Counterproductive Work Behaviors In Healthcare Workers: Uncovering The Role Of Perceived Injustice

Abstract

Purpose: This study examines the relationship of work overload, job stress and the moderating role of perceived injustice, resulting in counterproductive work behavior of healthcare workers in the public sector hospitals of Pakistan, analysed through the lens of equity theory, which states, “Employee motivation at work is driven largely by their[1] sense of fairness.”

Methodology and Design: The middle level employees of public sector hospitals of Pakistan were targeted through purposive sampling technique and questionnaires were applied to collect data. Analysis was done through statistical software, SPSS & Smart PLS.

Findings: The result of the analysis showed that work overload and job stress adversely affect the behavior of healthcare workers towards work under the moderation of perceived injustice.

Novelty: An in-depth analysis of the root causes and their interplay, i.e., work overload, causing job stress and the moderating effect of perceived injustice, all leading to employee counterproductive work behaviors among healthcare workers provides an insight to the reader for better understanding of the relationship of these variables with the outcome of interest.

Implications: This research study provides policy guidelines for the policy makers and human resource managers of public sector hospitals to maintain equity among the healthcare workers in order to create a stress-free work environment resulting in positive work behavior of the employees, which ultimately benefits the patients and contributes towards a healthier population.