Loyal employees in difficult settings: the compounding effects of inter-professional dysfunction and employee loyalty on job tension

Abstract

Purpose Employee loyalty is generally a very positive trait. However, when loyal employees are confronted with dysfunctionality in the workplace the impact on their well-being can be significant. The purpose of this paper is to assess the interaction of employee loyalty and employee experience of inter-professional dysfunction in a hospital setting to predict employee job tension. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on the analysis of a cross-sectional attitudinal survey of employees within a hospital setting in Australia. The authors use OLS regression and an SPSS macro (by Hayes, 2013) to assess the regions of significance of the interaction effects. Findings The authors find, as anticipated, significant direct effects for employee loyalty and inter-professional dysfunction on employee job stress. The authors further find significant interaction effects that suggest that highly loyal employees who experience inter-professional dysfunction also experience disproportionately high levels of job tension. Research limitations/implications The main research implication of this research relates to the confirmation of the presence of an interaction effect between loyalty and inter-professional dysfunction in predicting employee job stress. Further, the zone of significance analysis (following Johnson and Neyman) suggests that this effect is evident at even low levels of inter-professional dysfunction. Practical implications Organisations should appreciate employee loyalty but should also be aware that loyal employees are more vulnerable to the negative consequences of organisational dysfunction than are employees with limited organisational loyalty. Social implications The paper confirms the importance of managing organisational cooperation between groups in organisations as a precursor to positive employee outcomes. Originality/value This is the first paper to investigate this interaction and to apply Johnson-Neyman analysis to confirm the regions of significance for the interaction effects noted.