Antecedents and consequences of role stress: A covariance structure analysis

An earlier model of the consequences of role conflict and role ambiguity is expanded to incorporate antecedent job conditions and the outcome of organizational commitment. This newer model clarifies the impact of role stressors on commitment and other established outcomes (i.e. tension, job dissatisfaction, and turnover intention). The antecedent job conditions are added in consideration of research indicating that role conflict and ambiguity do not directly influence affective and behavioral reactions when other perceptions of the work environment are included in the analysis. A LISREL analysis of this model with cross-validation on an independent sample indicated that the direct effects of participation and co-worker social support on job satisfaction may account for the direct effects of role conflict and role ambiguity on satisfaction and turnover intention observed in previous studies. In addition, organizational commitment appeared to mediate the effects of other variables on turnover intention. Implications for theories of role-related variables and directions for future research are discussed.     

Organizational influence on working people's occupational noise protection in Hong Kong

INTRODUCTION: While there is some evidence of the influences of personal knowledge and organizational factors on workers' hearing protection, a causal model examining relationships between these variables is lacking. METHOD: To create and test such a model, this study collected data from 1,701 workers in Hong Kong through a random sample telephone survey. RESULTS: Fitting the model to the data revealed that organizational regulation of occupational noise protection was a root cause of workers' protective behavior, whereas workers knowledge about the protection exhibited only a minimal effect. CONCLUSIONS: These findings cast doubt on the significance of personal knowledge as a unique factor contributing to noise protection. The study also finds that organizational regulation was predictable by a number of organizational and industrial factors. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: To prevent occupational deafness, organizational regulation accompanied by regular inspection and a norm of noise protection is important.     

Antecedents of union loyalty: The influence of individual dispositions and organizational context

Previous research has consistently found relationships between union loyalty and the antecedent variables of demographics, job related variables, and union related variables. However, little or no research has investigated the relationship between union loyalty and individual dispositions and organizational context. The purpose of this study was to test a causal model which evaluated the influence of individual dispositions and organizational context in predicting union loyalty controlling for the effects of demographics, job related, and union related variables. Contextual data were collected from 405 schools and matched with union loyalty and other attitudinal data from 838 public school teachers in a large U.S. Midwestern city. The LISREL results indicate that the individual dispositions of positive and negative affectivity and the contextual variables of attendance rate, school type, race homogeneity and socio-economic status had significant total causal effects on union loyalty. Implications of these findings are discussed.     

Relationships among five forms of commitment: an empirical assessment

This paper examined whether Morrow's (1993) model of five universal forms of work commitment (affective organizational commitment, continuance organizational commitment, career commitment, job involvement and work ethic endorsement) has empirical support. The paper explored the discriminant validity among the five scales of these commitment forms. It also tested Morrow's model regarding the interrelationships among them in comparison with an alternative conceptualization proposed by Randall and Cote (1991). Two hundred and thirty‐eight nursing staff from two hospitals in western Canada were surveyed. Results of confirmatory factor analysis (LISREL VIII) and correlation analysis showed an acceptable discriminant validity among the five commitment foci. The results of path analysis (LISREL VIII) showed a poor fit with the data of Morrow's model and a better fit with the alternative model of Randall and Cote. Revised models based on the modification indices from both models were tested, and supported the Randall and Cote approach. The paper concludes with implications regarding the continuing assessment of Morrow's conceptualization to establish an acceptable definition and measurement of universal forms of work commitment. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A fuzzy Bayesian network approach to improve the quantification of organizational influences in HRA frameworks

Organizational factors are the major root causes of human errors, while there have been no formal causal model of human behavior to model the effects of organizational factors on human reliability. The purpose of this paper is to develop a fuzzy Bayesian network (BN) approach to improve the quantification of organizational influences in HRA (human reliability analysis) frameworks. Firstly, a conceptual causal framework is built to analyze the causal relationships between organizational factors and human reliability or human error. Then, the probability inference model for HRA is built by combining the conceptual causal framework with BN to implement causal and diagnostic inference. Finally, a case example is presented to demonstrate the specific application of the proposed methodology. The results show that the proposed methodology of combining the conceptual causal model with BN approach can not only qualitatively model the causal relationships between organizational factors and human reliability but also can quantitatively measure human operational reliability, and identify the most likely root causes or the prioritization of root causes causing human error.     

Organizations and supervisors as sources of support and targets of commitment: a longitudinal study

The main objective of this study was to examine the relationship between perceived support and affective commitment, and the linkages between these constructs and some of their common antecedents and consequences. More precisely, using a sample of 238 employees, we conducted a longitudinal study to examine the linkages between the favorableness of intrinsically and extrinsically satisfying job conditions, perceived organizational support, perceived supervisor support, affective commitment to the organization and supervisor, and turnover. Affective commitment to the supervisor was found to completely mediate the effect of perceived supervisor support on turnover, whereas neither perceived organizational support nor organizational affective commitment were significantly related to turnover. Perceived organizational support partially mediated the effect of favorable intrinsically satisfying job conditions on organizational affective commitment and fully mediated the effect of extrinsically satisfying job conditions on organizational affective commitment. Finally, perceived supervisor support totally mediated the effect of favorable intrinsically satisfying job conditions on affective commitment to the supervisor. As a whole, findings suggest that exchange relationships between employees and their supervisors should be further investigated in future turnover research. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Etzioni's model of organizational involvement: A perspective for understanding commitment to organizations

There are two predominant views of organizational commitment: instrumental and affective. The purpose of the paper is to explore the extent to which an adapted version of Etzioni's macro organizational model of involvement may serve as a single model of both affective and instrumental perspectives of organizational commitment. Moral commitment and alienative commitment are treated as affective forms of organizational attachment, and calculative commitment is treated as an instrumental form of organizational attachment. The paper employs five samples for the investigation. It develops scales for measuring each of the three dimensions of commitment. The paper concludes that organizational commitment is multidimensional. It also concludes that employees report a mixture of commitment types. Evidence is offered in support of the affective character of moral and alienative commitment. Although the evidence is equivocal, there is support for the independence of the two dimensions of affective commitment: moral and alienative. Evidence is also offered for the differential association of the three dimensions of organizational commitment with related aspects of organizational behavior. The paper extends our understanding of organizational commitment by providing a place for both instrumental and affective forms of psychological attachment to organizations. It offers scales which may be used for future research, and it suggests research which may extend the adapted model in this paper as well as provide direction for practising managers.     

The effects of perceived organizational support and perceived supervisor support on employee turnover

This study examines mediated effects of perceived supervisor support (PSS) and perceived organizational support (POS) on turnover cognitions, and their interactive effects on turnover behavior in a sample of 225 social services workers. In this study, we address a seeming contradiction in current findings regarding support and attachments to managers versus attachments to the organization itself. The POS literature suggests fully mediated causal paths to turnover from POS and PSS, through affective commitment. Whereas, the commitment, LMX, and turnover literatures suggest alternative causal paths that imply broader effects for POS and PSS on turnover. Contrary to earlier POS literature, findings showed that PSS had independent effects on turnover cognitions not mediated through POS. Model tests also indicated that POS had significant effects on turnover mediated through normative commitment, as well as affective organizational commitment. Moreover, a new significant interactive relationship was discovered such that low PSS strengthened the negative relationship between POS and turnover, while high PSS weakened it. Implications for research and practice are discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Antecedents of organizational commitment across occupational groups: A meta-analysis

This meta-analysis examines whether the relationships between organizational commitment (OC) and its antecedents differ across occupational groups. Two models representing different antecedents are proposed: the member model, presented by the personal variables, and the organization model, presented by role related, structural and work experiences variables. The study is based on 98 samples with correlational data for the relationships between OC and its antecedents. The total sample was divided into two main occupational groups: white collar employees, subdivided into professionals and nonprofessionals, and blue collar employees. The findings reveal that in general the relationship between OC and personal antecedents, representing the member model, is stronger for blue collar and nonprofessional white collar employees than for professional employees. For the role-related, structural, and work experiences antecedents, representing the organization model, differences among the occupational groups were found to be less consistent. In general, the findings demonstrate that the member and the organization model operate differently for varying occupational groups. The findings are discussed in terms of the need for elaboration of the existing explanations for the development of OC.     

Precursors of employee turnover: A multiple-sample causal analysis

Two models of the nature of linkages among precursors of voluntary turnover were examined using four distinct samples. A model which includes both job satisfaction and organizational commitment as exogenous variables leading to one's intention to resign was shown to provide results which support its usage in future research. Analyses of longitudinal data for precursors across two points in time, before turnover, however, provided only weak support for causality.     

Influences on the quality of supervisor–subordinate relations: The role of time-pressure,organizational commitment,and locus of control

Despite a growing literature devoted to the study of differences in the quality of leader–member exchange, little empirical evidence is available concerning factors that influence the degree of differentiation among leader–member dyads on the dimension of quality of working relationships. As time-pressure has been suggested as one potential influence, the impact of time-based stress on leader–member exchange was examined with a sample of 138 loan officers representing 24 bank branches. Results indicated that unit-level variability on leader–member exchange was inversely related with time-based stress, while unit-level mean on leader–member exchange was positively related with time-based stress. Additionally, leader–member exchange acted as a mediator of the relation between employee locus of control (a suspected antecedent of dyadic quality) and organizational commitment (a suspected outcome), while employee locus of control correlated with leader–member exchange, and leader–member exchange correlated with employee organizational commitment. The results suggest the usefulness of considering time-based stress in conjunction with current models of leadership.     

A longitudinal study of the relationship between career management and organizational commitment among graduates in the first ten years at work

This paper reports the findings of a two‐wave longitudinal study investigating relationships between organizational and individual career management activities and organizational commitment in the early years of graduate careers. Several hypotheses are tested and receive mixed support. High organizational commitment predicts the practice of career management activities by graduates to further their career within the organization while low commitment is closely associated with behaviour aimed at furthering the career outside the organization. Graduates who manage their own careers also receive more career management help from their employer. This suggests that there may be the potential for employers to create a ‘virtuous circle’ of career management in which individual and organizational activities complement each other. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Perceived organizational support and affective commitment: the mediating role of organization‐based self‐esteem in the context of job insecurity

Research on the relationship between perceived organizational support (POS) and affective organizational commitment (AC) has primarily adopted a social exchange perspective. In this study we considered complementary socio‐emotional explanations of the POS–AC relationship. We focused on the mediating role of organization‐based self‐esteem (OBSE) and tested competing models of the POS–OBSE‐AC relationship separately on data from two Korean banks that experienced different levels of downsizing following the 1997 Korean financial crisis. We further extended the analysis by examining the extent to which the relationship between POS and OBSE and AC, respectively, was affected by employees' perceived sense of job insecurity in the two banks. The results showed that OBSE was a significant mediator of the POS–AC relationship in both organizations. POS, however, also retained a strong independent direct effect on commitment. Moreover, as expected, perceived job insecurity tended to attenuate the POS–OBSE relationship, but augmented the direct relationship between perceived organizational support and affective commitment. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Perceived organizational support and embeddedness as key mechanisms connecting socialization tactics to commitment and turnover among new employees

Retention of new hires is a critical issue for organizations. We propose that relationships are important mechanisms through which socialization tactics influence commitment and turnover. The key theoretical mechanisms connecting socialization tactics to turnover in our model are the extent to which newcomers perceive their relationship with the organization as supportive, caring, and entailing positive social exchanges and the extent to which newcomers become embedded within the organization. We collected longitudinal data from over 500 employees over the first year of employment. Consistent with our hypotheses, socialization tactics influence perceived organizational support (POS) and job embeddedness, and POS and embeddedness both relate to organizational commitment and voluntary turnover. Results support POS and embeddedness as relational mechanisms that bind employees to the organization as a result of socialization tactics. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Explaining nursing turnover intent: job satisfaction,pay satisfaction,or organizational commitment?

A number of models have been developed to explain nurses' turnover behavior. The common theme that emerges from these models is that turnover behavior is a multistage process that includes attitudinal, decisional, and behavioral components. The purpose of this study was to assess both the direct and indirect impact of certain pay policies upon the turnover intentions of paediatric nurses. The two major questions addressed were: What was the relative impact of job satisfaction, pay satisfaction, and organizational commitment upon the turnover intentions of paediatric nurses eligible for these pay policies? What model accurately portrays the relationship among these three independent variables and turnover intentions? Exploration of the causal pathways among these variables and demographic factors revealed complex models of association. The results suggest that job satisfaction has only an indirect influence on the intention to quit, whereas organizational commitment has the strongest and most direct impact. A further finding that pay satisfaction had both direct and indirect effects on turnover intent was consistent with administrators' assumptions underlying the pay policies. Control variables such as having a degree, having children, and working 12-hour shifts were found to have both direct and indirect influences upon pay satisfaction and turnover intent. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Evaluation of an occupational stress intervention in a public agency

Only in several controlled studies have organizational or situational stressors (in contrast to individuals) been targeted for change in order to reduce occupational stress. This study evaluates the impact of an intervention which was based on organizational development, action research and Karasek's job strain model. Employee committees conducted problem diagnosis, action planning, and action taking in two departments in a public agency. Waiting list control departments and pre- post- and follow-up assessment were utilized. Results indicated a mixed impact of the intervention in one department, but a negligible or negative impact in the other. Obstacles to the effective implementation of the intervention strategy are discussed. These included a limited focus for the committees (department-wide rather than agency-wide), the negative impact of a major agency reorganization, and the lack of a more formal management and labour commitment to maintaining the stress reduction and organizational change process.     

Antecedents and consequences of satisfaction with work–family balance: A moderating role of perceived insider status

This study developed a moderated mediation model to investigate how family‐supportive paid leave and supervision affect employees' satisfaction with work–family balance and in turn their affective organizational commitment and supervisor‐directed organizational citizenship behavior depending on their perceived insider status in the organization. Our analysis of data collected from 118 employee–supervisor dyads in Korean organizations revealed that satisfaction with work–family balance mediated the linkages from family‐supportive supervision to affective organizational commitment and supervisor‐directed organizational citizenship behavior, and the linkage from family‐supportive paid leave to affective organizational commitment. Results further showed that the entire mediational process for family‐supportive supervision was more pronounced for those who perceived themselves to be an insider of their organizations, while the same pattern was not found for the meditational process related to family‐supportive paid leave. Our findings provide theoretical implications for work–family balance research and offer practical suggestions to make employees satisfied with work–family balance.     

Another look at the locus of control–organizational commitment relationship: it depends on the form of commitment

Previous studies imply that individuals with an external locus of control (LOC) are less likely to be committed to their organizations. More recent work on organizational commitment has suggested that commitment is not a unidimensional construct and can take several forms (e.g., affective and continuance). Using a sample of 232 employees of a Canadian governmental agency, we examined the relations between LOC and two different forms of organizational commitment that have been found to have different antecedents and consequences. We found that internal LOC was associated with affective commitment and external LOC was associated with continuance commitment. Implications for research and practice are discussed. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Differentiating antecedents of organizational commitment: a test of March and Simon's model

Recent theory regarding the nature of organizational commitment suggests that viewing it as comprised of two dimensions, value commitment and continuance commitment, is of theoretical and practical value. This field study found the differential antecedents of these two commitment dimensions to be consistent with the March and Simon (1958) framework using the two-dimensional organizational commitment questionnaire from Mayer and Schoorman (1992). Organizational tenure, retirement benefits, education, and age were more highly correlated with continuance commitment, while felt participation, perceived prestige, job involvement, and role ambiguity were more highly correlated with value commitment. Analysis using LISREL 7 supported the pattern of relationships between the antecedents and the two commitment dimensions. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Developing and maintaining union commitment: A theoretical framework

This article presents a dynamic model of the process in which union commitment is developed and maintained. Central to the model is the fact that commitment occurs in a context of organizational rights which are provided by the union as well as organizational responsibilities or citizenship behaviors on the part of union members. Based on an integration of the literature on organizational citizenship behaviors, psychological contracts, and organizational socialization, specific hypotheses are proposed.