Explaining turnover intention with organizational identification, perceived organizational support, protean career approach, and the mediating role of opganizational commitment a study of lecturers in viet nam

Nguyễn Thị Hải Thúy EXPLAINING TURNOVER INTENTION WITH ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION, PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT, PROTEAN CAREER APPROACH, AND THE MEDIATING ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONAL

Nguyễn Thị Hải Thúy

EXPLAINING TURNOVER INTENTION WITH ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION, PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT,

PROTEAN CAREER APPROACH AND THE MEDIATING ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

MASTER THESIS

Ho Chi Minh City, 2012

Nguyễn Thị Hải Thúy

EXPLAINING TURNOVER INTENTION WITH ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION, PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT,

PROTEAN CAREER APPROACH, AND THE MEDIATING ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT –

A STUDY OF LECTURERS IN VIET NAM

Major: Business Administration

scholar, who has given me much support, guidance, and encouragement throughout

my graduation study This research study could not have been completed without his surprising expertise, valuable insights, tactful guidance, timely constructive feedback, and unbelievable attention to detail Dr Pham Quoc Hung has been a wonderful model for me to follow as an advisor, scholar, and a human being I cannot thank him enough for always being there to contact, remind and motivate me when I lost hope and strength

I would like to offer my heart-felt thanks to Dr Tran Ha Minh Quan, who has been a whole-hearted and thoughtful watcher of my eMBA19, for his moral support and timely encouragement at every stage of the study process

I am deeply thankful and grateful to my parents-in-law, Le Van Ninh and Nguyen Thi Kim Lien, for their ongoing support and encouragement, empathy and sympathy to the completion of my graduation study My master course could not have been finished without their support and encouragement They always help me with the housework and childcare so that I could whole-heartedly invest in my master course

I would like to send my endless love and gratitude to my parents, Nguyen Dang Dien and Tran Thi Dung, for their inspiration, reminder and even urge during

my life of study

I am very fortunate to have my husband, a partner and also a friend, Le Viet Hung, whose unconditional love kept me alive throughout my master study His love enriches my life beyond imagination I truly thank him for his help with the data collection and development of the survey

Finally, I am extremely blessed to have my two daughter and son, Gato and Fifa, to inspire me and give me a great perspective in life It is their presence that gives me the true understanding of my presence in life

Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach and the mediating effect of Organizational Commitment Based on the previous research frameworks, the study tests positive or negative link of various factors on turnover intention of lecturers Moreover, the current study introduces a mediator – Organizational Commitment – as a variable that plays an important role in governing the relationships between the independent variables and the dependent variable

The data for the study was gathered from 300 currently employed lecturers in Viet Nam As hypothesized, the research model was proved to be reliable for further testing The results also indicate that these various factors all contribute to some extent to turnover intention of lecturers Especially, the mediator, Organizational Commitment, was proved to significantly influence the relationships of Organizational Identification – Turnover Intention, Perceived Organizational Support – Turnover Intention, and Protean Career Approach – Turnover Intention

Finally, the findings of the study are targeted at providing university management an insight into the various factors that feed into lecturers’ turnover intention with the hope that this can help them measure lecturers’ turnover intention for better retention of this highly-qualified assets

List of Abbreviations

Chapter 1: Introduction 1

1.1 Research background 1

1.2 Research objective 3

1.3 Scope and research methodology 3

1.4 Structure of the research 4

Summary for Chapter 1 Chapter 2: Review of the literature 6

2.1 Turnover Intention 6

2.2 Organizational Identification 8

2.3 Perceived Organizational Support 10

2.4 Protean Career Approach 12

2.5 Organizational Commitment 15

2.6 Organizational Identification and Turnover Intention 19

2.7 Perceived Organizational Support and Turnover Intention 19

2.8 Protean Career Approach and Turnover Intention 20

2.9 Organizational Commitment and Turnover Intention 21

2.10 Organizational Identification and Organizational Commitment 21

2.11 Perceived Organizational Support and Organizational Commitment 22

2.12 Protean Career Approach and Organizational Commitment 23

2.13 Hypothesized research model 24

Summary for Chapter 2 Chapter 3: Methodology 27

3.1 Research design 27

3.2 Questionnaire development 29

3.2.1 Turnover Intention 29

3.2.5 Organizational Commitment 30

3.3 Translation of the Questionnaire 32

3.4 The pilot study 34

3.5 Target population 35

3.6 Sample size 36

3.7 Sample characteristics 36

3.8 Selecting the sample and collecting data 37

3.9 Methods of data analysis 38

3.9.1 Data screening 38

3.9.2 Reliability 39

3.9.3 Confirmatory factor analysis 40

3.9.4 Multiple regressions 43

3.9.5 Testing mediation relationship 45

Summary for Chapter 3 Chapter 4: Data Analysis 47

4.1 Data cleaning 47

4.2 Profiles of qualified respondents 47

4.3 Normality check 48

4.4 Reliability of the measurements 48

4.5 Confirmatory factor analysis 49

4.5.1 Confirmatory factor analysis for Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach and Turnover Intention 49

4.5.2 Confirmatory factor analysis for Organizational Commitment 53

4.6 Correlation analysis 57

4.7 Hypothesis testing 60

Protean Career Approach, Organizational Commitment on Turnover Intention (H2)

62

4.7.3 The mediating effect of Organizational Commitment on Organizational Identification – Turnover Intention, Perceived Organizational Support – Turnover Intention, and Protean Career Approach – Turnover Intention relationships (H3) .63

Summary of Chapter 4 Chapter 5: Discussion 71

5.1 Discussions of findings 71

5.2 Practical implications 77

5.3 Contribution of the current study 78

5.4 Limitations and Future research , 79

Summary of Chapter 5

REFERENCES

APPENDIX A: English & Vietnamese Questionnaire

APPENDIX B: Socio-Demographic Characteristics of the Qualified Samples APPENDIX C: Assessment of Normality

APPENDIX D: Reliability Test

APPENDIX E: Standardized Regression Weights & Squared Multiple Correlations APPENDIX F: Multiple Regressions for Hypotheses Testing

(Affective, Continuance, Normative) based on Meyer & Allen (1991)

Table 3-2 Demographic characteristic questions and range of responses 33

Table 4-1 Summary of Cronbach Alpha measures across variables 49Table 4-2 Assessing Fit Indices - Confirmatory factor analysis for

Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach and Turnover Intention

50

Table 4-3 Assessing Fit Indices - Confirmatory factor analysis for

Organizational Commitment

54

Table 4-5 Model Summary, ANOVA & Coefficients - The mediating

effect of Affective Commitment

66

Table 4-6 Model Summary, ANOVA & Coefficients - The mediating

effect of Normative Commitment

68

2 POS Perceived Organizational Support

3 PCA Protean Career Approach

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Research background

Employee turnover is a widely researched topic with a huge amount of literature, and investigations into the causes of employee turnover are abundant One way to better understand employee turnover in organizations is therefore to examine the various literature reviews that have appeared over time However, a careful reading of these reviews reveals that although much progress has been made, much remains to be learned about the major causes of employee turnover and models to turnover process

The first formal reviews on this are the work of Brayfield and Crokket (1955) and Herzberg et al (1957), which both find evidence of a significant relationship between employee dissatisfaction and subsequent turnover Shortly after this, March and Simon (1958) introduce (a) the perceived desirability of leaving the organization and (b) the perceived ease of movement from the organization, which largely affect turnover Lefkowitz (1971) points to (a) the employee‟s initial job expectations concerning the nature of the job; (b) job satisfaction; (c) the physical work environment; (d) financial compensation; (e) intrinsic aspects of the job; and (f) supervisory style and work-group dynamics as influences on turnover Porter and Steers (1973) argue that satisfaction modestly related to turnover; major influences on turnover found in person, job, work environment, and organization-wide factors, importance of met expectations Price (1977) examines various way in which turnover is defined and measured He concludes that turnover was influenced by dissatisfaction plus opportunity to leave

He also considers organizational outcomes of turnover Mobley et al (1979) concentrates on several variables in determining turnover which include age, tenure, overall satisfaction, job content, intention to stay, and organizational commitment Mobley hypothesizes that dissatisfaction leads to thinking of quitting, intention to search, intention to stay or leave, and finally, actual turnover

Mowday, Porter and Steers (1982) suggest that an employee‟s intent to leave can influence subsequent turnover in at least two ways First, it may cause turnover fairly directly, which means some people decide to leave their jobs even when alternative jobs are not available Second, an employee‟s intent to leave may further influence actual turnover indirectly by causing the employee to initiate search behavior for preferable alternative jobs This is to emphasize that turnover intention is an important step preceding actual turnover

From the preceding discussion, clearly, no one can deny the fact that employee turnover is of great importance to organizations Job-quitting in the mid

of the course results in high costs in the recruitment and training of new staff Organizational productivity is also one of the challenges that arises from employee turnover In the case of universities, the cost of high turnover rate is even higher as lecturers with knowledge and competence are the key assets and it affects the academic and research activities of the universities When lecturers quit their jobs in the mid of semester, the consequence is very high as it is difficult for both the university to arrange the substitute people and for students to accept new lecturers

in the mid of the course

In the last decade, universities in Viet Nam have gone through many fundamental changes The Vietnamese government has invested much funds and effort for the development of university education As a result, the number of universities (both public and non-public) in Viet Nam has increased dramatically in recent years The accession of Viet Nam into WTO in 2007 has also posed a big challenge to Viet Nam university management since as of 1 January 2009, 100% foreign-invested education entities are permitted (Working party on the accession of

Viet Nam, Schedule CLX – Viet Nam, Part II, 27 October 2006, 34) Qualified

lecturer‟s retention has become a challenge for University Management as competition has become harsher

Are Vietnamese lecturers loyal and committed to their work? What are the various factors that may influence their turnover intentions? What inferences can be

made from the study that can be utilized to reduce attrition among Vietnamese lecturers? The present study will review the literature related to the framework of the study, the methodology utilized for data analysis and discussion of recommendations

1.2 Research objectives

The purpose of this thesis is to find out the intentions of lecturers to quit a job in universities More specifically, it is targeted at measuring the influence of various factors (including Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach) on their turnover intentions It also aims at finding out the mediating role of Organizational Commitment that contributes to the intentions of lecturers The effort is made to help university management in the retention of their qualified lecturers

The study is targeted at addressing the following questions:

Question 1: How do Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational

Support and Protean Career Approach affect Affective Commitment, Continuance Commitment and Normative Commitment?

Question 2: How do Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational

Support, Protean Career Approach, Affective Commitment, Continuance Commitment and Normative Commitment influence Turnover Intention.?

Question 3: How do Affective Commitment, Continuance Commitment and

Normative Commitment mediate Organizational Identification – Turnover Intention, Perceived Organizational Support – Turnover Intention and Protean Career Approach - Turnover Intention relationships?

1.3 Scope and research methodology

The survey is carried out in Ho Chi Minh City, aiming at the following universities: Foreign Trade University, HCMC Branch, Ho Chi Minh University of Industry, Ho Chi Minh University of Technology, Hong Bang International University, TonDucThang University Qualified respondents for the present study

are lecturers who are currently employed by a specific university, not visiting lecturers

Based on the literature review compiled, a set of variables are determined The use of a quantitative survey in which appropriate sampling procedure is carried out allows the researcher to make inferences about turnover intention of lecturers The pilot study is done to modify the questionnaire into a clearer and more understandable one for respondents After completion, the questionnaires are distributed personally to 300 lecturers The SPSS 16 for Window, Amos 16 and Excel are chosen for data processing and analysis Cronbach alpha is used to measure internal reliability Confirmatory Factor Analysis is designed to confirm the hypothesized model

1.4 Structure of the research

The present thesis is organized in five chapters Chapter 1 is concerned with the introduction of the thesis which includes research background, research objectives, scope and research methodology Chapter 2 reviews the literature that deals with the various factors in the previous studies Specifically, the thesis focused on the five factors: Turnover Intention, Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach, and Organizational Commitment The hypotheses are proposed based on the literature review given Chapter three provides theoretical framework for the research design and methodology followed by results and discussion presented in Chapter four Based

on the number and figures analyzed in the previous chapter, recommendations are therefore made in Chapter five This final chapter presents the major findings of the research, managerial implication as well as recommendations

SUMMARY OF CHAPTER ONE

No country can stand on their own feet without education No university can make their success without their lecturers Lecturers are not only the vital asset for the existence and development of one university but also the key factor for the

prosperity of one country Good retention and development of them pave the way for the university‟s success and the country‟s thrive in the future

Chapter 1 introduces the research background for the present thesis Research objectives, methodology, thesis scope and structure are also given, which gives the readers an overview of the theoretical and practical framework of the thesis Research questions raised lays out the roadmap for further analysis and discussion in the forthcoming chapters All questions seek to confirm the significant relationships between Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach and Turnover Intention, the mediation role of Organizational Commitment on the mentioned relationships among the target respondents of lecturers

CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

The retention of professional and qualified lecturers has become a challenge for university management in recent years In this paper, an effort has been made to find out and understand various factors that lead lecturers toward their turnover intentions

According to Loquercio (2006), people hardly leave their jobs in which they

feel happy and satisfied, even when they are offered higher pay elsewhere Sometimes lecturers are 'pushed' due to their dissatisfaction in their present jobs to seek new chances or „pulled‟ by other competitors due to the better conditions (Iqtidar Ali Shah et al., 2010) Or simply they leave because of their personal factors On the basis of available literature, the various factors in the present study include Turnover Intention, Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational

Support, Protean Career Approach and Organizational Commitment

Chapter 2 defines and discusses the key variables in the hypothesized models The chapter is structured in the format of the conceptualization of each variable, concluding remarks after each conceptualization and their effect on Turnover Intention and Organizational Commitment The theoretical framework is introduced to explain possible outcomes associated with turnover intention

2.1 Turnover Intention

2.1.1 Conceptualization of Turnover Intention

Turnover intentions, or intentions to quit a job, have been found to be one of

the best predictors of actual quitting (Griffeth et al., 2001) In a study by Mobley et

al., (1977), it is presented in the withdrawal decision process that thinking of

quitting a job is the next logical step after experiencing dissatisfaction and that is called “intention to leave” According to Wanous (1979), the reason for job quitting

is originated from both the employees and the employer and is categorized as either voluntary or involuntary Under this research, voluntary turnover is chosen for discussion, and turnover intentions, not actual turnover, will be the dependent variable

Krausz et al (1995) argue that studies using intentions as the criterion have several advantages over those using behavior as the dependent variable Firstly, behaviors are often influenced by many variables (e.g., company policies, economic conditions, etc) that cannot be controlled by the investigator but influence the findings Secondly, turnover research has shown that a person‟s self-expressed intentions are the best predictor of actual turnover (Steel and Ovalle, 1984) Therefore, turnover intentions should be used as the dependent variable for the present study

Jenner and Taylor (2000) categorize voluntary turnover in the following four ways:

- Outside factors: An employee leaves an organization for reasons unrelated

to work, such as illness, moving out of town, or aspiring to other goals;

- Functional turnover: Both employee and employer are willing to accept

this kind of turnover For example, someone may feel uncomfortable with an organizational culture and have poor performance;

- Push factors: Employee is dissatisfied with work or the organizational

leadership style, leading to unwanted turnover for the employer, because this employee may have outstanding performance; and

- Pull of rivals: Competitors have better conditions to attract employees to

leave organization

Braham (2005) proposes seven hidden reasons that make employees leave an organization:

- Job duties or workplace conditions were not as anticipated;

- There was a mismatch between job and person;

- Too little coaching and feedback were provided;

- There were too few growth and advancement opportunities;

- The employee felt devalued and unrecognized ;

- The employee experienced stress from overwork and work-life imbalance;

- There was a loss of confidence in senior management

2.1.2 Concluding remarks on Turnover Intention

Based on the preceding discussion, several concluding remarks can be made

To begin with, it should be noted that voluntary turnover should be chosen for the analysis under the present study Second, the thesis tries to find out different factors that feed into turnover intention, not actual turnover And finally, there are many different factors or reasons that contribute to turnover intentions from the literature

2.2 Organizational Identification

2.2.1 Conceptualization of Organizational Identification

Social identities are popular in life as people often define themselves in terms of certain group memberships To be a member of a sports club or a musical association are examples of identification with a group People often see themselves

as a part of a country, gender, race, political movement, sports team or organization and then, these groups depend on their members to survive (Fisher and Wakefield, 1998)

Organizational identification is a specific form of group identification It can

be described as a way to explain the relationship between employees and the organization they work for Organizational identification is defined as „the perception of oneness with or belongingness to an organization, where the individual defines him or herself in terms of the organization(s) of which he or she

is a member‟ (Mael and Ashforth, 1992, p 104)

Foote (1951) is one of the first people who uses the term “identification” in

an organizational context Foote describes Organizational Identification as

„appropriation of and commitment to a particular identity or series of identities‟ (p 17) It can be seen from his view that Organizational Identification reassures an individual as a member of the organization and motivates him or her to act on behalf of the organization Therefore it can be concluded that Foote uses self-conception as part of the definition of Organizational Identification and he emphasizes identification as a basis for motivation

Later on, several other authors try to build the concept of organizational identification Brown (1969) focuses on four aspects of involvement including attraction to the organization, consistency of organizational and individual goals, loyalty toward the organization and reference of self to organizational membership

Lee (1971) defines organizational identification as „the degree of the individual‟s broad personal identification with the organization‟ (p 215) His approach on Organizational Identification emphasizes three main aspects Firstly, it describes a sense of belongingness which results from common goals shared with others A second feature in this definition is loyalty Finally, shared characteristics between the individual and others within the organization imply a certain similarity Like Brown (1969), Lee uses the term loyalty as a part of the definition of Organizational Identification Lee‟s definition seems to be more distinguishable from other related constructs than Browns‟ Using terms of sense of belongingness, loyalty and shared characteristics gives us a broad conceptualization of Organization Identification

Later in 1970, Hall, Schneider and Nygren define organizational identification as „the process by which the goals of the organization and those of the individual become increasingly integrated or congruent‟ (Hall et al., 1970, p 176–177) It can be clarified from the definition that over the time of working, employee‟s goals become identical to those of organization

A different conceptualization of organizational identification is introduced

by Cheney (1983) and developed further by Cheney and Tompkins (1987) Cheney‟s (1983) defines organizational identification as „an active process by which individuals link themselves to elements in the social scene‟ (Cheney, 1983, p 342)

Then, in 1986, O‟Reilly and Chatman (1986) define identification as the process of “an individual accepting influence from a group (organization) in order

to establish and maintain a relationship”

2.2.2 Concluding remarks on Organizational Identification

Each approach has its own emphasis In general, they have a common point

in the identification of one „self‟ with the organization However, it seems that the approaches mentioned above include different psychological states of individuals

In turn, this makes it difficult to define organizational identification as a unique construct

Although differences are clear, all definitions described above show some kind of overlap The main similarity is the linkage between the self and the organization and the definition of oneself in terms of the characteristics of the organization Furthermore, for the individual, identification means that elements of the organizational characteristics to some extent become part of their own self-concept

Despite the strong overlap between several conceptualizations, some appear

to be more suitable than others On the one hand, several approaches describe more than just identification (e.g involvement, loyalty, behavioral outcomes of identification) This causes problems for the differentiation of determinants of organizational identification On the other hand, some scholars choose a rather narrow definition of Organizational Identification, by focusing only on the cognitive aspects (knowing) of identification

The aim of this thesis is not to question the concept of organizational identification itself or come up with a new definition In this study, Mael and Ashforth‟s approach on identification is used However, there is strong contradiction between the measurement and their own definition Mael and Ashforth state that identification is a cognitive process (Mael and Ashforth, 1992, p 105), whereas their measurement instrument also contains emotional aspects For example, respondents have to answer whether they have feelings of embarrassment

or feel insulted when their organization is criticized This seems to refer to their emotional states

2.3 Perceived Organizational Support

2.3.1 Conceptualization of Perceived Organizational Support

Employees are usually practical They are generally interested in whether management is ready to make changes in favor of their benefits and working conditions They regard the organization as a source of socio-emotional resources such as respect and care, tangible benefits such as salaries and medical benefits, etc The high evaluation by the organization indicates that the employees are noted and rewarded

Organizational support is conceptualized as an environment in which the needs of the employees are of the same importance as the goals of profit (Cropanzano, Kacmar, and Bozemen, 1995) It is viewed as the perception that the organization cares about and values individuals within the organization (Howes, Citera, and Cropanzano, 1995) Organizational support is also seen as employer commitment to the employee (Shore & Shore, 1995) Therefore, this type of environment naturally leads to the increase in employee commitment to the organization

Perception is an important aspect of organizational support An individual may perceive whether his or her work environment is supportive or not This explains the reason why there is the concept of Perceived Organizational Support Perceived Organizational Support is the degree to which employees believe that their organization values their contributions and cares about their well-being (Eisenberger, Huntington, Huntington, & Sowa, 1986; Rhoades &Eisenberger, 2002)

The treatment by the organization toward its employees influences Perceived Organizational Support and in turn, it affects the employee‟s interpretation of the organization‟s motives and commitment It can be implied that the employees expect a degree of support from the organization in a wide variety of situations Examples may include how the organization reacts when the employees have illnesses, mistakes, and whether the organization is willing to pay a fair salary and intend to make the employee‟s job more meaningful and interesting

However, it should be noted that the favorable treatments provided by the organization must be perceived as voluntary by the employees Only in this case, employees‟ Perceived Organizational Support is positively associated with the organization‟s treatment Let‟s take an example Workers may receive better wages and benefits However, if these benefits result from a long period of difficult negotiations and battles, they will be considered as involuntarily provided, and therefore, the benefits will have little influence on Perceived Organizational Support This suggests that organizations should not automatically come to a conclusion that well-treated employees will have high Perceived Organizational Support Rhoades and Eisenberger (2002) found that opportunities for greater recognition, pay, and promotion are positively associated with Perceived Organizational Support

2.3.2 Concluding remarks on Perceived Organizational Support

Perceived organizational support is an important factor in how an employee feels about the organization that he or she belongs to It is the extent to which an employee perceives how the organization cares about and values its employees In this thesis, the approach of Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchison, and Sowa is chosen

Organizational support theory (Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchinson, & Sowa, 1986; Rhoades &Eisenberger, 2002; Shore & Shore, 1995) maintains that employees form a general perception and expectancy concerning the evaluation by the organization of their contributions and its cares about their well-being Such perceived organizational support will increase employees‟ willingness and readiness

to help the organization reach its objectives and their affective commitment to the organization

2.4 Protean Career Approach

2.4.1 Conceptualization of Protean Career Approach

As organizations are facing the current highly volatile and unstable environment, they must adapt themselves to be smarter and swifter enough to

market conditions to exist Similarly, employees must be equally flexible and adaptive This new orientation has been termed the “Protean Career Approach”

Under the new approach, the psychological contract between employer and employee no longer means a guarantee of lifetime employment and steady career advancement (e.g Arthur & Rousseau, 1996) since in response to fast-moving globalization, competitive pressures and rapid technological advance, companies must be smart enough to exist It can be implied that individuals must take active role to create career options that allow them to realize their personal career goals and ensure their employability (Hall & Moss, 1998) New career patterns are therefore emerged for an individual to capture the new changing nature of careers, which emphasizes self-direction and values-driven predispositions (Briscoe, Hall, & DeMuth, 2006)

Protean career is first introduced by Hall in 1976 He defines this orientation

as follows: „The protean career is a process which the person, not the organization,

is managing It consists of all of the person's varied experiences in education, training, work in several organizations, changes in occupational field, etc The protean person's own personal career choices and search for self-fulfillment are the unifying or integrative elements in his or her life The criterion of success is internal (psychological success), not external.‟ (Hall, 1976, p 201)

Baruch (2004: 71) described the protean career as: “a contract with oneself, rather than with the organization” since individuals “take responsibility for transforming their career path, in taking responsibility for their career” Hall (2004) and Hall and Chandler (2005) propose hallmarks of a protean orientation including freedom and growth, professional commitment, and the attainment of psychological success

Later then, Hall and his colleagues (Hall, 1986; Hall, 2002; Hall & Moss, 1998) introduce two career "metacompetencies" including identity or self-awareness and adaptability under the protean career approach It is better for

employees to develop their self-awareness and adaptability since as they will equip the employees to learn from their experience and develop themselves

Then, in 2006, Briscoe, Hall, and DeMuth identify two protean-career attitudes: self-directed career attitudes and values-driven predispositions An individual with self-directed attitudes are independent in managing his or her vocational behavior, while a values-driven individual bases on their own values rather than the organization‟s values to guide their career when making career choices

The core values of protean career approach include freedom and growth, high mobility, and subjective success criteria (psychological success) vs objective one (e.g position, salary) Psychological success means that an individual reaches his or her success which are highly valued because they are measured according to his own goals, not externally defined goals

2.4.2 Concluding remarks on Protean Career Approach

Hall first introduces the term „protean career‟ in 1976 as a process in which employees manage their own career path and take responsibility for their career After that, he and his colleagues find out the two career metacompetencies including identity and adaptability to emphasize employee‟s own development at the workplace by developing these two meatcompetencies A more complicated protean orientation is developed by Hall (2004) and Hall and Chandler (2005) including more components which are freedom and growth, professional commitment, and the attainment of psychological success and the discovery of a

“calling”

It can be seen from the above-mentioned definitions that protean career is an approach where an individual takes charge of their career path rather than the organization Those who have protean career approach highly value growth and freedom They define career success in terms of psychological criteria with examples of job satisfaction, self-actualization, personal accomplishment and a feeling of fulfillment (Hall & Chandler, 2005; Hall & Mirvis, 1996) This approach

is in basic contrast with traditional view in which career success is defined in terms

of external criteria such as promotion, salary and occupational status

From Hall and his colleague‟s arguments, it can be concluded that protean careerists are more intrinsically motivated since they find opportunities to challenge themselves Individuals who have a more traditional career attitude tend

to be passive in managing their career while individuals with a protean career attitude take more active role in making their career choices and finding opportunities (Hall, 1976, 2002) In this thesis, the approach introduced by Hall (2006) is chosen for further analysis

2.5 Organizational Commitment

2.5.1 Conceptualization of Organizational Commitment

Organizational commitment is defined as the extent to which an individual accepts, internalizes and views his or her role based on organizational values and goals (Jan, 1989) An individual becomes committed to an organization when (a) they internalize the goals and values of the organization, (b) they are willing to exert their best effort to reach the organization‟s goals, and (c) they have a strong desire

to remain in the organization (Hunt & Morgan, 1994; Jan, 1989; Mowday, Steers, & Porter, 1982)

The initial model of organizational commitment is developed by Porter, Steers, Mowday, and Boulian (1974) They construct the model based on an employee‟s attachment to the organization Under the conceptualization developed

by Porter and associates (1974), two factors are mentioned: attitudinal commitment and behavioral commitment (Mowday, et al., 1982) However, Mayer and Schoorman (1998) consider this conceptualization as a „uni-dimensional construct‟ and they argue that it does not fully explain the process of commitment or how an employee becomes committed to an organization

Later then, in 1994 Hunt and Morgan emphasizes that commitment should be measured under a multidimensional construct The multidimensional construct starts with a two-dimensional model of organizational commitment introduced by several

researchers including Angle and Perry (1981) and Mayer and Schoorman (1998) According to Angle and Perry (1981), there are two distinct dimensions: „value commitment‟ and „commitment to stay‟ They define „value commitment‟ as an affective, positive connection with the organization and „commitment to stay‟ as the economic exchange between the employee and the organization Mayer and Schoorman (1998) redefines “commitment to stay” as “continuance commitment”, This two-factor model explains important behavioral outcomes and represents clearly two dimensions (Mayer & Schoorman, 1998) However, the study emphasizes that increasing one type of commitment does not necessarily affect both commitments (Mayer & Schoorman, 1998)

Then comes three-factor model of commitment introduced by several other researchers including Penley & Gould, 1998; Jans, 1989; Meyer & Allen, 1997 Penley and Gould proposes that three dimensions of commitment should be moral commitment, calculative commitment, and alienative commitment (Penley and Gould, 1998) They define moral commitment as identification with the organization‟s goals, calculative commitment as the exchange of organizational inducements for employee contribution, and alienative commitment as a consequence of the lack of control and a perceived of absence of alternatives

In 1989, Jans (1989) develops a model that emphasizes the “non-work” factors He concludes that non-work factors must have a significant influence on organizational commitment in the long term The framework of his three-factor model includes career/ life stage factors, work-family interaction, and career prospects/ job involvement (Jans, 1989)

Meyer and Allen (1997) also realizes that organizational commitment needs

to be analyzed under a multiple-component model The three components – affective commitment, continuance commitment, and normative commitment – form the basis of a new conceptualization of organizational commitment (Meyer & Allen, 1997) An employee becomes committed to an organization for many reasons Some people find that they have the same goals as the organization‟s or the

organization‟s mission, purpose and goals mesh with their own Some other people become committed to an organization because they realize that they may lose their prestige, retirement benefits, or social networks if they leave the organization And many other people decide to remain in the organization because they feel and believe that it is the right thing for them to do

Meyer and Allen (1997) come to a conclusion that people become committed

to the organization for a wide variety of reasons It is a „multifaceted construct‟ Organizational commitment is defined by them as „reflecting the affective orientation toward the organization, a recognition of costs associated with leaving the organization, and a moral obligation to remain with the organization‟ Their three components of commitment, which are affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment reflect this definition Affective commitment refers to the employee‟s „emotional attachment to, identification with, and involvement in the organization‟ (Meyer & Allen, 1991) A person who has high affective commitment stays with an organization because they want to Continuance commitment refers to „an awareness of the costs associated with leaving the organization‟, such as loss of prestige, status, or monetary incentives (Meyer & Allen, 1991) An individual with a high level of continuance commitment belongs to an organization because they need to do so Normative commitment

„reflects a feeling of obligation to continue employment‟ Individuals with high level of normative commitment remain with an organization because they feel it is the right thing to do for the organization

It is important to emphasize that these components are not seen as separate

„types‟ of components, but instead according to Meyer and Allen, they are interconnected Each individual has his or her unique level of commitment to an organization since the three components of commitment may be interconnected in many different ways and that reflects the unique nature of each individual‟s level of commitment The model assumes that each individual has different level of three components Figure 1 illustrates Meyer and Allen‟s conceptual model

Figure 2-1: The three components of organizational commitment (Affective,

Continuance, Normative) based on Allen and Meyer (1991)

“I stay because I want to.”

It can be seen from Meyer and Allen‟s model that an individual may have a strong affective attachment or in other words, they want to stay, but they may not need to stay, which means they have weak continuance commitment Another employee may have a high level of continuance and normative commitment, but a low level of affective commitment Or a third employee may feel a strong continuance commitment, but weak affective or normative commitment Meyer and Allen (1997) therefore concludes that the three components of organizational commitment should be considered together rather than a specific „type‟ of commitment be analyzed

2.5.2 Concluding remarks on Organizational Commitment

During a long period, researchers have made their big attempts to explore the different multiple dimensions of organizational commitment Firstly, a two-dimensional model is introduced by Angle & Perry, 1981 and Mayer & Schoorman,

1998, in which continuance and value commitments are explored Then Penley and Gould, 1988 highlights a three-dimensional model which points out moral, calculative, and alienative commitments Another three-dimensional construct proposed by Jans in 1989 emphasizes career/life stage factors, work-family interaction, and career prospects/job involvement factors The researchers all

Affective commitment

Normative

Commitment Continuance

Commitment

attempt to find the best way to study the reasons why employees become committed

to an organization with their models of study While these reconceptualizations try

to improve the original or previous model, none of them is able to draw out a complete picture of an individual‟s commitment to an organization It becomes clear that a new perspective is needed

Meyer and Allen propose a three-component conceptualization that advises researchers to consider the strength of all three forms of commitment together rather than to classify a specific „type‟ of commitment to an individual

For the purpose of the thesis, Meyer and Allen‟s conceptualization is chosen

to analyze turnover intention of lecturers in university

2.6 Organizational Identification and Turnover Intention

Several positive attitudes and behaviors (Ashforth and Mael, 1989; Mael and Ashforth, 1992) are linked to Organizational Identification The most often researched consequences are: intention to leave the organization, extra-role behavior, in-role and extra-role performance, and absenteeism (Riketta, 2005; Riketta and Van Dick 2005) Moreover, they also proposed that the consequences of identification should include support for the organization and social attraction to ingroup members These should be associated with increased willingness to remain within the organization It follows that turnover intention should be negatively related to Organizational Identification (Abrams, Ando, & Hinkle, 1998; Abrams, Frings & Randsley de Moura, 2005)

Since Organizational Identification is linked to positive group membership and support of organizational goals, employees with strong organizational identification are more likely to stay with the organization (e.g Scott, et al., 1999)

In other words, they have a lower intention to leave the organization (Van Dick et al., 2004; Van Dick, Wagner and Lemmer, 2004) Under the present thesis, Organizational Identification is hypothesized to be negatively associated with Turnover Intention

2.7 Perceived Organizational Support and Turnover Intention

According to Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchison, & Sowa (1986), Perceived Organizational Support reduces absenteeism It helps increase the employee‟s affective attachment to the organization It also raises his or her expectancy that the organization will reward them for their effort in achieving the organization‟s goals, which is called effort-outcome expectancy

By increasing effort-outcome expectancy and affective attachment, employee‟s beliefs in the organizational support have positive effect on work attendance and work performance (Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchison, and Sowa, 1986) In response to the positive treatment by the organization, the employees may feel obligated to work harder toward the organization‟s goals (Eisenberger, et al, 1986; Wayne, Shore, and Liden, 1997) This behavior becomes reciprocal as the organization will provide more support when the employee completes work in fulfillment of organizational goals (Shore & Shore, 1995) Those who identify high perceived organizational support are more likely to stay with the organization as they feel this as their obligation to work for the organization Therefore, it is hypothesized that Perceived Organizational Support has negative effect on turnover intention of employees

2.8 Protean Career Approach and Turnover Intention

It could be explained that the protean career concept describes a particular individual orientation to his or her career Clearly, not everyone has this orientation

to their career There are still some people who prefer having a long career in a particular organization and exert their best effort in achieving promotions, higher pay, and greater power However, individuals with protean orientation are more motivated by autonomy, personal values and psychological success (Hall, 1976) Protean careerists define career success in terms of psychological criteria with examples of job satisfaction, self-actualization, personal accomplishment and a feeling of fulfillment (Hall & Chandler, 2005; Hall &Mirvis, 1996) They, therefore, take charge of their career path rather than the organization

From Hall and his colleague‟s arguments, it can be concluded that protean careerists are more intrinsically motivated since they find opportunities to challenge themselves Individuals who have a more traditional career attitude tend

to be passive in managing their career while individuals with a protean career attitude take more active role in making their career choices and finding opportunities (Hall, 1976, 2002) Under the present research, it is hypothesized that Protean Careerists have higher intent to leave the organization

2.9 Organizational Commitment and Turnover Intention

According to Mowday, Porter and Steers (1982), the strongest or most predictable behavioral outcome of employee commitment should be reduced turnover Highly committed employees by definition are desirous of remaining within the organization and working toward organizational goals and should hence

be less likely to leave It is recommended by Mowday, Porter and Steers (1982) that

it is important to recognize the importance of organizational commitment, along with other variables in a comprehensive model of employee turnover

Meyer and Allen (1997) note that commitment is “a psychological state that (a) characterizes the employee‟s relationship with the organization, and (b) has implications for the decision to continue membership” (p.67) Meyer and Allen (1997) conclude that an employee with strong affective commitment feels emotional attachment to the organization and has greater motivation or desire to work for and contribute to the organization than an employee with weak emotional attachment Similarly, those with high continuance commitment stay with the organization because they are aware that the costs associated with leaving are too high Or an employee with strong normative commitment is tied to the organization resulting from the feelings of obligation and duty Such feelings will motivate employees to behave appropriately and do what is right for the organization From their argument, Organizational commitment is strongly related to employee turnover Committed employees are more likely to remain in the organization than uncommitted employees are Under the present study, Affective Commitment,

Continuance Commitment and Normative Commitment are negatively related to Turnover Intention

2.10 Organizational Identification and Organizational Commitment

Organizational Identification is described as „appropriation of and commitment to a particular identity or series of identities‟ (Foote, 1951, p 17) Brown (1969) and Lee (1971) all emphasize loyalty toward the organization as one

of the aspects of involvement in their definition of Organizational Identification In

1988, Moore defines Organizational Commitment as involving three attitudes: “(1)

a sense of identification with the organization‟s goals, (2) a feeling of involvement

in organizational duties, and (3) a feeling of loyalty to the organization” (as cited in Ivancevich et al., 2005, p.224) Dutton et al, (1994) view Organizational Identification as the linkage of employees‟ conceptual identification and the sense

of belonging to the organizations

Organizational Identification is a type of motivation (van Dick et al., 2004) for employees to act on behalf of the organization The more employees perceive a feature applicable to their organization‟s identity, the more they tend to work on the realization of that feature (van Rekom, van Nierop& van Beveren, 2006) When Organizational Identification is strong, employees align their individual interests and behaviors with interests and behaviors that benefit the organization (Dutton et al., 1994)

The above-mentioned discussion indicate the positive effect of Organizational Identification on Organizational Commitment Under the present research, it is proposed that higher Organizational Identification leads to higher Organizational Commitment

2.11 Perceived Organizational Support and Organizational Commitment

Perceived Organizational Support covers the degree to which employees feel that the organization is willing to fairly compensate them with the exchange of their efforts, help them when they make their work interesting and stimulating, and provide them with adequate working conditions (Aube, Rousseau and Morin, 2007)

Perceived Organizational Support has been also hypothesized to influence employees‟ general reactions to their job, including job satisfaction (Çakar and Yıldız, 2009), job involvement (George and Brief, 1992) organizational commitment (Eisenberger, Fasolo and Lamastro-Davis, 1990) and intention to leave (Guzzo, Noonan, and Elron, 1994) Organizational commitment is considered as one of the important consequences of Perceived Organizational Support Employees with high perceived organizational support feel indebted to respond favorably to the organization in the form of positive job attitudes and organizational behaviors and also support organizational goals (Loi, Hang-Yue and Foley, 2006) Howes, Citera, and Cropanzano (1995) find that Organizational Commitment is positively related

to Perceived Organizational Support

The relationship between Perceived Organizational Support and Organizational Commitment is commonly explained by reciprocity and social exchange Employees interpret organizational actions – such as praise, participation

in decision-making, or promotions – as evidence as support (Shore & Shore, 1995) The employee may then feel obligated to repay the organization by working harder

in support of the organization‟s goals (Eisenberger, et al., 1986; Wayne, Shore, and Liden, 1997) This behavior becomes reciprocal, as the organization will provide more support when the employee completes work in fulfillment of organizational goals (Shore & Shore, 1995) Employees feel an obligation that they not only ought

to be committed to their organizations, but also feel an obligation to return the organizations' commitment by showing behaviors that support organizational goals (Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchinson, and Sowa, 1986)

Under the present study, it is suggested that strong Perceived Organizational Support would lead to high Organizational Commitment

2.12 Protean Career Approach and Organizational Commitment

Baruch (2004) describes the protean career as: “a contract with oneself, rather than with the organization” since individuals “take responsibility for transforming their career path, in taking responsibility for their career” Individuals

must take active role to create career options that allow them to realize their personal career goals and ensure their employability (Hall & Moss, 1998) New career patterns are therefore emerged for an individual to capture the new changing nature of careers, which emphasizes self-direction and values-driven predispositions (Briscoe, Hall, & DeMuth, 2006) This approach is in basic contrast with traditional view in which career success is defined in terms of external criteria such as promotion, salary and occupational status

From the discussion above, it can be inferred that under Protean Career Approach, individuals make decision on their career path against their personal career goals, not under the effect of criteria given by the organization Since the attractive offer from the organization does not guarantee an obligation or commitment from individuals, those who have high protean career approach are less committed to the organization The more active individuals are, the less committed they are to the organization Under the present research, it is proposed that Protean Career Approach is negatively related to Organizational Commitment

2.13 Hypothesized research model

There are 3 independent variables namely Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach, one mediator i.e Organizational Commitment and one dependant variable i.e Turnover Intention in the present study The purpose of the study (as mentioned in Chapter 1) is to find out the relationship between independent variables and dependent variable Moreover, it is also analyzed to see to what extent Organizational Commitment mediates the relationships between independent and dependent variables

Drawn from the above-mentioned review of literature and argument, the hypothesized models under the present study are pictured as follows:

Figure 2-2: Hypothesized Research Model

(-) (-)

(-)

The hypotheses under the present research are as follows:

H1: Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support and Protean Career

Approach are significantly associated with Affective Commitment, Continuance Commitment and Normative Commitment

H2: Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career

Approach, Affective Commitment, Continuance Commitment and Normative

Commitment are significantly related to Turnover Intention

H3: Affective Commitment, Continuance Commitment and Normative Commitment mediates the Organizational Identification – Turnover Intention, Perceived Organizational Support – Turnover Intention and Protean Career

Approach - Turnover Intention relationships

SUMMARY FOR CHAPTER 2

Chapter 2 defines and discusses the various factors which are understood as the reasons or aspects that push individuals to their turnover intention From the literature researched, the author suggests the following factors for lecturer‟s

NORMATIVE COMMITMENT

CONTINUANCE COMMITMENT

AFFECTIVE COMMITMENT

(+)

(+) (+)

(+) (+)

(+)

(-) (-)

(-)

(-)

(-)

(-)

turnover intention: Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach, and the mediators Affective Commitment, Continuance Commitment, Normative Commitment Moreover, it should be once emphasized that Turnover Intention rather than Actual Turnover is chosen as the dependent variable for the present study for its distinctive advantages Finally, the hypothesized research models and hypotheses are introduced, which lay the ground the further analysis and tests in the forthcoming chapters

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This chapter will outline the methodology that is utilized for this chapter Special attention will be given to the survey, the population sample, the instrumentation, data analysis and data collection The goal of this study is to examine the level of Organizational Identification, Perceived Organizational Support, Protean Career Approach and Organizational Commitment of lecturers with particular attention given to the impact of these factors on their Turnover Intention and the mediation role of Organizational Commitment To accomplish this target, a survey which consists of several existing instruments was done in a careful manner to ensure the best result

3.1 Research design

The approach to research in this study was quantitative study as it was more efficient, less costly and it enabled the researcher to make inferences of a larger population by using a small number of the representative sample (Creswell, 2003) Moreover, it allowed the researcher to test hypotheses, related variables and use standards of validity and reliability of the current approach (Creswell, 2003)

The quantitative methodology applied in this study was a cross-sectional survey Since the total population of this study was very large, only a sample of the whole population was approached with the purpose to test the theoretical model and generalize from the sample to the population For both descriptive and explanatory purposes especially when several variables were simultaneously analyzed in this study, it is essential to have a large number of cases and a survey was most useful to make it feasible (Babbie, 1995), because surveys provide efficient and accurate means of assessing information, which is also quick and inexpensive (Zikmund, 2000) A survey is a quantitative methodology whereby a sample of subjects is drawn from a population and studied to make inferences about the population (Hussey & Hussey, 1997) Due to constraints of time and resources (four weeks for data collection and limited financial budget), the nature of the survey was not longitudinal but cross-sectional The data was collected just once over a short period

of time from different contexts of the population (Cooper & Schindler, 1998; Hussey & Hussey, 1997)

There were two main phases in the present study: pilot study (consisting of 2 sub-phases) and main study The pilot study sub-phase 1 refers to the pre-defined interview with a group of 5 target participants The study was carried out to check

up the content and meaning of words in the measurement scales The pilot study sub-phase 2 was conducted using face-to-face interview with a larger group of 40 target participants It was done to ensure the internal consistency and quality of response, which served as the background for modifying the measurement questions The main study was conducted using face-to-face survey The purposes were to confirm the measurement scales, to test the hypotheses and to confirm the research models

Figure 3-1: The research process

3.2 Questionnaire development

LITERATURE REVIEW

(Develop research model and hypothesis)

PILOT STUDY USING THE INITIAL

The final measurement scales

Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), Regression

To avoid confusion among the respondents, all measures in this study used a 7-point scale and most of them ranged from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree) Minor changes to questionnaire response formats do not affect their validity (Matell & Jacoby, 1971) and a magic seven number with a neutral position is suggested as an optimal choice (Cox III, 1980; Preston, 2000; Tang, Shaw, & Vevea, 1999)

3.2.1 Turnover Intention

As it is the main dependent variable in the present study, the questionnaire included five items measuring respondents‟ inclination to quit their job The first three of these items were adopted from Baruch and Winkelmann - Gleed (2002),and the other two were adopted from Shore and Martin (1989) The total five items were presented to the respondents as a series of statements to which they were asked to indicate the extent to which they agree/disagree along a seven-point Likert response scale

3.2.2 Organizational Identification

In this study, Mael and Ashforth‟s approach on identification was used as according to Riketta (2005; p 368) it “seems to be the most representative organizational identification measure with regard to its empirical outcomes” In Mael and Ashforth‟s approach, Organizational Identification was measured with the use of six-item scale (1992) It is said that the original Organizational Identification questionnaire developed by Cheney (1983) had more overlap with the affective organizational commitment while Mael and Ashworth‟s scale did not The items in their Organizational Identification Scale were defined as a construct that was distinguishable from organizational commitment Their scale was supported by many researchers (e.g., Elsbach, 1999; Iyer et al., 62 1997; Mael&Tetrick, 1992; Pratt, 1998; Riketta, 2005; van Knippenberg& van Schie, 2000)

3.2.3 Perceived Organizational Support

The original measurement scale of Perceived Organizational Support developed by Eisenberger, Huntington, Hutchison, and Sowa (1986) used the sum

of the scores of a 36-item instrument, of which half of the statements were positively worded and half were negatively worded A high total score indicates a high level of Perceived Organizational Support The instrument utilized in this study is a shortened version of the scale, which is made up of the 6 items from the original scale It is recommended by Rhoades and Eisenberger (2002) that “as the original scale is unidimensional and has high internal reliability, the use of shorter versions of the scale does not appear to be problematic” (p.699)

3.2.4 Protean Career Approach

Hall first introduced the term „protean career‟ in 1976 as a process in which employees manage their own career path and take responsibility for their career Individuals with a more protean orientation are less interested in organizational rewards and are more motivated by autonomy, personal values and psychological success Under the present study, the 7 statements of Briscoe and Hall‟s measurement scale (2006) was used to measure the level of Protean Career Approach of lecturers

3.2.5 Organizational Commitment

3.2.5.1 Affective Commitment Scale Items

Affective commitment refers to the employee‟s „emotional attachment to, identification with, and involvement in the organization‟ (Meyer & Allen, 1991) A person with high affective commitment belongs to an organization because they want to The 6-item Meyer & Allen‟s Scale for measuring affective commitment of lecturers was chosen for the present research

3.2.5.2 Continuance Commitment Scale Items

It is defined that continuance commitment refers to „an awareness of the costs associated with leaving the organization‟, such as loss of prestige, status, or monetary incentives (Meyer & Allen, 1991) An individual who has high levels of continuance commitment stay with an organization because they need to do so The

6 statements in the measurement scale developed by Meyer & Allen (1991) was used in the study to measure the level of Continuance Commitment