| Despite the recent growth of contingent workforce, limited research has addressed the psychological experiences and work outcomes of temporary employees. Relying on research conducted on permanent employees, Beard and Edwards (1995) proposed that job insecurity, the transactional nature of the psychological contract, low predictability, low control and the social comparison processes involved in the use of contingent workers negatively impact job satisfaction, involvement, commitment and well-being. The present study tested several of these propositions on a sample of temporary workers. It also extended the model to include possible moderating effects of the desire for job permanence, understanding of the terms of employment, and skill match. One hundred sixty-three temporary workers responded to a survey mailed out to five temporary agencies and service firms in five cities. The results did not support a majority of the hypotheses. No support was found for the proposed moderating effects of the three variables. However, correlational analyses showed that measures of both transactional and relational contracts were positively related to job satisfaction, job involvement, affective organizational commitment, professional development and job performance instrumentality. The relatively high correlation between the two measures of psychological contract suggested that temporary workers are not likely to distinguish between the two types of contract. Post hoc factor analyses yielded two factors with items loading by the source of obligations, i.e., the client organization or the respondent. Positive correlations were found between perceived control and job attitudes, while a negative correlation was found between the perceived control attributed to permanent employees and job satisfaction. Findings on the Social Comparison Processes indicated that temporary workers chose permanent workers as a referent group and perceived inequities in the amount of recognition received and increased control over the terms of employment by permanent workers. Finally, the positive correlations between the identification with one's occupation and the reported job attitudes and work behaviors possessed applied implications for selection and placement of contingent workers by temporary agencies. |
