Measuring Guanxi Quality in the Workplace

Chen, MiaoHua; Bedford, Olwen

doi:10.1007/s10869-021-09762-3

Cited by 9 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…However, our findings did not support the moderated mediation effect, which suggests that other plausible intervening variables may exist. For example, guanxi , a type of norms of interaction grounded in the Chinese Confucian ethical system, profoundly influences Chinese employees’ behavior ( Chen and Bedford, 2022 ). For Chinese employees, establishment and maintenance of relationships with their supervisors are not limited to work, but also occur in a large amounts of non-work-related social activities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A cross-level study of the relationship between ethical leadership and employee constructive deviance: Effects of moral self-efficacy and psychological safety climate

Shang

Yang

2022

Front. Psychol.

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Constructive deviance describes acts that benefit the organization by deviating from outdated organizational norms. Despite emerging interest in this behavior, questions remain about why and how constructive deviance occurs. This paper integrates social learning and uncertainty reduction theories, and develops a multilevel model linking team-level ethical leadership to employee constructive deviance. Surveying 313 subordinates and 52 supervisors from 15 different companies in eastern China, we find that team-level ethical leadership has a positive impact on employee constructive deviance, and that both psychological safety climate and employee moral self-efficacy partially mediate this relationship. In addition, we find a positive cross-level moderating effect of psychological safety climate. These findings contribute to understanding employees’ constructive deviance in the workplace, and provide valuable implications for managerial practices.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A cross-level study of the relationship between ethical leadership and employee constructive deviance: Effects of moral self-efficacy and psychological safety climate

Shang

Yang

2022

Front. Psychol.

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“…In the current investigation, the construct of Guanxi was assessed through the Guanxi Quality Scale (GQS), a psychometrically robust 15-item instrument specifically designed to evaluate the quality of Guanxi relationships within the workplace ( Chen and Bedford, 2022 ). The scale encompasses three dimensions: Ganqing, Renqing, and Xinren, each represented by five items.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of Guanxi in fostering adaptability and work engagement among educators in international educational institutions

Li,

2024

Front. Psychol.

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The present study delves into the intricate relationships between individual adaptability, various dimensions of Guanxi—Ganqing, Renqing, and Xinren—and work engagement among educators working in international educational institutions across major cities in China. Guanxi refers to complex system of social networks and influential relationships that facilitate business and other dealings. Ganqing, Renqing, and Xinren represents distinct but interconnected dimensions. Ganqing refers to the emotional bonding or personal affection that is developed within a Guanxi relationship. Renqing can be understood as the norm of reciprocity or the social obligation to respond to another’s needs and to maintain the balance of give and take in relationships. Finally, Xinren: This dimension represents trust and credibility in Guanxi relationships. Employing online data collection via the Qualtrics platform, the study investigates the impact of individual adaptability on work engagement, particularly examining the mediating roles of different Guanxi dimensions. Utilizing Hayes’ Process Model 80 for mediation analysis, our findings demonstrate a statistically significant direct effect of individual adaptability on work engagement, thus supporting Hypothesis 1 (H1). The analysis reveals that this relationship is partially mediated by other variables within our model. Significantly, the study highlights the nuanced roles of the Guanxi dimensions of Ganqing, Renqing, and Xinren in this context. Both Ganqing and Renqing were found to amplify the effect of individual adaptability on work engagement, confirming Hypotheses 2a and 2b. However, while Xinren increased the effect size, it did not significantly mediate the relationship between individual adaptability and work engagement, leading to the rejection of Hypothesis 2c. Furthermore, our research provides new insights into the interplay between these Guanxi dimensions. Specifically, Ganqing and Renqing significantly influenced Xinren, which in turn impacted work engagement, thereby supporting Hypotheses 3a and 3b. This mediated chain model suggests a more complex interaction between these factors than previously understood. Our analysis also reveals the differential impacts of these Guanxi dimensions. Notably, Ganqing exhibited a greater influence on work engagement compared to Renqing and Xinren. This finding underscores the critical role of affective bonds in social ties and their importance in enhancing work engagement. These results, robust across statistical metrics including R, R-squared, MSE, F, and p-values, are detailed in our results section and illustrated in Figure 3. The study contributes to the understanding of how individual adaptability and various Guanxi dimensions interact to influence work engagement, offering valuable insights for both academic research and practical application in organizational settings. These findings are contextualized within Confucian values and the ongoing internationalization of education. The study thus advances the theoretical discourse while offering practical recommendations for educators and institutional policies. Limitations and future research directions are also elaborated.

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“…Especially in the context of Chinese culture, which emphasizes "guanxi" (Chen and Bedford, 2021) and conflict avoidance (Peng and Tjosvold, 2011), individuals will silently deliver more retaliation to organizations since it can avoid direct interpersonal conflicts.…”

Section: Workplace Ostracism and Counterproductive Work Behaviormentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Based on the psychological contract theory, we suggest that when individuals face workplace ostracism, they will have negative reciprocal psychology toward organizations. Especially in the context of Chinese culture, which emphasizes “guanxi” (Chen and Bedford, 2021) and conflict avoidance (Peng and Tjosvold, 2011), individuals will silently deliver more retaliation to organizations since it can avoid direct interpersonal conflicts.…”

Section: Literature Review and Hypotheses Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Employees’ self-esteem in psychological contract: workplace ostracism and counterproductive behavior

Liu

Muskat

et al. 2023

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Purpose Counterproductive work behavior (CWB) has grown into a significant problem in the tourism industry, for both individual employees and organizations. Employees who feel ostracized in their workplace often engage in negative and disruptive behaviors. The purpose of this study is to explore the psychological mechanism between workplace ostracism and CWB among tourism employees. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on psychological contract theory and social cognitive theory, the study proposed a research framework to explain tourism employees’ counterproductive behavior. Data were collected from 228 hotel employees at two time points in Huangshan, China. Hierarchical regression and SPSS-PROCESS Macro were used to test all the hypotheses. Findings Findings show that workplace ostracism significantly increases employee CWB, mediated by psychological contract violation. Workplace ostracism increases perceptions of psychological contract violation when employee self-esteem is higher. The mediating effect of psychological contract violation is also moderated by self-esteem. Originality/value Using the framework of psychological contract theory and social cognitive theory, the authors advance the organizational behavior literature in the tourism field. The authors contextualize the uniqueness of Chinese workplace behavior and highlight the need to understand “losing face (mianzi) view” in workplace relationships. This research contributes to better understanding the dark side of tourism workplace behavior by examining the effects of psychological contract violation and employee’s self-esteem on workplace ostracism and CWB.

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Measuring Guanxi Quality in the Workplace

Cited by 9 publications

References 66 publications

A cross-level study of the relationship between ethical leadership and employee constructive deviance: Effects of moral self-efficacy and psychological safety climate

A cross-level study of the relationship between ethical leadership and employee constructive deviance: Effects of moral self-efficacy and psychological safety climate

The role of Guanxi in fostering adaptability and work engagement among educators in international educational institutions

Employees’ self-esteem in psychological contract: workplace ostracism and counterproductive behavior

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