The Empirical Research on Professional Isolation During Remote Work in Context of COVID-19 and Organizational Citizenship Behavior: Sequential Mediation Effect of Psychological Empowerment and Affective Organizational Commitment

While much has been studied about the positive and negative effects of discretionary remote work as an alternative work arrangement, little has been written about in the context of mandated remote work. The COVID-19 pandemic forced many organizations to impose remote work as a new mode of working arrangements. This abrupt change yielded positive and negative physical, social, and psychological outcomes. Drawing from the job demand and resource model and self-determination theory, this study examines the effects of professional isolation on organizational citizenship behavior, proposing the sequential mediation of psychological empowerment and affective organizational commitment as intrinsic motivators. An online survey was conducted. A total of 162 full-time remote workers (56 male (34.6%), 106 female (65.4%)) in Korea were analyzed. This study revealed that psychological empowerment and affective commitment fully mediate the relationship between professional isolation and organizational citizenship behavior. Contrary to expectation, however, the relationship between professional isolation and organization was found to be nonsignificant. Implications for practice, theory, and future research are discussed.