An investigation of the effects of psychological contract and organization-based self-esteem on organizational commitment in a sample of permanent and contingent workers.

OBSE is the "self-perceived value that individuals have of themselves as organization members acting within an organization context" (Pierce et al., 1989, p. 625). It has been additionally defined as "the degree to which organizational members believe that they can satisfy their needs by participating in roles within the context of an organization" (Pierce et al., 1993, p. 275). In other words, OBSE is one's esteem beliefs in relation to an organization. Pierce and colleagues (Pierce et al., 1989, 1993) argued that the aggregate of individual responses within OBSE is what makes it an organization-based phenomenon.

Pierce et al. (1989) based their OBSE construct definitions on the work of "self" scholars (e.g., Korman, 1976). Essentially, esteem is an attitude of approval or disapproval of oneself, and people develop self-evaluations based on these attitudes. In self-esteem research, the self is complex and is affected by internal and external contextual factors. The self-evaluation perspective of self-esteem is what informed Pierce and colleagues' work.

There are three primary antecedents to OBSE: managerial respect, organizational structure, and job complexity (cf. J. Lee, 2003). Managers who are committed to their workers' need fulfillment can evoke OBSE (McAllister & Bigley, 2002). High OBSE scores show that workers believe their supervisors have a genuine concern for their welfare. Furthermore, flexible organization structures with complex and challenging job tasks generate higher OBSE scores than do mechanistic organizations with more mundane tasks. The modular organization is an example of the flexible organization structure, and the employment of contingent workers is thought to be more appropriate within this dynamic context (Schilling & Steensma, 2001), one purpose of which is the infusion of knowledge (Szabo & Negyesi, 2005).

There are also environmental antecedents to OBSE (Pierce et al., 1989), some of which, offered previously, are focused more specifically on organizational design. However, worker perceptions of managers' respect for them can also influence OBSE. In other words, self-esteem is a socially induced phenomenon (Korman, 1976), and if a manager communicates to workers that they are valued members of the organization, workers will feel more valued and thus their OBSE should be enhanced.

Pierce et al. (1993) found that measures of both satisfaction and performance were moderated by self-esteem. Furthermore, OBSE will affect workers' commitment (Tang & Gilbert, 1994). Other research on OBSE has revealed its influence on organizational uncertainty (Hui & Lee, 2000), global self-esteem, need for achievement, organizational citizenship, and motivating potential score (Tang & Gilbert, 1994).

Therefore, in the context of a dynamic organization, as found in high-tech firms, OBSE can be developed by managers, specifically in workers' perceptions of the fulfillment of obligations in the work arrangement. Furthermore, OBSE has been found to influence workers' ratings of organizational commitment. In light of the antecedents and outcomes of OBSE, presented previously, we advance Hypotheses 3a and 3b:

Hypothesis 3a: OBSE will partially mediate the relationship between perceptions of relational psychological contract and organizational value commitment, regardless of employment status.

Hypothesis 3b: OBSE will mediate the relationship between perceptions of transactional psychological contract and organizational continuance commitment, regardless of employment status.

Study Design and Methodology

A cross-sectional design was employed to study the hypothesized relationships presented earlier. A small technology firm hosted the population from which the primary data for this project were collected. A benefit of using a technology firm is the contractual nature of the work. This firm, like many in its industry, employed a number of contractors. Approximately 75% of the members of this organization were full-time, permanent employees. The remaining 25% were contractors. Most were working 1-year contracts; others were brought on-site to work as their skills were needed. Previously, we offered evidence that contingent workers view organizational obligations differently, which we also suggest influences levels of commitment.

Participants

The employee base at this site totaled 151 people at the time of the survey. All employees were asked to complete a series of survey measures using the organization's intranet. More than half (95 members) responded to the request for participation. Eleven did not complete the full survey and their partial contributions were removed from the data set, leaving a sample size of 84 on which the following analyses were based.

Procedure

All employees were provided with the survey via the company's e-mail server. Respondents self-selected and reviewed the informed consent, then completed the survey. At the end of the survey, respondents clicked a button labeled submit, which placed their responses into a secure file on the company's server, from which the first author retrieved these data. All responses were confidential and no identifying information was apparent in the electronic cache. Employees were allowed 10 days to complete the survey. The results were then downloaded to a local spreadsheet, and data were erased from the server. As an alternative, employees could secure and submit a paper version made available on the company intranet. Eighteen responded in this manner, with completed paper copies of the survey delivered in sealed envelopes or completed in this format, scanned, and e-mailed to the first author.

Variables and Measures

After completing the informed consent section, but before answering the survey, respondents were asked to provide background information (e.g., age, sex, race, etc.). The survey consisted of a series of scaled-response questions (41), a dichotomous yes-no question, and a field for open comment.

Psychological contract. An adaptation of the McDonald and Makin (2000) Psychological Contract scale was employed to measure employees' perceptions about whether the employer fulfilled its (perceived) obligations to them. The responses were scaled from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). McDonald and Makin found reliabilities for the combined scale of [alpha] = .84.

The scale consists of two factors: relational and transactional. Three of the 12 questions were based on relational obligations, which are generally long-term and reciprocal (e.g., "Does this organization recognize your contributions?"). The remaining 9 questions were based on transactional obligations, which are typically short-term and economic (e.g., "Is your salary competitive?").

As a further assessment of contact fulfillment, a dichotomous, forced-choice, yes-no question was asked of participants: "Has the organization ever failed to fulfill what you believe to be its obligations and promises to you?" McDonald and Makin (2000) correlated the results of this question with their scale to ensure that the full scale measured the phenomenon they called psychological contract.

Organizational commitment. Mayer and Schoorman's (1992) refinement of the OCQ was used to measure organizational commitment. The 9-item Value Commitment scale assesses the followers' desire to engage productively in the firm's endeavors. The Continuance Commitment scale (10 items) assesses the potential for turnover. Responses were delivered on a 7-point Likert-type scale from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (7). Scale reliabilities in previous work were [alpha] = .89 for value commitment and [alpha] = .81 for continuance (Mayer & Schoorman, 1998).

OBSE. We used the 10-item Pierce et al. (1989) scale to measure OBSE. The responses were delivered on a 5-point Likert-type scale from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). High scores on this scale indicate people who view themselves as effective, important, and adding value within the context of their organization. Pierce et al. found alpha reliabilities of .86 to .96 across seven different studies. More recent work revealed a reliability of [alpha] = .93 (J. Lee, 2003).

Results of the Study

Several data analyses were conducted and the findings are provided here. A discussion of participant demographics and the various scale reliabilities are followed by a presentation of the results of factor analysis and hypothesis testing.

Demographics

Most of the 84 respondents provided basic demographic information (n = 72), such as employment status, sex, age, and level of education. The results of the demographic questions are provided in Table 1.

Forty-six of the respondents indicated that they were permanent, full-time employees of the firm; 38 respondents were contractors working on 1-year appointments. The age demographic was categorized in ranges, with the average respondent approximately 35 years old. Nearly 70% of the respondents were men, which was about half of the total number of men at the site. Twenty-three women, or more than half of the total population of women in the organization, responded to the survey.

Nearly 65% of respondents indicated holding a 2-year academic or technical degree and above. Although one third indicated that they did not hold a degree, company officers said that nearly everyone in the firm had undergone periods of training related to their positions, especially those in specialized technical areas (e.g., information science).