Perceived breach and violation of the psychological contract in a collectivistic culture
- Van der Merwe, Sophie Wilhelmine
- Authors: Van der Merwe, Sophie Wilhelmine
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Collectivism , Employees -- Attitudes , Contracts -- Psychological aspects , Industrial relations , Breach of contract , Personnel management -- Psychological aspects , Organizational behavior , Psychology, Industrial
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:855 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017523
- Description: The significance of relationships on economic actions and employee behaviour makes it critical for employers to understand the dynamics of employment through mutual obligations (Rousseau, 1990; Guest, 2004b). The psychological contract affords a broad platform to study the employment relationship (Thomas et al., 2010), and is an important tool for organisational success (McDermott et al., 2013). The literature review contained in this study indicates the differences in contracting environments due to the prevailing cultural orientation. However, there is a dearth of research in collectivistic culture, to which this study will add. The literature also makes a distinction between perceptions of breach and violation. While perceptions of breach of the psychological contract is the perception that the employer has not met all obligations and promises, violation is the emotional and affective state following breach (Morrison & Robinson, 1997) and results in negative or deviant behaviours (Chiu & Peng, 2008). Both breach and violation perceptions negatively affect employee behaviours and attitudes in the workplace (Aggarwal & Bhargava, 2014). This research assumed a constructivist paradigm and builds understanding of the outcomes of breach and violation of the psychological contract on employees’ working life in a collectivistic environment. Primary data collection was by in-depth semi-structured, one on one interviews with five employees of a state-subsidised organisation in East London, making use of convenience sampling. Follow up interviews were conducted, resulting in 7ₑ/₄ hours of interviewing time. Cultural orientation was ascertained through the use of a questionnaire. The findings of this study confirmed that the type of psychological contract entered into influences the outcomes of perceptions of breach and violation. Both dimensions of collectivism, namely institutional and in-group, were practised in this environment, which also impacted on both the individual’s experience and outcomes for the organisation. The latter was influenced by commitment to organisational goals and supervisory or collegial relationships. Most notable of the results is the effect of expectations of transitional justice on experience of the psychological contract. Practical implications and recommendations for future research are made. This research is presented in three sections; firstly the research is presented in the format of an academic paper and includes a concise summary of literature and research method. The second section is an expanded literature review of the psychological contract and its influencing factors, as well as the outcomes of breach and violation. The last section describes and justifies in detail the design of the research and the research procedure followed. , Alternate name: Van der Merwe, Somine
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Van der Merwe, Sophie Wilhelmine
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Collectivism , Employees -- Attitudes , Contracts -- Psychological aspects , Industrial relations , Breach of contract , Personnel management -- Psychological aspects , Organizational behavior , Psychology, Industrial
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:855 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017523
- Description: The significance of relationships on economic actions and employee behaviour makes it critical for employers to understand the dynamics of employment through mutual obligations (Rousseau, 1990; Guest, 2004b). The psychological contract affords a broad platform to study the employment relationship (Thomas et al., 2010), and is an important tool for organisational success (McDermott et al., 2013). The literature review contained in this study indicates the differences in contracting environments due to the prevailing cultural orientation. However, there is a dearth of research in collectivistic culture, to which this study will add. The literature also makes a distinction between perceptions of breach and violation. While perceptions of breach of the psychological contract is the perception that the employer has not met all obligations and promises, violation is the emotional and affective state following breach (Morrison & Robinson, 1997) and results in negative or deviant behaviours (Chiu & Peng, 2008). Both breach and violation perceptions negatively affect employee behaviours and attitudes in the workplace (Aggarwal & Bhargava, 2014). This research assumed a constructivist paradigm and builds understanding of the outcomes of breach and violation of the psychological contract on employees’ working life in a collectivistic environment. Primary data collection was by in-depth semi-structured, one on one interviews with five employees of a state-subsidised organisation in East London, making use of convenience sampling. Follow up interviews were conducted, resulting in 7ₑ/₄ hours of interviewing time. Cultural orientation was ascertained through the use of a questionnaire. The findings of this study confirmed that the type of psychological contract entered into influences the outcomes of perceptions of breach and violation. Both dimensions of collectivism, namely institutional and in-group, were practised in this environment, which also impacted on both the individual’s experience and outcomes for the organisation. The latter was influenced by commitment to organisational goals and supervisory or collegial relationships. Most notable of the results is the effect of expectations of transitional justice on experience of the psychological contract. Practical implications and recommendations for future research are made. This research is presented in three sections; firstly the research is presented in the format of an academic paper and includes a concise summary of literature and research method. The second section is an expanded literature review of the psychological contract and its influencing factors, as well as the outcomes of breach and violation. The last section describes and justifies in detail the design of the research and the research procedure followed. , Alternate name: Van der Merwe, Somine
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2015
Measuring brand loyalty in the medical device industry of South Africa : a study across the public and private health-care system
- Authors: Rozani, Veliswa Celestine
- Date: 2014
- Subjects: Brand loyalty , Organizational behavior , Medical supplies -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:8914 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1021070
- Description: Brands are major role-players in the organisational business strategy; and they are recognised as one of the most valuable assets a company can possess. The entry of low-cost competitors has redefined the entire competitive landscape of the health-care industry through their ability to transform their value chain, in order to drastically reduce prices. With the fierce rivalry amongst the competitors, and a quest for companies to achieve competitive advantage, companies must design their strategies better than their competitors. For a company to be successful in such an environment, customer-brand loyalty is a critical issue. The main objective of this study was to measure brand loyalty in the medical-devices industry of South Africa, and to establish the key influencing factors of brand loyalty in this industry. The measurement of brand loyalty in the medical devices industry is founded on a conceptual brand-loyalty framework for the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry developed by Moolla (2012). The 12 brand loyalty factors identified by Moolla are: customer satisfaction; switching costs or risk aversion; brand trust; involvement; repeat purchases; relationship proneness; commitment; perceived value; brand relevance; brand affect; brand performance and culture. The empirical study was conducted among 250 medical practitioners across the private sector and public sector health-care system of South Africa. The methodology adopted in the study included the sampling procedure, the data collection, the questionnaire development and the statistical techniques used to analyse the results. The results were analysed with regard to: Factor analysis; Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients, mean values and inferential statistics. The results were presented in a conceptual framework, in order to measure brand loyalty in the medical devices industry of South Africa. The results of this study concluded that the brand loyalty influences, as identified by Moolla, are important for measuring brand loyalty in the medical devices industry. The empirical results focused on the demographic profile of the respondents, the validity of the questionnaire, the reliability of the results obtained, as well as the importance of the research variables. The analysis enabled certain conclusions to be drawn relating to the significant factors of brand loyalty in the medical devices industry in South Africa. A comparison was conducted relating to age group, gender profile, the health-care sector and the medical specialization – to determine whether there were any significant differences in the influence of the brand-loyalty factors identified. The chapter concluded with a conceptual framework for the medical-devices industry adapted from Moolla (2012) framework.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2014
- Authors: Rozani, Veliswa Celestine
- Date: 2014
- Subjects: Brand loyalty , Organizational behavior , Medical supplies -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:8914 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1021070
- Description: Brands are major role-players in the organisational business strategy; and they are recognised as one of the most valuable assets a company can possess. The entry of low-cost competitors has redefined the entire competitive landscape of the health-care industry through their ability to transform their value chain, in order to drastically reduce prices. With the fierce rivalry amongst the competitors, and a quest for companies to achieve competitive advantage, companies must design their strategies better than their competitors. For a company to be successful in such an environment, customer-brand loyalty is a critical issue. The main objective of this study was to measure brand loyalty in the medical-devices industry of South Africa, and to establish the key influencing factors of brand loyalty in this industry. The measurement of brand loyalty in the medical devices industry is founded on a conceptual brand-loyalty framework for the Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) industry developed by Moolla (2012). The 12 brand loyalty factors identified by Moolla are: customer satisfaction; switching costs or risk aversion; brand trust; involvement; repeat purchases; relationship proneness; commitment; perceived value; brand relevance; brand affect; brand performance and culture. The empirical study was conducted among 250 medical practitioners across the private sector and public sector health-care system of South Africa. The methodology adopted in the study included the sampling procedure, the data collection, the questionnaire development and the statistical techniques used to analyse the results. The results were analysed with regard to: Factor analysis; Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients, mean values and inferential statistics. The results were presented in a conceptual framework, in order to measure brand loyalty in the medical devices industry of South Africa. The results of this study concluded that the brand loyalty influences, as identified by Moolla, are important for measuring brand loyalty in the medical devices industry. The empirical results focused on the demographic profile of the respondents, the validity of the questionnaire, the reliability of the results obtained, as well as the importance of the research variables. The analysis enabled certain conclusions to be drawn relating to the significant factors of brand loyalty in the medical devices industry in South Africa. A comparison was conducted relating to age group, gender profile, the health-care sector and the medical specialization – to determine whether there were any significant differences in the influence of the brand-loyalty factors identified. The chapter concluded with a conceptual framework for the medical-devices industry adapted from Moolla (2012) framework.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2014
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