Supervisory support and organizational citizenship behavior. Mediating role of participation in decision making and job satisfaction
| Date | 07 December 2015 |
| Published date | 07 December 2015 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/EBHRM-04-2014-0014 |
| Pages | 258-278 |
| Author | Mohit Yadav,Santosh Rangnekar |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Global HRM |
Supervisory support and
organizational citizenship
behavior
Mediating role of participation in decision
making and job satisfaction
Mohit Yadav and Santosh Rangnekar
Department of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Technology,
Roorkee, India
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of participation in decision making
(PDM) and job satisfaction ( JS) in supervisory support and the organizational citizenship behavior
(OCB) relationship.
Design/methodology/approach –Two models with PDM and JS as mediators were tested on the
supervisory support-OCB relationship. A sample of 198 Indian business executives was collected
exclusively through management development programs (MDPs). To test the hypotheses in this
research, correlation and regression analysis were both used. Furthermore, to test the mediation level,
Baron and Kenny’s (1986) method was deployed.
Findings –All variables in the study were found to be significantly related to each other. Both models
were supported by the findings, suggesting that supervisory support promotes both PDM and JS.
This, in turn, increases OCB in employees. PDM was found to be the better mediator within the
relationship. Implications of these results are also discussed.
Research limitations/implications –Self-reported responses could give biased results; peers
should also have been included in the data gathering. Variables in the study cannot be analyzed
in isolation. Hence control variables need to be included to arrive at more accurate and informative
results.
Practical implications –The findings contribute to better understanding of the supervisory
support/OCB relationship, and the ways of improving this through PDM and JS. As an outcome of this
research, organizations should aim to support, empower and involve their employees. Satisfying their
needs will lead to them becoming more effective citizens within the organization. Businesses can
harness the potential of OCB in employees by giving them a “voice”in decision making and by
encouraging them to share ideas.
Originality/value –The use of PDM and JS in this relationship is unprecedented. The establishment
of PDM as a better mediator of the relationship is also unique. The study draws its strength from a
multi-organizational sample and the use of MDPs to provide unbiased responses. Since the study is
based on an Indian sample, it also adds to the growing literature of OCB from non-western economies.
Keywords Mediation, Organizational citizenship behavior, Job satisfaction, Supervisory support,
Participation in decision making
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Today, there is a negative atmosphere surrounding many companies with turbulent
and disruptive organizational settings, ever-changing and unstable economies,
extended working hours and increasing tensions between management and the
workforce. Consequently, the question that arises is: how can management create
conditions to foster satisfaction and commitment and also the feeling of citizenship
toward the organization within their employees?
Evidence-based HRM: a Global
Forum for Empirical Scholarship
Vol. 3 No. 3, 2015
pp. 258-278
©Emerald Group Publishing Limited
2049-3983
DOI 10.1108/EBHRM-04-2014-0014
Received 12 April 2014
Revised 27 August 2014
10 October 2014
Accepted 31 October 2014
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/2049-3983.htm
258
EBHRM
3,3
To fulfill this objective, organizations have to rely on the committed and honest
efforts of employees. Current research is being carried out to make this effort more
meaningful and focussed. In the past few decades, the impact of organizational
citizenship behavior (OCB) has increased significantly in organizational studies. OCB is
defined as individual behavior which contributes to the psychological and social
environment of a business, and hence promotes organizational goals of achievement
and dedication of employees (Organ, 1997; Rotundo and Sackett, 2002). Turnipseed and
Wilson (2009) has stated that OCB should be redefined as a midpoint between initial job
requirements and expanded duties, which further migrates to the formal requirement
under a cognitive contract. With the development of exchange relationships, OCB
shifts from discretionary duties to psychological requirements, and for this reason,
OCB has become an essential facet of organizations.
The aim of the present paper is, therefore, to establish the contributing variables to
OCB. Numerous studies have been conducted in search of the fundamentals that make
up OCB by employees. Many preliminary inquiries have been conducted focussing
upon an employee’s attitude as a predictor of OCB. Among those attitudinal variables,
supervisory support (Podsakoff et al., 1996a, 2000; LePine et al., 2002; Smith et al., 1983),
participation in decision making (PDM) (VanYperen et al., 1999; Muhammad, 2004;
McNeely and Meglino, 1994; Senge, 1990, 1993) and job satisfaction ( JS) (Farh et al.,
1990; Foote and Li-Ping Tang, 2008; LePine et al., 2002; Motowidlo et al., 1986; Organ
and Konovsky, 1989; Organ and Ryan, 1995; Podsakoff et al., 2000) are recognized as
the three main variables.
One of the important ingredients on which a firm’s survival is based is the
dedication and commitment of supervisors, who have their own varied methods of
managing and supporting their employees. Supervisory involvement is recognized as
contributing toward employees’attitudes in the workplace (Whitener et al., 1998).
A great deal of emotional investment is committed by both parties in this relationship.
The outcomes of the relationship can provide a performance boost to a company with
increased OCB. As employees develop their careers, they climb the ladder in the
hierarchy of needs, show more urgency and are more willing to become involved in
work-related decisions. If management succeeds in catering to these needs, they will
reap the benefit of more positive organizational outcomes.
PDM can have different forms, ranging from suggestions on policy to full
representation on a Board of Directors. Increased participation will improve motivation
levels, enhance a feeling of ownership, improve the quality of outcomes and lead to
higher OCB (Witt et al., 2000). The perception of fairness being created by PDM
and encouraged by management becomes an important motivator for the OCB
of the employees.
One of the most important and widely talked about topics in current research is JS. It
has been found that JS has an immense impact on almost all work outcomes and also on
the policies of a workplace (Brown and Peterson, 1993). Both positive and negative
work outcomes at individual and organizational levels have been found to be linked
with JS. JS is the most studied variable in association with OCB. However, there are
differences in opinion among practitioners and researchers, regarding what actually
constitutes JS. As Organ (1988) explained, “when practicing managers endorse the
proposition that satisfaction causes performance, they are thinking that satisfied
people are more willing to do little ‘extras’either spontaneously or when requested, and
in general are easier to work with in a day-to-day relationship”(p. 50). But, when
researchers try to measure performance, they typically focus on material outputs.
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citizenship
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