Reconsideration of the Essence of the “OCB for the Organization” Dimension

Abstract

This study addresses the problem of the organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) scale, which has been established in previous literature on OCB. Past OCB research basically divided OCB into OCB for individuals and OCB for the organization. However, the scale items of the latter seem to measure the degree to which workers fulfill formal obligation. This study analyzes the OCB data collected from workers in Japan and indicates that OCB for the organization should be interpreted as OCB for a good, constructive atmosphere in the organization. Based on the idea that all the three OCB dimensions are related to human aspects of the organization, this study further confirms the interactive relationship among three OCB dimensions. Research implication for future studies is also introduced.