Multiple Dimensions of Organizational Identification and Commitment as Predictors of Turnover Intentions and Psychological Well-Being.

Although it is recognized that identification and commitment are closely related aspects of employees' psychological attachment to the organization, there has been no analysis of the overlap between multiple dimensions of each construct. In this study, three-component models of organizational identification and commitment were investigated as predictors of turnover intentions and psychological well-being (self-esteem, satisfaction with life, and self-efficacy) among employees (N = 60) of a small organization. Highly identified employees tended to be committed ones, but different dimensions of each construct were specifically linked to various criteria. Affective components of both identification and commitment were negatively associated with turnover intentions, and positive in-group affect (i.e., feelings derived from being a member of the organization) predicted perceptions of self-efficacy. Continuance commitment was distinct from the other predictors, and was negatively related to self-esteem and self-efficacy. The results warrant further efforts to integrate the perspectives of social identity theory and organizational psychology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Organizational Commitment: Clarifying the Concept and Simplifying the Existing Construct Typology

This paper examines popular concepts and "types" of organizational commitment in light of the definition of commitment and common factors that pertain to all commitments. It argues that a commitment is best conceptualized as a single, fundamental construct that may vary according to differences in focus, terms, and time-specific evaluation. Analysis of affective commitment measures indicates that certain measures contain more than one set of terms and make assumptions about evaluation that add constraints to the basic meaning of commitment. Recommendations include the argument that commitment measures address one set of terms and avoid evaluative phraseology.     

Bringing the troops back home: Modeling the postdeployment reintegration experience.

Using a sample of Canadian Forces personnel (N = 490) returning from deployment in Afghanistan, we tested a model of reintegration experiences, with a focus on affective organizational commitment, support factors, posttraumatic stress symptoms, changes in alcohol use, and turnover intentions. The model provided an excellent fit to the data, although homecoming experiences were not associated with commitment as predicted. No differences emerged between novice (single tour) and experienced (multiple tours) personnel, although the number of tours was associated with increased affective commitment as expected. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Enhancing organizational goal congruence: A solution to organizational politics.

Results of moderated multiple regression analyses on data collected from 979 workers in 5 organizations confirmed the hypothesis that supervisor–subordinate goal congruence would moderate the relationship between organizational politics and organizational commitment. Similar analyses on data collected from 366 workers in 2 of those organizations provided partial support for the second hypothesis that goal congruence would also moderate the relationship between organizational politics and job performance. Perceptions of politics were more strongly related to expressions of commitment and supervisor-rated performance among individuals who did not share the priorities of their supervisors than among those whose goal priorities were consistent with those of their supervisors. Results suggest that supervisors and managers can help their employees cope with politics by making efforts to ensure that they share their goal priorities. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychological contract breaches, organizational commitment, and innovation-related behaviors: A latent growth modeling approach.

This study examined the relationships among psychological contract breaches, organizational commitment, and innovation-related behaviors (generating, spreading, implementing innovative ideas at work) over a 6-month period. Results indicate that the effects of psychological contract breaches on employees are not static. Specifically, perceptions of psychological contract breaches strengthened over time and were associated with decreased levels of affective commitment over time. Further, increased perceptions of psychological contract breaches were associated with decreases in innovation-related behaviors. We also found evidence that organizational commitment mediates the relationship between psychological contract breaches and innovation-related behaviors. These results highlight the importance of examining the nomological network of psychological contract breaches from a change perspective. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of organizational commitment in occupational stress models.

This study examined affective organizational commitment (AOC) and continuance organizational commitment (COC) as moderators of the relationship between job-related anxiety and intention to leave among 506 Israeli nurses who completed self-administered surveys. Prior research examining organizational commitment as a moderator between stress-related variables has shown inconsistent results, most probably because organizational commitment was tested as a moderator of stressor-strain relationships. Both AOC and COC buffered the relationship between job-related anxiety and intention to leave the hospital (i.e., the positive relationship was not as strong with high levels of commitment). There was no buffering effect on the relationship between role stressors and intention to leave. Further, the relationship between job-related anxiety and intention to leave increased more strongly for low levels (vs. high levels) of COC. Implications for the role of organizational commitment in stress models and implications for hospital administrators are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Influence of Prior Commitment on the Reactions of Layoff Survivors to Organizational Downsizing.

Nurses (N := 179; Study 1) and managers (N = 154; Study 2) participated in 2 panel studies examining the relationship among prior commitment (affective and continuance commitment and perceived organizational support), coping strategies, and survivors' attitudes and perceptions during and following downsizing. In Study 1, perceived organizational support was significantly positively related to control-oriented coping, job satisfaction, and intention to remain and negatively related to perceived job insecurity and burnout 2 years later. In Study 2, coping mediated the relationship between the prior commitment variables and job alienation, health symptoms, and burnout following the downsizing. Control-oriented coping was associated with elevated levels of health symptoms and burnout following the downsizing, suggesting that control-oriented coping may have positive effects in the short term but potentially harmful effects in the long term. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

It's Different to Give Than to Receive: Predictors of Givers' and Receivers' Reactions to Favor Exchange.

The present research examines episodes of favor exchange among peer employees. We posit that favor receivers' and favor givers' commitment to their exchange relationships with one another will be accounted for by different factors. As predicted, in 2 different organizational contexts, receivers' commitment to their relationships with givers was found to be more related to their judgments of the givers' interactional justice when performing the favor, whereas givers' commitment to their relationships with receivers was shown to be more associated with their judgments of the favorability of the outcomes associated with the favor that they performed. The implications of these findings for how givers and receivers can better manage favor exchange, and hence their relationships with each other, are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An examination of organizational and team commitment in a self-directed team environment.

A model hypothesizing differential relationships among predictor variables and individual commitment to the organization and work team was tested. Data from 485 members of sewing teams supported the existence of differential relationships between predictors and organizational and team commitment. In particular, intersender conflict and satisfaction with coworkers were more strongly related to team commitment than to organizational commitment. Resource-related conflict and satisfaction with supervision were more strongly related to organizational commitment than to team commitment. Perceived task interdependence was strongly related to both commitment foci. Contrary to prediction, the relationships between perceived task interdependence and the 2 commitment foci were not significantly different. Relationships with antecedent variables help explain how differential levels of commitment to the 2 foci may be formed. Indirect effects of exogenous variables are reported. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Work--family conflict, perceived organizational support, and organizational commitment among employed mothers.

This study investigated the impact of work interfering with family (WIF) and family interfering with work (FIW) on women's organizational commitment and examined both the direct and moderating effects of their perceive& organizational support. Participants were 143 professional employed mothers with at least 1 preschool-age child. The study found that WIF was positively related to continuance organizational commitment but unrelated to affective commitment, and FIW was not related to either form of organizational commitment. Results also indicated that perceived organizational support exhibited a main effect on both types of commitment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Engagement envers le supérieur et l'organisation, et rétention des employés: Le r?le modérateur de l'identité organisationnelle per?ue du supérieur.

The authors examined the relationships of commitments to organisations and supervisors with turnover intentions and turnover, as a function of supervisors' perceived organisational identity. In Study 1, the authors show that commitment to supervisors is associated with reduced turnover intentions only when employees perceive their supervisors to possess strong organisational identity, whilst organisational commitment is associated with lower turnover intentions irrespective of the strength of supervisors' perceived organisational identity. In Study 2, the authors demonstrate that when employees perceive their supervisors to possess strong organisational identity, only commitment to supervisors predicts voluntary turnover, whilst when supervisors are viewed as possessing weak organisational identity, only organisational commitment predicts turnover. The implications of this research for the study of commitment-turnover relationships are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Volunteering for charity: Pride, respect, and the commitment of volunteers.

This study builds upon and extends the social-identity-based model of cooperation with the organization (T. R. Tyler, 1999; T. R. Tyler & S. L. Blader, 2000) to examine commitment and cooperative intent among fundraising volunteers. In Study 1, structural equation modeling indicated that pride and respect related to the intent to remain a volunteer with an organization, and that this relation was mediated primarily by normative organizational commitment. In Study 2, structural equation modeling indicated that the perceived importance of volunteer work was related to pride, that perceived organizational support related to the experience of respect, and that pride and respect mediated the relation between perceived importance and support on the one hand and organizational commitment on the other. Overall, the results suggest that volunteer organizations may do well to implement pride and respect in their volunteer policy, for instance to address the reliability problem (J. L. Pearce, 1993). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparative examination of three approaches to the prediction of turnover.

Compared 3 approaches to the prediction of turnover in a sample of National Guard members. Assessments of components of M. Fishbein's (1967) behavioral intention model, job satisfaction, and L. Porter's (1974) organizational commitment model, combining elements of both satisfaction and intention, were obtained. All 3 models predicted enlistment behaviors during the 6 mo following attitude assessments with a high degree of accuracy. Based on a sample of 252 Guard members with an enlistment base rate of 50%, Fishbein's behavioral intention model had a multiple correlation of .65, job satisfaction had a multiple correlation of .55, and organizational commitment had a correlation of .58 with actual enlistment behavior. Implications for organizational retention and attitude–behavior relations are discussed. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Commitment to organizational change: Extension of a three-component model.

Three studies were conducted to test the application of a three-component model of workplace commitment (J. P. Meyer & N. I Allen, 1991; J. P. Meyer & L. Herscovitch, 2001) in the context of employee commitment to organizational change. Study 1, conducted with 224 university students, provided preliminary evidence for the validity of newly developed Affective, Continuance, and Normative Commitment to Change Scales. Studies 2 and 3, conducted with hospital nurses (N = 157 and 108, respectively), provided further support for the validity of the three Commitment to Change Scales, and demonstrated that (a) commitment to a change is a better predictor of behavioral support for a change than is organizational commitment, (b) affective and normative commitment to a change are associated with higher levels of support than is continuance commitment, and (c) the components of commitment combine to predict behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Reciprocation of perceived organizational support.

Four hundred thirteen postal employees were surveyed to investigate reciprocation's role in the relationships of perceived organizational support (POS) with employees' affective organizational commitment and job performance. The authors found that (a) POS was positively related to employees' felt obligation to care about the organization's welfare and to help the organization reach its objectives; (b) felt obligation mediated the associations of POS with affective commitment, organizational spontaneity, and in-role performance; and (c) the relationship between POS and felt obligation increased with employees' acceptance of the reciprocity norm as applied to work organizations. Positive mood also mediated the relationships of POS with affective commitment and organizational spontaneity. The pattern of findings is consistent with organizational support theory's assumption that POS strengthens affective commitment and performance by a reciprocation process. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Leader–member exchange and affective organizational commitment: The contribution of supervisor's organizational embodiment.

In order to account for wide variation in the relationship between leader–member exchange and employees' affective organizational commitment, we propose a concept termed supervisor's organizational embodiment (SOE), which involves the extent to which employees identify their supervisor with the organization. With samples of 251 social service employees in the United States (Study 1) and 346 employees in multiple Portuguese organizations (Study 2), we found that as SOE increased, the association between leader–member exchange and affective organizational commitment became greater. This interaction carried through to in-role and extra-role performance. With regard to antecedents, we found in Study 1 that supervisor's self-reported identification with the organization increased supervisor's expression of positive statements about the organization, which in turn increased subordinates' SOE. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A three-wave longitudinal analysis of the causal ordering of satisfaction and commitment on turnover decisions.

L. J. Williams and J. T. Hazer (see record 1986-23287-001) explicated the antecedents and consequences of job satisfaction and organizational commitment on turnover. Their causal model related personal and organizational characteristics to satisfaction, satisfaction to commitment, and commitment to turnover intention. Their structural equation reanalysis of cross-sectional data from C. E. Michaels and P. E. Spector (see record 1982-10938-001) and A. C. Bluedorn (see record 1982-22265-001) support the model. The present study applied structural equation methodology to assess the plausibility of this model with longitudinal data from 440 Ss. Only partial support was obtained for the model. The relations among satisfaction, commitment, and reenlistment intention changed with increased tenure in the organization. This finding suggests that commitment and satisfaction may be either cyclically or reciprocally related. The implications for future turnover research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Commitment and employee behavior: Comparison of affective commitment and continuance commitment with perceived organizational support.

The social exchange view of commitment (R. Eisenberger et al, 1986) suggests that employees' perceptions of the organization's commitment to them (perceived organizational support [POS]) creates feelings of obligation to the employer, which enhances employees' work behavior. The authors addressed the question of whether POS or the more traditional commitment concepts of affective commitment (AC) and continuance commitment (CC) were better predictors of employee behavior (organizational citizenship and impression management). Participants were 383 employees and their managers. Although results showed that both AC and POS were positively related to organizational citizenship and that CC was negatively related to organizational citizenship, POS was the best predictor. These findings support the social exchange view that POS creates feelings of obligation that contribute to citizenship behaviors. In addition, CC was unrelated, whereas AC and POS were positively correlated, with some impression management behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Placing perceptions of politics in the context of the feedback environment, employee attitudes, and job performance.

The authors proposed a model suggesting that organizational environments supporting high levels of informal supervisor and coworker feedback are associated with lower employee perceptions of organizational politics. Furthermore, these lowered perceptions of politics were proposed to result in higher employee morale (as reflected in job satisfaction and affective commitment) and, through morale, to higher levels of task performance and organizational citizenship. The proposed mediational model was supported with empirical results from 150 subordinate-supervisor dyads sampled across a variety of organizations. Higher quality feedback environments were associated with lower perceptions of organizational politics, and morale mediated the relationships between organizational politics and various aspects of work performance. These findings suggest that when employees have greater access to information regarding behaviors that are acceptable and desired at work, perceptions of politics are reduced and work outcomes are enhanced. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Employment discrimination: Authority figures' demographic preferences and followers' affective organizational commitment.

The authors used theories of organizational commitment and obedience to authority to explain employment discrimination. In Study 1, employees participated in an experimental simulation of their work. An organizational authority's demographic preferences led to employment discrimination. As expected, affective organizational commitment moderated this effect, such that it was stronger for more committed employees. In Study 2, another sample of employees completed a survey that included an employment discrimination scenario. A model of linkages from affective organizational commitment to submissiveness to organizational authorities to employment discrimination fit the data well, after controlling for prejudicial attitudes and authoritarianism. Submissiveness to organizational authorities mediated the relationship between affective organizational commitment and employment discrimination. The authors discuss the importance of studying employment discrimination as an organizational and not just an intergroup phenomenon. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)