A scholar of organizational behavior, Assistant Professor of Management Kathryn Ostermeier, studies how an individual’s self-view and the expression of this self-view affects individual, team, and organizational outcomes. Her most recent paper, “Can I Be Who I Am? Psychological Authenticity Climate and Employee Outcomes,” was recently published in Human Performance.

In the study, Ostermeier, with co-authors Miguel Caldasc, Professor of Management at University of Texas at Tyler, and Danielle Cooper, a professor in the department of Management at the University of North Texas G. Brint Ryan College of Business, proposed and tested the idea of “psychological authenticity climate,” which they defined as a climate where employees feel their organization encourages and provides a safe environment for them to express their personal identities at work. 

Through a four-study design spanning the United States and Brazil, Ostermeier and colleagues established relationships between psychological authenticity climate and organizationally relevant employee outcomes. Their research indicated overall support for their model, with psychological authenticity climate affecting key outcomes like job satisfaction, job burnout, and organizational citizenship behaviors.

Ostermeier’s research, which focuses on identity, authenticity, individual differences, and unit/team performance, has appeared in academic journals including the Academy of Management Annals and the Journal of Applied Psychology; she also works with organizations to conduct trainings and assessments. She describes Bryant University as her “dream job,” as it allows her to teach and conduct research with engaged students while still pursuing her own scholarly work.