Decent Work and Workplace Deviance Among Chinese Physicians: A Relative Deprivation Perspective

PURPOSE: Managing workplace deviance has long been a hot topic in the organizational research. However, the mechanisms through which decent work affects workplace deviance have yet to be fully understood. Drawing upon relative deprivation theory, this study examines the relationship between decent work and workplace deviance by focusing on the mediating role of relative deprivation and the moderating role of career calling. METHODS: Two waves of data from 307 doctors and 61 supervisors of public hospitals in central China were examined using a the moderated mediation model. RESULTS: Decent work is negatively associated with workplace deviance via the mediation of relative deprivation, and the negative relationship between decent work and relative deprivation is negatively moderated by career calling. The mediating role of relative deprivation is moderated by career calling, and the indirect effect is stronger when career calling is high than when it is low. CONCLUSION: By focusing on the mediating role of relative deprivation and the moderating role of career calling, this study contributes to the literature by addressing the previously unexamined relationship between decent work and workplace deviance. Moreover, this study responds to calls for research on decent work from the perspective of relative deprivation.