The stress-reducing effect of coworker support on turnover intentions: Moderation by political ineptness and despotic leadership

Abstract

Grounded in conservation of resources theory, this study investigates the mediating role of job stress in the relationship between coworker support and employees’ turnover intentions, as well as the moderating roles of political ineptness and despotic leadership in this process. Time-lagged data collected from employees in Pakistan reveal that an important reason coworker support diminishes turnover intentions is the lower stress that employees experience while undertaking their job tasks. This influence of stress reduction is particularly salient to the extent that employees are equipped with less political skill and, contrary to expectations, are less exposed to despotic leadership. For organizations, this study accordingly pinpoints a key mechanism by which coworker support can diminish the tendency to leave the organization (stress containment), and it reveals that this mechanism varies according to both personal and leadership factors.