THE MEDIATING ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT ON ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION

Abstract

Loss or inefficient use of trained human resources can be as costly as obtaining new human resources for organizations. Consequently, the concepts of perceived organizational support, organizational identification, and organizational climate are important in terms of retaining and utilizing human resources efficiently. The purpose of this study is to examine the mediating role of organizational climate in the effect of perceived organizational support on organizational identification through social service workers. The sample consists of 528 employees working in organizations affiliated with Samsun Provincial Directorate of Family and Social Policies. The data was analyzed with exploratory factor analysis (EFA), construct validity of the scales was tested with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and positive goodness-of-fit results were obtained. According to the measurement model, structural equation model (SEM) was used to analyze the relationships. Correlation analysis was carried out to examine the relationships between the main and the sub-dimensions. Results indicate that perceived organizational support has a positive and significant effect on organizational identification by 36.2%, organizational support on organizational climate by 59%, and organizational climate on organizational identification by 38.1%. It was concluded that the level of organizational identification increases as perceived organizational support increases among social service workers. The mediation effect was analyzed with the bootstrap test based on calculating the value of the indirect effect as suggested by Darlington and Hayes (2017) and making inferences accordingly. The results of the analysis indicate that organizational climate plays a mediating role in the effect of perceived organizational support on organizational identification.