What do we measure and how do we elicit it? The case for the use of repertory grid technique in multi-party psychological contract research

The psychological contract is a multi-faceted construct and, with the rise of gig work, increasingly the contract extends beyond the conventional employer-employee relationship to encompass multi-party exchanges. Against this backdrop, the question of what should be measured when assessing the contract and how it should be elicited remains a significant issue for scholars. We argue that the potential of psychological contract theory as an explanatory lens in understanding contemporary multi-party working relationships is constrained by two key limitations inherent in conventional measurement approaches. Firstly, such approaches have favoured singular rather than multiparty perspectives, and secondly, they have broadly accorded equal weight and significance to the content dimensions unearthed, despite the fact that they may differ markedly in how they are understood by each party to the employment relationship. In order to remedy these shortcomings, we make the case for adopting repertory grid technique as a methodological framework to address measurement limitations and to more rigorously assess the content of the complex multi-party psychological contract

Algorithmic management and app‐work in the gig economy: A research agenda for employment relations and HRM

Current understanding of what constitutes work in the growing gig economy is heavily conflated, ranging from conceptualisations of independent contracting to other forms of contingent labour. This article calls for a move away from problematic aggregations by proposing a classification of gig work into three variants, all based strongly upon key technological features: app-work, crowdwork, and capital platform work. Focusing specifically on the app-work variant, this article's more delineated focus on the textured dimensions of this work proposes new lines of enquiry into employment relationships and human resource management. Examining the crucial role of algorithmic management, we critically discuss the impact of this novel mediation tool used by gig organisations for the nature of employment relations within app-work, work assignment processes, and performance management. In so doing, we propose a series of research questions that can serve as a guide for future research in this increasingly important field

In pursuit of impact: how psychological contract research can make the work-world a better place

This paper is the result of the collective work undertaken by a group of Psychological Contract (PC) and Sustainability scholars from around the world, following the 2023 Bi-Annual PC Small Group Conference (Kedge Business School, Bordeaux, France). As part of the conference, scholars engaged in a workshop designed to generate expert guidance on how to aid the PC field to be better aligned with the needs of practice, and thus, impact the creation and maintenance of high-quality and sustainable exchange processes at work. In accordance with accreditation bodies for higher education, research impact is not limited to academic papers alone but also includes practitioners, policymakers, and students in its scope. This paper therefore incorporates elements from an impact measurement tool for higher education in management so as to explore how PC scholars can bolster the beneficial influence of PC knowledge on employment relationships through different stakeholders and means. Accordingly, our proposals for the pursuit of PC impact are organized in three parts: (1) research, (2) practice and society, and (3) students. Further, this paper contributes to the emerging debate on sustainable PCs by developing a construct definition and integrating PCs with an ‘ethics of care’ perspective

In Pursuit of Impact: How Psychological Contract Research Can Make the Work-World a Better Place

This paper is the result of the collective work undertaken by a group of Psychological Contract (PC) and Sustainability scholars from around the world, following the 2023 Bi-Annual PC Small Group Conference (Kedge Business School, Bordeaux, France). As part of the conference, scholars engaged in a workshop designed to generate expert guidance on how to aid the PC field to be better aligned with the needs of practice, and thus, impact the creation and maintenance of high-quality and sustainable exchange processes at work. In accordance with accreditation bodies for higher education, research impact is not limited to academic papers alone but also includes practitioners, policymakers, and students in its scope. This paper therefore incorporates elements from an impact measurement tool for higher education in management so as to explore how PC scholars can bolster the beneficial influence of PC knowledge on employment relationships through different stakeholders and means. Accordingly, our proposals for the pursuit of PC impact are organized in three parts: (1) research, (2) practice and society, and (3) students. Further, this paper contributes to the emerging debate on sustainable PCs by developing a construct definition and integrating PCs with an ‘ethics of care’ perspective

A ‘Schema theory’ analysis of the psychological contract formation process using repertory grid technique

This study examines the content of the psychological contract at its formation stage. Three individual antecedents were identified that were expected to influence these content dimensions (careerism, type of exchange (social/economic), level of experience). The study proceeds in two separate but overlapping stages. Firstly, in Stage A, the relationship between these individual factors and the content dimensions is investigated. Secondly, in Stage B, the effect of the three antecedents on the content dimensions across seven features (‘Realistic’; ‘Contingent’; ‘Fair’; ‘Important’; ‘Expected’; ‘Familiar’; ‘Uniqueness’) is also examined in an effort to better understand both the employee and employer obligations. We adopted a mixed methodology in our study. The three antecedents were measured using questionnaires. Fifty interviews were conducted to elicit both employer and employee obligations and this data was analysed using the repertory grid technique. Results for Stage A indicate that level of careerism is associated with obligations concerning loyalty. A social exchange is associated with certain obligations reflecting a broad investment with the organisation (e.g. Development). An economic exchange is associated with certain obligations reflecting a narrow investment with the organisation (e.g. Pay & Benefits). Our study also found that novices are more likely than veterans to explicate obligations to the organisation concerning Teamwork. These results confirm that the three factors are, to varying degrees, viable antecedents of the psychological contract. Results for Stage B indicate that both ‘type of exchange’ and ‘level of experience’ affect certain dimensions across a number of features (e.g. ‘Important/Not Important’, ‘Familiar/Novel’ etc.). However, the features assessed in our study are of limited value in explaining the dynamics of the formation process. Taken together, both stages in our study make an incremental contribution to understanding the schematic nature of the psychological contract

Psychological Contracts: Back to the Future

The different contributions made to this edited book illustrate that the study of psychological contracts has offered critical scholarly and practical insights into the functional and dysfunctional aspects of the employment relationship for several decades. However, as with other fields of research, it behooves the psychological contract field to pause periodically, take stock, explore gaps, and identify new research streams to maintain and expand its impact upon scholarship and practice. An edited book like this offers a good opportunity to see how far we have come with the psychological contract and where the challenges lie ahead. In the chapter, the authors identify and develop three key areas that promise to enrich psychological contract research: 1) time; 2) social context; and 3) the changing nature of work. For each of these key areas, they formulate promising future research questions