The Role of PO Fit and POS in the Relationships between Workplace Ostracism with Contextual and Task Performance

With the escalating influence of the workplace environment on organizational behavior, this study examined the relationships between workplace ostracism, person- organization fit, perceived organizational support, contextual performance, and task performance. Although previous studies found that workplace ostracism led to negative organizational outcomes, research has not been extensive in the underlying mechanisms which associate the relationships between workplace ostracism and its behavioral outcomes. Thus, this study investigated the mediating effects of person-organization fit in addition to the moderating effects of perceived organizational support between person-organization fit with contextual and task performance. The study was conducted in South Korea and the sample consisted of 241 full-time employees in a variety of work settings. The study found person-organization fit to mediate the relationships between workplace ostracism with contextual and task performance, while perceived organizational support moderated the relationship between person-organization fit with task performance. As person-organization fit can increase the tendency to engage in positive organizational behaviors, the study results suggest that ostracized employees were less likely to feel they are a good fit with their organizations which then can negatively affect their performance behaviors and that perceived organizational support can further enhance the effects of person-organization fit on performance behaviors. Therefore, although this study did not find preventive or remedial measures for workplace ostracism, the study suggests that perceived organizational support can help manage ostracized employees through their decreased perceptions of organizational fit and its effects on performance behaviors.