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Original Article

Organizational Attachment

Conceptualization, Measurement, and Incremental Prediction of Work Attitudes and Outcomes

Published Online:August 19, 2020https://doi.org/10.1027/1866-5888/a000252

Abstract

Abstract. There is a trend to view workplace relationships through the lens of attachment theory. We developed and validated a 7-item Organizational Attachment Scale (OAS). In Study 1, we recruited 957 participants, who filled out study materials at three separate times. The OAS preserved the two-factor solution in traditional attachment measures – anxious attachment and avoidant attachment – and was invariant across time. In Study 2, we recruited 400 participants who completed the OAS in addition to several other surveys. The OAS was conceptually unique from Richards and Schat’s (2011) Co-Worker Attachment Scale (CWAS). The OAS incrementally predicted organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and organizational identity beyond the CWAS. Additionally, the OAS incrementally predicted organizational citizenship behavior and counterproductive work behavior beyond the CWAS.

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