Integrating the Bright and Dark Sides of Corporate Volunteering Climate: Is Corporate Volunteering Climate a Burden or Boost to Employees?

Abstract

Conventional wisdom is that a corporate volunteering climate should be beneficial to employees. We challenge this perspective by integrating person–environment fit and conservation of resources theories and providing an integrative model that examines how and when corporate volunteering climate produces positive and negative consequences for employees. Using a two‐wave time‐lagged study of 283 employees in 42 companies, our multilevel model shows that positive emotions mediate the relationship between corporate volunteering climate and work engagement, and perceived role overload mediates the relationship between corporate volunteering climate and work–family conflict. Employees’ communal orientation moderates the positive relationship between corporate volunteering climate and positive emotions, whereas competitive orientation moderates the positive relationship between corporate volunteering climate and perceived role overload. Communal orientation moderates the indirect effect between corporate volunteering climate and work engagement via positive emotions, but competitive orientation moderates the indirect effect between corporate volunteering climate and work–family conflict via perceived role overload. Our study provides balanced insights to help understand the benefits and costs of corporate volunteering climate in work and non‐work domains.