arbiter
JournalsAccount

High Expectations, Higher Stakes? Changes in Organizational Attractiveness After Receiving a Rejection Letter

Sanne T. S. Fijneman‐Ghielen et al.

International Journal of Selection and Assessment2026https://doi.org/10.1111/ijsa.70048article
AJG 2ABDC A
Weight
0.50

Abstract

While investments in employer branding are known for improving initial applicant attraction, their consequences reach far beyond. Building upon applicant attribution‐reaction theory (AART), we explore the impact of employer brand equity on applicant reactions following a rejection. In particular, this study adopts a three‐wave quasi‐experimental vignette design to examine how different levels of employer brand equity (high vs. low) influence changes in organizational attractiveness after receiving a rejection letter (prototypical vs. appreciative). Data were collected from 236 Dutch and Belgian respondents who were (soon to be) active in the labor market, either being (self‐)employed or final‐year students. Results from a repeated‐measures ANOVA reveal that an appreciative rejection letter may fully mitigate the negative effects of rejection for organizations with high employer brand equity. Conversely, prototypical rejection letters significantly decrease organizational attractiveness in high‐equity organizations, undermining previously built employer brand equity. These findings underscore the importance of living the employer brand throughout the candidate journey and provide actionable insights for research and practice.

Open via your library →

Cite this paper

https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/ijsa.70048

Or copy a formatted citation

@article{sanne2026,
  title        = {{High Expectations, Higher Stakes? Changes in Organizational Attractiveness After Receiving a Rejection Letter}},
  author       = {Sanne T. S. Fijneman‐Ghielen et al.},
  journal      = {International Journal of Selection and Assessment},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/ijsa.70048},
}

Paste directly into BibTeX, Zotero, or your reference manager.

Flag this paper

High Expectations, Higher Stakes? Changes in Organizational Attractiveness After Receiving a Rejection Letter

Flags are reviewed by the Arbiter methodology team within 5 business days.

Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.