Error orientation at work: Dimensionality and relationships with errors and organizational cultural factors

Making errors represents a stressful event, and the way errors are dealt with are significantly influenced by individuals’ error orientation. Drawing on the stress literature, scholars have identified several dimensions underpinning error orientation construct. Nevertheless, empirical studies have overlooked the construct complexity and do not provide clear theoretical anchors for its operationalization. This study aims to contribute to the error orientation literature by proposing and empirically testing a theoretical framework that integrates stress and attitude theories, on a sample of 443 employees. Specifically, we examined the error orientation facets’ relationships with both two Hofstede’s cultural factors (i.e., power distance and uncertainty avoidance) and work errors (i.e., slips/lapses and mistakes types). Findings from the test of alternative models and from a structural equation model showed the uniqueness of each facet, also in relation to additional study variables, supporting the relevance of adopting this twofold theoretical framework in order to better understand the nature of each facet.