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When More is More: Do Non-Restricted Goals Benefit Employers and the Environment Too?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 November 2022

Adelaida Patrasc-Lungu Open the ORCID record for Adelaida Patrasc-Lungu [Opens in a new window]  and
Dragoș Iliescu Open the ORCID record for Dragoș Iliescu [Opens in a new window]
Adelaida Patrasc-Lungu*
Affiliation:
Universitatea din București (Romania)
Dragoș Iliescu
Affiliation:
Universitatea din București (Romania) Universiteit Stellenbosch (South Africa)
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Adelaida Patrasc-Lungu. Universitatea din București. Laboratorul de Evaluare și Diferențe Individuale, Departamentul de Psihologie și Științe Cognitive. Șoseaua Panduri, Nr. 90. 050663 Bucureşti (Romania). E-mail: adelaida.patrasc.lungu@drd.unibuc.ro.
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Abstract

Prior research on goal self-concordance (GSC) and goal attainment (GA) has studied these dimensions as transversal sections through a person’s life domains. Blending the recent developments in self-determination theory and pro-environmental behavior literature, the current study introduced the concept of non-restricted goals and explored whether work climate (WCQ) and environmental identity (EID) impact GA and, through it, in-role job performance (IRB), organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) and wellbeing, as well as organizational citizenship behaviors for the environment (OCBE). It also explored GSC along with basic psychological needs’ satisfaction (BPNS) and GA, as explanatory mechanisms. The study relied on data collected at two different moments in time, with a retained sample of 201 employees from different organizations. Results confirmed that WCQ and EID are relevant antecedents for IRB, OCB and wellbeing, as well as OCBE. Except for the direct relationship between EID and OCB/OCBE, most of these impacts were indirect, through BPNS, GSC or GA. The current study did not find a significant relationship between GSC and GA, adding to the line of mixed results regarding their relationship. The findings inform pro-environmental interventions in the workplace, as well as human resource management practices that foster employee wellbeing, work-life balance, and job performance.

Keywords

goalsself-determination theoryorganizational citizenship behaviorsperformancewellbeing
Type
Review Article
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 25 , 2022 , e29
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Colegio Oficial de la Psicología de Madrid

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Footnotes

Funding Statement: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

Conflicts of Interest: None.

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