The impact of individual values on human resource decision‐making by line managers

Purpose – This paper explores this relationship between the individual values of managers and human resource (HR) decision‐making. Design/methodology/approach – Questionnaire data were collected from a total of 340 line managers from both Ireland and Canada. The questionnaire instrument comprises three components: Rokeach's instrumental and terminal values instrument; two HR related decision scenarios; and demographic and human capital data. Findings – The results provide modest support for the proposed model that individual values affect HR decision‐making in that capability values were shown to be a significant positive predictor of the importance of health and safety, and peace values were a significant positive predictor of the importance of employment equity. Research limitations/implications – The findings emphasise the need to simultaneously examine both individual values and organisational factors as predictors of HR decision‐making. Future work should examine the psychometric use of value instruments. Practical implications – The study underlines the fact that managers need to be aware of the fact that their own values influences how they make decisions. Attention to the values concept amongst managers will improve comprehension of the decision‐making process within organizations. Originality/value – The value of the paper lies in the fact that the effect of individual values on decision‐making has been under‐researched in the literature.