Abstract:
The study's objective was to examine the nature of the relationship between work
alienation and perceived overqualification. Specifically, it examined two dimensions
of psychological contracts, i.e., relational and transactional, as potential mediators
between perceived overqualification and work alienation. Additionally, the
moderating impact of empowered leadership on the two mediating effects mentioned
above was also examined in this study.
Employees of government-run projects were given a self-administered questionnaire
as part of a survey (N=232). To determine the validity of the measurement scales,
Cronbach's alpha was used. Regression analysis was performed using two models:
model 8 of the Process macro for moderated mediation and, linear regression without
any moderators or mediators.
The analyses produced mixed findings, suggesting that the relational psychological
contract mediates the association between work alienation and perceived
overqualification to some extent; while no mediation was found for the transactional
psychological contract. Positive results were reported for the direct correlation
between perceived overqualification and work alienation. Empowering leadership
moderated this relationship such that when leaders empower the overqualified
employees, work alienation mitigates. Moderated mediation was found for one
indirect path via relational psychological contract and non-existent for the
transactional psychological contract. These findings highlight the significance of
recruiting empowered leaders in order to minimize the undesirable effects of
overqualification among employees and imply that the negative effects of perceived
overqualification on work alienation are avoidable by promoting long-term
commitments.
In order to keep a skilled workforce, managers and organizations should enable the
workers to develop a stronger attachment to their profession. Potential tactics include
(i) leaders empowering their subordinates, (ii) developing high-quality relationships,
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and (iii) providing peace of mind by fostering relational psychological contracts, e.g.,
by offering them long-term contracts
