Perceived supervisor support: contributions to perceived organizational support and employee retention

Three studies investigated the relationships among employees' perception of supervisor support (PSS), perceived organizational support (POS), and employee turnover. Study 1 found, with 314 employees drawn from a variety of organizations, that PSS was positively related to temporal change in POS, suggesting that PSS leads to POS. Study 2 established, with 300 retail sales employees, that the PSS-POS relationship increased with perceived supervisor status in the organization. Study 3 found, with 493 retail sales employees, evidence consistent with the view that POS completely mediated a negative relationship between PSS and employee turnover. These studies suggest that supervisors, to the extent that they are identified with the organization, contribute to POS and, ultimately, to job retention.     

Affective commitment to the organization: the contribution of perceived organizational support

Three studies examined the interrelationships among work experiences, perceived organizational support (POS), affective commitment (AC), and employee turnover. Using a diverse sample of 367 employees drawn from a variety of organizations, Study 1 found that POS mediated positive associations of organizational rewards, procedural justice, and supervisor support with AC. Study 2 examined changes of POS and AC in retail employees over a 2-year span (N = 333) and a 3-year span (N = 226). POS was positively related to temporal changes in AC, suggesting that POS leads to AC. Study 3 found a negative relationship between POS and subsequent voluntary employee turnover that was mediated by AC in retail employees (N = 1,124) and in poultry- and feed-processing workers (N = 262). These results suggest that favorable work conditions operate via POS to increase AC, which, in turn, decreases employee withdrawal behavior.     

Perceived Organizational Support and Turnover Intention: The Mediating Effects of Personal Sacrifice and Job Fit

ABSTRACT

This study examines the mediating role of job fit on the relationship between perceived supervisor support (PSS) and perceived organizational support (POS), and the mediating role of personal sacrifice on the relationship between POS and turnover intention. We use structural equation modeling (SEM) with a data set consisting of a sample of 346 individuals in a manufacturing firm to test our proposed model of PSS, POS, and turnover intention. Consistent with prior literature, our hypothesized model confirms that PSS is a predictor of POS and that POS is a predictor of turnover intention. By testing two additional competing and theoretically derived nested models, our findings indicate that job fit partially mediates the relationship between PSS and POS, and that personal sacrifice partially mediates the relationship between POS and turnover intention. Our study is among the first to examine job fit and personal sacrifice as mediators within the POS-turnover intention model.     

Perceived organizational support and employees’ well-being: the mediating role of organizational dehumanization

Perceived organizational support (POS) has been found to predict important organizational outcomes such as increasing employees’ well-being. In this research, we examine a new underlying mechanism of the relationship between POS and employees’ well-being, that is, employees’ perceptions that their organization dehumanizes them. This proposition was tested across two studies. Using an experimental design manipulating POS in a laboratory setting, Study 1 indicated that in the high POS condition, the subsequent feelings of being dehumanized by the organization were lower than in the low POS condition. More importantly, organizational dehumanization perceptions were found to mediate the POS condition and satisfaction link. Furthermore, using a sample of 1209 employees, results of Study 2 indicated that organizational dehumanization mediates the relationship between POS and three indicators of employees’ well-being (i.e., job satisfaction, emotional exhaustion, and psychosomatic strains). Implications for research on both organizational support theory and dehumanization theory are discussed.     

In good company? A multi-study,multi-level investigation of the effects of coworker relationships on employee well-being

Two multi-level studies were conducted to examine the effects of attitudes towards coworkers on daily well-being. Study 1 linked daily levels of coworker satisfaction to job satisfaction and life satisfaction and examined the extent to which job satisfaction mediated the relationship between coworker satisfaction and life satisfaction among 33 government employees. Study 2 replicated and extended Study 1 by examining the extent to which agreeableness moderated the relationships between daily levels of coworker satisfaction and job and life satisfaction among an occupationally diverse sample of 79 employees. Results revealed that coworker satisfaction varied significantly from day to day and was positively related to job and life satisfaction. Further, job satisfaction partially mediated the relationship between daily coworker satisfaction and life satisfaction. Finally, agreeableness moderated the relationship between coworker satisfaction and job and life satisfaction, such that daily levels of these variables were more contingent on coworker satisfaction for agreeable individuals.     

Job satisfaction and firm performance: Can employees’ job satisfaction change the trajectory of a firm’s performance?

Contemporary trends in business have focused on enhancing the employee work experience. Proponents argue that doing so will improve employees’ productivity and ultimately the firm's performance. However, critics argue that job satisfaction has only a modest relationship with an employee's job performance, and therefore, such an investment will likely have little impact on the firm's financial performance. To investigate the relationship between employees’ job satisfaction and firm performance, we collected a sample of 404 employees working in 31 firms. We tested this relationship using latent growth modeling which allows us to latently examine how employees’ job satisfaction at one time point can predict the trajectory of firm performance. Study results indicated that job satisfaction predicted a positive linear change in two financial indices of firm performance (i.e., return on assets and return on equity) over the course of four years when controlling for three indicators of firm size. These results suggest that the effects of job satisfaction on firm performance are not immediate but rather take time to manifest.     

Discriminant validity and interaction between perceived organizational support and perceptions of organizational politics: A temporal analysis

We used two‐wave panel data based on a sample of 137 employees from a small Korean manufacturing company to examine first the discriminant validity of, and then the interaction between perceived organizational support (POS) and perceptions of organizational politics (POP). We focused on the relationships between POS, POP, and three employee work‐related outcomes, affective organizational commitment, intention to stay, and individually oriented organizational citizenship behaviour (OCBI). Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that POS and POP were distinct constructs. Moreover, time‐lagged LISREL estimates showed that POS and POP were differentially related to the three outcomes in a theoretically predictable way. POP did not moderate the relationship between POS and either affective commitment or intention to stay. POS, however, significantly moderated the POP–OCBI relationship. The implications of the results for POS and POP theory and research are discussed.     

Emotional labour strategies as mediators of the relationship between public service motivation and job satisfaction in Chinese teachers

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between teachers' public service motivation (PSM) and their job satisfaction levels and to investigate the mediating effects of surface acting (SA) and deep acting (DA) on that relationship. The teacher PSM scale, as well as emotional labour strategies and intrinsic satisfaction (IS) and extrinsic satisfaction (ES) scales, were administered to 317 primary and middle school teachers. Results indicated that PSM among Chinese teachers was significantly and positively related to both IS and ES. Furthermore, structural equation modelling analysis showed that SA and DA played mediating roles in the PSM‐IS and PSM‐ES relationships, respectively. These findings provide a new perspective that explains the mechanism underlying the association between PSM among teachers and their job satisfaction levels. Finally, the possible explanations and implications are discussed.     

Psychological Contracts and Their Implications for Job Outcomes: A Social Exchange View

This article explores the relationship between on the 1 hand psychological contract fulfilment and affective commitment and on the other hand, normative commitment and job satisfaction. We hypothesized that the perceived supervisor support (PSS) and the perceived organizational support (POS) mediate the relationship between the fulfilment of the psychological contract, commitment and job satisfaction. The sample consists in 337 soldiers in training. In order to test our model, we used 3 measures of psychological contract fulfilment (economic, socioemotional and developmental), PSS and POS measures as well as attitudes. Results show that the developmental psychological contract is related to affective and normative organizational commitment and job satisfaction whereas socioemotional fulfilment is unrelated to affective commitment. Psychological contract fulfilment has a greater impact on normative commitment than affective commitment. Results show also that only PSS plays a mediating role in psychological contract processes. Several implications emerge from this study. First, in a military context, it is important to strengthen the developmental psychological contract. Second, it is essential for organizations to place greater emphasis on encouraging supervisors to establish healthy working relationships with newcomers.     

Core Self-Evaluations and Job and Life Satisfaction: The Mediating and Moderated Mediating Role of Job Insecurity

This study examined the mediating role of job insecurity in the relationship between core self-evaluations (CSE) and job satisfaction, while also investigating the moderating role of job insecurity in the mediated relationship between CSE and life satisfaction via job satisfaction. Survey data were collected from a sample of 346 full-time employees in Taiwan. We found that job insecurity partially mediated the CSE-job satisfaction relationship. Moreover, we found that job insecurity moderated not only the relationship between CSE and job satisfaction but also the mediated relationship between CSE and life satisfaction via job satisfaction. Specifically, both the CSE-job satisfaction relationship and the CSE-job satisfaction-life satisfaction relationship became stronger when job insecurity was low. Our results emphasize the importance of raising employees' CSE, which is beneficial not only for diminishing their perceptions of job insecurity, but also for boosting their job and life satisfaction. Practical implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Doing good,doing harm,being well and burning out: The interactions of perceived prosocial and antisocial impact in service work

Service employees often perceive their actions as harming and benefiting others, and these perceptions have significant consequences for their own well‐being. We conducted two studies to test the hypothesis that perceptions of benefiting others attenuate the detrimental effects of perceptions of harming others on the well‐being of service employees. In Study 1, a survey of 377 transportation service employees and 99 secretaries, perceived prosocial impact moderated the negative association between perceived antisocial impact and job satisfaction, such that the association decreased as perceived prosocial impact increased. In Study 2, a survey of 79 school teachers, perceived prosocial impact moderated the association between perceived antisocial impact and burnout, and this moderated relationship was mediated by moral justification; the results held after controlling for common antecedents of burnout. The results suggest that perceptions of benefiting others may protect service employees against the decreased job satisfaction and increased burnout typically associated with perceptions of harming others. Implications for research on burnout, job satisfaction, positive organizational scholarship and job design are discussed.     

Being engaged when resources are low: A multi-source study of selective optimization with compensation at work

This study examined self-regulation in the form of selective optimization with compensation (SOC) at work as a moderator of the relationships of job control (as a job resource) and feeling recovered and energized in the morning (as a personal energy resource) with self- and coworker-rated work engagement. SOC was hypothesized to offset low levels of job control and low levels of personal energy. Based on a sample of 405 public-service employees in Germany, including a multi-source subsample of 141 employees and their respective coworkers, the results showed that SOC use moderated the relationship between the level of personal energy and self-ratings as well as coworker ratings of work engagement such that SOC mitigated low levels of personal energy. SOC at work did not offset low job control. The results suggest that using SOC is particularly important when employees lack energy. SOC strategies should, therefore, be fostered by managers and organizations.     

Perceived organizational support: a review of the literature

The authors reviewed more than 70 studies concerning employees' general belief that their work organization values their contribution and cares about their well-being (perceived organizational support; POS). A meta-analysis indicated that 3 major categories of beneficial treatment received by employees (i.e., fairness, supervisor support, and organizational rewards and favorable job conditions) were associated with POS. POS, in turn, was related to outcomes favorable to employees (e.g., job satisfaction, positive mood) and the organization (e.g., affective commitment, performance, and lessened withdrawal behavior). These relationships depended on processes assumed by organizational support theory: employees' belief that the organization's actions were discretionary, feeling of obligation to aid the organization, fulfillment of socioemotional needs, and performance-reward expectancies.     

Is the past prologue for some more than others? The hobo syndrome and job complexity

The current study examines the relationship between an individual's history of changing jobs and future turnover (the so-called “hobo syndrome”). Relying on self-consistency theory, it was hypothesized that the relationship between job mobility history and turnover is moderated by job complexity. Using a sample of 393 employees from two healthcare organizations, multiple methods were used to assess the variables of interest. Job mobility history was assessed with a biodata questionnaire collected before employees were hired. Job complexity was measured objectively by a job complexity index calculated from O*NET data. Turnover was assessed with actual turnover data collected over an 18-month post-hire period. Consistent with our hypothesis, results using event history analyses revealed that previous job changes were positively related to turnover likelihood. Additionally, job complexity moderated the relationship between previous job changes and turnover likelihood, such that previous job changes were more positively related to turnover in complex jobs. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.     

The right place for me: A moderated mediation model to explain the involvement of employees aged over 50 years

Over the past decades, employment rates of older workers in most Western countries have rapidly increased. Hence, there is a growing interest in identifying the organizational dimensions that might impact the psychosocial adjustment of workers aged over 50 years. This study focuses on perceived organizational support (POS) and identity-related measures (identification and authenticity) as key organizational components for workers at this stage of life. Furthermore, in the relationships discussed, we explore the moderating role of perceived age discrimination. In an ample sample of older workers (N = 4,563, aged 50–66 years), a moderated mediational model was tested where older workers' involvement was associated to POS. In the model, this relationship was mediated by organizational identification and authenticity, and the association between POS, identity-related measures, and involvement was moderated by age-based discrimination. Results showed that POS is associated with organizational involvement via organizational identification and authenticity and that high level of age discrimination decreased the positive association between POS, organizational identification, authenticity, and involvement.     

Person–Job Fit and Work-Related Attitudes Among Chinese Employees: Need for Cognitive Closure as Moderator

The current research examined the moderating role of employees' need for cognitive closure in the relationship between their perceived person–job fit and their work-related attitudes. In Study 1, a survey was conducted among 176 Chinese employees from various organizations, and the results confirmed that both demand–ability fit and need–supply fit were positively related to employees' job satisfaction; moreover, these relations were stronger among people with higher need for closure than those scoring lower in need for closure. In Study 2, a survey was conducted among 242 employees from a Chinese city government, and the results replicated the findings of Study 1, but also found that need for closure moderated the relation between demand–ability fit and turnover intention. These results have important implications for research in organizational psychology and human resource management.     

Negative work reflection,personal resources,and work engagement: the moderating role of perceived organizational support

This day-level study examined the role of perceived organizational support (POS) in the context of employees’ negative work reflection during off-job time. We hypothesized that negative work reflection during off-job time should be indirectly related to reduced work engagement on the next workday through personal resources (i.e., vigour and self-efficacy) in the morning. In addition, we hypothesized that POS moderated the relationships between negative work reflection and personal resources and between personal resources and work engagement. In total, 100 employees completed one general survey and three daily surveys (in the morning, after work, and at bedtime) over five workdays. Results of multilevel path analyses showed that negative work reflection was neither directly associated with personal resources nor indirectly with work engagement via personal resources, although vigour and self-efficacy positively predicted increased work engagement. However, negative work reflection was negatively associated with self-efficacy when POS was low. POS did not predict work engagement, but moderated the relationships between personal resources and work engagement: Consistent with the resource substitution hypothesis, high levels of POS compensated for low levels of vigour and self-efficacy. Negative work reflection had a significant negative indirect effect on work engagement through self-efficacy only when POS was low.     

Role of personality and affect on the social support and work family conflict relationship

The relationship between support and work family conflict has been studied extensively, but previous studies have not examined if personality moderates this relationship. In this research, we examine the moderating influence of personality on the relationship between contextual support and work-family conflict across two studies. In Study 1, we examine if core self-evaluations (CSE) moderate the relationship between four different types of workplace support, 1. family friendly work policies (FFOP), 2. family supportive organizational climate (FSOC), 3. perceived organizational support (POS), and 4. perceived supervisor support (PSS), and work interfering with family conflict (WIF) using a sample of working adults (N=435). In Study 2, we examine if Big Five personality traits and negative affect moderate the relationship between co-worker support and (WIF) using a large national sample (N=1130) of working respondents from the “midlife in the US” (MIDUS) study of health and well-being. Taken together, the current research examines the moderating effect of several key personality variables on the relationship between important forms of social support and work family conflict. Results based on these two samples indicate CSE moderates the relationship between POS and WIF, and PSS and WIF, but does not moderate the relationship between FFOP and WIF, or FSOC and WIF. Further, conscientiousness and agreeableness moderate the relationship between co-worker support and WIF. Co-worker support and WIF is stronger for individuals with higher levels of negative affect. We discuss the implications for research and practice relating to work family conflict.     

Organizational commitment and job performance: Examining the moderating roles of occupational commitment and transformational leadership

To address why the relationship between affective organizational commitment and job performance varies, we draw on the theorization of Meyer, Becker, and Vandenberghe to propose moderation of affective occupational commitment and transformational leadership, separately and interactively. Data collected from 398 employees and their supervisors supported our hypotheses. Specifically, affective organizational commitment was more strongly associated with job performance for employees with high occupational commitment, or when a supervisor's transformational leadership was high. Importantly, in a moderated mediation relationship, we found the effect of transformational leadership on the relationship between affective organizational commitment and job performance for employees with high occupational commitment was contrary to its effect on employees with low occupational commitment. Given the significant roles of both commitments as discussed in the present study, we offer suggestions on how to consider these factors during the assessment and selection of personnel and role assignment.     

The Effects of Perceived Supervisor Support,Perceived Organizational Support,and Organizational Justice on Turnover among Salespeople

This study examined effects of three dimensions of organizational justice on salesperson perceived organizational support (POS), perceived supervisor support (PSS), performance, and actual salesperson turnover in a business-to-business setting using a sample of 384 salespeople. Results indicated that PSS is an indirect predictor of turnover intentions through POS and performance. Organizational commitment mediated the relationship between POS and turnover intentions. Procedural justice had a direct, positive influence on performance. Distributive justice, procedural justice, and interactional justice were indirect predictors of turnover through other variables. The salesperson’s performance was related directly to both turnover intentions and turnover.