Linking organizational social exchange to intention to leave: Does normative commitment matter?

Abstract

This study examines the effects of organizational social exchange on normative commitment and intention to leave the organization. We develop a moderated mediation model with normative commitment as a mediator in the relationship between organizational social exchange and the intention to leave, and individual-level power distance as a moderator of the indirect link between organizational social exchange and the intention to leave via normative commitment. We collected the data for our two-wave study from 176 employees of a bank in Macau. The results of hierarchical regressions and bootstrapping analyses largely support our hypotheses.     

Evaluating the employability paradox: When does organizational investment in human capital pay off?

Abstract

The paper explores the notion of the employability paradox which notes that while organizations investing in the career and competency development of their workforce can benefit from higher performance, they also risk losing more employable staff to competitors. Building on contributions from social exchange theory and signalling theory, we develop a model exploring the circumstances under which investment in career development benefits employees and organizations. We test our model in a longitudinal study following graduates entering the labour market. Our results show that when organizations signal that they care about employees by investing in their career development and individuals are receptive to such signals and proactively seek to manage their careers, investment in career development has a positive impact on organizational commitment and intention to stay with one’s employer. Our findings indicate that the idea of the employability paradox is simplistic and lacks theoretical and empirical support.     

Empowering leadership: leading people to be present through affective organizational commitment?*

Abstract

This study tested a mediation model in which empowering leadership was negatively related to three withdrawal behaviors: lateness, absenteeism, and turnover intention, with affective organizational commitment as a mediator. With 294 full‐time US employees, results from structural equation modeling indicated that empowering leader behaviors at one time were positively related to estimates of affective organizational commitment at a second time, which in turn was negatively related to absenteeism and turnover intention at a final time. Additionally, no significant direct effect was found between empowering leadership and withdrawal behaviors, further supporting the mediation model. However, neither empowering leadership nor affective commitment influenced followers' lateness. Empowering leadership, which provides employees with autonomy and developmental support, may have a favorable effect on employees' decisions to attend and stay in the organization, as well as their affective reaction to the organization in the form of psychological commitment. This study extended prior research models by examining a full range of withdrawal behaviors in relation to empowering leadership and showed that commitment may explain why empowering leader behaviors can affect employees' retention decisions.     

Personality,self-efficacy and job resources and their associations with employee engagement,affective commitment and turnover intentions

Abstract

In this paper, we examine the extent to which personality characteristics influence employees’ psychological connection to their work beyond that predicted by job context factors. More specifically, using Job Demands-Resources theory, we examined the influence of HEXACO personality facets, self-efficacy, and job resources on engagement, affective commitment and turnover intention. We used structural equation modelling on data collected from 623 participants working in a variety of organizational settings to test a proposed and a re-specified model. The results showed that both job resources and individual differences factors had direct and indirect effects on engagement, affective commitment and turnover intention. The personality facet liveliness was positively associated with engagement; sentimentality was positively associated with affective commitment; and social boldness, diligence and sentimentality were positively associated with self-efficacy. The model explained 69% of the variance in engagement, 60% of the variance in affective commitment and 33% of the variance in turnover intention. Despite the stronger influence of job resources, the results suggest that both individual factors and job context factors influence employees’ psychological attachment to their work. Practical implications in terms of selection, engagement and organizational development interventions, and further research opportunities are identified.     

HR practices and turnover intention: the mediating roles of organizational commitment and organizational engagement in a selected region in Malaysia

This study examined the mediating effects of organizational commitment (OC) and organizational engagement (OE) on the relationship between human resource (HR) practices (career management, performance appraisal, compensation, person–job fit and job control) and turnover intention. A total of 457 employees working in various sectors in a selected region in Malaysia participated in this study. It was found that all the variables used to measure HR practices have significant effects on OC and OE. However, multiple regression analyses indicated that career management and job control did not have any significant influence on turnover intention. OC and OE were discovered to give partial mediating effects on the relationship between HR practices and turnover intention.     

‘No strings attached?’: How attribution of disinterested support affects employee retention

Appearance of disinterestedness is a social norm that has long been recognised by social scientists as essential to the development of social exchange relationships. Despite the predominance of social exchange theory within the field of management, management scholars have so far largely overlooked the role of this norm in their models. This study aims to fill this gap by investigating how employees' attribution of disinterested organisational support (i.e. support perceived by employees as not resulting from an underlying calculation) is related to employee retention. The hypotheses were tested in a longitudinal study of 151 management‐level employees. Results showed that perceptions of disinterested support decrease employee voluntary turnover through enhancing perceptions of organisational support and organisational commitment, and lessening turnover intention.     

The interactive effects of organizational and leadership career management support on job satisfaction and turnover intention

In the organizational career management literature, scholars have focused on career management policies, with little attention given to practices that can vary within organizations. And despite its recognized importance, research on the role of leaders in the career management process is also scant. In this study, we investigate the effects of career management practices (OCPs) and leadership career support (LCS) on employee attitudes. Grounded on coping theory, we propose that career support received from line managers can be particularly consequential when OCPs are lacking. We analyze the moderating effects of LCS on the relationship between OCPs and both job satisfaction and turnover intention in a sample of employees from a large Brazilian organization, applying multiple regression analyses. Results showed that OCPs and LCS are positively related to job satisfaction and that OCPs are negatively related to turnover intention. In addition, we confirmed that LCS moderates the relationship between OCPs and both job satisfaction and turnover intention. Finally, we observed that the relationship between OCPs and turnover intention is mediated by job satisfaction. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Intercultural competence and expatriates

This study examines the simultaneous effects of employees' fit with their organization, job and supervisor on their job satisfaction, organizational commitment and turnover intention in Turkish banks by paying special attention to the moderating role of perceived organizational support (POS) in these relationships. Survey data collected from 213 employees who work in five different banks operating in Istanbul, Turkey, show that employees' value fit with their organization increases their job satisfaction and organizational commitment significantly while having no direct effect on their turnover intention. The results also suggest a positive association between employees' fit with their job (needs–supplies fit) and their job satisfaction along with the negative, direct impact of job fit on turnover intention. The hypothesized relationships between employees' value fit with their supervisor and selected employee outcomes are not supported. With respect to the moderating role of POS, the overall findings indicate that a high level of organizational support suppresses the effects of employees' value fit with their organization on their job satisfaction and organizational commitment as well as reducing the relationship between their job fit and job satisfaction and turnover intention.     

Employees are satisfied with their benefits,but so what? The consequences of benefit satisfaction on employees’ organizational commitment and turnover intentions

Firms are increasing their efforts to offer benefits that satisfy their employees. However, the attitudinal and behavioral consequences of such satisfaction remain unclear. This article draws on the social exchange perspective and organizational support theory to examine the consequences of three dimensions of employees’ benefit satisfaction on organizational commitment and turnover intention, by considering the mediating effect of perceived organizational support (POS). A hypothesized model is developed and tested using partial least squares analysis on a sample of 870 employees working in Spanish firms. The results show that three dimensions of benefit satisfaction contribute to the development of POS, and that POS mediates their effects on organizational commitment. However, only benefit determination and benefit administration satisfaction have an effect on turnover intention, through the mediation of POS and organizational commitment.     

New evidence on absenteeism and presenteeism

This paper draws from two separate but complementary theories, namely social exchange theory and social identity theory, as a means of understanding the organizational antecedents of organizational commitment. Its purpose is to study the connections between the characteristics of work in the organization (a source of perceived organizational support), the characteristics of the organization (reflected in perceived external prestige), organizational commitment and turnover intentions. We test our assumption using a sample of 249 managers and a longitudinal design. The results show that perceived organizational support and perceived prestige are differently influenced by the characteristics of and in the organization. This suggests that the characteristics of the firm, reflected in the notion of perceived external prestige, play a complementary role to the characteristics of work in the organization, reflected in perceived organizational support, in shaping organizational commitment and turnover intentions.     

Antecedents and outcomes of managing diversity in a UK context: test of a mediation model

Abstract

Extant research on diversity management (DM) has primarily examined the main effects of diversity management practices (DMP) on outcomes from an organizational perspective. Meta-analysis in this field corroborates the conclusion that this approach is unable to account for the outcomes of DM effectively. The current study extends the literature by examining micro-level antecedents of DMP. This study also examines the mediating influences of perception of overall justice (POJ) and social exchange with organization (SEWO) on the relationships between DMP and work outcomes of career satisfaction (CS) and turnover intention (TI). Results of data obtained from a cross section of 191 minority employees in UK revealed: (i) the reasons why organizations adopted and implemented DMP influenced employees’ outcomes of TI and CS; (ii) the relationship between DM and SEWO is mediated by POJ; (iii) SEWO relates to increased CS; and (iv) DMP related positively to CS through POJ and SEWO.     

Social support and turnover among entry-level service employees: Differentiating type,source, and basis of attachment

Previous research on social support and turnover has yielded mixed results. To advance research in a more comprehensive manner, the present study examined how turnover is influenced by type of support (emotional or instrumental), source of support (coworker or supervisor), and basis of attachment (affective commitment and constituent attachment as mediators). In the context of entry-level service employees, these relationships were examined with a sample of restaurant servers company-wide from a casual dining restaurant chain in the USA. Coworker emotional support was directly and negatively related to turnover, and coworker instrumental support was directly and positively related to turnover. Furthermore, supervisor emotional support and instrumental support were indirectly related to turnover through affective commitment. When the mediators were considered independently, coworker and supervisor emotional support were both indirectly related to turnover through constituent attachment.     

The impact of management on the engagement and well-being of high emotional labour employees

Australia, like many other countries, suffers high turnover of nurses and police officers. Contributions to effectively manage the turnover challenge have been called for, and there are few Australian studies of nursing/policing turnover intentions. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of supervisor–subordinate relationships and perceived organisational support (POS) upon engagement, well-being, organisational commitment and turnover intentions. Second, we examined the similarities and differences between nursing and policing work contexts. The retention of nurses/police has been investigated from traditional management perspectives; however, we used a different theoretical approach – social exchange theory – and evaluated its utility as a framework. Findings are from Australian data collected during 2010–2011 from 510 nurses and 193 police officers, using a survey-based, self-report strategy. Partial least squares path modelling was used to analyse these data. Results indicated that for both samples, engagement predicts well-being and then, well-being predicts affective commitment and intentions to leave. MANOVA results suggested that nurses had significantly higher levels of satisfaction with their supervisor–subordinate relationships, POS, engagement, well-being and affective commitment than police officers. Only the intention to leave was similar for both groups. Given that turnover can be influenced by supervisors/management, this study provides new knowledge about targeted retention strategies.     

One job,one deal…or not: do generations respond differently to psychological contract fulfillment?

This paper investigates generational differences in the relations between psychological contract fulfillment and work attitudes. Data were collected from a sample of 909 employees in the Dutch service sector. Structural equation modeling analyses were used to test the moderating effects of generational differences on the influence of psychological contract fulfillment on affective commitment and turnover intention. The relationship between psychological contract fulfillment and these work outcomes was moderated by generational differences. Furthermore, results indicate that different generations respond differently to different aspects of psychological contract fulfillment, such as career development, job content, organizational policies, social atmosphere and rewards. The study provides evidence that generational differences impact the reciprocal relationship between employer and employee. Results from this study suggest that Baby Boomers and Generation X may be more motivated by social atmosphere, whereas Generation Y may be more motivated by job content and career development. Fair organizational policies are particularly motivating to Generation X, and providing rewards, though more important to Generation Y, seem mostly unrelated to work outcomes. This article is the first to study the moderation of generational differences in the relationships between psychological contract fulfillment and work outcomes.     

Contribution to social exchange in public organizations: examining how support,trust, satisfaction,commitment and work outcomes are related

The intent of the research was to examine the relationships between support, trust, satisfaction, commitment and work outcomes. The framework of social exchange theory was used as a guide. The research described in this study replicates in the public sector (N = 704) and previous findings obtained in a study conducted in the private sector. Consistent with the study in private sector, support is related to intention to leave and helping behavior to trust and satisfaction. Results are discussed.     

Investment in staff development within an emergency services organisation: comparing future intention of volunteers and paid employees

Path models were evaluated to explore the impact of job satisfaction as mediator of the relationship between perceived investment in employee development (PIED) and the adequacy and availability of training on turnover intention. Models were compared for volunteers (n = 2,306) and paid employees (n = 274) within the one emergency services organisation. Results indicated that job satisfaction mediated the relationship between PIED and intention to stay for both volunteers and paid employees. PIED was a stronger predictor of job satisfaction for paid employees, while support and recognition was a stronger predictor of job satisfaction for volunteers. Results highlight the indirect role of PIED on turnover intentions. Findings also support the notion of tailored employee development programmes that enhance job satisfaction. Further, PIED may be more salient to the turnover intentions of paid employees, while support and recognition may be a key motivator of volunteers' ongoing commitment to the organisation.     

An analysis of the factors affecting the turnover intention of non-managerial clerical staff: a Singapore study

This study examines the factors affecting turnover intention and attempts to construct a turnover prediction model. Sixteen demographic, job satisfaction and job attitude factors are considered in the study. From the three-hundred questionnaires administered, a usable response rate of 36 per cent (i.e., 108 usable questionnaires) was obtained.

Correlation analyses, t-tests and multiple regression were used to analyse the data. The results show that demographic and job attitude factors are not significantly associated with turnover intention. In contrast, job satisfaction factors affect turnover intention significantly. In particular, satisfaction with career future, company identity, kind of work and financial rewards were found to be statistically significant. These four variables are thus included in the final turnover prediction model.     

Turnover propensity and its causes among Singapore nurses: an empirical study

Nurse turnover has been a serious challenge to the efficiency and effectiveness of any health-care delivery system. Various antecedents of turnover are examined in this study in attempt to identify the most critical causes of the problem. One hundred and eighty nurses from a large hospital in Singapore participated in the survey. The results show that a) stress strikes throughout different stages in turnover development; b) professional commitment is a significant cause of turnover cognition, but not turnover intention; and c) organizational commitment and supervision satisfaction are among the top predictors of turnover intention. These results deviated from the apprehension of many health administrators about the causes of the nursing turnover, thus provided clues as to how to mitigate the problem. And, as they were compatible with the results of studies on Canadian and American nurses, these results contributed to the empirical generalization process. The implication of the findings is discussed in the paper.     

Stress and turnover intents in international organizations: social support and work–life balance as resources

Abstract

This study investigates whether work opportunities have an impact on stress and the related turnover intentions of employees working in intergovernmental international organizations (IOs). It contextualizes the job resources and demands model within IOs’ specific work conditions. The empirical test is based on original data from a survey administered in four major organizations of the United Nations system. Results demonstrate that social work opportunities and work–life balance are organizational levers reducing stress and willingness to quit for employees who are facing red tape or the stresses of being an expatriate. In this context, the relationships between these work opportunities and turnover intention are partially mediated by stress. Contextualized HR management propositions are made to help organizations coping with these management challenges.     

Why does formal mentoring matter? The mediating role of psychological safety and the moderating role of power distance orientation in the Chinese context

Formal mentoring programs continue to gain popularity within various organizations due to their positive impact on protégés' career successes. However, to date, relevant research has focused on the benefits of informal mentoring relationships. To narrow the literature gap, this study was conducted to examine whether, how and when the amount of formal mentoring provided by mentors influenced protégés' work attitudes. Based on 208 formal mentor–protégé dyads from the People's Republic of China, we found that the amount of formal mentoring provided by mentors related positively to protégés' affective commitment and related negatively to turnover intention. Furthermore, perceived psychological safety of protégés partially mediated the relationship between the amount of formal mentoring and affective commitment, whereas it completely mediated the relationship between the amount of formal mentoring and turnover intention. Finally, protégés' power distance orientation moderated the relationship between the amount of formal mentoring and perceived psychological safety. Additionally, implications for research and practice from our findings are discussed.