Psychological Contract

Bibliographic Data

ID23587366
AuthorsNeil Conway (0000-0003-4064-3484, University of London, corresponding author)
Year2015
Pages1-4
Publication date2015-01-21
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeCHAPTER
VenueWiley Encyclopedia of Management (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/9781118785317.weom050099
OpenAlexW4235845375
ISBN9781118785317
LanguageEN
References cited14

The psychological contract is regarded as a major construct for understanding employee well‐being and behavior. It has been defined as an individual's beliefs, shaped by the organization, regarding terms of an exchange agreement between the individual and their organization. Research on the psychological contract has grown exponentially in the last 20 years and it has also received considerable practitioner interest. Psychological contract breach is the most important idea within psychological contract theory in terms of explaining employee well‐being, attitudes, and behavior. Researchers have, however, documented wide‐ranging critiques and challenges to the psychological contract. While there has been some impressive empirical support for the psychological contract, the components of the psychological contract concept are disputed and methods typically used to examine psychological contracts are limited, casting doubt over the value of the evidence base and how psychological contracts should be managed. Nevertheless, none of the critics recommend abandoning the psychological contract and the challenges can be viewed as opening up a rich research agenda for future studies.

Business · Construct (python library) · Contract management · Psychological contract · Psychological research · Value (mathematics) · Customer Service Quality and Loyalty · Job Satisfaction and Organizational Behavior · Marketing · Psychology · Social Psychology