L14 - Org Psych - psychological contract Flashcards
What is the psychological contract?
An implied relationship between the employer and employee based on mutual contribution and assumptions
an unwritten and implied exchange - each party assumes the other party has made promises that haven’t been explicitly stated
an employee assuming job security or promotion in return for hard
work and loyalty (whether the employer believes this or not)
what is this an example of
a psychological contract
an implied contact
Does the employer and the employee need to agree for there to be a psychological contract?
No - it is all implied and therefore there could be different assumptions of what is expected of the other party
What are the 2 ways in which the psychological contract is used to explain employee behaviour?
(Muchinsky, 2016)
1) how reciprocal promises oblige employee behaviour (to do things for their employer)
2) how employees react when they believe promises made are broken
Rousseau and Parkes (1993) said that
_____ itself is perceived as a promise and an employee’s performance is perceived as a contribution
this is an example of:
employment
example of the psychological contract
Generally, the power is typically seen as being in the hands of the ______
employer
What impact does the employer having more power over the employee have over the terms of the psychological contract
The terms of the contract seem to be dictated by the employer
Employee has to accept what they get or they have to leave - limited things they can do if there is violations
When does the violation of the psychological contract happen?
when one party in a relationship perceives another as failing to fulfil promised obligations
e.g. lack of security or no promotion after working hard
“I perceived a promise that I had a good chance of promotion to manager in one year. While I received excellent performance ratings, I was not promoted after 12 months ..”
What is this an example of?
Violation of the psychological contract
Violations of the psychological contract by an employer may have what impact on the beliefs of the employee towards the organisation?
what they feel they are owed
what they feel they are obliged to give back
they are seen to undermine trust that led to the emergence of the relationship (integrity of employer is questioned)
What has violations of the psychological contract been shown to lead influence?
negatively influence employee’s trust, job satisfaction, intent to remain with the organization, commitment and performance
Research has shown that following a violation, psychological contracts tend to become more 1)_________ and less 2)_________
What does this mean?
- transactional
- relational
Focus is less on the relationship (emotional aspects of the work) with the company and more on just doing what you are paid to do (focus on monetary benefits of their work)
What are the 5 steps of action done by the employee that tend to follow a violation of the psychological contract by the employer (and if it is not rectified)?
- Employee voices concern over violation and seeks to re-instate the contract
- If unsuccessful, voice is followed by silence
- This is followed by retreat
- Then sabotage may occur
- Exit / dismissal
Why are employees generally reluctant to use a formal complaint?
Fear of retaliation or being seen as a troublemaker by the employer
confrontation is typically done outside of formal channels
Greenberg found what in regard to reactions that factory employees had when they received a reduction in pay?
one factories workers were told that they would be recieving a decrease in pay, but they were given the reason why and given an explanation
another had a deduction of pay but no reason
reason = accepted a decrease in pay without incident
no reason why = reacted with resentment, reaction and acts of theft
Greenburgs research suggests that _______ is very important to keep the relationship between employees and employers in tact and keep up job satisfaction and productivity
communication
What has been argued that more research needs to be done on, in regards to the psychological contract?
3 things
– How it is seen from the employer’ s side
– What happens when the contract is kept?
– If violated, to what extent can it be repaired?
Work/family conflict can also be called
Work-life balance
What is work/family conflict?
Managing your work with life outside of work
What is the theoretical basis behing the work/family conflict?
explain it
The scarcity hypothesis
It suggests we have a finite amount of time, energy and attention (resources). When too much of one resource is located to one domain, the other suffers.
The result is work family conflict.
What impact does a poor work-family balance have on a persons wellbeing?
Negative impact on one’s psychological and physical health
How much more likely is someone to report clinically significant mental health issues if they have a poor work-family balance in comparison to someone who has a good work-family balance?
30x more likely to experience clinically significant mental health issues
What family factors can influence the work life balance?
Family illness, Family death, Have a Child, Large life changing events etc.
What are the 3 types of stress reactions that can happen to an individual who has a poor work-family balance?
Physical
Affective
Behavioural
What are the two lengths of stress reactions that can happen to an individual with a poor work-family balance?
Short-Term Reactions
Long-Term Reactions
Disturbed mood, psychological reactions, cognitive reactions, increased effort, accidents, performance decrease
What type of stress reaction are these?
Short-Term stress reactions experienced by the individual
How can short term and long term stress reactions influence the organisation?
Short-term: interpersonal conflicts
Long-term: increased turnover and absence rates
What impact can short-term and long-term stress reactions that are due to work have when not at work (i.e. at home)
Short term: slow unwinding, spillover of disturbed mood to private life
Long term: poor well-being in other life domains, physical illness
Name the 3 basic models of the work/non-work relationship
1. Spill-over model
2. Compensation model
3. Segmentation model
Describe the spill-over model of the work-life relationship (work/non-work relationship)
In which there is assumed to be a similarity between what occurs at work and at home
there is positive spillover and negative spillover
- if you are performing well at work, you are better at home*
- negative feelings towards work, negative feelings at home etc.*
Describe the Compensation Model of the work-life relationship (work/non-work relationship)
Where what is lost in one is made up in the other
- deprevations at work are compensated for at home*
- if things aren’t going well at work, you find relief in your social work to improve the feelings*
Describe the Segmentation Model of the work-life relationship (work/non-work relationship)
Assumed that the two areas are distinct and do not influence each other
if you are stressed at work, it wont impact your private life
Empirical tests have revealed support for which work/non-work relationship models?
Some for each model, however they need additional refinement
They can apply to each individual at different times of their lives
What is the concept of flexible work options?
Flexible work arrangements allows better control about where and when work is performed
including days worked, shifts work per week, hours worked, where they work
Are high or low skilled workers more likely to have flexible work arrangements?
High skilled workers
low level employees need to accept shift work without options, CEOs and managers more likely to have a flexible work environment
“Work is viewed as something that gets done, not a place” (Allen, 2010)
This is an example of?
Flexible work arrangements
Most flexible work arrangements today are _____ based
technology
(laptops, tablets, cell phones allow work to be done using technology)
What is a teleworker?
a person who works outside the traditional physical work location using technology
also referred to as a telecommuter
What is a “flexiplace”?
any location eg home, café, or holiday location where work is performed
What is “flexitime”?
a schedule of work that permits flexibility in when one arrives and leaves work
Being able to be a telecommuter can lead to an increase in
job satisfaction and an increase feeling of autonomy and productivity
What is the possible downside of being a teleworker?
It can lead to longer workdays
It can isolate employees
if you’re working at home, means that its harder to seperate work commitments from non-work commitments
What type of work environment is best to help accommodate the work-life balance?
Flexible work environment
e.g. teleworker, flexiplace, flexitime
What did Finland do in 2019 to try to accommodate for the changing workforce and help work-life balance?
Introduce legislation that will allow employees greater freedom over where and when they work.
What elements were added in the Finland legislation that are intended to make worklife more flexible?
New elements of flexibility include the following
1. Flexitime limits
2. Flexibile working time (employee can determine the place and location of half of their working hours - good for health and welfare and productivity)
3. Working hours banks (primarily employees responsibility - enable employees to save their time)
4. Night work (they can work at night if they want to)
