Areas of Expertise

Leadership, sleep in organizations, paradoxes, and ambivalence

Academic Degrees

• Ph.D. in Business administration, University of Washington
• MS in Labor and Human Resources, Ohio State University
• Executive MBA, Ohio University
• B.A. in Economics, Instituicao Toledo de Ensino (Brazil)

Awards, Honors & Certificates

• Winner of Best Published Article award. Organizational Neuroscience Interest Group of the Academy of Management. (2024)
• Trustee Teaching Award at Indiana University (2021)
• Outstanding Reviewer Award at Business Horizon (2020)
• Finalist for the Best Paper. Managerial and Organizational Cognition (MOC) Division of the Academy of Management. (2017)
• Outstanding Reviewer Award. Organizational Behavior (OB) Division of the Academy of Management. (2016)
• Winner of the Best Student Paper. Managerial and Organizational Cognition (MOC) Division of the Academy of Management. (2015)
• Finalist for the Best Paper. Human Resources Division of the Academy of Management. (2015)
• Outstanding Reviewer Award. Managerial and Organizational Cognition (MOC) Division of the Academy of Management. (2015, 2014, and 2013)
• Outstanding Teaching Award. University of Washington. (2015)

Selected Publications

• Stevenson, R., Guarana, C., Lee, J., Conder, S.L. , Avarte, P., and Bonani, C. (2024). Entrepreneurial identity and entrepreneurial action: A within-person field study. Personnel Psychology, 77(1), 197-224. View Full Text

  Abstract

  Abstract

  Entrepreneurial action theory establishes that effective entrepreneurship requires daily action. Yet, empirical research on the  daily antecedents of entrepreneurial action is relatively absent from the literature. We develop an entrepreneurial identity intervention and a theoretical model which integrates entrepreneurial identity theory with integrative self-control theory (ISCT). We theorize that an entrepreneurial identity intervention administered in the morning will increase entrepreneurial action throughout the day. Further, we develop and test hypotheses regarding two mediating pathways, a motivation-based pathway that relies on the felt passion of the entrepreneur and a control capacity-based pathway that is connected to the entrepreneur's cognitive flexibility. We conducted two studies to validate the effectiveness of our intervention (Studies 1a and 1b) and four studies to test the validity and effectiveness of our experimental materials and measures (Studies A1a, A1b, A1c, and 2a). Our main study investigates the daily antecedents and mechanisms of entrepreneurial action using a within-individual field experiment with 201 entrepreneurs (1458 daily observations). Overall, we find more within-person than between-person variance in entrepreneurial identity, daily action, and hypothesized meditators. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings for the entrepreneurship and organizational behavior literatures. 

• Guarana, C. L., Rothman, N. B., and Melwani, S. (2023). Leader subjective ambivalence: Enabling team task performance via information‐seeking processes. Personnel Psychology, 76(3), 913-944. https://doi.org/10.1111/peps.12516
• Barnes, C. M., Guarana, C., Lee, J., and Kaur, E. (2023). Using wearable technology (closed loop acoustic stimulation) to improve sleep quality and work outcomes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 108(8), 1391-1407. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0001077.
• Guarana, C., Stevenson, R., Ryu, J., Crawley, R., and Gish, J. (2022). Owls, larks, or investment sharks? The role of circadian process in early-stage investment decisions. Journal of Business Venturing, 37(1), 106165. View Full Text

  Abstract

  Abstract

  Investors in early-stage companies want to detect and select high-potential opportunities to maximize their long-term returns. However, in uncertain and risky early-stage investment contexts, company information is often opaque, and decision-making timeframes are compressed. Although there is an abundance of prior work on how investors make structured decisions based on their experience and expertise, there is a very limited understanding of how time-based factors can sway investment decisions. The circadian process is the 24-hour sequence that serves as an individual's internal timer influencing not only sleep cycles, but also attention and performance on a wide range of cognitive tasks. Understanding how the circadian process impacts early-stage investment holds implications for optimal investment decisions. We build on social cognitive theory and propose that investor-level factors (i.e., chronotypes) and environmental factors (time of the day) interact to influence the amount of information investors search for, and consequently, their investment decisions. We hypothesize and find that investors are influenced by the time of day they make early-stage investment decisions. Lark investors make better investment decisions in the morning, whereas owl investors make better decisions in the evening. Information search effort mediates this relationship.

• Guarana, C. L., Barnes, C., & Ong, W. J. (2021). The Effects of Blue-Light Filtration on Sleep and Work Outcomes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 106(5), 784-796. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000806
• Guarana, C., Ryu, J. W., O’Boyle, E. H., Lee, J. W., and Barnes, C. (2021). Sleep and self-control: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 59, 101514. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2021.101514
• Walter, S., Gonzalez-Mulé, E., Guarana, C., O’Boyle, E., Berry, C. M., & Baldwin, T. T. (2021). The race discipline gap: A cautionary note on archival measures of behavioral misconduct. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 166, 166-178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2020.03.010
• Fehr, R., Gupta, A., & Guarana, C. (2021). Rewarding Morality: How Corporate Social Responsibility Shapes Top Management Team Compensation Votes. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 167, 170-188. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2021.08.005
• Hernandez, M. & Guarana, C. L. (2018). An Examination of the Temporal Intricacies of Job Engagement. Journal of Management, 44(5), 1711-1735. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206315622573
• Barnes, C. M., Dang, C., Leavitt, K., Guarana, C. L., & Uhlmann, E. L. (2018). Archival data in micro-organizational research: A toolkit for moving to a broader set of topics. Journal of Management, 44(4), 1453-1478. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206315604188.
• Heng, Y. T., Wagner, D. T., Barnes, C. M., & Guarana, C. L. (2018). Archival research: Expanding the methodological toolkit in social psychology. Journal of Experimental and Social Psychology, 78, 14-22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2018.04.012
• Guarana, C. L., Li, J., & Hernandez, M. (2017). Examining the effects of manager-subordinate gender match on Managerial Response to Voice. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 72, 147-160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2017.04.004
• Guarana, C. L., & Barnes, C. M. (2017). Lack of sleep and the development of leader-follower relationships over time. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 141, 57-73. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2017.04.003
• Cho, K., Barnes, C. M., & Guarana, C. L. (2017). Sleepy Punishers Are Harsh Punishers: Daylight Saving Time and Legal Sentences. Psychological Science, 28(2), 242–247. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797616678437
• Guarana, C. L., & Hernandez, M. (2016). Identified ambivalence: When cognitive conflicts can help individuals overcome cognitive traps. Journal of Applied Psychology, 101(7), 1013-1029. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000105
• Barnes, C., Guarana, C. L., Nauman, S., & Kong, D. (2016). Too tired to inspire or be inspired: Sleep deprivation and charismatic leadership. Journal of Applied Psychology. 101(8), 1191-1199. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000123
• Guarana, C. L. & Hernandez, M. (2015). Building sense out of situational complexity: The role of ambivalence in creating functional leadership processes. Organizational Psychology Review, 5(1), 50-73. https://doi.org/10.1177/2041386614543345

Edited on April 10, 2025