Examination of Inter-relationships between Psychological Contract, Careerist Orientation, and Organisational Citizenship Behaviour

Abstract

The objective of the research was to investigate the impact of careerist orientation and the implicit psychological contracts between employers and employees on organisational citizenship behaviour. It was hypothesized that the effect of careerist orientation and the nature of psychological contract on organisational citizenship behaviour would be mediated by turnover intention and life satisfaction. The researcher examined these relationships in two different populations of expatriates and nonexpatriates. Two populations were chosen in order to strengthen the external validity of this study. Moreover, there are practical implications for organisations to study the outcomes of expatriate assignments. The researcher conducted a survey of 442 employees (232 expatriates and 210 non-expatriates) working in the U.S. and U.K. Scales validated by past research were used to measure the concepts. Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses and the network of relationships. The primary hypothesis was confirmed with psychological contract proving a significant predictor of organisational citizenship behaviour, and careerist orientation was a mediator of this relationship. The results provided evidence for the secondary hypotheses that careerist orientation and organisational citizenship behaviour were mediated by turnover intention and life satisfaction