Does personality affect the individual's perceptions of organizational justice? The mediating role of organizational politics

Abstract

PurposeThe personality of an individual plays a vital role in the way an individual perceives organizational politics and justice in the workplace. However, there is meager research on how an individual's personality affects the perceptions of organizational politics and justice. This study endeavors to fill this gap by analyzing the mediating role of organizational politics perceptions on the relationship between Big Five personality dimensions and organizational justice by controlling various demographic variables. The study also proposes a benchmarking model that the policymakers can use to create positive organizational justice perceptions.Design/methodology/approachIn this cross-sectional research, the data were collected through a multi-stage random sampling technique from 493 faculty members working in four public universities of Punjab, India. Out of 493 employees, 76.9% of the employees were assistant professors, 12.0% were associate professors and 11.2% were assistant professors. 51.5% of the employees were female, and 48.5% of the employees were male. To test the proposed hypothesized relationships, a structural equation modeling technique was used.FindingsResults of the structural equation modeling showed that openness to experience, conscientiousness and extraversion have a negative relationship with perceptions of organizational politics. However, their relationship with perceptions of organizational justice is positive. Neuroticism has a positive relationship with perceptions of organizational politics, whereas it has a negative relationship with perceptions of organizational justice. Results also showed that high perceptions of organizational politics have a negative effect on employee's perceptions regarding organizational justice. The mediation analysis results showed that perceptions of organizational politics mediate the relationship between an individual's personality and perceptions of organizational justice.Originality/valueThere is a scant amount of research available that considers Big Five personality dimensions and organizational politics as the antecedents of organizational justice. Hence, the current study tries to fill this research gap by proposing a research model on antecedents and consequences of perceptions of organizational politics based on the cognitive-affective processing system (CAPS).

Team leader survival syndrome, tenure and management styles towards professional subordinates on construction megaprojects; sustainability and corporate governance

“…Santhanam and Srinivas (2020) studied impact of employee engagement and happiness on burnout and turnover and concluded that disengaged employees are at higher risk of burnout and are more likely to leave organisations. Aggarwal et al (2022) studied organisational justice and concluded positive effect of perceived Team leader survival syndrome, governance procedural justice, perceived distributive justice and perceived organisational support on employee engagement. Kumar et al (2022) studied effect of employees' mindfulness on voluntary pro-environment behaviours at the workplace and concluded positive influence.…”

The paradoxical effect of perceived organizational politics on employees motivation: the mediation role of hostility and moderating role of organizational injustice

“…Moreover, the COR theory suggests that humans are motivated to acquire, foster, retain and protect valuable resources (Aggarwal et al, 2021;Karatepe, 2013). Therefore, it is probable that organizational factors (such as span of control, a delegation of authority and centralization) and individual factors (such as psychological strain, low satisfaction and burnout) influence people to develop negative perceptions (Ferris et al, 2017).…”

“…Furthermore, previous studies relate affective states such as pride and happiness with procedural justice (Khattak et al ., 2019). Thus, it is logical to relate psychological strain such as anger with procedural injustice (Keskin et al ., 2016; Aggarwal et al ., 2021). For instance, when coworkers complain about their colleagues' behavior to their leaders, and leaders decide without allowing them to express their opinion (Meisler et al ., 2019; Clercq et al ., 2021), it tends to engender employee hostility.…”

“…Organizational politics always perceived and interpreted negatively because it is considered self-interested and manipulative human behavior. Scholars argue that organizational politics is a subjective phenomenon because people react to a certain point or situation according to their perception of reality, not reality itself (Ferris et al, 2017;Aggarwal et al, 2021). However, the employees engage in political activities to endorse their self-interest while accomplishing their job duties.…”

“…Motivation is crucial for the organization and its employees in terms of effectiveness, as the employees may never exert maximum effort into their routine tasks without motivation. Moreover, organizational politics may also develop perceptions of power imbalance (Aggarwal et al, 2021), and employees may experience negative emotions, which ultimately reduces their motivation. The employees may encounter undesirable hostile behavior when their fundamental needs are denied (for instance, employers allocate resources and rewards based on favoritism), which provokes them toward deviant behaviors (Mayer et al, 2012).…”