Social capital, person-organization fit and cynicism: a multi-stage mediation model of turnover intention in public organizations

PurposeThe informal dimension of organizational experience can shape performance-relevant employee behavior, including voluntary turnover. The authors develop a multi-stage model of turnover intention relevant to public organizations based on the quality of informal intra-organizational employee ties. Specifically, the authors argue that organizational social capital reduces turnover intention both directly and indirectly via its influence on person-organization fit, organizational cynicism and job satisfaction.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use data from a survey of 946 Korean public sector employees and partial least squares structural equation modeling to test our hypotheses. A number of checks are performed to evaluate the integrity of the data and probe the robustness of the results.FindingsThe authors find that there is a significant link between organizational social capital and turnover intention, but that this relationship is fully mediated by the specified intervening processes. Social capital is associated with increased P-O fit, increased job satisfaction and reduced cynicism. In turn, P-O fit reduces turnover intention both directly and indirectly via increased job satisfaction and reduced cynicism.Originality/valueWhile a number of studies demonstrate the value of organizational social capital, the current study works through the theoretical mechanisms by which social capital is transformed into valued organizational outputs. Some of these are specifically relevant to public organizations. The authors describe the model's practical relevance and suggest research questions that can build upon our findings. The authors also note the study's limitations.