Source Title:
Open Psychology
|
Volume/Issue:
Volume 1: Issue 1

Committed to change? Human resource management practices and attitudes towards organizational change

Sabine Raeder 1  and Mariya V. Bokova 2
  • 1 University of Oslo, , Oslo, Norway
  • 2 Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1515/psych-2018-0022
|
Published online:
11 Nov 2019
PDF

Abstract

Organizations rely on human resource management (HRM) practices to steer organizational change, but little is known about the effects of HRM practices on employees’ attitudes towards change. This study aims to investigate the relationship between employees’ perception of HRM practices and their commitment to change. The sample comprised 221 employees of a public organization after it underwent an organizational change. Data were analyzed through structural equation modeling, considering HRM practices as individual predictors or as a second-order factor of aligned HRM practices. The results indicate that the model with individual HRM practices achieved a superior fit, but only two practices – communication and autonomy – were related to affective commitment to change. The model with a second-order factor of aligned HRM practices showed a clear positive relationship with affective and normative commitment to change, and a clear negative relationship with continuance commitment to change. Investing in HRM practices to support an ongoing change helps organizations to convince employees of the necessity and value of the change. This study provides empirical evidence that HRM practices are important for supporting employees’ commitment to change and encouraging their positive behavior towards change.

If the inline PDF is not rendering correctly, you can download the PDF file here.

  • Alfes, K., Truss, C., & Gill, J. (2010). The HR manager as change agent: Evidence from the public sector. Journal of Change Management, 10, 109-127. doi:10.1080/14697010903549465

  • Antila, E. M. (2006). The role of HR managers in international mergers and acquisitions: A multiple case study. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 17, 999-1020. doi:10.1080/09585190600693322

  • Armenakis, A. A., Harris, S. G., & Feild, H. S. (1999). Making change permanent. A model for institutionalizing change interventions. Research in Organizational Change and Development, 12, 97-128. doi:10.1016/S0897-3016(99)12005-6

  • Becker, T. E. (2005). Potential problems in the statistical control of variables in organizational research: A qualitative analysis with recommendations. Organizational Research Methods, 8, 274-289. doi:10.1177/1094428105278021

  • Bouckenooghe, D. (2012). The role of organizational politics, contextual resources, and formal communication on change recipients’ commitment to change: A multilevel study. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 21, 575-602. doi:10.1080/1359432X.2011.591573

  • Bouckenooghe, D., Schwarz, G. M., & Minbashian, A. (2015). Herscovitch and Meyer’s three-component model of commitment to change: Meta-analytic findings. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 24, 578-595. doi:10.1080/1359432X.2014.963059

  • Brayfield, A. H., & Rothe, H. F. (1951). An index of job satisfaction. Journal of Applied Psychology, 35, 307-311. doi:10.1037/h0055617

  • Caldwell, R. (2001). Champions, adapters, consultants and synergists: The new change agents in HRM. Human Resource Management Journal, 11, 39-52. doi:10.1111/j.1748-8583.2001.tb00044.x

  • Clinton, M., & Guest, D. E. (2013). Testing universalistic and contingency HRM assumptions across job levels. Personnel Review, 42, 529-551. doi:10.1108/PR-07-2011-0109

  • Cole, M. S., Bruch, H., & Vogel, B. (2006). Emotion as mediators of the relations between perceived supervisor support and psychological hardiness on employee cynicism. Journal of Organizational Behaviour, 27, 463-484. doi:10.1002/job.381

  • Conway, E., & Monks, K. (2008). HR practices and commitment to change: An employee-level analysis. Human Resource Management Journal, 18, 72-89. doi:10.1111/j.1748-8583.2007.00059.x

  • Delery, J. E., & Doty, D. H. (1996). Modes of theorizing in strategic human resource management: Tests of universalistic, contingency, and configurational performance predictors. Academy of Management Journal, 39, 802-835. doi:10.2307/256713

  • Edmondson, A. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44, 350-383. doi:10.2307/2666999

  • Fugate, M. (2012). The impact of leadership, management, and HRM on employee reactions to organizational change. Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management, 31, 181-212. doi:10.1108/S0742-7301(2012)0000031007

  • Giauque, D. (2014). Attitudes toward organizational change among public middle managers. Public Personnel Management 44, 70-98. doi:10.1177/0091026014556512

  • Giauque, D., Resenterra, F., & Siggen, M. (2010). The relationship between HRM practices and organizational commitment of knowledge workers. Facts obtained from Swiss SMEs. Human Resource Development International, 13, 185-205. doi:10.1080/13678861003703716

  • Herscovitch, L., & Meyer, J. P. (2002). Commitment to organizational change: extension of a three-component model. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 474-487. doi:10.1037//0021-9010.87.3.474

  • Hill, N. S., Seo, M.-G., Kang, J. H., & Taylor, M. S. (2012). Building employee commitment to change across organizational levels: The influence of hierarchical distance and direct managers’ transformational leadership. Organization Science, 23, 758-777. doi:10.1287/orsc.1110.0662

  • Hirst, G., Mann, L., Bain, P., Pirola-Merlo, A., & Richvera, A. (2004). Learning to lead: the development and testing of a model of leadership learning. The Leadership Quarterly, 15, 311-327. doi:10.1016/j.leaqua.2004.02.011

  • Hox, J. (2010). Multilevel analysis. Techniques and applications (2nd ed.). New York: Routledge.

  • Jackson, S. E., Schuler, R. S., & Jiang, K. (2014). An aspirational framework for strategic human resource management. The Academy of Management Annals, 8, 1-56. doi:10.1080/19416520.2014.872335

  • Jackson, S. E., & Seo, J. (2010). The greening of strategic HRM scholarship. Organization Management Journal, 7, 278-290. doi:10.1057/omj.2010.37

  • Jaros, S. (2010). Commitment to organizational change: A critical review. Journal of Change Management, 10, 79-108. doi:10.1080/14697010903549457

  • Jiang, K., Lepak, D. P., Hu, J., & Baer, J. C. (2012). How does human resource management influence organizational outcomes? A meta-analytic investigation of mediating mechanisms. Academy of Management ]ournal, 55, 1264-1294. doi:10.5465/amj.2011.0088

  • Kinnie, N., Hutchinson, S., Purcell, J., Rayton, B., & Swart, J. (2005). Satisfaction with HR practices and commitment to the organisation: why one size does not fit all. Human Resource Management Journal, 15, 9-29. doi:10.1111/j.1748-8583.2005.tb00293.x

  • Lepak, D. P., & Shaw, J. D. (2008). Strategic HRM in North America: looking to the future. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 19, 1486-1499. doi:10.1080/09585190802200272

  • MacKinnon, D. P., Krull, J. L., & Lockwood, C. M. (2000). Equivalence of the mediation, confounding and suppression effect. Prevention Science, 1, 173-181. doi:10.1023/A:1026595011371

  • Maheshwari, S., & Vohra, V. (2015). Identifying critical HR practices impacting employee perception and commitment during organizational change. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 28, 872-894. doi:10.1108/JOCM-03-2014-0066

  • Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (2012). Mplus user’s guide (Vol. 7th). Los Angeles, CA: Muthen & Muthen.

  • Neves, P. (2011). Building commitment to change: The role of perceived supervisor support and competence. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 20, 437-450. doi:10.1080/13594321003630089

  • Oreg, S., Vakola, M., & Armenakis, A. (2011). Change recipients’ reactions to organizational change: A 60-year review of quantitative studies. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 47, 461–524. doi:10.1177/0021886310396550

  • Parish, J. T., Cadwallader, S., & Busch, P. (2008). Want to, need to, ought to: Employee commitment to organizational change. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 21, 32-52. doi:10.1108/09534810810847020

  • Purcell, J., & Hutchinson, S. (2007). Front-line managers as agents in the HRM-performance causal chain: theory, analysis and evidence. Human Resource Management Journal, 3-20. doi:10.1111/j.1748-8583.2007.00022.x

  • Rogiest, S., Segers, J., & Witteloostuijn, A. v. (2015). Climate, communication and participation impacting commitment to change. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 28, 1094-1106. doi:10.1108/JOCM-06-2015-0101

  • Schermelleh-Engel, K., Moosbrugger, H., & Müller, H. (2003). Evaluating the fit of structural equation models: tests of significance and descriptive goodness-of-fit measures. Methods of Psychological Research Online, 8, 23-74. doi:10.1.1.509.4258

  • Seo, M.-G., Taylor, M. S., Hill, N. S., Zhang, X., Tesluk, P. E., & Lorinkova, N. M. (2012). The role of affect and leadership during organizational change. Personnel Psychology, 65, 121-165. doi:10.1111/j.1744-6570.2011.01240.x

  • Shin, J., Seo, M.-G., Shapiro, D. L., & Taylor, M. S. (2015). Maintaining employees’ commitment to organizational change: The role of leaders’ informational justice and transformational leadership. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 51, 501–528. doi:10.1177/0021886315603123

  • Tomas, J. M., & Oliver, A. (1999). Rosenberg’s self-esteem scale: Two factors or method effects. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6, 84-98. doi:10.1080/10705519909540120

  • Vandenberg, R. J., Richardson, H. A., & Eastman, L. J. (1999). The impact of high involvement work processes on organizational effectiveness : A second-order latent variable approach. Group & Organization Management, 24, 300-339. doi:10.1177/1059601199243004

  • Whelan-Berry, K. S., & Somerville, K. A. (2010). Linking Change Drivers and the Organizational Change Process: A Review and Synthesis. Journal of Change Management, 10, 175-193. doi:10.1080/14697011003795651

OPEN ACCESS

Journal + Issues

Open Psychology

Online ISSN:
2543-8883
First published:
15 Dec 2017
Language:
English
Publisher:
De Gruyter

Search