I-deals, Work Ability and Turnover Intention: Toward Greater Understanding of Disability Type

Numerous studies provided evidence for the potentially positive effect of idiosyncratic deals (i-deals) on employee attitudes, yet little is known about how they might affect important work outcomes for employees with disabilities, a marginalized and understudied group. The present study builds on conservation of resources theory to examine how increased flexibility through i-deals might increase perceived work ability among employees with disabilities, and in turn, reduce turnover intention. Further, this study is among the first to investigate the potentially moderating influence of disability type by comparing the experiences of employees with psychological versus physical disabilities. We then test our hypotheses using field data from 1,115 employees with disabilities working for a large German service organization. Results confirm an indirect effect of i-deals on turnover intention through enhanced work ability perceptions. Further, relative to employees with physical disabilities, perceived enhancem...