Investigation of compulsory citizenship behavior in the organizational citizenship behavior nomological network

Purpose Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) was initially described as discretionary behavior not formally rewarded by the organization. However, empirical evidence has indicated that many non-task behaviors are compulsory and contribute to performance evaluation, leading to research on nondiscretionary OCB (e.g. compulsory citizenship, citizenship pressure). It is unclear whether these behaviors are best described as OCB, in-role behavior or a separate construct. The goal of the current study is to determine the conceptual and measurement overlap between OCB and nondiscretionary OCB. Design/methodology/approach In a quantitative survey design, we collected multiphasic data from 315 employees to provide evidence for the convergent/divergent validity of compulsory citizenship behavior within the OCB nomological network and separate from in-role behavior. Findings The results support a unique contribution of compulsory citizenship behavior to the operationalization of OCB by emphasizing the employees’ perceptions of whether they perform OCB autonomously. Originality/value This research shows a distinction that should be recognized in future research, as existing OCB theories may only apply to discretionary OCB, such that compelled citizenship is not OCB. This would explain why compulsory OCB incurs less benefits than other forms of externally-motivated (i.e. impression management) OCB.