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Commitment, Quits, and Work Organization in Japanese and U.S. Plants

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  • James R. Lincoln
  • Arne L. Kalleberg

Abstract

This comparative analysis, using early 1980s data from management interviews, employee questionnaire surveys, and personnel office employment records in 41 manufacturing plants in Japan and 45 in the United States, explores how employee commitment to the firm is shaped by organizational structure, employment practice, and other attributes of factories. The authors investigate both behavioral and attitudinal dimensions of commitment, measured respectively by quit records and survey responses. The results for both dimensions generally support the model of “welfare corporatism†as a commitment-maximizing organizational form in Japanese and American industrial capitalism. Qualifying that conclusion, however, are several noteworthy differences between the countries: unionization, formal work rules, and on-the-job training, for example, appear to have negative effects on the commitment of U.S. workers that are absent in Japan.

Suggested Citation

  • James R. Lincoln & Arne L. Kalleberg, 1996. "Commitment, Quits, and Work Organization in Japanese and U.S. Plants," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 50(1), pages 39-59, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ilrrev:v:50:y:1996:i:1:p:39-59
    DOI: 10.1177/001979399605000103
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Richard B. Freeman, 1980. "The Exit-Voice Tradeoff in the Labor Market: Unionism, Job Tenure, Quits, and Separations," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 94(4), pages 643-673.
    2. Lazear, Edward P, 1979. "Why Is There Mandatory Retirement?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 87(6), pages 1261-1284, December.
    3. Richard B. Freeman, 1980. "The Exit-Voice Tradeoff in the Labor Market: Unionism, Job Tenure, Quits," NBER Working Papers 0242, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Jacob Mincer & Yoshio Higuchi, 1987. "Wage Structures and Labor Turnover in the U.S. and in Japan," NBER Working Papers 2306, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. George A. Akerlof & Andrew K. Rose & Janet L. Yellen, 1988. "Job Switching and Job Satisfaction in the U.S. Labor Market," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 19(2), pages 495-594.
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    Cited by:

    1. Andrew E. Clark, 2011. "The Organisational Commitment of Workers in OECD Countries," management revue. Socio-economic Studies, Rainer Hampp Verlag, vol. 22(1), pages 8-27.
    2. Joseph M. Ng’ang’a & Dishon Wanjere & Robert K.W. Egessa, 2015. "Influence of Technical Training on Organizational Performance of Sugar Industry in the South Nyanza Zone of Kenya," International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, Human Resource Management Academic Research Society, International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, vol. 5(9), pages 106-124, September.
    3. Victor Y. Haines III & Patrice Jalette & Karine Larose, 2010. "The Influence of Human Resource Management Practices on Employee Voluntary Turnover Rates in the Canadian Non Governmental Sector," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 63(2), pages 228-246, January.
    4. Rosemary Batt & Alexander J.S. Colvin & Jeffrey Keefe, 2002. "Employee Voice, Human Resource Practices, and Quit Rates: Evidence from the Telecommunications Industry," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 55(4), pages 573-594, July.

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