The impact of psychological contract violation on employee attitudes and behaviour
- 1 December 2003
- journal article
- Published by Emerald in Employee Relations: The International Journal
- Vol. 25 (6), 557-573
- https://doi.org/10.1108/01425450310501306
Abstract
Psychological contract violation has gained the attention of both practitioners and academics in recent years. Critical commentaries have questioned whether breaching such a contract has implications for employee attitude and behaviour, and ultimately organisational performance. This paper addresses the question “To what extent does psychological contract breach impact on employee attitude and behaviour?”. The study is based on an industrial textiles company and draws on quantitative and qualitative data. The findings suggested that triggers of violation impinged on employee attitudes but not on behaviour, trends substantiated by analysis of the organisation's absenteeism records. The qualitative data helped explain this trend and have highlighted two contextual issues. The first of these is labour market conditions and perceptions of job insecurity and second of these is a sense of collegiality and pride in the job.Keywords
This publication has 24 references indexed in Scilit:
- Exploring the relationship between psychological contracts and organizational change: a process model and case study evidenceStrategic Change, 2000
- Contractors and their Psychological ContractsBritish Journal of Management, 1999
- The psychological contract: A concept in need of closer scrutiny?European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 1996
- Trust and Breach of the Psychological ContractAdministrative Science Quarterly, 1996
- Psychological contracts and OCB: The effect of unfulfilled obligations on civic virtue behaviorJournal of Organizational Behavior, 1995
- Human resource management's role in clarifying the new psychological contractHuman Resource Management, 1994
- Relationship between organizational justice and organizational citizenship behaviors: Do fairness perceptions influence employee citizenship?Journal of Applied Psychology, 1991
- Psychological and implied contracts in organizationsEmployee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 1989
- The Absence Culture and Psychological Contract—Who's in Control of Absence?Academy of Management Review, 1985
- The Absence Culture and the Psychological Contract-Who's in Control of Absence?Academy of Management Review, 1985