Abstract
Psychological ownership is a cognitive–affective construct based on individuals’ feelings of possessiveness towards and of being psychologically tied/attached to objects that are material (e.g. tools or work) and immaterial (e.g. ideas or workspace) in nature. Research suggests that psychological ownership could be influenced by various individual, organisational and contextual factors. The South African Employment Equity Act, which was implemented to grant equitable opportunities to previously disadvantaged employees, could be a significant contextual factor affecting psychological ownership, due to perceptions associated with inequality. Ethnicity may also act as a moderator for the relationship between perceptions of employment equity and psychological ownership. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between employment equity perceptions and psychological ownership and to explore whether ethnicity plays a moderating role in the relationship. A cross-sectional survey design was employed with a purposeful sample of 202 respondents employed in a large South African mining house. Pearson product–moment correlations and structural equation modelling confirmed that employment equity perceptions could predict the five components of psychological ownership. However, the results revealed that ethnicity has no moderating effect on the relationship between perceptions of employment equity and the emergence of psychological ownership. By implication, organisations that seek to retain employees targeted through equity initiatives need to find ways to enhance and develop the psychological ownership of these employees. The research contributes new insights into and knowledge of how contextual factors could influence employees’ psychological ownership.
Highlights
Research on psychological ownership in organisations has increased over the last decade (Olckers 2013)
Based on the literature review and problem statement, the objective of the present study is to investigate the relationships between perceptions of employment equity and psychological ownership in a large South African mining house
If an organisation drives the implementation of legislative frameworks, such as the Employment Equity Act 1998, in order to increase the diversification of the workforce, it could impact the way in which employees relate to one another and to the organisation (Olckers 2014)
Summary
Research on psychological ownership in organisations has increased over the last decade (Olckers 2013). Psychological ownership refers to the psychological experience of an employee when he/she develops possessive feelings for and attachment to a variety of objects in the organisation (Pierce et al 2001, 2003). In South Africa, a significant contextual factor in the form of government legislation is the Employment Equity Act. The Employment Equity Act (Act No 55 of 1998) was implemented in South Africa to achieve equitable opportunities for previously disadvantaged employees in order to rectify past injustices. Research shows that individuals of various ethnic groups in South Africa have mixed feelings towards the implementation of the Act (Booysen 2007; Booysen and Nkomo 2014; Holtzhausen 2008). Ethnicity could significantly impact on the relationship between perceptions associated with employment equity and psychological ownership
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