Prosocial response to client-instigated victimization: the roles of forgiveness and workgroup conflict

Booth, Jonathan E. ORCID: 0000-0002-8563-4613, Park, Tae-Youn, Zhu, Luke (Lei), Beauregard, T. Alexandra ORCID: 0000-0002-9348-9110, Gu, Fan and Emery, Cécile (2018) Prosocial response to client-instigated victimization: the roles of forgiveness and workgroup conflict. Journal of Applied Psychology, 103 (5). 513 - 536. ISSN 0021-9010

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Abstract

We investigate forgiveness as a human service employee coping response to client-instigated victimizations and further explore the role of workgroup conflict in (a) facilitating this response, and (b) influencing the relationship between victimization and workplace outcomes. Using the theoretical lens of Conservation of Resources (Hobfoll, 1989), we propose that employees forgive clients—especially in the context of low workgroup conflict. From low to moderate levels of client-instigated victimization, we suggest that victimization and forgiveness are positively related; however, this positive relationship does not prevail when individuals confront egregious levels of victimization (i.e., an inverted-U shape). This curvilinear relationship holds under low but not under high workgroup conflict. Extending this model to workplace outcomes, findings also demonstrate that the indirect effects of victimization on job satisfaction, burnout, and turnover intentions are mediated by forgiveness when workgroup conflict is low. Experiment- and field-based studies provide evidence for the theoretical model.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	http://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/apl/
Additional Information:	© 2018 American Psychological Association
Divisions:	Management
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform H Social Sciences > HT Communities. Classes. Races
Date Deposited:	17 Nov 2017 12:27
Last Modified:	23 Nov 2024 04:33
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/85632

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