The way you make me feel” Exploring the relationship between LMX and Job Insecurity

Abstract

Previous research has identified different antecedents that lead to job insecurity, such as organizational climate, type of employment, locus of control (Keim et al., 2014), self-esteem and role ambiguity (Shoss, 2017). Although research on high-quality leader–member exchange (LMX) has demonstrated many beneficial effects, to our knowledge no research has to this date examined the extent to which high-quality LMX might attenuate the perceptions of felt job insecurity. Therefore, the current study investigates LMX as an antecedent to job insecurity. Furthermore, we examine the buffering impact of psychological contract breach (PCB), interactional justice (IJ), and self-efficacy (SE) on the relationship between LMX and job insecurity (JI). The hypotheses were tested using survey data collected from 252 employees working in a Norwegian retail company. As predicted, job insecurity was related to LMX relationships. Hence, the quality of the dyadic relationship between leader and employee has a significant impact on the extent to perceived job insecurity. In addition, psychological contract acted as a mediating variable in the relationship between LMX and job insecurity. Interactional justice and selfefficacy however, had no mediating effect on the relationship. Practical implications for leadership behavior and developing high-quality LMX are discussed in light of today's pervasive job insecurity.