Coworker ostracism, depersonalization of coworkers and thwarted change-oriented OCB: the mitigating role of employee idealism

Purpose This study details the unexplored link between employees' exposure to coworker ostracism and their engagement in change-oriented organizational citizenship behavior, as well as the mediating role of their depersonalization of coworkers and the moderating role of their idealism. Design/methodology/approach The research hypotheses are tested with survey data obtained from employees who work in the banking sector. Findings A critical reason that a sense of being socially excluded turns employees away from extra-role change efforts is that they respond to their exclusion by treating coworkers as if they were impersonal objects. This explanatory role is mitigated to the extent that employees' personal values reflect an interest in avoiding harm to others. Practical implications For human resource (HR) management practice, this study pinpoints a core conduit, the development of dehumanized perceptions of coworkers, through which frustrations about being ostracized can translate into a reluctance to perform voluntary activities to improve the current organizational situation, which otherwise might help revert the negative treatments. It also showcases how this escalation can be contained by nurturing idealistic values within an organization's workforce. Originality/value This study extends HR management research by explicating how and when a sense of being ignored by coworkers can escalate into diminished efforts to change and improve the organizational status quo voluntarily.