About

Denise Rousseau is the H. J. Heinz II University Professor of Organizational Behavior and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University. She holds a joint appointment at the Tepper School of Business and Heinz College. Her work focuses on organizational behavior and public policy, with an emphasis on research related to business, management science, and organizational behavior. Rousseau is recognized for her contributions to understanding how artificial intelligence and machine learning connect with business and management practices, reflecting a data-informed, human-driven approach to innovation and problem solving. Her leadership and research are integral to the strategic vision of the Tepper School of Business, which aims to lead at the intersection of business, technology, and analytics.

Research topics

• Sociology
• Computer Science
• Political Science
• Knowledge management
• Economics
• Social psychology
• Public relations
• Management science
• Engineering
• Management
• Law
• Business
• Library science
• Applied psychology
• Psychology

Selected publications

• Artificial Intelligence Meets Academic Integrity: Evaluating AI Tools To Support Literature Reviews

  Academy of Management Proceedings · 2025-07-01

  article

  Every research project and almost every scholarly paper begins with a literature review. A growing number of artificial Intelligence (AI) tools can be used to expedite various steps of the review process, including problem formulation, literature search, screening for inclusion, quality assessment, data extraction, and data analysis and interpretation. The process of conducting literature reviews and the quality of the results obtained may vary according to the AI tools a researcher employs, however, and the academic integrity remains a paramount concern. In this symposium we bring together five panelists, each an expert in the development and/or use of some AI tools, to help establish the state-of-the-art re: AI research tools for reviews and to debate the validity, utility, and ethics involved in using them. Two discussants, well-known for their expertise regarding the effective and ethical conduct of systematic reviews, will emphasize the academic integrity and standards for rigorous and trustworthy reviews and reiterate researchers’ responsibilities in this regard. Overall, this symposium aims to describe and critique available and emergent AI tools and evaluate their alignment with the guidelines researchers must follow when conducting literature reviews.

  PublisherDOI

• Reviews as Research: Steps in Developing Trustworthy Synthesis

  Academy of Management Annals · 2024-06-12 · 36 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• PROTOCOL: Is the CEO/employee pay ratio related to firm performance in publicly traded companies?

  Campbell Systematic Reviews · 2024-11-04

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  One goal of this systematic review is to assess whether the pay ratio, that is, the relative difference between the compensation a firm's CEO receives and that of its nonmanagerial employees, is related to subsequent firm performance. A second goal is to identify factors influencing this relationship across publicly traded firms, including the pay ratio's perceived fairness by employees, the firm's business strategy, and related factors.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Organizational change

  Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks · 2024-07-23 · 1 citations

  book-chapterSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• When are clients helpful? Capitalising on client involvement in professional service delivery

  PLoS ONE · 2023-02-22 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  Professional service firms apply specialist knowledge to create customised solutions to client problems. In their work, teams of professionals undertake projects in which clients may be closely involved in co-creating solutions. However, we know little about the conditions under which client involvement contributes to better performance. We examine the direct and conditional contribution client involvement can make to project success and propose team bonding capital as a moderator. We conduct multi-level analysis of data from 58 project managers and 171 consultants nested in project teams. We find a positive impact of client involvement on both team performance and team member idea creativity. Team bonding capital moderates the relationships client involvement has with both team performance and individual member idea creativity, where the impact of client involvement is greater when team bonding capital is high. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Psychological Contracts at Different Levels: The Cross-Level and Comparative Multilevel Effects of Team Psychological Contract Fulfillment

  Group & Organization Management · 2023-09-28 · 16 citations

  articleSenior author

  Taking a multi-level perspective on the psychological contract (PC), this study investigates the overlooked but critical role of team psychological contract fulfillment in shaping team and individual-level affect and outcomes. It examines the dynamics associated with employer PC Fulfillment (PCF) to the team and compares them to the dynamics regarding employer PCF of the individual’s own psychological contract. Guided by psychological contracts and self-regulation theories, we surveyed 504 individuals in 69 retail organization teams at two time periods. At the team level, findings support an indirect effect of team PCF on both team engagement and average turnover intention through affective climate. Similarly, at the individual level, we find an indirect effect of individual PCF on both engagement and turnover intentions through individual affect. Tests of scalar and configural similarity across levels support functional isomorphism between individual and team PCF relationships with engagement, while turnover intention is more highly related to individual than to team PCF. Last, we observe cross-level effects of team PCF on the relationship between individual PCF and turnover intentions. We present implications for multi-level PC theory, research, and practice.

  PublisherDOI

• So lucky to be paid on time! Downward social comparison and gratitude in crisis economy psychological contracts

  Economic and Industrial Democracy · 2023-11-30 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  In this article the authors investigate how high unemployment and sustained economic crisis influence employee beliefs regarding their employers’ psychological contract (PC) obligations. Based on 32 semi-structured interviews with Greek white-collar employees, the authors compare PC changes among workers with pre-crisis work experience and others whose entire work lives coincide with the crisis. The majority of participants perceive their employer to exploit the crisis, demanding more of workers while offering them less. Those participants who remained with their pre-crisis employer held more positive perceptions. At the same time, social comparison and sense of gratitude influence how individuals interpret their employee–employer obligations. These factors buffer how individuals interpret their employer’s PC fulfillment in the crisis economy.

  PublisherDOI

• Grounded Research on North Korean Defectors

  2023-01-01

  article1st authorCorresponding

  Transcript Auto scroll search expand close Search Transcript Search Up Search Down Close Search Tools Tools icon close Download PDFopens in new window Cite Cite icon close Format APA APA Chicago Harvard MLA AMA Rousseau, D. (Academic). (2023). Grounded research on North Korean defectors [Video]. Sage Research Methods. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529669664 Rousseau, Denise. "Grounded Research on North Korean Defectors." In Sage Video. : SAGE Publications, Ltd., 2023. Video, 00:23:14. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529669664. Rousseau, D., 2023. Grounded Research on North Korean Defectors, Sage Video. [Streaming Video] London: Sage Publications Ltd. Available at: <https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529669664 & gt; [Accessed 17 Mar 2023]. Rousseau, Denise. Grounded Research on North Korean Defectors. Online video clip. SAGE Video. London: SAGE Publications, Ltd., 31 Jan 2023. doi: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529669664. 17 Mar 2023. Grounded Research on North Korean Defectors [Streaming video]. 2023. doi:10.4135/9781529669664. Accessed 03/17/2023 copy to clipboard or Export to your reference manager Endnote Endnote Reference Manager ProCite RefWorks BibTeX Zotero Medlars Mendeley Word Export Cancel Share Share icon close Share via Email Please log in from an authenticated institution or log into your member profile to access the email feature. Sign in/register Embed Embed icon close Embed this Content Add this content to your learning management system or webpage by copying the code below into the HTML editor on the page. Look for the words HTML or </>. Learn More about Embedding Video icon link (opens in new window) Clip - https://methods.sagepub.com/video/grounded-research-on-north-korean-defectors Embed code: Copy to clipboard Select a length: Entire video Entire video Select a size: 420x236 640x360 853x480 Sample View: (opens in new window) Cancel Get link Get link icon close Select a length: Entire video Entire video Link to this page directly with a permalink: https://methods.sagepub.com/video/grounded-research-on-north-korean-defectors Copy to clipboard Cancel

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• Does chief executive compensation predict financial performance or inaccurate financial reporting in listed companies: A systematic review

  Campbell Systematic Reviews · 2023-12-01 · 8 citations

  reviewOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Abstract Background Financial incentives for chief executive officers (CEOs) are thought to motivate them to lead their company toward achieving important business objectives. Based on the Rousseau et al. (2019) protocol, this systematic review assesses the predictive effects of CEO incentives on certain business outcomes. Objectives This review addresses whether CEO financial incentives predict: (1) firm financial performance and (2) financial restatement due to misreporting. Search methods We searched nine research databases for published peer‐reviewed literature (to July 23–26, 2021 and an attenuated search from those dates to July 27–31, 2023) and thirteen professional association websites for non‐published gray literature (to August 2021). We also hand‐searched selected relevant journals. Selection criteria We reviewed peer‐reviewed and unpublished studies available in English since 1980. Eligible studies regarding our first question assessed CEO financial incentives (1) 1 year or more before the measurement of outcomes, (2) controlled for pre‐incentive firm performance or market conditions, and (3) analyzed CEO financial incentives as predictors of firm outcomes. Eligible studies regarding our second question assessed whether financial restatement had occurred and analyzed effects of CEO incentives on this outcome. Data collection and analysis We extracted standardized regression coefficients for each effect or converted unstandardized regressions to standardized. Analyses were conducted using STATA. All studies were assessed to have moderate risk of bias. Main results For our first question, 20 studies (15,398 firms) met our criteria for meta‐analysis of effects. Bonuses, the most commonly studied incentive, had a small positive effect on next year's accounting performance metric Return on Assets (ROA, 0.046 [ k = 7, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.014, 0.078]). The bonus effect in the market‐related metric of Stock Returns (−0.026 [ k = 5, 95% CI = −0.119, 0.067]) fell within a CI including 0, as did its effect on another market‐related metric, Market‐to‐Book value (Tobin's Q, 0.028 [ k = 3, 95% CI = −0.024, 0.08]). We conclude that Bonuses show no predictive effect on the following year's market‐related metrics but do affect ROA. Stock Options had no effect on next year's ROA (0.027 [ k = 5, 0.95% CI = 0.000, 0.052]), nor on Market‐to‐Book Value (Tobin's Q, 0.097 [ k = 5, 95% CI = −0.027, 0.220]) or Stock Return (0.042 [ k = 6, −0.033, 0.117]), indicating no predictive effect for Stock Options on either accounting or market‐related performance. We sought but found too few studies to report on effects of incentives on other financial outcomes or for lags greater than 1 year. For our second question, three studies ( n = 2044 firms) met our criteria. The overall effect size for CEO Incentives on Restatement (−0.09 [ k = 3, 95% CI = −0.363, 0.184) fell within a CI including zero. We conclude that current evidence does not support a direct relationship between CEO financial incentives and Restatement. Authors' conclusions This review affirms a small effect of CEO Bonuses, but no effect of Stock Options, on the accounting performance metric ROA. In contrast, neither Bonuses nor Stock Options predict a firm's market‐related metrics. CEO incentives also are unrelated to Financial Restatement. Despite widespread use of CEO financial incentives, lack of evidence supporting their use, beyond the bonus‐ROA effect we identify, suggests caution regarding current CEO financial incentive practice and greater consideration of alternative arrangements to enhance firm performance.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Then and Now: Psychological Contracts

  Academy of Management Proceedings · 2022-07-06

  article1st authorCorresponding

  Over the years, the management field has had many important contributors to its theoretical development and practical application of major concepts. As a relatively young academic discipline, we are fortunate to have access to many of the pioneers responsible for its foundation, history, and evolution. The “Then and Now” program actively involves these people and provides a forum to engage with those who are following in their footsteps. “Then and Now” is an annual symposium that appeals to new and seasoned scholars across the Academy. Prior sessions have centered on goal setting (Locke, Latham & Picollo, 2011), expectancy theory (Vroom & Ellingson, 2012), leadership (Schriesheim, Gardner & Antonakis, 2013), positive OB (Luthans, Welsh & Peterson, 2014) organizational justice (Folger, Bies & Rodell, 2015), trust (Sitkin, Gillespie & de Jong, 2016), turnover (Lee, Kraimer & Halvorsen, 2017), job design (Oldham, Kulik, Wrzesniewski & Baer, 2018), and entrepreneurial orientation (Miller, Lumpkin, Wiklund & Wales, 2019). This year’s session focuses on Psychological Contracts. The symposium will begin with Denise Rousseau describing how she became interested in this topic, who collaborated/supported her, and how this construct developed. Dr. Ho will talk about her research on psychological contracts, and how it spans generations and extends ideas. The “Now” panelist Dr. Hansen will describe how her recent research on psychological contracts has evolved from the original body of work, and where it is likely to go next. The symposium concludes with audience discussion.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Severin Hornung

  11 shared

• Tim Morris

  University of Bristol

  10 shared

• Patrick C. Flood

  10 shared

• Maria Simosi

  Royal Holloway University of London

  10 shared

• Na Fu

  Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine

  10 shared

• Maria Tomprou

  Carnegie Mellon University

  8 shared

• Rob B. Briner

  London School of Business and Management

  8 shared

• Cary L. Cooper

  8 shared

Education

• PhD, Psychology

  University of California Berkeley