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When corporate social responsibility motivates employee citizenship behavior: The sensitizing role of task significance

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  • Ong, Madeline
  • Mayer, David M.
  • Tost, Leigh P.
  • Wellman, Ned

Abstract

Scholars have proposed that organizations’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts are often positively associated with employees’ organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) and have invoked identity-based mechanisms to explain this relationship. Complementing these perspectives, we develop a CSR sensitivity framework that explains how task significance, a micro-level job characteristic, can sensitize employees to their organizations’ macro-level CSR efforts, thereby strengthening the association between CSR and OCB. Across three field studies, we find that CSR and task significance interact to predict OCB, such that an organization’s CSR is more positively associated with OCB among employees who report higher task significance than among those who report lower task significance. Furthermore, we find support for prosocial motivation as a mediator of this interactive effect, but we do not find evidence for several alternative mediators. We discuss the implications of our findings for the literatures on CSR, job design, and other-oriented approaches to organizational behavior.

Suggested Citation

  • Ong, Madeline & Mayer, David M. & Tost, Leigh P. & Wellman, Ned, 2018. "When corporate social responsibility motivates employee citizenship behavior: The sensitizing role of task significance," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 44-59.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jobhdp:v:144:y:2018:i:c:p:44-59
    DOI: 10.1016/j.obhdp.2017.09.006
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    3. Damnjanović, Milena, 2019. "Investing in Employees in Serbian Companies – Internal Dimension of CSR," Proceedings of the ENTRENOVA - ENTerprise REsearch InNOVAtion Conference (2019), Rovinj, Croatia, in: Proceedings of the ENTRENOVA - ENTerprise REsearch InNOVAtion Conference, Rovinj, Croatia, 12-14 September 2019, pages 441-448, IRENET - Society for Advancing Innovation and Research in Economy, Zagreb.
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    6. Changqin Yin & Yajun Zhang & Lu Lu, 2021. "Employee-Oriented CSR and Unethical Pro-Organizational Behavior: The Role of Perceived Insider Status and Ethical Climate Rules," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-16, June.
    7. Guosen Miao & Guoping Chen & Fan Wang & Anupam Kumar Das, 2023. "The Effect of Corporate Greenwashing on Employees’ Environmental Performance: Person–Organization Values Fit Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-19, February.
    8. Bilal Afsar & Waheed Ali Umrani, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility and pro‐environmental behavior at workplace: The role of moral reflectiveness, coworker advocacy, and environmental commitment," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(1), pages 109-125, January.
    9. María Del Mar Alonso‐Almeida & Josep Llach, 2019. "Socially responsible companies: Are they the best workplace for millennials? A cross‐national analysis," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(1), pages 238-247, January.
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    11. Hafiz Yasir Ali & Muhammad Asrar‐ul‐Haq & Shaheera Amin & Sadaf Noor & Muhammad Haris‐ul‐Mahasbi & Muhammad Kashif Aslam, 2020. "Corporate social responsibility and employee performance: The mediating role of employee engagement in the manufacturing sector of Pakistan," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(6), pages 2908-2919, November.
    12. Yiying Qu & Zhenting Xu & Hong Sun & Qingsheng Li, 2022. "The Effect of Self-Sacrificial Leadership on Employees’ Organisational Citizenship Behaviour for the Environment: A Moderated Mediation Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-15, June.
    13. Hardin, Ashley E. & Bauman, Christopher W. & Mayer, David M., 2020. "Show me the … family: How photos of meaningful relationships reduce unethical behavior at work," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 93-108.
    14. Ivan Montiel & Peter Jack Gallo & Raquel Antolin-Lopez, 2020. "What on Earth Should Managers Learn About Corporate Sustainability? A Threshold Concept Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 162(4), pages 857-880, April.
    15. DonHee Lee, 2020. "Impact of organizational culture and capabilities on employee commitment to ethical behavior in the healthcare sector," Service Business, Springer;Pan-Pacific Business Association, vol. 14(1), pages 47-72, March.
    16. Khaled Alshihabat & Tarik Atan, 2020. "The Mediating Effect of Organizational Citizenship Behavior in the Relationship between Transformational Leadership and Corporate Social Responsibility Practices: Middle Eastern Example/Jordan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-17, May.
    17. Kum-Sik Oh & Juyeon Rachel Han & So Ra Park, 2021. "The Influence of Hotel Employees’ Perception of CSR on Organizational Commitment: The Moderating Role of Job Level," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-16, November.
    18. Babu, Nishat & De Roeck, Kenneth & Raineri, Nicolas, 2020. "Hypocritical organizations: Implications for employee social responsibility," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 376-384.
    19. Inyong Shin & Won‐Moo Hur, 2020. "How are service employees' perceptions of corporate social responsibility related to their performance? Prosocial motivation and emotional labor as underlying mechanisms," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(6), pages 2867-2878, November.
    20. Joana S. P. Story & Filipa Castanheira, 2019. "Corporate social responsibility and employee performance: Mediation role of job satisfaction and affective commitment," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(6), pages 1361-1370, November.
    21. Wenwen Zhao & Zhe Zhang, 2020. "How and When Does Corporate Giving Lead to Getting? An Investigation of the Relationship Between Corporate Philanthropy and Relative Competitive Performance from a Micro-process Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 166(2), pages 425-440, October.

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