Supporting refugee employees’ psychological needs at work: the role of HRM practices

Abstract

In the face of an increasingly pressing refugee crisis, understanding how organizations’ human resource management (HRM) support practices are perceived by refugee workers is critical not only for refugee well-being but also organizational effectiveness. Grounded on self-determination theory (SDT), the current study contributes to this understanding by 1) testing refugee workers’ perceptions of HRM support practices as helpful or needs-satisfying—in terms of fulfilling autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs, and 2) exploring the mechanisms—why refugees find the practices needs satisfying. We surveyed both refugee (n = 99) and non-refugee workers (n = 345) in the U.S. The findings highlighted that, compared to non-refugees, refugee workers tend to view autonomy practices as especially helpful. Moreover, some of the need differences were mediated by refugees’ higher work centrality. We conclude with a discussion of the theoretical and practical implications of how future HRM can support refugee well-being.