Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
Psychological Contracts in Local Government (Conclusion (public managers…
Psychological Contracts in Local Government
aim to increase worker commitment and alignment with the needs of the
organization
Managers remain responsible for
maintaining and improving the attractiveness and productivity of public
sectoremplo yment, and psychological contracts=access
=informal agreements,
increase worker productivity
further increase motivation
prevent the ultimate deterioration of working relationships to a
crunch point
= a microlevel phenomenon
for enhancing role
clarity, balance of expectations and obligations, performance targets, and
reduced ambiguity
covers work productivity and quality, relations and
communications with supervisors and coworkers, absenteeism, familywork
issues (e.g. child and elder care), training, and so forth
misconception
= a macro meaning,
complementary relationship to the formal, legally binding framework of employment agreements, rules, and regulations within which managers and workers operate
= unenforceable because they are informal and often unwritten
:unamused:downsizing, restructuring of work, and new technology
method:
survey to 50,000, answered 36.7%
93.5% (or 186), indicated that they understand
this definition
not answered: reveals no evidence
of nonresponse bias
limitations
for managers and employees
some ambiguity is unavoidable
examined a suggestive, but not exhaustive set of correlates and consequences
results:
57.3% build pc with eplee:
call pc: informal consent, informal performance
plan, guiding principles, understanding of expectations or goals, senior managers believe the use of psychological contracts is fairly common
reflect the lack of standard and commonly used terminology
senior managers believe the use of psychological contracts is fairly common
66.7% of respondents who
agree or strongly agree that managers are trying to build a productive organizational
culture also state that most supervisors establish psychological
contracts with employees
Content and Process of Psychological Contracts
surprising findings of this research is
that clarification of supervisory expectations is not always common
new employees would be well advised to inquire
about supervisory expectations.
Consequences and Correlates of Psychological Contracts
greatest benefits: respondents report benefits of (a) improved understanding and agreement
on employees’ and managers’ responsibilities (40.7% of responses) and (b)
increased communication and improved relationship (32.1%).
47.8% of respondents who agree or strongly agree that
theircity rewards passionate commitment to accomplishment also state
that most managers use psychological contracts, compared to 32.8% of cities in which most managers do not use psychological
contracts
people are encouraged to “take on rather than avoid new
challenges” are 55.3% and 35.7%
employee initiative is associated with increased use of psychological contracts
Conclusion
public managers are not tapping the full
potential of psychological contracts
more top down than bottom up
more on transactional factors (workload, work schedules, superior/subordinate relations)
more often in cities with supportive organizational cultures
pc=very useful
The joining-up process (involving
recruitment, selection, and orientation) is especially important
suggestn:
Providing realistic job previews to new recruits,
explaining verbal and written promises and acceptable behavior in detail, as
well as clarifying the employees’ and employers’ role/job and performance
expectations can minimize misunderstandings
Expected outcomes (e.g.,
pay, office size) and processes (e.g., employee empowerment, shared decision
making) require clarification.