Investigating Individual Difference Among Workplace Incivility and its Organizational Outcomes in the Chinese Context

Authors

Yuejia Chen, Florida International UniversityFollow

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Major/Program

Adult Education and Human Resource Development

First Advisor's Name

Thomas G. Reio, Jr.

First Advisor's Committee Title

committee chair

Second Advisor's Name

James Burns

Second Advisor's Committee Title

committee member

Third Advisor's Name

Mido Chang

Third Advisor's Committee Title

committee member

Fourth Advisor's Name

Andy Pham

Fourth Advisor's Committee Title

committee member

Keywords

Big Five model, Job performance, Turnover intention, Workplace incivility, Coping

Date of Defense

6-29-2021

Abstract

The prevalence of workplace incivility is on the rise. As a workplace stressor, workplace incivility is linked with detrimental outcomes for both individuals and organizations, such as increased intention to turnover, reduced job performance, and job dissatisfaction. The current study gains fresh insights about how targets of incivility interpret and respond to this uncivil behavior as an occupational stressor.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between targets’ perceptions of workplace incivility and its organizational outcomes (i.e., job performance and turnover intention), as moderated by personality traits (i.e., neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness) in the context of China. Moderation analyses were conducted to test the possible moderating role of personality on the relationship between targets’ perceptions of workplace incivility and its organizational outcomes (i.e., job performance and turnover intention); and additionally, mediation analyses were performed on complete models above with active coping and disengagement coping as mediators (N =370). Findings suggest there is a significant and negative relationship between workplace incivility and job performance after controlling for each separate personality trait (i.e., agreeableness, neuroticism, conscientiousness, and extraversion); and there is a significant and positive relationship between workplace incivility and turnover intention after controlling for three of the aforementioned personality traits (agreeableness, neuroticism, and conscientiousness), but not extraversion. Only conscientiousness moderated the relationship between perceived workplace incivility and job performance. Further, the data did not provide evidence that any of the personality traits moderate the relationship between perceived workplace incivility and turnover intention. Additionally, findings suggest full mediation for the effects of incivility on the job performance-in role behavior domain through the mediator of active coping. Furthermore, the relationship between workplace incivility and the job performance – organizational citizenship behaviors directed at the organization domain was partially mediated by active coping. Lastly, the relationship between workplace incivility and turnover intention was partially mediated by disengagement coping. Future research was proposed to test the models examined in this study in different settings, with more moderators and mediators involved. The practical findings suggest that HRD professionals should provide effective trainings to reduce the frequencies of incivility.

Identifier

FIDC010217

Recommended Citation

Chen, Yuejia, "Investigating Individual Difference Among Workplace Incivility and its Organizational Outcomes in the Chinese Context" (2021). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 4752.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/4752