Spill Over of Environmentally Friendly Behaviour Phenomenon: The Mediating Effect of Employee Organizational Identification

Abstract

Positive spillover has been found in literatures since early 1980s and is still a currently relevant topic for research. These studies have been focussed on work-family situations; where there is a positive transfer of characteristics (affects, skills, values, and behaviour) from one domain (work) to another domain (family/individual). This study focuses on the “spillover of environmentally friendly behaviour” (EFB) – postulating that a person who is positively involved with the implementation process of the Environmental Management System (EMS) at work, will also display similar environmental friendly actions as a member of the general public or at home. Continuously involving oneself with a sense of responsibility and obligation to the EMS activities at workplace has indirectly contributed to them acquiring the relevant attitude and information about the environment.In a need to be consistent with the work-acquired attitude toward the environment, the same display of environmental friendly behaviour is shown to be extended to his non-work domain. This is consistent with the Theory of Cognitive Dissonance, where a person would maintain consistency in behaviour to avoid a sense of dissonance within himself. Another significant contributor to this environment friendly attitude is the organization’s support for this noble cause, reflected in the top management commitment to the EMS.

Using the Hierarchical Multiple Regression analysis (SPSS), this study has also uncovered an organizational related variable as a mediator of the EFB spillover process. Employees that believe the organization is doing a noble effort for the environment through the EMS, feels a sense of pride and has shown stronger identification with the organization. This feeling of identifying oneself with organization acts as an intervening element (mediating variable), and explain in further detail the actual stages of the EFB process.

Keywords: Environment Friendly Behavior, Environmental Management System, Employee Organizational Identification, Spillover behaviour