Abstract:

Voice behavior, as a kind of discretionary extra-role behavior that is both constructive and challenging, could improve organizational performance, promote organizational innovation, and enhance team creativity. In recent years, research area of voice behavior tends to focus on dynamic evolution patterns of voice behavior and the generation mechanism of subsequent voice behavior. Previous research has made some progress, while there are still several limitations. Firstly, from research path perspective, there is lack of "phenomenon-driven" findings and lack of conclusion about effective voice behavior practices in local firms; secondly, from an antecedent mechanism perspective, existing studies have not explored the role of organizational human resource practices sufficiently at the meso-level, the measurement only focused on employees' perceptual level, and neglected the differences of effects between subjective perception and objective implementation; finally, from a process mechanism perspective, most studies adopted quantitative research to reveal mediating mechanisms and boundary conditions, while have not described the dynamic process of the evolution of employee voice behavior in detail.

Based on the above background, our study adopts the "phenomenon-driven" approach to conceptualize the effective voice behavior practices in the local firms, and proposes the concept of "voice behavior oriented human resource practice." Then, according to AMO theory, we conclude a three-dimensional framework which comprises skill-enhancing practices, motivation-enhancing practices, and opportunity-providing practices. Furthermore, our study constructed a two-stage framework of employee voice behavior's self-regulation process, which includes "initial induction" and "follow-up reflection" stages, and explored the differential moderating effects of individual perception and objective implementation of voice practices in these two stages in order to describe the dynamic evolution mechanism of voice behavior. Lastly, based on self-regulation theory, we reveal the multi-stage dynamic evolution process of subsequent employee voice behavior through case study method, which contains three stages: initial induction in "cognitive creation" stage, responsive interaction in "cognitive experimentation" stage, and enhanced efficacy in "cognitive gain" stage.

This study mainly contributes in the following three aspects. Firstly, it promotes the development of the emerging research topic of voice behavior practices. While previous studies on strategic human resource practices have yielded fruitful results, they have specific objectives and contexts that make them difficult to effectively address the practical demands shaped by voice behavior. This study explores the concept, dimensions, and mechanisms of voice behavior practice, which enhance our understanding of the effectiveness of local voice practice and complement existing research findings on strategic human resource practice.

Secondly, it complements the dynamic investigation of variability tendencies in employee voice behavior. Previous work on the antecedent mechanism of voice behavior has mostly focused on the initiation of voice behavior in employees, with limited attention to the dynamic evolutionary properties of voice behavior. This study extends the focus to subsequent voice behavior, constructing a two-stage model of "initial induction" and "follow-up reflection" of employee voice behavior from the perspective of actors. It delineates the generative details of subsequent voice behavior and its relation to previous voice experiences, thus complementing theoretical achievements related to the dynamical properties of voice behavior.

Finally, it sheds light on the mechanisms by which voice behavior-oriented HR practices promote subsequent voice behavior in employees. To address the limitations of quantitative studies in revealing the dynamic and complex processes of voice behavior, this study combines quantitative and qualitative research methods to extract dynamical process theories and provide detailed descriptions of the specific processes through which voice practices promote subsequent voice behavior. On the one hand, using empirical research methods, it explores the differential moderating effects of subjective perception and objective implementation of voice practices in the "initial induction" and "follow-up reflection" stages of individual voice behavior. On the other hand, through multiple case studies, it constructs a three-stage process model of voice practices promoting subsequent employee voice behavior, that is, "cognitive creation" stage in initial induction, "cognitive experimentation" stage in responsive interaction, and "cognitive gain" stage in enhanced efficacy. This series of endeavors has the potential to improve the understanding of how to motivate subsequent employee voice behavior and to provide implications for employee voice behavior practices in local firms.

Key words: voice behavior, subsequent voice behavior, voice behavior oriented human resource practice, self-regulatory framework