The interactive effect of collectivism and organizational rewards on affective organizational commitment

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop an interactionist framework for examining how the cultural dimension of collectivism interacts with workplace attributes to influence organizational commitment. Design/methodology/approach – These issues are studied by using a longitudinal survey to examine the development of affective organizational commitment by a racially diverse set of young professionals in the USA. Findings – Consistent with predictions, results showed a significant two‐way interaction between the cultural dimension of collectivism and organizational rewards on employees’ commitment. Research limitations/implications – These results suggest that research may benefit from the development of theory that simultaneously considers the role that workplace attributes and cultural values play in shaping organizational commitment. Practical implications – The findings of this study suggest that organizations may increase existing employees’ commitment by strategically managing the types of rewards they provide to employees with different cultural values. Originality/value – While an extensive amount of research has been conducted on affective organizational commitment, the question of whether employees’ cultural values influence commitment formation is still largely unanswered. Thus, this study provides initial evidence on the interactive effect of culture and rewards on the formation of employee commitment.