Community and organizational commitment: Understanding the effects of organizational investments on worker behavior

Abstract

This study explores the interaction between community commitment and organizational commitment, as well as the relations between those commitments, organizational investments in both community and workers, and worker proactive behavior. These issues are examined using a multi-organizational sample of employees from communities of two different sizes and in two different countries. Results demonstrate the parallel and interactive effects of commitment to community and to the employing organization, with organizational commitment also mediating the relationships between organizational investments and worker organizational proactive behavior. Our findings contribute to the literature by providing additional evidence for the target-neutral view of commitment and highlighting the importance of examining the interplay between work and non-work commitments. Practical implications include the importance of managing workers’ multiple commitments, not just commitment to the employing organization, to facilitate desired outcomes such as proactive behavior, as well as the efficacy of organizations investing in workers and in the community.