The influence of workgroup identification on turnover intention and knowledge sharing: the perspective of employees in subsidiaries
基于最优区分理论，研究跨国企业子公司员工的工作群体认同如何通过主管的独特性影响离职意向和知识共享，发现主管来自不同国家或文化群体能增强员工认同，降低离职意向并促进知识共享，但主管原型性过高会削弱这一效果。
Turnover intention and knowledge sharing of local employees in multinational enterprise (MNE) subsidiary workgroups have received relatively little attention in IHRM research, yet are central to everyday operation of the organisation. Drawing on optimal distinctiveness theory, we consider the influence of workgroup identification on two important employee attitudes and behaviours, turnover intention and knowledge sharing, by examining the influence of the supervisor on workgroup identification. Participants included 306 employees in an Australian and New Zealand subsidiary of an MNE headquartered in Europe. The results indicate that employees’ tendency to identify with their workgroup is enhanced by the distinctiveness of a supervisor from a different national or cultural group, which in turn leads to decreased turnover intention and increased knowledge sharing among workgroup members. Higher supervisor prototypicality however, that counterbalances distinctiveness through higher inclusion, weakens the mediation effect. An important practical implication of this research is that the HR function could play a valuable role in training or group development to raise supervisors’ and employees’ understanding and management of needs for both inclusion and distinctiveness.