Department

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Dept. of Psychology

Publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Place of Publication

Chattanooga (Tenn.)

Abstract

The degree to which employees believe their organization cares about them and their well-being – also called perceived organizational support (POS) – has important downstream impacts on employee work behaviors, their orientation toward their organization, and their well-being (Eisenberger et al., 2020). Furthermore, when one’s organization shows support for its employees, this elicits norms of reciprocity between organizations and employees (Eisenberger et al., 2020). This study expands POS knowledge by investigating the linkages between POS and important outcomes during turbulent social and challenging economic times. During 2021, there was extremely high racial tension with the creation of various movements (i.e., Black Lives Matter) in response to social injustice. Additionally, economic crises and COVID-19 created unique challenges and a high degree of uncertainty for many United States citizens. These tensions and crises led to organizational support’s increased salience; therefore, understanding the role of POS under these circumstances is crucial. Participants completed online self-report surveys across two time points – September 2021 and May 2023. Our sample includes 170 part- and full-time employees in the United States (Mage = 46.5, 62.4% White, 56.5% female). We measured three aspects of POS – coworker support, supervisor support, and inclusion climate, and three outcomes of POS – affective organizational commitment (AOC), burnout, and intention to resign. We hypothesize the following: Hypothesis 1. Perceived coworker support will be (a) positively related to AOC, (b) negatively related to intention to resign, and (c) negatively related to burnout. Hypothesis 2. Perceived supervisor support will be (a) positively related to AOC, (b) negatively related to intention to resign, and (c) negatively related to burnout. Hypothesis 3. Inclusion climate will be (a) positively related to AOC, (b) negatively related to intention to resign, and (c) negatively related to burnout. To test the above hypotheses, we will utilize path analysis. We are currently analyzing the data, and results will be available in time to present if accepted. This work will contribute practical implications for organizations to aid them in preparing for and understanding the importance of POS, particularly during trying societal times, and mitigating adverse outcomes (i.e., turnover). This work also contributes novel insights into how inclusion climate is related to perceived organizational support, serving as a foundation for future research.

Subject

Industrial and organizational psychology

Document Type

posters

Language

English

Rights

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Share

COinS
 

Perceived Organizational Support Through a Lens of Racial Tension and Challenging Times

The degree to which employees believe their organization cares about them and their well-being – also called perceived organizational support (POS) – has important downstream impacts on employee work behaviors, their orientation toward their organization, and their well-being (Eisenberger et al., 2020). Furthermore, when one’s organization shows support for its employees, this elicits norms of reciprocity between organizations and employees (Eisenberger et al., 2020). This study expands POS knowledge by investigating the linkages between POS and important outcomes during turbulent social and challenging economic times. During 2021, there was extremely high racial tension with the creation of various movements (i.e., Black Lives Matter) in response to social injustice. Additionally, economic crises and COVID-19 created unique challenges and a high degree of uncertainty for many United States citizens. These tensions and crises led to organizational support’s increased salience; therefore, understanding the role of POS under these circumstances is crucial. Participants completed online self-report surveys across two time points – September 2021 and May 2023. Our sample includes 170 part- and full-time employees in the United States (Mage = 46.5, 62.4% White, 56.5% female). We measured three aspects of POS – coworker support, supervisor support, and inclusion climate, and three outcomes of POS – affective organizational commitment (AOC), burnout, and intention to resign. We hypothesize the following: Hypothesis 1. Perceived coworker support will be (a) positively related to AOC, (b) negatively related to intention to resign, and (c) negatively related to burnout. Hypothesis 2. Perceived supervisor support will be (a) positively related to AOC, (b) negatively related to intention to resign, and (c) negatively related to burnout. Hypothesis 3. Inclusion climate will be (a) positively related to AOC, (b) negatively related to intention to resign, and (c) negatively related to burnout. To test the above hypotheses, we will utilize path analysis. We are currently analyzing the data, and results will be available in time to present if accepted. This work will contribute practical implications for organizations to aid them in preparing for and understanding the importance of POS, particularly during trying societal times, and mitigating adverse outcomes (i.e., turnover). This work also contributes novel insights into how inclusion climate is related to perceived organizational support, serving as a foundation for future research.