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Psychological contracts
Keith Jackson
SOAS, University of London / IFAVF, Stuttgart
London School of English 2013
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Questions for todays workshop
What is a psychological contract?
How relevant are psychological contracts to international
organisations / employers today?
How relevant are psychological contracts to you in your
experience & expectation of a professional career?
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Contracts
Have you signed anemployment contract?
If yes, why?
If no, why not?
Do you have a written contract
with the London School?
How often do you / employeesgenerally tend to look atcontracts?
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The psychological contract
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Defining the psychological contract
Individual beliefs, shaped by the organization, regarding terms of an
exchange agreement between the individual and their
organization
Source: Rousseau, D. M. (1995) Psychological Contracts in Organisations:
Understanding the Written and Unwritten Agreements
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Context: systems theory
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The psychological contract as a system
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Input: expectations
Which expectations did you bring to your current job, and why?
Which expectations did you bring to your studies at the London
School, and why?
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Context: national culture
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Psychological contracts: the influence of cultures
Individual beliefs shaped by the
organization
= socialisation / expectations?
regarding terms of an exchangeagreement
= transaction / deal?
between the individual and their
organization
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The psychological contract: focus on the linkages (causality)
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Process: experiencing psychological contracts
What is the nature of the deal between you and your organisation / the
London School?
To what extent do you trust your organisation / the London School?(Give practical examples)
To what extent do you believe your organisation / the London School
trusts you? (Give practical examples)
To what extent do you believe your organisation / the London Schooltreats you fairly? (Give practical examples)
Overall, and on a score out of ten, how healthy do you consider yourcontract with your current employer to be?
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Context: globalisation
challenging established perceptions & expectations
redefining boundaries of organisations & teams
redefining boundaries of business decision-making
reducing space & time for strategic decision-making
increasing risks associated with strategic decision-making
increasing opportunities to interact with geographically spreadbusiness partners (strangers)
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Consequences: intention to stay / quit
Why did you leave your previous job?
What could the organisation have done differently in order to
retain you, and why?
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Contract stability: loyalty
A child must first learn filial piety(xiao)
Then brotherly love (di)
Then extend love beyond the family
to others (ren)
In your behaviour, set a moralexample to others.
Practise empathy (shu): 'never do toanother what you do not desireyourself'
Source: Confucius,Analects(15:24, 12:2)
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Perceived contract breach: trust
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Psychological contracts: a Shanghai Chinese perspective
The idea of the psychologicalcontract has come as an entirelynew concept learned from Westernhuman resource management; itwas perceived from the start asforeign, and interacted in largely
negative ways with ways the mutualtrust-based relationships native toChinese culture.
Source: Si, S. X., Feng, W. & Li W. (2009)The effect of organizational psychologicalcontract violation on managers' exit, voice,
loyalty and neglect in the Chinese context
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Process: experiencing psychological contracts
Cause:
What promises did your current employer explicitly / implicitly make toyou during
i) the recruitment process
ii) the selection process?
iii) the induction process?
Process:
To what extent do you believe your employer has fulfilled these
promises? (Give practical examples)
To what extent do you believe your organisation / the London Schooltrusts you? (Give practical examples)
Overall, and on a score out of ten, how healthy do you consider your
contract with your current employer to be?
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Contact
Dr Keith Jackson
Email: [email protected]