na ional o domes ic esea ch has been
dedica ed o he impac o pe sonali y ac o s in
c ea ing and sp eading o ganiza ional silence
in he I anian s a up con ex . A he same ime,
he e a e ew s udies on o he phenomena,
such as knowledge sha ing on I anian s a ups.
The e o e, ec ui ing a pe sonali y-beha io al
app oach and he i e- ac o pe sonali y model
as a comp ehensi e e e ence model, his s udy
examines he impac o employee pe sonali y
ac o s speci ically on o ganiza ional silence.
This s udy aims o answe he esea ch
ques ion: how do pe sonali y ac o s a ec
s a up o ganiza ional silence? Fu he mo e,
is he e a signi ican ela ionship be ween
employees’ pe sonali y ac o s and o ganiza-
ional silence in s a ups, and which pe sonali y
ac o s e ec i ely cause o ganiza ional silence
in s a ups? Wi h a deepe unde s anding o
he ela ionship be ween pe sonali y ac o s
and o ganiza ional silence, s a up manage s
can design be e solu ions ha suppo p oac-
i e knowledge-sha ing and ideas and emo e
ba ie s o exp essing cons uc i e ideas and
opinions.
1. Li e a u e Re iew
To be e unde s and how pe sonali y ac o s
a ec o ganiza ional silence in s a ups, a com-
p ehensi e li e a u e e iew was conduc ed on
o ganiza ional silence, o ganiza ional oice,
and pe sonali y ac o s, especially in he s a up
con ex . As his e iew will demons a e, unde -
s anding he in e ela ionships be ween hese
ac o s is essen ial o any s a up seeking o
achie e he desi ed o ganiza ional esul s. How-
e e , be o e add essing he ac o s in luencing
o ganiza ional silence, he cha ac e is ics ha
di e en ia e s a ups om adi ional small com-
panies and he cu en s a us o s a ups in he
a ge popula ion (I an) a e discussed.
1.1 S a ups
S a ups a e newly- o med o en ep eneu -
ial businesses in he ma ke esea ch and
de elopmen phase. Acco ding o Blank and
Do (2012), a s a up is an o ganiza ion pu -
suing a epea able, scalable, and p o i able
business model. Gi en he lack o esou ces
cha ac e izing a s a up, he owne s and man-
age s mus le e age in angible asse s such as
knowledge and human capi al o achie e scal-
abili y goals (Cen obelli e al., 2017). Lai inen
and Senoo (2019) de ine a s a up as a young
inno a ion-d i en o ganiza ion seeking a e-
pea able and p o i able business model by
c ea ing inno a i e p oduc s and se ices ha
a ge unce ain global ma ke s.
Aule and Mu ay (2013) desc ibe i e main
di e ences be ween small businesses (“SEM
en ep eneu ship”) and s a ups (“inno a ion-
d i en en ep eneu ship o IDE”) as ollows:
(1) inno a ion is a he hea o s a ups and c i -
ical o hei su i al; (2) s a ups ocus on se -
ing global ma ke s om he ou se by elying
on a a ie y o inancial esou ces – including
en u e capi al – while small companies se e
local ma ke s wi h adi ional inancial suppo ;
(3) s a up membe s a e no se led neces-
sa ily in a single loca ion and may ins ead be
sca e ed wo ldwide. Eisenmann e al. (2012)
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2023, olume 26, issue 1, pp. 65–77, DOI: 10.15240/ ul/001/2023-1-004
Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
men ioned s a up business model lexibili y as
ano he c i ical di e ence be ween s a ups and
small companies.
Due o he high ailu e a e o s a ups,
many e o s ha e been made o design di -
e en ypes o p edic i e and o wa d-looking
models o success ully p edic he a e o
a s a up by iden i ying he ac o s leading o
success o ailu e. The esul s ha e in oduced
ac o s ela ed o he en ep eneu , he sec o o
indus y in which he en ep eneu wo ks, and
he s a egies adop ed in s a ups (Ho miga
e al., 2011). O he s udies ha e ound ac o s
such as inancial esou ces (Hill, 2018; T ipa-
hi e al., 2019), ma ke knowledge (De Luca
& A uahene-Gima, 2007), ma ke oppo uni ies
(Kuada, 2016), unde s anding o cus ome
as es (Ko le & Kelle , 2015), business in elli-
gen ce (Casei o & Coelho, 2019), inno a ion
(Ji ménez‐Jimenez e al., 2008), ma ke ing ca-
pa bili ies (Saleh & Alha bi, 2015), echnology
ca pabili ies (Chen e al., 2009) and ne wo king
capabili ies (Wal e e al., 2006) o be in luen ial
in he s a up’s success.
Gi en he sca ci y o ecen s udies on o ga-
niza ional silence in s a ups (Cen obelli e al.,
2017), mo e esea ch is needed o unde s and
how he s a up con ex a ec s o ganiza ional
silence.
1.2 I anian S a up Ecosys em
The I anian s a up ecosys em is nascen , wi h
a ema kable lack o eliable s a is ical in o ma-
ion. Among he ew exis ing esou ces, The I a-
nian ICT Guild O ganiza ion (IIG) has p esen ed
a s a is ical epo on he cu en si ua ion o
s a ups, p oblems, and ela ed issues based
on da a collec ed by an online ques ionnai e.
Acco ding o he epo , mo e han 68% o he
s a ups pa icipa ing in he su ey we e unde
wo yea s old, and only 39.5% ha e eached
he g ow h and e enue gene a ion s age. Mo e
han 75% o I anian s a ups a e dep i ed o
go e nmen suppo , and only 11.8% o e hei
se ices in he global ma ke .
No ably, 22.5% o he ounde s o I anian
s a ups ha e a second job, and 68.9% o s a -
ups do no ha e in es o s. 63.4% o hese
s a ups ha e be ween ze o (jus a ounde )
o i e ull- ime employees, and 62.9% ha e
be ween one and i e pa - ime employees.
Pa icipan s in he su ey a ibu ed he weak
spi i o coope a ion and eamwo k be ween
membe s (16.1%) and he limi a ion o he
s a up knowledge base (24.5%) oge he o
o he ac o s such as low liquidi y, he local
model, and domes ic cons ain s as he mos
c i ical in e nal ba ie s o he g ow h o s a -
ups (Digia o, 2020).
Acco ding o he epo o he 11 h esea ch
p og am o e alua ing en ep eneu ship
indica o s in I an, published by he O ice o
he Global En ep eneu ship Moni o in I an
(Facul y o En ep eneu ship, Uni e si y o
Teh an), he To al Ea ly-S age En ep eneu ial
Ac i i y (TEA) Index in I an in 2018 was 10%,
anking I an 28 h ou o 52 membe coun ies.
Also, he o al ne en ep eneu ial ac i i ies in
I an is equal o 16%. In o he wo ds, abou 16%
o I an’s adul popula ion is in ol ed in a ious
en ep eneu ial ac i i ies (Global En ep eneu -
ship Moni o , 2018).
Acco ding o Global En ep eneu ship Moni-
o , a s a up en ep eneu is an en ep eneu
who has done a signi ican ac i i y o s a a new
business du ing he las 42 mon hs, pa ially o
wholly owns a company, and is ac i ely in ol ed
in i s managemen . The mos signi ican numbe
o s a up en ep eneu s in I an a e young people
aged 25–34, who make up 15.18% o he o al
popula ion. I an anks 35 h among 52 membe
coun ies in he A e age S a up Exi and 15 h in
Fea o Failu e Ra e. Mo eo e , he s a ups’ suc-
cess a e in I an dec eased by abou 3% in 2018
compa ed o he h ee p io yea s (9.7% in 2018,
13.3% in 2017, and 12.8% in 2016) (Global En-
ep eneu ship Moni o , 2018).
1.3 O ganiza ional Silence
Employees usually ha e ideas o imp o e hei
o ganiza ion; some employees exp ess hei
ideas (o ganiza ional oice), bu o he s emain
silen and supp ess hei cons uc i e opinions
and knowledge; Mo ison and Milliken (2000)
call his social phenomenon “o ganiza ional
silence.” Pinde and Ha los (2001) de ine o -
ganiza ional silence as he e usal o employ-
ees o con ey beha io al, cogni i e, hones ,
and p ac ical assessmen s o o ganiza ional
si ua ions o he decision-making people in
he o ganiza ion. Employees’ silence dis up s
o ganiza ional pe o mance in a ious ways,
p o iding a hos ile clima e agains he exp es-
sion o new ideas and knowledge-sha ing, and
hinde ing e ec i e o ganiza ional change and
de elopmen by p e en ing nega i e eedback
(Dimi is & Vakola, 2007; Managheb e al.,
2018; Pinde & Ha los, 2001).
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68 2023, olume 26, issue 1, pp. 65–77, DOI: 10.15240/ ul/001/2023-1-004
Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
The majo i y o o ganiza ional silence s ud-
ies ec ui a ious models such as he dynam-
ics leading o o ganiza ional silence [explaining
why and how he silence clima e is o med in
o ganiza ions as a collec i e phenomenon;
Mo ison and Miliken (2000)], he e ec s o
o ganiza ional silence [ ocusing on implica ions
and o ganiza ional consequences o silence,
including he e ec i eness o o ganiza ional
change, decision-making, and e o co ec-
ion p ocesses; Mo ison and Milliken (2000)],
concep ualizing employee silence [p o id-
ing a amewo k o concep ualizing silence
based on al uis ic, de ensi e and obedien
silence componen s, ia employee mo i a ion;
Van Dyne e . al. (2003); he main ac o s o he
silence clima e and he esul s o o ganiza ional
silence in he employees’ job pe spec i es;
Dimi is and Vakola (2007)].
While a e iew o he heo e ical ounda-
ions o o ganiza ional silence in he s a up
con ex e eals a lack o p io esea ch s ud-
ies on he opic, he limi ed exis ing s udies
examine he impac o knowledge-sha ing by
s a up ounde s and i s ela ionship o esul -
ing bene i s in s a ups (Cen obelli e al., 2017;
Oe & Mi suhashi, 2013). These s udies claim
ha employees a e na u ally mo i a ed o sha e
hei opinions and knowledge wi h o he s, bu i
could no be gene alized wi hou a comp ehen-
si e analysis o people’s mo i a ions. In o de
o pe o m such an in-dep h analysis, a deepe
unde s anding o he undamen al cha ac e is-
ics in luencing he o ma ion o o ganiza ional
silence is equi ed.
1.4 Pe sonali y and O ganiza ional Silence
Pe sonali y is psychological quali ies con ibu -
ing o dis inc and s able pa e ns o a pe son’s
emo ion, hough , and beha io (Ce one &
Pe in, 2010). A ms ong and Taylo (2014)
de ined pe sonali y as psychological ai s ha
dis inc ly and consis en ly in luence a pe son’s
beha io al cha ac e is ics.
Some ecen s udies on pe sonali y ha e
ocused on he i e- ac o model o pe sonali y
(FFM), classi ying pe sonali y ai s in o i e di-
mensions, including neu o icism, ex o e sion,
openness o expe iences, ag eeableness, and
conscien iousness (Chan e al., 2015; Ha nida ,
2013). P oponen s o he i e- ac o pe sonali y
model main ain ha hese ac o s a e ound in-
di idually o collec i ely in almos all pe sonali y
ools (No man, 1963).
Neu o icism e e s o he endency o expe-
ience ad e se e ec s, such as ange , anxie y,
insecu i y, and psychological s ess, while ex-
o e sion measu es he quan i y and in ensi y
o in e pe sonal in e ac ions and ac i i y le el.
Openness o expe iences means p oac i ely
emb acing b and-new expe iences, ag ee-
ableness e e s o he quali y o in e pe sonal
in e ac ion in a spec um om lo e o con lic ,
and conscien iousness measu es he deg ee
o consis ency, o ganiza ion, and mo i a ion in
goal-o ien ed beha io s (Cos a, 1992).
O ganiza ional silence – a he mic o-le el
– mani es s i sel in he con ex o pe sonali y
ai s. The e is no a gene al ag eemen on how
and o wha ex en each o hese pe sonali y
ac o s a ec s he beha io o employees, and
some belie e ha he beha io o conscien ious
and neu o ic people is no con ex -dependen
and is always p edic able. Howe e , o he
pe sonali y ac o s (ex a e sion, openness,
and ag eeableness) on o ganiza ional beha io
– including o ganiza ional silence – a e mainly
con ex -dependen (Judge e al., 2008).
LePine and an Dyne (2001) a gue ha
o ganiza ional oice beha io is a basic o m
o con ex ual pe o mance. They explo ed he
ole o indi idual di e ences and ound ha
conscien iousness and ex o e sion posi i ely
co ela e wi h o ganiza ional silence, while
neu o icism and ag eeableness ha e a nega-
i e ela ionship wi h o ganiza ional silence.
A e y (2003) es ed he e ec o i e pe son-
ali y ac o s and he main dimensions o co e
sel -e alua ions (CSE) on o ganiza ional oice.
De e and Bu is (2007) s a ed ha he a io-
nale o hei s udy on indi idual di e ences as
co ela ed wi h o ganiza ional oice is ha one
pe son is mo e likely willing o exp ess ideas
han o he s.
Nikolaou e al. (2008) a gued ha i he e
is indeed a ela ionship be ween employee
oice beha io and con ex ual pe o mance, i
can be expec ed ha employees who possess
high le els o conscien iousness and ex a e -
sion and low le els o neu o icism demons a e
o ganiza ional oice mo e han o he s. They
also ound ha employees’ o ganiza ional oice
beha io was mainly obse ed owa ds hei
supe iso a he han senio managemen .
S udies conduc ed in I an on he impac
o pe sonali y on o ganiza ional silence a ely
ha e ocused on s a ups (mainly done in he
public sec o ) while emphasizing he signi ican
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2023, olume 26, issue 1, pp. 65–77, DOI: 10.15240/ ul/001/2023-1-004
Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
ela ionships be ween employee pe sonal-
i y and o ganiza ional silence. Fo example,
A khami A dakani and Khalili Sad abad (2013)
ound ha ex a e sion, openness o expe i-
ence, and conscien iousness ha e a signi i-
can nega i e ela ionship wi h o ganiza ional
silence, while he e is a signi ican posi i e e-
la ionship be ween ag eeableness and o gani-
za ional silence, and no signi ican ela ionship
was obse ed be ween he neu o icism and si-
lence. Zeba das and Nade ian Jah omi (2016)
also ound ha ag eeableness, neu o icism,
and ex a e sion a e good p edic o s o silence
beha io among employees.
Asadi (2017) ound a signi ican posi i e e-
la ionship be ween neu o icism and ag eeable-
ness o o ganiza ional silence and a signi ican
nega i e ela ionship be ween ex a e sion,
conscien iousness, and openness o expe i-
ence ac o s wi h o ganiza ional silence. Sha i-
a i and A khami A dakani (2018) es ablished
ha (an in o e ed) pe sonali y signi ican ly
ela es o an employee’s silence. Zeba das
e al.’s (2017) indings indica e he di ec e ec
o pe sonali y on employee silence. Examining
he o ganiza ional silence o nu ses, Ja a iani
and Rabbani (2020) ound ha conscien ious-
ness and ag eeableness signi ican ly impac
he ela ionship be ween manage ial ac o s
and o ganiza ional silence.
2. Hypo hesis De elopmen
A e iew o p e ious s udies shows a esea ch
gap on how pe sonali y ac o s a ec he o -
ma ion o o ganiza ional silence in s a ups.
The e o e, hypo heses a ge ing his gap will be
de eloped.
2.1 Conscien iousness and O ganiza ional
Silence
Employees wi h high le els o conscien ious-
ness possess c ea i i y, ingenui y, imagina ion,
and cu iosi y o de elop new ideas (Fu nham
& Fudge, 2008). Conscien ious people a e
mo e likely o sha e knowledge and opinions
because hey possess ou s anding job skills,
enjoy helping o he s, and ac beyond hei oles
o he sake o he o ganiza ion (Ka ga Sho-
u aki e al., 2016). Ba ick and Ryan’s (2003)
s udy e eals ha conscien iousness has a sig-
ni ican posi i e ela ionship wi h success and
desi e o ca ee success and job pe o mance.
A e y (2003) ound ha people wi h a high
le el o conscien iousness seek be e con ol
o e hei jobs, leading o imp o ed o gani-
za ional oice. Nikolaou e al. (2008) hypo h-
esized ha conscien iousness has a signi ican
posi i e ela ionship wi h o ganiza ional oice
beha io . They a gued ha conscien ious em-
ployees a e e icien , s able, and ha dwo king.
Hypo hesis 1 is he e o e de eloped as ollows:
H1: Conscien iousness has a posi i e ela-
ionship wi h o ganiza ional silence.
2.2 Neu o icism and O ganiza ional Silence
Anxie y in neu o ic people can inc ease hei
sensi i i y o wo k- ela ed s ess ac o s and
educe hei adap a ion o unpleasan condi-
ions (Ha nida , 2013). Neu o icism in g oup
membe s causes hem o delibe a ely a oid
knowledge-sha ing o main ain he secu i y o
hei exclusi e knowledge, bu membe s wi h
highe emo ional s abili y end o us col-
leagues and ha e li le ea o sha ing hei
knowledge (Ka ga Shou aki e al., 2016). Ha -
ing nega i e emo ions such as ea , sadness,
ange , and guil o ms he basis o he neu o i-
cism scale (ne ousness o emo ional ins abili y
index). People wi h low sco es on he neu o i-
cism scale a e calm and gen le and ha e low
sel -es eem (Zhao & Seibe , 2006).
Nikolaou e al. (2008) hypo hesized ha
neu o icism has a signi ican posi i e ela ion-
ship wi h o ganiza ional silence beha io . They
a gued ha neu o ics a e mo e likely o ha e
psychological anxie y and un ealis ic ideas and
can quickly become anxious and eel insecu e
and emo ionally uns able, leading o employee
silence in he ace o o ganiza ional issues.
The e o e, hese people a e likely eluc an o
make sugges ions ha lead o signi ican o ga-
niza ional imp o emen s o changes. LePine
and an Dyne (2001) also demons a e ha
neu o icism has a signi ican and posi i e e-
la ionship wi h o ganiza ional silence. Hypo h-
esis 2 is he e o e de eloped as ollows:
H2: Neu o icism has a posi i e ela ionship
wi h o ganiza ional silence.
2.3 Ag eeableness and O ganiza ional
Silence
McC ae e al. (2005) de ined ag eeableness as
a pe sonali y ai o us , lo e, gen leness, em-
pa hy, pa icipa ion, and humili y. A e y (2003)
ound ha ag eeable people did no wan o c e-
a e p oblems o con lic wi h o he s; hey could
no see he downside o hei ac ions. Nikolaou
e al. (2008) hypo hesized ha ag eeableness
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70 2023, olume 26, issue 1, pp. 65–77, DOI: 10.15240/ ul/001/2023-1-004
Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
has a signi ican posi i e ela ionship wi h o ga-
niza ional silence. They a gued ha ag eeable
people could be desc ibed as kind-hea ed, will-
ing o help, gene ous, kind, and ou spoken, who
easily us o he s.
Simila ly, LePine and Van Dyne’s (2001)
ema kable inding indica es he dual o ien a-
ion o ag eeableness; i has a signi ican and
nega i e ela ionship wi h o ganiza ional oice
and a signi ican and posi i e ela ionship wi h
o ganiza ional pe o mance. Hypo hesis 3 is
he e o e de eloped as ollows:
H3: Ag eeableness has a posi i e ela ion-
ship wi h o ganiza ional silence.
2.4 Ex a e sion and O ganiza ional
Silence
McC ae e al. (2005) desc ibed ex a e sion as
cha ac e is ics such as sociabili y, asse i e-
ness, exci abili y, and a high le el o emo ional
exp ession. The sense o humo o ex o e s
helps hem alk wi h o he people in a non-
h ea ening way. Ex o e s o en eel secu e
and ac decisi ely in he wo kplace. A e y
(2003) ound ha ex o e s likely ind oppo -
uni ies o p esen hemsel es and in luence
o he s h ough o ganiza ional oice beha io .
Nikolaou e al. (2008) hypo hesized ha
ex a e sion has a signi ican posi i e ela ion-
ship wi h o ganiza ional oice beha io . They
a gued ha ex o e s a e sociable, ac i e, op i-
mis ic, a ec iona e, and alka i e. These people
always eel sa e and beha e decisi ely in he
wo kplace. Simila esul s ha e been epo ed
by LePine and Van Dyne (2001). Hypo hesis 4
is he e o e de eloped as ollows:
H4: Ex a e sion has a posi i e ela ionship
wi h o ganiza ional silence.
2.5 Openness o Expe iences
and O ganiza ional Silence
Openness o expe iences can c ea e bonds
among employees by imp o ing g oup cohe-
sion. Once g oup cohesion is o med, membe s
will be mo e inclined o sha e knowledge and
opinions wi h o he s (in o de o achie e be -
e job pe o mance) (Hsu, 2018). LePine and
an Dyne (2001) ound ha people wi h high
le els o openness o expe iences enjoy new
expe iences and a e willing o lea n new hings.
Such people p obably a o new changes mo e
han he cu en si ua ion. Thus, openness o
expe ience is in e sely ela ed o o ganiza ional
silence.
I can be said ha open-minded people
expe ience posi i e and nega i e emo ions
mo e in ensely han people wi h low openness
sco es; hus, hey end o ha e mo e posi-
i e a i udes owa d lea ning new hings and
engage mo e deeply in lea ning expe iences
Fig. 1: The concep ual amewo k
Sou ce: LePine and an Dyne (2001)
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2023, olume 26, issue 1, pp. 65–77, DOI: 10.15240/ ul/001/2023-1-004
Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
(Ma zle & Muelle , 2011). Fu he mo e, A e y
(2003) inds ha such indi iduals a e likely o
ind inno a i e and c ea i e ways o imp o e
cu en p ac ices. Bo h ecen s udies hypo h-
esized ha openness o expe iences posi i ely
p edic s o ganiza ional oice beha io and is
in e sely ela ed o o ganiza ional silence.
Ne e heless, openness o expe ience has
e ealed he weakes associa ion wi h wo k
beha io , job pa icipa ion, and adi ional con-
ex ual pe o mance. A e y (2003) and LePine
and an Dyne (2001) obse ed an associa ion
be ween openness and o ganiza ional oice
beha io bu did no su icien ly explain hei
indings. Openness o expe iences includes
se e al di e se elemen s (Hough & Fu nham,
2003), leading o he desc ip ion o openness
as he mos e a ic and he e ogeneous di-
mension o he i e- ac o pe sonali y model.
Hypo hesis 5 is he e o e de eloped as ollows:
H5: The e is a posi i e ela ionship be ween
openness o expe iences and o ganiza ional
silence.
3. Me hodology
As shown in Fig. 1, he concep ual amewo k
is based on he ela ionships p esen ed in he
hypo heses and s udy o LePine and an Dyne
(2001). The s udy’s s a is ical popula ion in-
cludes all employees o s a ups in I an, o which
exac s a is ics a e una ailable. The e o e, he
ques ionnai es we e sen o 600 employees,
and a e emo ing incomple e ques ionnai es,
502 we e en e ed in o he analysis.
3.1 Measu emen
The o ganiza ional silence ques ionnai e is
aken om Vakola and Bou adas (2005) and
consis s o 15 i e-poin Like i ems (1: s ongly
disag ee o 5: s ongly ag ee). The dimensions
o his ques ionnai e we e senio managemen
a i ude o silence (5 i ems), supe iso a i ude
o silence (5 i ems), and communica ion oppo -
uni ies (5 i ems).
The sho o m o he Fi e-Fac o In en o y
(NEO-FFI) was used o measu e pe sonali y ac-
o s. NEO-FFI includes 60 i ems and is one o
he newes ques ionnai es o assess pe sonali y
cons uc based on he ac o analysis pe spec-
i e. The sco ing scale o he ques ions is based
on a i e-poin Like scale (1: s ongly disag ee
o 5: s ongly ag ee). A pa o he ques ionnai e
was dedica ed o he esponden s’ demog aphic
a iables and he s a up’s cha ac e is ics.
The eliabili y analysis o bo h ansla ed
ques ionnai es in a pilo s udy o 30 people was
es ima ed wi h C onbach’s alpha o 0.86 o he
o ganiza ional silence ques ionnai e and 0.84
o NEO-FFI, indica ing he ques ionnai e’s sa -
is ac o y eliabili y. Feedback ecei ed om ou
p ac i ione s and ou uni e si y p o esso s was
used o ensu e he alidi y o bo h ques ion-
nai es and he cla i y o he measu es, leading
o mino modi ica ions o he i ems based on he
pilo s udy.
3.2 Sampling and Da a Collec ion/
P ocedu e
The ques ionnai e was sen o 600 s a up em-
ployees. Each pe son was sen a pe sonalized
email in i a ion o comple e he online su ey.
Incomple e ques ionnai es and unwillingness o
answe he ques ionnai es we e conside ed exi
c i e ia. Fi e hund ed hi y- wo esponden s
pa icipa ed in he su ey, and inally, 502 ques-
ionnai es we e analyzed, leading o an e ec-
i e esponse a e o 85.66% o he s udy.
Pa icipa ion in he su ey was anonymous and
based on olun a y and e hical conside a ions.
The cha ac e is ics o he esponden s a e de-
sc ibed in Tab. 1.
4. Resul s
4.1 Desc ip i e S a is ics
Values o means, s anda d de ia ions, and
co ela ions be ween cons uc s and a iables
a e shown in Tab. 2. Ex a e sion and consci-
en iousness possess he lowes and he high-
es means, espec i ely. A dominan sense o
conse a i eness was e lec ed in he answe s
as well.
4.2 Kolmogo o -Smi no Tes
To analyze he hypo heses, one mus i s
ensu e ha he es ed a iable’s s a is ical
dis ibu ion is no mal. Fo his pu pose, he
Kolmogo o -Smi no es was used, and he
esul s and decision c i e ia (p- alue) in his
s udy we e 0.607 (abo e 0.5), indica ing ha
he dis ibu ion is no mal.
4.3 Pea son Co ela ion Tes
Pea son co ela ion coe icien is used o es
hypo heses 1 o 5. As he Tab. 3 shows, consci-
en iousness and openness o expe ience ha e
he weakes and s onges co ela ion wi h o -
ganiza ional silence.
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Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
4.4 Reg ession Analysis
The eg ession analysis esul s be ween o -
ganiza ional silence and pe sonali y ac o s
a e shown in Tab. 4. The esul s demons a e
ha he co ela ion coe icien o o ganiza ional
silence on he pe sonali y ac o s equals 0.499
and explains he a iance o o ganiza ional
silence by 0.17.
5. Discussion
This s udy aims o in es iga e he ole o pe -
sonali y ac o s based on he i e- ac o model
on o ganiza ional silence among employees o
I anian s a ups. The eg ession analysis e-
sul s e eal a signi ican ela ionship be ween
he i e- ac o model o pe sonali y and o ga-
niza ional silence ac o s. In he ollowing, he
Numbe o employees
(n) (%)
Age
<30 223 44.4
31–40 160 31.9
41–50 85 16.9
50< 34 6.8
Educa ion
Bachelo 121 24.1
Mas e 306 61.0
PhD 75 14.9
S a up size (employee numbe )
1–5 157 31.3
5–10 281 56.0
10–15 39 7.8
15< 25 4.9
Expe ience in s a up sec o (y s)
<3 183 36.5
3–5 195 38.8
5< 124 24.7
Gende Male 317 63.1
Female 185 36.9
Sou ce: own
Cons uc Mean S anda d
de ia ion
The la ges
numbe
The smalles
numbe
O ganiza ional silence 3.27 0.457 4.50 1.80
Pe sonali y ac o s 1.19 0.575 4.40 1.80
Neu o icism 2.00 0.996 4.60 1.60
Ex a e sion 1.80 0.891 4.60 1.40
Openness o
expe ience 1.97 0.899 4.25 1.75
Ag eeableness 1.81 0.902 5.00 1.20
Conscien iousness 2.18 0.955 4.00 1.30
Sou ce: own
Tab. 1: Sample desc ip ion (n = 502)
Tab. 2: Means and s anda d de ia ions o cons uc s (n = 502)
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Business Adminis a ion and Managemen
esul s o es ing he hypo heses a e analyzed
sepa a ely.
5.1 Conscien iousness and O ganiza ional
Silence
This s udy e eals ha conscien iousness
has a signi ican posi i e ela ionship wi h
o ganiza ional silence ha is consis en wi h
p e ious esea ch (A khami A dakani & Khalili
Sad abad, 2013; Nikolaou e al., 2008; Zeba -
das & Nade ian Jah omi, 2016), which ound
a posi i e and signi ican ela ionship be ween
o ganiza ional oice and conscien iousness.
Exp essing iews and sugges ions o imp o -
ing he business ou comes o he o ganiza ion
is he mos i al issue o conscien ious em-
ployees, leading o supp essing o ganiza ional
silence. Howe e , i should be no ed ha he
weakes co ela ion be ween pe sonali y ac-
o s and o ganiza ional silence was obse ed
o he conscien ious ac o , making i he
weakes p edic o o o ganiza ional silence in
he p esen s udy.
5.2 Neu o icism and O ganiza ional Silence
The esul s e ealed ha neu o icism has
a posi i e ela ionship wi h o ganiza ional si-
lence, consis en wi h p e ious indings (Asadi,
2017; Chan e al., 2015; Zeba das & Nade ian
Jah omi, 2016) ha neu o ics a e emo ionally
uns able and lack sel -con idence, he e o e,
p e e silence when hey need o commen .
P e ious s udies ha e shown ha neu o ic
people a e mo e likely o expe ience emo ions
such as ea and ailu e, leading o ine ec i e
adap i e s a egies such as emo ion-cen e ed
adjus men and in e pe sonal soli ude, pe sonal
blame, passi i y, and indecision (Lee-Baggley
e al., 2005). A conside able ac ion o espon-
den s (36.5%) a e s ill “newcome s” o s a ups,
and neu o ic esponden s may belong mainly o
his g oup and eel insecu e in he wo kplace
and y o be conse a i e.
5.3 Ag eeableness and O ganiza ional
Silence
The esul s e ealed ha ag eeableness has
a posi i e ela ionship wi h o ganiza ional si-
lence. Ag eeable pe sons a e mo e inclined o
o ganiza ional silence. This inding is consis en
wi h p e ious li e a u e (e.g., A khami A dakani
& Khalili Sad abad, 2013; Asadi, 2017; Chan
e al., 2015; Danaei a d e al., 2012), demon-
s a ing ha ag eeable people a e compas-
siona e owa ds o he s and y o adap o any
si ua ion. As a esul , i can be in e ed ha pas-
si e people p e e silence when hey need o
commen . Ag eeable people a e e y p one o
passi e beha io s, and hei p ima y mo i a ion
o silence beha io is mainly wi hd awal and
submission; hey ac based on submission and
sa is ac ion wi h e e y hing.
Signi icance le el (Sig.)Co ela ion coe icien (P)Pe sonali y ac o
0.0100.07Conscien iousness
0.0610.23Neu o icism
0.0010.31Ag eeableness
0.0010.29Ex a e sion
0.0010.46Openness o expe ience
Sou ce: own
S anda d co ela ion
coe icien (R)
Squa e o he co ela-
ion coe icien (R2)
Adjus ed R2 coe icien Es ima ion e o
0.2510.1700.159
2.967
Sou ce: own
Tab. 3: Co ela ion coe icien be ween pe sonali y ac o s and o ganiza ional silence
(n = 502)
Tab. 4: Indices and s a is ics o eg ession analysis o o ganiza ional silence based on
pe sonali y ac o s
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