The Effect of Abusive Supervision on Workplace Incivility and Knowledge-Hiding: The Mediating Role of Psychological Contract Breach

This study was designed to examine the impact of abusive supervision on workplace incivility and knowledge-hiding behavior and to investigate the role of perceived psychological contract breaches in these relationships. Data was collected through a survey from 222 employees working in logistics companies operating in Istanbul, and the collected data were subjected to statistical analyses. The analysis results reveal that abusive supervision has a significant and positive effect on employees' workplace incivility. Similarly, the results indicate a positive relationship between abusive supervision and knowledge-hiding behavior. Additionally, the findings show that abusive supervision leads to the perception of psychological contract breaches among employees. However, although previous research has suggested that workplace incivility may lead to knowledge-hiding behavior, this relationship was not supported in the present study. The study also examined whether the perception of psychological contract breach plays a mediating role. Contrary to the hypotheses, it was concluded that the perception of psychological contract breach does not have any mediating effect on the relationship between abusive supervision and workplace incivility and knowledge-hiding behavior. One of the significant findings of the research is the identification of the mediating role of the perception of psychological contract breach in the effect of workplace incivility on knowledge-hiding behavior.