Sleeping with a broken promise: The moderating role of generativity concerns in the relationship between psychological contract breach and insomnia among older workers

• Author: Valerie Caines,Prashant Bordia,Simon Lloyd D. Restubog,Patrick Raymund James M. Garcia
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/job.2222
• Date: 01 March 2018
• Published date: 01 March 2018

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Sleeping with a broken promise: The moderating role of

generativity concerns in the relationship between psychological

contract breach and insomnia among older workers

Patrick Raymund James M. Garcia

1

|Prashant Bordia

2

|Simon Lloyd D. Restubog

2

|

Valerie Caines

2,3

1

Centre for Sustainable HRM and Wellbeing,

Peter Faber Business School, Australian

Catholic University, Melbourne, Australia

2

Research School of Management, The

Australian National University, Canberra,

Australia

3

Flinders Business, Flinders University,

Adelaide, Australia

Correspondence

Patrick Raymund James M. Garcia, Centre for

Sustainable HRM and Wellbeing, Peter Faber

Business School, Australian Catholic

University, Level 7, 250 Victoria Parade, East

Melbourne, VIC 3002, Australia.

Email: patrick.garcia@acu.edu.au

Funding information

Australian Research Council, Grant/Award

Number: DP1096037

Summary

This paper examines the relationship between psychological contract breach and insomnia among

older workers (aged 40 years and up). Drawing upon the conservation of resources theory, we

conceptualize breach as a stressful event characterized by a perceived threat, failure to gain, or

actual loss of valued resources, which increases psychological distress and insomnia. Moreover,

we hypothesized that older workers' generativity concerns would act as a personal resource that

would buffer the negative impact of breach. We tested our proposed model in 2 studies (Study

1 = 123; Study 2 = 168) of employee–spouse dyads. Results revealed that psychological distress

mediated the relationship between psychological contract breach and insomnia. These mediated

relationships were significant for those with low, but not for those with high levels of generativity

concerns. These effects remained significant even after controlling for perceived organizational

support (i.e., a social exchange mechanism). Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

KEYWORDS

conservation ofresources, generativity, older workers, psychological contracts

1|INTRODUCTION

The population is aging at an unprecedented rate around the world.

In the United States, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts

that by the end of 2022 one third of U.S. workers will be 55 years

old and above, compared with 27.6% in 2002 (Toossi, 2013). The

same trends are seen in developing countries such as the Philippines.

In 2010, older people made up 6.5% of the total population. This is

expected to increase to 11.5% by the year 2030 (Help Age Interna-

tional, 2014). It is anticipated that older individuals will comprise two

billion of the world's population by 2050, more than double from

841 million in 2013 (United Nations, Department of Economic and

Social Affairs, & Population Division, 2013).

An aging population also means an aging workforce, and organiza-

tions can view it as an opportunity for competitive advantage instead

of a hindrance. For instance, encouraging older workers to continue

labor participation helps address labor shortages given that there are

fewer younger workers able to replace them (Jackson, Walter,

Felmingham, & Spinaze, 2006). More importantly, organizations can

capitalize on the strengths of older workers such as their heightened

level of knowledge, skill, and experience, which has accumulated over

years of employment (Posthuma & Campion, 2008). Despite these

benefits, most organizations are ill‐prepared to effectively retain and

manage older workers. Indeed, a study by the Society for Human

Resource Management revealed that only 4% of 1,715 organizations

surveyed reported having created specific strategies and policies in

response to an aging workforce (Society for Human Resource Manage-

ment, 2014). Retaining older workers necessitates an understanding of

their values, beliefs, and needs. More importantly, it includes consider-

ing how older workers perceive and make sense of the employment

relationship (Bal, De Lange, Jansen, & Van Der Velde, 2013; Ng &

Feldman, 2009). An important construct that captures the nature of

employee–employer relationships is the psychological contract.

Psychological contracts are mental models that constitute the

terms and exchange agreements between the employee and the

employing organization (Rousseau, 1995). These are further charac-

terized as perceived obligations of reciprocity, which may include

promises made by the organization (such as, job security,

Received: 30 August 2015 Revised: 27 July 2017 Accepted: 1 August 2017

DOI: 10.1002/job.2222

326 Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. J Organ Behav. 2018;39:326–338.wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/job