Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Rucks Department of Management

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

Although authenticity has become an increasingly prominent construct in management research, cumulative progress has been limited by conceptual fragmentation, inconsistent theorizing, and the absence of a validated measure that captures authenticity as a multidimensional and state-based workplace experience. The purpose of this dissertation, therefore, is twofold: to clarify the conceptual foundations of workplace authenticity and to develop and validate a corresponding measure grounded in authenticity as consistency, conformity, and connection. Chapter 1 reviews and synthesizes recent authenticity research in management, identifies enduring conceptual and methodological weaknesses, and advances a cognitive dissonance-based framework for integrating the major dimensions of authenticity. Chapter 2 develops and validates a workplace authenticity measure through a three-study process. Subject-matter experts evaluated items to establish content validity and reduce an initial item pool. A first employee sample was then used to examine the emerging factor structure of the measure through exploratory factor analyses of both self-report and other-report forms, followed by item reduction based on redundancy and factor performance. This process resulted in a 24-item, five-factor scale reflecting consistency, conformity, connection to people, connection to place, and connection to time. A second employee sample was used to assess the psychometric properties of the retained scale, including factor structure, reliability, convergent and discriminant validity, and an initial nomological network linking happiness to job satisfaction, organizational citizenship behavior, and counterproductive work behavior through the authenticity dimensions. Results supported a five-factor model with good overall fit, strong internal consistency, and evidence of convergent and discriminant validity. The retained dimensions also showed a meaningful nomological pattern. Together, the findings suggest that workplace authenticity can be represented as a multidimensional, state-based construct. This dissertation contributes to the authenticity literature by offering greater conceptual clarity, a psychometrically sound measurement tool, and a foundation for future research on how authenticity is experienced and enacted in organizational settings.

Date

7-17-2026

Committee Chair

Johnson, Michael

LSU Acknowledgement

1

LSU Accessibility Acknowledgment

1

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Available for download on Monday, July 16, 2029

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