A one-year prospective study of organizational justice and work attitudes: an extended job demands-resources model

Purpose Organizational justice plays a crucial role in shaping employee work attitudes. This study examines how and when procedural, distributive, interpersonal, and informational justice affects employees’ affective commitment and work engagement. The research is grounded in an extended job demands-resources model, incorporating the social identity theory. The integrated model hypothesizes that all four dimensions of organizational justice positively influence employees’ commitment and engagement by fostering organizational identification. Furthermore, it is posited that this cognitive-affective process is particularly significant when employees face high job demands, as opposed to low job demands. Design/methodology/approach A three-wave prospective study was conducted with a sample of 400 employees in the social and personal services industry in Hong Kong, China. Data were collected at baseline, three months, and one year. Findings The findings support the hypothesized conditional indirect associations between organizational justice (procedural, distributive, and informational justice) and both measures of work attitudes. Practical implications This study highlights the importance of fair, ethical, and just procedures, resource distribution, and communication in organizations, particularly in stressful industries. Employers and supervisors are encouraged to adopt employee-oriented management practices, foster positive leader-member exchange relationships, and acknowledge and reward valuable contributions. Originality/value This study contributes to the existing literature on organizational justice by elucidating its underlying cognitive-affective mechanism and identifying the boundary conditions under which it operates.