Topic: Citizenship Behavior, Stress
Publication: Journal of Applied Psychology (JAN 2011)
Article: Relationships of role stressors with organizational citizenship behavior: A meta-analysis
Authors: Erin Eatough, Chu-Hsiang Chang, Stephanie Miloslavic, and Russell Johnson
Reviewed By: Bobby Bullock
Job performance is not only evaluated by looking at an employee’s formal tasks but also through extra-role behaviors like organizational citizenship behavior (OCB, or behavior that goes beyond job requirements to support and benefit the workplace). However, while researchers have looked at a myriad of predictors of formal performance, much less attention has been awarded to predictors of OCB. To address this, Eatough, Chang, Miloslavic, and Johnson (2011) conducted a meta-analysis to determine the effects of occupational role stressors on OCB.
Role stressors, or factors that strain the behaviors and demands associated with a particular job, include role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload. Role ambiguity refers to unclear or vague performance expectations (Katz & Kahn, 1978). Role conflict refers to simultaneous contradictory expectations from coworkers and employers (Katz & Kahn, 1978). Role overload is when employees feel overloaded with tasks and responsibilities, or when too much is expected (Rizzo, House, & Lirtzman, 1970). The importance of examining the role stressor-OCB relationship is obvious when considering the importance of OCB. OCB is linked to performance, customer satisfaction, job satisfaction, organizational effectiveness, and profitability (Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Paine, & Bachrach, 2000; Organ, Podsakoff, & MacKenzie, 2006). In the meta-analysis, Eatough et al. (2011) found the following:
