Antecedents of psychological ownership among family hotel employees

Abstract

PurposeThis paper examines the mediating process of enhancing employees' psychological ownership among family hotel employees.Design/methodology/approachA total of 1,005 employees from 197 budget-to-three-star family hotels took part in the study by completing an either self-reported or interviewer questionnaire. The respondents were selected using a convenient sampling technique. A partial least square structural equation was used to analyse the data.FindingsWork engagement and organisational performance were shown to significantly predict psychological ownership, except for counterproductive work behaviour. Both counterproductive work behaviour and organisational performance were found to predict psychological ownership. Finally, the relationship between (1) counterproductive work behaviour and psychological ownership and (2) organisational performance and psychological ownership is mediated by work engagement.Practical implicationsReplication of this model in different countries and other work settings is highly recommended for cross validating the reported findings in this study. The study emphasises the need for family hotel owners to create a conducive work environment devoid of conditions that promote counterproductive work behaviour among employees and encourage them to engage in higher productivity.Originality/valueThis study appears to be one of the first to have investigated a model linking counterproductive work behaviour, performance to psychological ownership through work engagement in the family hotel context.