Merce Mach

Merce Mach

Lecturer Professor

ORCID: 0000-0002-0109-1122
Researcher ID: V-2429-2018
Knowledge area: Organització d'Empreses

Merce Mach obtained her PhD in Psychology from Ramon Llull University in 2007. She is currently Associate professor and research fellow at University of Barcelona (Faculty of Economics and Buisness) ... + info

Research group:

Contact Information
Department of Business
Departament d'Empresa - Facultat d'Economia i Empresa - Universitat de Barcelona - Diagonal 690 08034 Barcelona
934 039 606
merce.mach(a)ub.edu

Academic training

Llicenciat . Universitat de Barcelona . 13/04/1987 . (Diploma / Degree / Activities)
Mestratge . Universitat de Barcelona . 02/02/1995 . (Diploma / Degree / Activities)
Doctor en Psicologia . Universitat Ramon Llull . 21/02/2007 . (Ph.D.)

Teaching imparted (last 5 years)

Recursos Humans (Bachelor's degree) - Administración y Dirección de Empresas(1) - Universidad de Barcelona.
Treball Final de Màster (University Master's Degree) - Recerca en Empresa - Universidad de Barcelona.
Direcció de les Organitzacions (Bachelor's degree) - Administración y Dirección de Empresas(1) - Universidad de Barcelona.
Economía de l'Empresa (Bachelor's degree) - International Business - Universidad de Barcelona.

Research interests

TRUST IN ORGANIZATIONS. This line of research aims to better understand trust within organizations, given its key role in achieving organizational objectives. Specifically, we want to examine the factors that contribute to the performance and results of the organization. Our hypothesis is that trust plays a major role. Thus, the aims are 1) Deepen on the nature, role and contribution of trust in the performance of organizations; 2) Explore the role that trust plays in organizations at the group level; 3) Explain how trust in leadership contributes to the effectiveness of the group; 4) Research the role played by the perception of HR policies in institutional trust; 5) Find empirical evidences that trust is related to effectiveness and results (or vice versa); 6) Explore how culture and diversity intervene to explain the variance of trust in working groups
ATTENDANCE BEHAVIOUR: PRESENTEEISM AND ABSENTEEISM. Absenteeism is the non-attendance to scheduled work. Presenteeism, on the other hand, consists in going to work while ill (or not being right for work) and the resulting decrease in productivity, given this condition ((Harvey & Nicholson, 1999). Many researches have documented the cost of absenteeism for employers. But it is only recently that research in the field of occupational medicine has begun to suggest that the loss of work due to absenteeism is only the visible tip of the iceberg, and that the hidden cost of presentism can be much greater. Understanding the phenomenon of presentism (in addition to absenteeism) could represent an important competitive advantage for organizations, given this hidden nature of the productivity loss. Presentism is a little known stage between full engagement at work and absenteeism (Johns, 2010). This phenomenon requires more attention and research, especially since the predictors of presentism and absenteeism may not be identical. In the popular press, most approaches on presentism focus on the potential for contagion of workplace diseases (e.g., flu epidemics). In specialized literature, however, attention has focused on the predominance of presentism, its causes and mainly, the measurement of the loss of productivity that is believed to go together with the phenomenon. Presentism is important from the perspective of the employees, since their practice could aggravate the existing medical conditions of the employee, harm their quality of work life, and give the impression of lack of effectiveness in the workplace. Presentism is important from the point of view of the 'employer', given the costs of decreasing productivity. Some studies estimate the cost of presentism higher than absenteeism (e.g., Hemp, 2004)
STRATEGIC HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (SHRM). The SHRM research line of research wants to explore the link between human resources management systems (policies and processes), the involvement of employees and the company's performance (financial and operational) in improving its competitive advantage. As mentioned by Herb Kellerher (former CEO of Southwest Airlines): 'Our costs are lower because our productivity is higher, which we achieved thanks to the dedicated energy of our people.' So what is intended is to 1) Analyze the added value that human resources systems bring to the success of the company; 2) Develop a set of evidences of HR best practices and to contribute to improving the human resources function; and 3) Increase our knowledge of how employees perceive HR policies and practices that the organization has implemented
PEDAGOGICAL INNOVATION: ACTIVE LEARNING METHODS. This line of research aims to examine the use of active learning methodologies in large classroom settings (70-90 students), and how they contribute to the development of students 'competences and satisfaction and to the performance of the students' team. Our hypothesis is that the active learning methodologies, used as teaching and learning tools, help to create an appropriate context to develop the student's management competencies and improve their levels of satisfaction. Therefore, we want to: 1) Provide empirical evidence on how active learning methodologies contribute developing students' competencies in large class groups. 2) Examine small-group methodologies and help students to assume their own responsibility for their own learning, while working in active learning contexts. 3) Exploring how the 'research projects' tool helps students to develop critical thinking and promote learning and understanding, through the active and constructive teaching and learning process
THE CHANGING NATURE OF CAREERS. The new forms of professional career are characterized by environments of global, dynamic and changing jobs and by the new model of careers 'without borders' (Baruch, 2014, Briscoe & Hall, 2006). In the last decades, new orientations and professional attitudes have been emerging throughout the working life that require a more rigorous evaluation. The new professional trajectories are in stark contrast to the traditional, linear and stable career based on the hierarchy that comprised the dominant concept during the last century (Schein 1978; Rosenbaum 1979). While many organizational and social systems still employ traditional career systems (Baruch 2006, Inkson et al., 2012), these 'new' typologies characterize more and more segments of the labor market. In this sense and among the different career models (eg, traditional, hybrid, kaleidoscopic), nowadays there is also a coexistence of several trajectories such as assignments for short periods of time, work for projects, temporary work or other more multidirectional trajectories (Briscoe et al., 2006; Sullivan, 2009). This project would like to investigate, through a longitudinal design, various aspects of the new professional trajectories related to the initial stages and the moments of career transition, as well as 3) The relationship between professional success and professional career choices; 2) The new concepts of careers without borders, hybrid, kaleidoscope, protein (variable) in a more global and / or European context; 3) Significant differences in professional orientation according to gender; etc

Relevant publications (Journal Publications and Other publications - last 6 years)

Donia, M.; Mach, M.; O'Neill, T.; Brutus, S. (2022). Student satisfaction with use of an online peer feedback system. Assessment & Evaluation In Higher Education, 47(2), pp. 269 - 283 . Institutional Repository . ISSN: 0260-2938
Ferreira, A.I.; Mach, M.; Martinez, L.F.; Miraglia, M. (2022). Sickness presenteeism in the aftermath of COVID-19: Is presenteeism remote-work behaviour the new (ab)normal?. Frontiers in Psychology, 12(748053), pp. 1 - 13 . Institutional Repository . ISSN: 1664-1078
Mach, M.; Ferreira, A.; Abrantes, A. (2022). Transformational leadership and team performance in sports teams: A conditional indirect model. Applied Psychology, 71(2), pp. 662 - 694 . Institutional Repository . ISSN: 0269-994X
Abrantes, A.C.M.; Mach, M., & Ferreira, A. (2022). Tenure matters for team cohesion & performance: The moderating role of trust in the coach. European Sport Management Quarterly, 22(3), pp. 313 - 334 . Institutional Repository . ISSN: 1618-4742
Chou, Ch.; Mach, M. (2021). Unlocking the Contradictory Outcomes of Presenteeism through a Temporal Model: Effort Exertion as a Mediator. Frontiers in Psychology, 12(740411), pp. 1 - 12 . Institutional Repository . ISSN: 1664-1078

Conferences and Participations in Congresses (last 6 years)

Mach, M. (2020). Early careers orientation after recession times. (Presentation of communication) . CarCon (Careers Division Community Conference - Academy of Management) . Vienna . AUSTRIA
Mach, M. (2019). The leadership contextual model: The role of past performance and team consensus. (Presentation of communication) . 79th Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management - 2019 (OB Division) . Mach, M. (2019). The leadership contextual model: The role of past performance and team consensus. In Guclu Atinc (Ed.). Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2019, No. 1, p. 15752). Briarcliff Manor, NY 10510: Academy of Management. (Online: ISSN:2151-6561) . Boston . UNITED STATES
Mach, M.; Patton, E.; Johns, G. (2018). Symposium 'Occupational health: Absenteeism and presenteeism' - A scenario study about the observer reactions to absenteeism versus presenteeism. (Presentation of communication) . 13th EAOHP Conference (European Academy of Occupational Health Phycology) . Lisbon . PORTUGAL
Donia, M.; Mach, M.; Ronen, S.; Brutus, S.; & O'Neill, T. (2020). Student satisfaction with use of a peer feedback system. (Presentation of communication) . 80th Annual Meeting of the Academy of Management (1st Virtual Annual Meeting) . Donia, M. M., Mach, M., Ronen, S., Brutus, S., & O'Neill, T. A. (2020). Student satisfaction with use of a peer feedback system. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2020, No. 1, p. 20759). Briarcliff Manor, NY 10510: Academy of Management. doi: 10.5465/AMBPP.2020.20759abstract . Vancouver . CANADA

Directed Thesis, minor thesis and research reports (last 6 years)

Francesc Almendros Viladerrams . (2021) . Evaluating whether the GIG economy is transforming the nature of employment relations. The industrial relations challenges within the digital platform econmy in the 21st century (Degree work) . Barcelona.
Gisela Pruna López . (2019) . Liderazgo en las Organizaciones (Degree work) . Barcelona.