The ebb and flow of psychological contract breach in relation to perceived organizational support: Reciprocal relationships over time

2020 ◽  
pp. 0143831X1989741 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yannick Griep ◽  
Sarah Bankins

Perceived organizational support (POS) is commonly treated as a consequence of perceived psychological contract breach (PCB). However, because both concepts assume a mutual exchange relationship in which each party makes assessments of, and then decides how to reciprocate, the other party’s contributions, this article propounds that the PCB–POS relationship is recursive. By drawing on Conservation of Resources (COR) Theory, the authors argue that following an initial PCB, low levels of POS may then increase the likelihood of perceiving further PCBs through reduced management trust, thus generating a resource loss spiral. By estimating a two-level time-lagged mediation model on weekly data from 338 Canadian employees (1215 observations), the findings support the reciprocal PCB–POS relationship, and show that POS and PCB form a vicious cycle of resource loss. The authors suggest avenues for future research and practical implications relating to the role of time and resources in preventing further exchange deterioration.

2014 ◽  
Vol 29 (8) ◽  
pp. 938-952 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Buch ◽  
Bård Kuvaas ◽  
Lynn Shore ◽  
Anders Dysvik

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between previous employer's psychological contract breach and exchange perceptions with the current employer, and seeks to uncover moderating influences of perceived organizational support (POS). Design/methodology/approach – Data were obtained from a cross-lagged sample of 314 employees in Norway. Hierarchical moderated regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses. Findings – The authors found a positive relationship between previous employer's psychological contract breach and economic exchange with the current employer, and a negative relationship between previous employer's psychological breach and social exchange with the current employer. The authors also found that POS from the current employer attenuates the positive association between previous employer's breach and economic exchange with the current employer. Research limitations/implications – The data were cross-lagged, so causal inferences should be made with caution. Practical implications – Managers should be aware that past employment experiences may relate to present employment exchange relationships. In addition, POS from current employer may serve to counterbalance the “carry over” effects of past employment experiences. Social implications – In light of the present global economic climate, increasing POS among employees could decrease the likelihood that they assume that the employment relationship constitutes an economic exchange relationship. Originality/value – This study contributes to a more complete understanding of factors that shape employees’ relationships with their organization. Furthermore, this study suggests a way by which organizations can repair damages incurred by previous employer's psychological contract breach.


2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Talat Islam ◽  
Mubbsher Munawar Khan ◽  
Fauzia Naheed Khawaja ◽  
Zulfqar Ahmad

Purpose The nursing profession demands emotional and psychological attachment to perform well. Nurses should not only engage in their work thoroughly, but also be willing to perform beyond their normal job descriptions. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine the role of perceived organizational support (POS) in enhancing nurses work engagement (WE) and extra-role behavior (i.e. OCB). Design/methodology/approach This study used a questionnaire-based survey to collect data from 389 nurses. Findings The study found that the relationships among POS, WE, and citizenship behavior may further be explained through affective commitment (AC); whereas the association between POS and AC is moderated by the psychological contract breach. Research limitations/implications The data for this study was collected through self-reported questionnaires at one point of time. The implications for the policy makers are also discussed. Originality/value This study integrates job demand resource and social exchange theories in the healthcare sector to explain the nurses’ response to POS.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 38-43
Author(s):  
Christine Ampofo-Ansah ◽  
Joseph Ampofo Ansah

Work in organizations entails an exchange relationship between employees and organization. Apart from the written employment contract, there still exists a set of mutual expectations from the two parties (employer and employee) which remain unwritten and unvoiced and yet drives the behavior of both workers and organizations alike, and this is what is referred to as the psychological contract. Psychological contract refers to the employees’ subjective interpretations and evaluations of their deal with the organization. The aim of this study is to explore the impact of breaches or violations in the psychological contract on the performance of employees. It aims to present two concurrent hypotheses, based on theoretical interaction effects of social exchanges (conceptualized as social exchange relationships, fairness, and job security).Data were collected from a sample of 150 employees from both Public and Private Banks in Ghana. Regression analysis was used to explore the moderating effects of social exchanges on the relationships between psychological contract breach and work performance (operationalized as in- role behaviors and organizational citizenship behaviors).It was found that the negative relationship between psychological contract breach and work performance was moderated by social exchanges, such that the relationship was stronger for employees with high social exchange relationship, perceived organizational support, and job security which means that psychological contract breach will negatively affect employees with higher expectations in social exchanges. Keywords: Breach of contract; Social interaction; Psychological contracts; Job satisfaction


2016 ◽  
Vol 71 (3) ◽  
pp. 521-543 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pascal Paillé ◽  
Nicolas Raineri ◽  
Patrick Valeau

Few researchers have sought to examine the consequences of psychological contract breach in the particular case of professional employees working for nonprofessional organizations. To increase our understanding, the purpose of this article was to test an original research model encompassing psychological contract breach, psychological contract violation, perceived organizational support, organizational and professional commitment, and intention to leave the organization. A study was conducted among a sample of 329 professional employees working in nonprofessional organizations. As predicted, this research shows a positive relationship between psychological contract breach and psychological contract violation, a negative relationship between breach and organizational commitment, and a negative relationship between organizational commitment and the intention to leave the organization. However, contrary to expectations, the results indicated that perceived organizational support has no moderating effect on the relationship between breach and violation. This finding does not confirm previous findings from the study by Suazo and Stone-Romero (2011). This unexpected result led to testing a different combination between perceived organizational support and PC-breach and PC-violation, which is documented in the literature on nonprofessional employees. Thus, in accordance with previous results by Suazo (2009), the data from our research indicate that the relationship between PC breach and perceived organizational support is mediated by PC violation. This alternative research model suggests testing a long mediation process by which the breach influences the intention to leave the organization via the violation, the perceived organizational support, and professional and organizational commitment. This long mediation process has been confirmed by our data. Finally, the results of this research suggest that when working in a non-professional context, professional employees tend to react to breaches of the psychological contract in a similar way to non-professional employees.


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