Working to help or helping to work? Work-overload and allocentrism as predictors of organizational citizenship behaviours

AbstractWe tested the prediction that work-overload has differing relationships with organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) depending on who primarily benefits from such behaviour and the extent to which individuals are allocentric. The study builds on the job demand control model and research suggesting that although work-overload and OCBs seem unrelated, the relationship likely depends on other factors. We conceptualise these factors to be those that pressure individuals to engage in OCB. Tenured faculty (n = 300) from Sri Lanka completed measures administered in their primary language. Results indicated greater work-overload is associated with lower OCBI but higher OCBO and that allocentrism moderates the overload-OCBI relationship. Implications to employee wellbeing and OCB conceptualizations are discussed.