Agreement between employees and employers on the psychological contract : antecedents and consequences

Abstract

Empirical research on psychological contracts between employees and employers have suggested that the two parties often have diverging expectations to the employment relationship, resulting in negative consequences for both parties. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of communication on agreement between employees and employers regarding the psychological contract, as well as attitudinal and behavioural consequences of agreement. The sample consisted of 98 pairs of employees and supervisors, representing a wide range of private and public organizations in different sectors in Norway. Data were analyzed in pairs, in order to directly compare employees’ and employers’ perspectives. Paired-samples t-tests, multiple regression analyses, and polynomial regression analyses were applied. Employees and supervisors agreed on employee contributions, employer expectations and employee expectations, but not on employer inducements. One or more of the communication measures predicted agreement on at least one psychological contract dimension. This study failed to support the hypotheses that agreement on the psychological contract would be related to performance, civic virtue behaviour, job satisfaction and intention to quit. However, main effects of employees’ and supervisors’ perspectives were significant. The findings of this study have implications for researchers, establishing communication as an antecedent to agreement on the psychological contract, as well as broader knowledge concerning agreement. The findings also have implications for managers, as it demonstrates the positive effects of communication regarding mutual expectations and contributions in order to achieve agreement on the psychological contract.