BrainMap

Delia Virga

- UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA

Researcher | Teaching staff | PhD supervisor

Delia VÎRGĂ is full professor in the Department of Psychology of the West University in Timişoara, being a doctor in Psychology of the "Babes-Bolyai" University, Cluj Napoca. She is director of this Department and coordinator of the master's program in Work, Organizational and Transport Psychology (PMOT). She is principal psychologist in the specialty of work and organizational psychology, with a constant activity of organizational consulting for over 20 years. She was a member of the Steering Committee of the College of Psychologists in Romania, in the Commission for Work Psychology, transports and services (2013-present) and was president of the Association of Industrial and Organizational Psychologists in the period 2015-2017. She is also member in Standing Committed for Work and Organizational Psychology at EFPA (2019-present). She is the author of more than 60 articles in in international journals and coordinated 5 research grants in the field of organizational psychology.

Web of Science ResearcherID: not public

Expertise & keywords

SMAPH - a model of short-term self-regulatory mechanisms in educational settings Call name: P 4 - Proiecte de Cercetare Exploratorie, 2020
PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2020-1760 2021 - 2023

Role in this project:

Coordinating institution: UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA

Project partners: UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA (RO)

Affiliation:

Project website: https://psihologietm.ro/smaph/

Abstract:

Recently, the subjective well-being of teachers and students gained increased attention from researchers, educators, and policy makers. In this project, we start from the observation that teacher subjective well-being and student subjective well-being are generally treated as separate research avenues. We argue that this separation is artificial and generated research results with limited utility for the educational settings. Therefore, in this project we advance the Spiral Model of Academic Performance and Health (SMAPH). The SMAPH is an integrative framework that emphasizes the interdependence between teachers and students, in terms of behaviours, subjective well-being, and strategies self-regulate to a common educational environment. Furthermore, the SMAPH assumes that all teacher-student interdependencies and self-regulatory processes have a short-term evolution (i.e., a semester). The research activities include i) a systematic literature review, ii) three longitudinal studies that test different parts of the SMAPH, and iii) a controlled intervention study in which we aim at improving the teacher and student subjective well-being using a teaching-skills intervention. The project team consists of one Principal Investigator, 2 Senior Researchers, 2 Post-Doctoral researchers, and 2 Doctoral students. The overall budget is 1.199.996 lei, and the total project length is 36 months .

Going from strength to strength (use). Capitalizing on proactive behaviors to increase employee well-being and performance Call name: P 4 - Proiecte de Cercetare Exploratorie, 2020
PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2020-1880 2021 - 2023

Role in this project: Project coordinator

Coordinating institution: UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA

Project partners: UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA (RO)

Affiliation: UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA (RO)

Project website: http://psihologietm.ro/megsis/

Abstract:

Considering current research results regarding employee well-being and performance, the happy worker-productive worker thesis appears to require rejuvenation. The current proposal addresses this issue by proposing the Model of Enabling Gain Spirals through the Individual Strategies (MEGSIS) framework. Extending existent theories, such as JD-R, the MEGSIS framework explores reciprocal relations between job and personal resources, and individual strategies, as well as novel explanatory mechanisms in the emergence of employee well-being and performance. Employing two relatively new and understudied individual strategies – strengths use and proactive vitality management – the current proposal aims to (1) assess the efficacy of existing strengths use interventions; (2) validate the proposed MEGSIS framework through a series of longitudinal and weekly/daily diary studies at individual and team level; (3) devise and implement a state-of-the-art positive psychology intervention (PPI), based on a gamification approach, combining personal resources and individual strategy enhancement. Achieving these objectives will advance our understanding regarding (1) strengths use interventions effectiveness, (2) mechanisms involved in short-term fluctuations in employee well-being and performance, as well as the importance of a supportive climate at team level for individual strengths use enactment, and (3) the importance of combined PPIs. This will enable the creation of healthy organizations.

Perceived (un)fairness in assessment: long term effect, financial costs and prevention interventions Call name: P 1 - SP 1.1 - Proiecte de cercetare Postdoctorală
PN-III-P1-1.1-PD-2019-0406 2020 - 2022

Role in this project:

Coordinating institution: UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA

Project partners: UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA (RO)

Affiliation: UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST TIMISOARA (RO)

Project website: https://osf.io/mvgau/wiki/home/?view_only=06cdd54bc81d4bc6875bf80b58ac215b

Abstract:

The project is built on the three gaps directly derived from the literature of participants reactions to assessment context. The first gap refers to the lack of attention to the outcome that many organizations should care about most: the long-term implications of perceived unfairness on those participants who will further will remain in a formal contract within the organization, once the evaluation process is completed. Specifically, for our first objective we address two major questions: Will participants who perceived the assessment process as unfair engage, in the long-term, in fewer organizational citizenship behaviors and more counterproductive work behaviors? And how long is „long term”? In order to estimate the long-term effect, the variables will be measured at four points in time, with fixed intervals of three months between each measurement. The identification of the long-term effects of the perception of unfairness (i.e., risk to OCBs) allows stakeholders to take specific measures to prevent OCBs, and also gives more credibility to the entire literature dedicated to the reactions of the participants, through its “hard “effects.

The second gap refers to a complete lack of utility/econometric analyses on participants reactions to assessment. As objective we will establish a defendable theory-driven mechanism through which to evaluate how unfairness reactions produce financial costs. The econometry utility study will offer logically (and science-driven) descriptions of the mechanisms through which a psychological phenomenon impacts a business and reflects in Return on Investment (ROI) - and ultimately in business profit, as a function of relative costs and gains.

The third gap concerns the lack of interventions within this field of study. So, we will test two pre-registered intervention programs, (c1) one program focused on participants in the assessment process, and (c2) one program focused on assessors/evaluators in order to foster perceived fairness.

FILE DESCRIPTION	DOCUMENT
List of research grants as project coordinator or partner team leader
Significant R&D projects for enterprises, as project manager
R&D activities in enterprises
Peer-review activity for international programs/projects