Equity Sensitivity as a Shield: Understanding Job Performance in the Face of Psychological Contract Breaches Among Indonesian Lecturers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15503/jecs2025.2.287.309Keywords:
higher education, human resources, education policy, organisational behaviour, equity sensitivityAbstract
Aim. This study examines how equity sensitivity moderates the relationship between psychological contract breach and job performance among Indonesian lecturers, with particular attention to demographic and institutional factors. It also investigates the impact of psychological contract dynamics on job performance in higher education.
Methods. A cross-sectional survey of 155 Indonesian lecturers was analyzed using SmartPLS 4.0 for structural equation modelling. The model incorporated five control variables: age, tenure, gender, institution type, and education. Psychological contract breach, job performance, and equity sensitivity were measured using validated scales.
Results. The results reveal equity sensitivity has a strong positive effect on job performance (β = 0.448, p < 0.001). Psychological contract breach shows an insignificant impact (β = 0.114, p = 0.160). Age positively influences job performance (β = 0.206, p = 0.048), and lecturers at public universities perform better than those at private institutions (β = -0.299, p = 0.025). Gender, education, and tenure do not significantly affect job performance. These results emphasize the equity sensitivity’s role and institutional factors in shaping job performance.
Conclusion. The study suggests that psychological contract breach does not always hinder job performance, especially in Indonesia’s collectivist culture. Equity sensitivity plays a key role in sustaining performance despite unmet expectations. Universities should focus on fairness, resource allocation, and support systems to enhance lecturer performance.
Research restrictions. The cross-sectional design restricts causal interpretation, warranting future longitudinal studies.
Cognitive value. This is the first study to examine equity sensitivity’s moderating role in Indonesian higher education, providing new insights into psychological contracts and individual differences in non-Western academic settings.
Downloads
References
AB, R., Sitanggang, N., & Lubis, M. (2023). Problems of higher education, curriculum and education in Indonesia. International Journal of Humanities Education and Social Sciences (IJHESS), 2(4), 1124-1132. https://doi.org/10.55227/ijhess.v2i4.344
Abedin, N. F. Z., Musa, A. H., Idris, A. R., Selamat, S. M., Baharuddin, F. N., & Antara, P. M. (2023). Exploring gender and faculty disparity in academic performance at UiTM Seremban Campus. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 13(11), 6-12. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v13-i11/19145
Abord de Chatillon, E., Bornard, F., Ottmann, J.-Y., & Felio, C. (2023). Losing faith in paid employment: An extension of the psychological contract breach model as a predictor of self-employment. Journal of Management Development, 42(7/8), 529–547. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMD-10-2022-0257
Allen, D., & Halkias, D. (2020). Millennial employees, psychological contract breach, cultural differences and turnover intentions in the construction industry: An integrative literature review. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3709408
Arshad, R., Mat Isa, R., & Abdullah, N. L. (2017). Pemenuhan kontrak psikologi dan perkongsian pengetahuan: Peranan kepercayaan, timbal balas dan iklim kolaboratif sebagai pengantara [Fulfillment of psychological contracts and knowledge sharing: The role of trust, reciprocity, and collaborative climate as mediators]. Jurnal Pengurusan, 51, 3—10. https://doi.org/10.17576/pengurusan-2018-51-01
Bankins, S. (2015). A process perspective on psychological contract change: Making sense of, and repairing, psychological contract breach and violation through employee coping actions. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36(8), 1071–1095. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2007
Beaulieu, E., Montpetit, C., & Cousineau, L. (2021). Gender disparities in academic performance in the sciences [Special issue]. The FASEB Journal, 35(S1). https://doi.org/10.1096/fasebj.2021.35.S1.00434
Blau, P. M. (1964). Justice in social exchange. Sociological Inquiry, 34(2), 193–206. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-682X.1964.tb00583.x
Campbell, J. K., & Yen, S. H. (2014). Workplace spirituality and organisational commitment influence on job performance among academic staff. Jurnal Pengurusan, 40, 115—123. http://dx.doi.org/10.17576/pengurusan-2014-40-10
Cao, L., Zhu, J., & Liu, H. (2023). Research performance, academic promotion, and gender disparities: Analysis of data on agricultural economists in Chinese higher education. Agricultural Economics, 54(2), 307–326. https://doi.org/10.1111/agec.12752
Chhajer, R., & Dutta, T. (2021). Gratitude as a mechanism to form high-quality connections at work: Impact on job performance. International Journal of Indian Culture and Business Management, 22(1). https://doi.org/10.1504/IJICBM.2021.112613
Coyle-Shapiro, J. A.-M. (2002). A psychological contract perspective on organisational citizenship behavior. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 23(8), 927–946. Business Source Premier. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/job.173
Dechawatanapaisal, D. (2022). Do broken promises matter? The effects of psychological contract breach on job embeddedness and nurses’ work attitudes. International Journal of Workplace Health Management, 15(4), 515–533. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJWHM-07-2021-0143
Furnham, A., & Horne, G. (2022). Cover ups and conspiracy theories: Demographics, work disenchantment, equity sensitivity, and beliefs in cover-ups. Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 38(1), 19–25. https://doi.org/10.5093/jwop2022a2
Gulzar, S., Hussain, K., Akhlaq, A., Abbas, Z., & Ghauri, S. (2024). Exploring the psychological contract breach of nurses in healthcare: An exploratory study. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration, 16(1), 204–230. https://doi.org/10.1108/APJBA-03-2021-0102
Huseman, R. C., Hatfield, J. D., & Miles, E. W. (1985). Test for individual perceptions of job equity: Some preliminary findings. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 61(3_suppl), 1055–1064. https://doi.org/10.2466/pms.1985.61.3f.1055
Jayaweera, A. T., Bal, M., Chudzikowski, K., & de Jong, S. (2021). Moderating effects of national culture on the psychological contract breach and outcome relationship: A meta-analysis. Cross Cultural & Strategic Management, 28(3), 574–599. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCSM-07-2020-0137
Kadarisman, M. (2017). Tantangan perguruan tinggi dalam era persaingan global [The challenges of higher education in the era of global competition]. Sociae Polites, 3–20. https://doi.org/10.33541/sp.v1i1.459
King, W. C., Miles, E. W., & Day, D. D. (1993). A test and refinement of the equity sensitivity construct. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 14(4), 301–317. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.4030140403
Ladeira, F., Faustino, P., Soares, M., & Carvalho, V. (2024). Gender disparities in the academic performance of neurology residents in Portugal. Acta Medica Portuguesa, 37(9), 634–637. https://doi.org/10.20344/amp.21637
Lambey, L., Karamoy, H., Lambey, R., & Kalangi, L. (2019). Exploring psychological contract breach of Indonesian academics. In I. Noormansyah, L. Zulfiati, M. Anhar, A. G. Abdullah, I. Widiaty, & C. U. Abdullah (Eds.), Proceedings of the 5th Annual International Conference on Management Research (AICMaR 2018) (pp. 112–115). https://doi.org/10.2991/aicmar-18.2019.25
Lee, C.-H., & Chen, C.-W. (2023). Similar or different? When Cross-Strait employees face psychological contract violations. Chinese Management Studies, 17(1). https://doi.org/10.1108/CMS-12-2020-0555
Liu, X., Zheng, B., & Liu, H. (2022). Understanding the social media interactivity paradox: The effects of social media interactivity on communication quality, work interruptions and job performance. Information Technology & People, 35(7), 1805–1828. https://doi.org/10.1108/ITP-12-2020-0845
Maqbool, M., Lyu, B., Ullah, S., Khan, M. T., Abeden, A. Z. U., & Kukreti, M. (2024). Abusive supervisor triggers counterproductive work behaviors in nursing staff: Role of psychological contract breach and Islamic work ethics. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 45(3), 461–477. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-06-2023-0295
Mensah, J., Amponsah-Tawiah, K., & Baafi, N. K. A. (2024). Psychological contract breach and mental health: The role of equity sensitivity and self-control. Organization Management Journal, ahead-of-print, 21(2), 63-74. https://doi.org/10.1108/OMJ-11-2022-1679
Na-Nan, K., Chaiprasit, K., & Pukkeeree, P. (2018). Factor analysis-validated comprehensive employee job performance scale. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 35(10), 2436–2449. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJQRM-06-2017-0117
Nygaard, L. P., Aksnes, D. W., & Piro, F. N. (2022). Identifying gender disparities in research performance: The importance of comparing apples with apples. Higher Education, 84, 1127–1142. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-022-00820-0
Rai, S., Megyeri, E. and Kazár, K. (2021). The impact of equity sensitivity on mental health, innovation orientation, and turnover intention in the Hungarian and Indian contexts. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 29(4), 1044-1062. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOA-07-2020-2334
Restubog, S. L. D., Bordia, P., & Tang, R. L. (2007). Behavioural outcomes of psychological contract breach in a non-western culture: The moderating role of equity sensitivity. British Journal of Management, 18(4), 376–386. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2007.00531.x
Robinson, S. L., & Wolfe Morrison, E. (2000). The development of psychological contract breach and violation: A longitudinal study. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 21(5), 525–546. https://doi.org/10.1002/1099-1379(200008)21:5%3C525::AID-JOB40%3E3.0.CO;2-T
Rousseau, D. M. (1989). Psychological and implied contracts in organisations. Employee Responsibilities & Rights Journal, 2, 121–139. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01384942
Singh, R. (2023). “My contract is breached, and I want to leave, but I am embedded!” how do reluctant stayers respond? Evidence-Based HRM: A Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, 11(4), 594–610. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBHRM-03-2022-0073
Subramaniam, A., & Li, S. (2019). Influence of psychological contract, organisational justice and organisational commitment among dispatched employees’ turnover intention: Evidence from Chinese MNCs. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering, 7(5s), 2277–3878.
Tran, K. T., Nguyen, P. V., Dang, T. T. U., & Ton, T. N. B. (2018). The impacts of the high-quality workplace relationships on job performance: A perspective on staff nurses in Vietnam. Behavioral Sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 8(12), Article 109. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs8120109
Wang, L., & Yu, Z. (2023). Gender-moderated effects of academic self-concept on achievement, motivation, performance, and self-efficacy: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, Article 1136141. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1136141
Woodley, H. J. R., Bourdage, J. S., Ogunfowora, B., & Nguyen, B. (2015). Examining Equity Sensitivity: An Investigation Using the Big Five and HEXACO Models of Personality. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, Article 2000. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.02000
Yu, D., Yang, K., Zhao, X., Liu, Y., Wang, S., D’Agostino, M. T., & Russo, G. (2022). Psychological contract breach and job performance of new generation of employees: Considering the mediating effect of job burnout and the moderating effect of past breach experience. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 985604. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.985604
Zhou, X., Zhang, Y., Wang, Y., Wang, H., Sun, S., & Huang, X. (2023). The impact of medical staff’s character strengths on job performance in Hangzhou hospitals. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, Article 1291851. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1291851
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Dina Safitri
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
CC-BY
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. All authors agree for publishing their email adresses, affiliations and short bio statements with their articles during the submission process.
