The effect of psychological ownership on organisational commitment

Abstract

Many scholars have extended the theory of psychological ownership as it relates to employee behaviour in organisations, although only a handful of studies have examined the components of psychological ownership that impact an organisation. This study aims to verify the relationship between psychological ownership and organisational commitment, while scrutinising the main factors (constructs) in psychological ownership affecting organisational commitment. This study used survey responses collected from 349 staff members at a state-owned Thai telecommunications enterprise, the results from which indicated that only a ‘sense of belonging’ and ‘work responsibility’ significantly influenced organisational commitment. As such, organisations should provide a working environment in which employees feel they have a sense of autonomy and freedom of choice in their job. Furthermore, senior executives should be transparent and accountable for their actions, so that their behaviour can filter down throughout the organisation and be used as an example for other employees. Such practices can increase high levels of involvement and participation, ultimately leading to the creation of psychological ownership perspectives in an organisation.