Exploring family supportive supervisor behaviours from a police perspective to ensure life satisfaction: an empirical investigation using importance-performance analysis

Abstract

PurposeThe primary aim of this research is to analyse the impact of family-supportive supervisor behaviours (FSSB) on the level of life satisfaction among individuals working in the police force. FSSB is informal support by supervisors, which is an emerging topic. Further, this study examines the intermediary role of career calling and job embeddedness in the association between supportive family behaviours of supervisors and life satisfaction. However, only limited studies have been conducted on how informal support by the supervisor performs for police personnel. This research aims to fill this gap.Design/methodology/approachFor the purpose of data collection from police personnel, we used a structured questionnaire. Variance-based partial least squares structural equational modelling (PLS-SEM) methodology was applied using SmartPLS software to investigate the conceptual model of the study. Additionally, using importance-performance map analysis (IMPA), we evaluate the importance and performance of each construct.FindingsThe data analysis findings indicate that job embeddedness and career calling function as complete mediating factors in the association between FSSB and life satisfaction. Additionally, the study revealed that career calling is the most performing construct for promoting life satisfaction but is not perceived as important by the police department.Originality/valueAccording to the authors’ knowledge, there has been no research in the Indian context that examines the effects of supervisor family supportive behaviours, especially among police. The incorporation of career calling and job embeddedness as mediators provides a novel perspective in the examination of the correlation between FSSB and life satisfaction.