Perceived overqualification and job crafting: the moderating role of positive psychological capital
| Pages | 808-824 |
| Published date | 08 November 2019 |
| Date | 08 November 2019 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-10-2018-0423 |
| Author | Harun Sesen,Senay Sahil Ertan |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Global HRM |
Perceived overqualification and
job crafting: the moderating role
of positive psychological capital
Harun Sesen and Senay Sahil Ertan
Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences,
European University of Lefke, Lefke, Turkey
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between perceived overqualification and
job crafting, which has the ability to drive satisfaction, loyalty and performance; drawing on the broaden-and-
build theory, the study tests the positive psychological capital (PsyCap) moderation role in this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach –Data were obtained from 320 white-collar employees in Northern
Cyprus. Data on perceived overqualification and positive PsyCap were gathered in the first survey, and
job crafting was measured as a follow up. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and
hierarchical regression.
Findings –Perceived overqualification has a significantly negative effect on all dimensions of job crafting.
However, considering PsyCap as a moderator, the study demonstrates that the negative impact of perceived
overqualification on job crafting lessens when positive PsyCap is high rather than low.
Research limitations/implications –Self-reported surveys are used and results were collected from only
Northern Cyprus.
Practical implications –The study has important practical implicat ions for managing and rea ping
benefits from employe es who perceive themsel ves as overqualified. Specifically, organi zations need to
implement efficient a ctivities that incre ase positive PsyCap am ong these employees (e .g. inspirational
videos and other learning) , which can thereby boost the ir job-crafting behavio r and result in better
organizational performance.
Originality/value –This research is the first to investigate positive PsyCap among employees who feel
overqualified. The findings further point to what can be done to encourage job-crafting behavior by using
positive PsyCap to increase passion and motivation among overqualified employees.
Keywords Quantitative, Job crafting, Perceived overqualification, Northern Cyprus,
Positive psychological capital, White-collar employees
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Individuals seeking jobs and recruitment agencies looking to fill jobs both respond to the
demands of the market by appropriately matching a job with an individual’s capabilities
(Higgins and Judge, 2004). Nevertheless, such matching is not flawless. Those entering the
labor market often feel overqualified in terms of their education, skills and experience than
the job requires (Erdoğan et al., 2018; Kulkarni et al., 2015). In psychological research and
social science, the fact that a person is conscious of his/her overqualification, or perceived
overqualification, generally leads to underemployment (Wassermann et al., 2017). Research
on the consequences of underemployment is increasingly important globally, as almost half
of all employees (47 percent) feel overqualified in their jobs, especially employees in China
(84 percent), Turkey (78 percent) and Greece (69 percent) (Lin et al., 2017).
Many of the challenges and results of perceived overqualification have been investigated
in the literature. Among these, perceived overqualification is seen as a barrier to job market
participation and continuation. For example, Harari et al. (2017) demonstrated the relations
among perceived overqualification, job dissatisfaction, decreased organizational
commitment and higher levels of desire to leave the job. Earlier studies emphasize the
employee’s negative reactions to perceived overqualification, which include
counterproductive work behavior (Liu et al., 2015; Luksyte et al., 2011), diminishing
Personnel Review
Vol. 49 No. 3, 2020
pp. 808-824
© Emerald PublishingLimited
0048-3486
DOI 10.1108/PR-10-2018-0423
Received 25 October 2018
Revised 3 June 2019
22 August 2019
Accepted 8 September 2019
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0048-3486.htm
808
PR
49,3
psychological health (Anderson and Winefield, 2011) and higher voluntary turnover
(Erdoğan and Bauer, 2009; Maynard et al., 2006; Maynard and Parfyonova, 2013). However,
no empirical study has investigated whether perceived overqualification lowers job-crafting
behavior in the workplace.
The concept of job crafting represents the motivation of employees to alter the form,
social context and meaning of their jobs and, subsequently, “fit their own sense of what the
job should be”(Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001, p. 185). Scholars typically find a positive
relation between employees who possess more knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs) than
their jobs demand and their abilities to craft their own ideal jobs (Leana et al., 2009; Tims
and Bakker, 2010). According to the theory of person–job fit, employees who are
overqualified (at a low to moderate level), possess sufficient KSAs and have sufficient
capabilities to undertake their work (Wu et al., 2015) are likely to show job-crafting behavior
(Erdoğan et al., 2011).
However, such relations may be complex and contingent upon certain conditions (Lin
et al., 2017). Hence, positive consequences may result when employees are slightly or
moderately overqualified (Erdoğan et al., 2011) and a significant feeling of overqualification
may generate different consequences (Bashshur et al., 2011). According to Lin et al. (2017),
up to a moderate level of perceived overqualification, employees remain adequately
motivated and continue to reflect a positive self-image through job crafting; however, their
crafting efforts decrease as their perceived overqualification increases. Therefore, whether
employees with a strong perception of overqualification show job-crafting behavior is
subject to debate.
If employees perceive themselves as overqualified, their job satisfaction and commitment
to the organization lower (Erdoğan and Bauer, 2009; Maynard et al., 2006). Similarly,
according to person–job fit theory, if an individual’s KSAs do not meet the job requirements
and he/she has a higher perception of overqualification (i.e. a lack of person–job fit), he/she
may be less likely to reveal job-crafting behavior because of a lack of motivation,
satisfaction and psychological capital (PsyCap). Regarding the structure of job crafting,
when perceived overqualification affects job resources negatively, employees may lower
their work participation (Tims et al., 2013), which eventually leads to lower energy and a
reluctance to expend effort on the job. However, perceived overqualification also has a
negative effect on hindering job demands and challenging job demands (Tims et al., 2012).
This can increase stress in the job and limit personal growth. Therefore, high perceived
overqualification in all the dimensions of job crafting can result in a lack of person–job fit.
Many negative moderators of perceived overqualification have been identified; however,
no study has thus far researched the moderating role of PsyCap. Broaden-and-build theory
(Avey et al., 2011; Fredrickson, 2004) asserts that negative employee behavior decreases if
employees are more positive and motivated. However, Fredrickson’s (2004) model promotes
the idea that when people employ more integrated thought-action resources, it enhances the
potential for proactive extra-role behaviors, including sharing creative ideas or making
recommendations for progress (Avey et al., 2011). Hence, this study adopts positive PsyCap
as a moderator to clarify in more detail the circumstances in which employees’attitudes are
transformed into favorable behavior (Den Hartog et al., 2004). To date, little research has
examined employees’behavioral responses to perceived overqualification (Fine and Nevo,
2008) such as job crafting. Thus, to shed more light on this topic, the present study explores
the connection between job crafting and overqualification by investigating the relevant
theories and literature.
This study provides three important contributions to the literature. First, it broadens our
understanding of how perceived overqualification negatively affects the job crafting of
employees. Second, the study is the first to investigate the role of positive PsyCap as a
moderator of the relation between perceived overqualification and job crafting. It also
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Perceived
overqualification
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