Psychological climate predicting job insecurity through occupational self-efficacy
ISSN: 0048-3486
Article publication date: 18 February 2019
Issue publication date: 7 March 2019
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to test the hypothesized mediation model that specifies psychological climate dimensions as antecedents of job insecurity, while accounting for occupational self-efficacy. Stemming from the conservation of resources theory, the authors hypothesize that job challenge, role harmony, leader support and co-worker cooperation negatively relate to job insecurity due to its positive correlation with occupational self-efficacy.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected with a sample of 329 white-collar employees from the ICT sector who were employed full-time and for a period of at least six months in their current organization. All hypotheses were tested via structural equation modeling using the bootstrap method to test the significance of indirect effects.
Findings
Among the four work environment domains, only job challenge had a significant contribution in explaining job insecurity variance. This relationship was fully mediated by occupational self-efficacy.
Research limitations/implications
The cross-sectional research design limits the ability to make causality inferences, while the convenience sampling method limits the generalizability of findings.
Practical implications
The study results indicate that well-designed (i.e. challenging, autonomous and important) job tasks may be advantageous in organizational interventions aimed at reducing job insecurity due to their potential to strengthen employees’ efficacy beliefs.
Originality/value
The study results contribute to current knowledge regarding the relative importance of work environment antecedents of job insecurity, as well as the prominent role played by occupational self-efficacy in explaining some of these relationships.
Keywords
Citation
Tomas, J., Maslić Seršić, D. and De Witte, H. (2019), "Psychological climate predicting job insecurity through occupational self-efficacy", Personnel Review, Vol. 48 No. 2, pp. 360-380. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-05-2017-0163
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited