THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN

OCCUPATIONAL STRESS AND

ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT IN NON-
GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS OF
PAKISTAN

By

Zahir Uddin Butt

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MODERN LANGUAGES

ISLAMABAD

April, 2009
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OCCUPATIONAL STRESS
AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT IN NON-
GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS OF PAKISTAN
By

Zahir Uddin Butt

M.A., Punjab University, 1990

A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF

THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

In Human Resources Development

To

FACULTY OF ADVANCED INTEGRATED STUDIES AND RESEARCH

(Human Resources Development)

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MODERN LANGUAGES ISLAMABAD

April, 2009

©Zahir Butt, 2009

 ii

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MODERN LANGUAGES FACULTY OF ADVANCED INTEGRATED & RESEARCH

THESIS/ DISSERTATION AND DEFENCE APPROVAL FORM

The undersigned certify that they have read the following thesis, examined the defense, are satisfied
with overall exam performance and recommended the thesis to the Faculty of Advanced Integrated
Studies & Research for acceptance:

Thesis Dissertation Title: The Relationship Between Occupational Stress and Organizational

Commitment in Non-Governmental Organizations of Pakistan.________________

Submitted By: Zahir Uddin Butt___________ Registration #. 310-PhD/ HRD /2005(Jan)

Name of Student

Doctor of Philosophy_
Degree Name in Full

Human Resources Development

Name of Discipline

Dr. Zahid Mehmood

____________________________ _____________________________
Name of Supervisor Signature of Research Supervisor

Dr. Shazra Munnawer

_____________________________ __________________________________
Name of the Dean of (FAIS&R) Signature of Dean of (FAIS&R)

Brig (R) Dr. Aziz Ahmad Khan

_____________________________ _________________________________
Name of Rector Signature of Rector

____________________________
Date
 iii

CANDIDATE DECLARATION FORM

I Zahir Uddin Butt______________________________

Son of Rashid Uddin Butt___________

Registration # 310-PhD/ HRD /2005 (Jan)_____

Discipline Human Resources Development________

Candidate of Doctor of Philosophy______________ at the National University of Modern

languages do hereby declare that the thesis The Relationship Between Occupational Stress and
Organizational Commitment in Non-Governmental Organizations of
Pakistan.__________________________________________________________________________________________________

submitted by me in partial fulfillment of Ph.D. degree, is my original work, and has not been
submitted or published earlier. I also solemnly declare that it shall not, in future, be submitted by
me for obtaining any other degree from this or any other university or institution.

I also understand that if evidence of plagiarism is found in my dissertation at any stage, even after
the award of a degree, the work may be cancelled and the degree revoked.

March28th 2009
_______________________ ___________________________
Date Signature of Candidate

Zahir Uddin Butt___________________

Name of Candidate
 iv

ABSTRACT

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OCCUPATIONAL STRESS AND ORGANIZATIONAL

COMMITMENT IN NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS OF PAKISTAN
The purpose of this research was to extend the existing body of knowledge on the
relationship between occupational stress and employees’ organizational commitment into the
context of non-governmental organizations of Pakistan, as little research have been conducted on
this relationship in Pakistan.

It was a descriptive correlational study in which scientific methodology was used to answer
the research questions. Based upon the review of the recent literature available on the subject, a
conceptual framework was developed to study the relationship between occupational stress and
organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan. The framework illustrates three
dimensions of occupational stress including occupational role stress, personal strain and coping
resources and their hypothesized relationship with organizational commitment, as well as the
influence of some major demographic factors including age, experience, job position, gender,
qualification, income and marital status on the relationship between occupational stress and
organizational commitment. Occupational stress inventory-Revised Edition and Organizational
Commitment Questionnaire were used to collect data. The overall response rate from the NGO
employees was 64%. Several statistical techniques, including arithmetic mean, standard deviation,
correlation analysis, percentile analysis and analysis of variance-ANOVA were used to test the
hypotheses of the study.

Consistent with prior research, an inverse relationship was found between occupational stress
and organizational commitment. The level of occupational stress experienced by NGO employees
was found to be high. The occupational roles that employees play were reported as the main source
of stress. The level of employees’ organizational commitment was generally moderate but with a
tendency towards high. Normative commitment was reported as the strongest form of commitment.
Demographic variables of age, experience, job position and income as well as gender significantly
influenced the relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment.

This study is significant because of the insights it provides for the NGO managers to better
understand the occupational stressors inherent in the functions of their workforce. Furthermore, this
study develops an understanding of the commitment process and its relationship with occupational
stress to promote commitment among employees and help them achieve their organizational goals
effectively. NGO management can utilize the research findings to formulate appropriate strategies
to address the stress related problems of their employees.
 v

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter Page
DISSERTATION AND DEFENSE APPROVAL FORM.............................. ii
CANDIDATE DECLARATION FORM…………………………………… iii
ABSTRACT………………………………………………………………… iv-v
TABLE OF CONTENTS…………………………………………………… vi-x
LIST OF APPENDIXES………………………………………………………… x
LIST OF TABLES…………………………………………………………….... xi-xii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS………………………………………………. xiii-xiv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT…………………………………………….. ………. xv
DEDICATION…………………………………………………………….… xvi

1 INTRODUCTION TO THE FIELD OF ENQUIRY…………………… 1

1.0 INTRODUCTION………………………………………………….. 1
1.1 BACKGROUND…………………………………………………… 1
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM……………………………….. 7
1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES………………………………………... 8
1.4 STUDY QUESTIONS ……………………………………………… 9
1.5 INTRODUCTION TO THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
OF THE STUDY…………………………………………………….. 10
1.6 BRIEF INTRODUCTION OF THE METHODOLOGY…………….. 11
1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY …………………………………. 11
1.8 DESCRIPTION OF CONCEPTS USED IN THE STUDY………….. 13
1.8.1 Occupational Stress…………………………………………………... 13
1.8.2 Organizational Commitment ………………………………………… 14
1.8.3 Non-Government Organization-NGO ………………………………. 14
1.9 STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS………………………………..…… 15
1.10 SUMMARY…………………………………………………………. 17
 vi

2 LITERATURE REVIEW…………………………………………………….. 18

2.0 INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………… 18
2.1 STRESS: THE CONCEPT AND PHENOMENON………………….. 18
2.2 DEFINITIONS OF STRESS………………………………………….. 19
2.2.1 Occupational Stress………………………………………………….... 22
2.3 THEORIES OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS…………………………. 25
2.3.1 Interactional Theories ……………………………………………..….. 25
2.3.2 Transactional Theories ……………………………………...…………. 27
2.4 MODELS OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS…………………………… 29
2.4.1 The Person – Environment Fit Model…………………………………. 29
2.4.2 Beehr and Newman’s Facet Model …………………………………… 29
2.4.3 Occupational Stress Inventory Model………………………………… 30
2.5 CAUSES OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS…………………………… 37
2.5.1 Organizational Factors ………………………………………….……. 38
2.5.2 Job Demands…………………………………………...…………..….. 42
2.5.3 Role Stress ……………………………………………..…………..… 44
2.5.4 Individual Factors……………………………………………………. 47
2.6 EFFECTS OF STRESS ……………………………………………..… 49
2.6.1 Effects of Stress on Psychological Functioning…………………….… 49
2.6.2 Physiological Effects of Stress ………………………………………… 51
2.6.3 Behavioral Effects of Stress ……………………….…………………… 52
2.6.4 Effects of Occupational Stress on Organization……………..………… 53
2.7 GROWING INTEREST IN ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT… 57
2.7.1 Background of Organizational Commitment …………………………… 57
2.7.2 Defining Organizational Commitment ………………………………… 59
2.8 CONTEMPORARY THEORIES OF ORGANIZATIONAL
COMMITMENT………………………………………………………. 60
2.8.1 The Becker’s ‘Side-Bet’ Theory (1960)……………………………… 61
2.8.2 The Mowday, Porter, Steers, and Boulian Model (1974)……………… 62
2.8.3 The O’Reilly and Chatman Model (1986)……………………………… 62
 vii

2.8.4 The Meyer and Allen Three-Component Model (1984, 1990)………… 63

2.9 RECENT RESEARCH ON ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT… 65
2.10 FORMS OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT………………… 73
2.10.1 Affective Commitment …………………………………………….…... 73
2.10.2 Continuance Commitment: …………………………………...………... 80
2.10.3 Normative Commitment ……………………………………….….…… 86
2.11 MEASURING INSTRUMENTS OF ORGANIZATIONAL
COMMITMENT………………………………………………………. 89
2.12 EFFECTS OF LOW ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT ……… 91
2.12.1 Absenteeism………………………………………………………….. 91
2.12.2 Turnover Intentions…………………………………………………… 92
2.12.3 Performance…………………………………………………………… 93
2.13 OCCUPATIONAL STRESS AND ORGANIZATIONAL
COMMITMENT IN NGOs………………………….……….………... 95
2.14 COMMENTARY ON THE LITERATURE REVIEW…………….…. 100
2.15 SUMMARY……………………………………………………………. 105

3 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK…………………………………………… 107

3.0 INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………… 107

3.1 DESCRIPTION OF THE CONCEPTUAL MODEL ………………..… 107
3.2 HYPOTHESIS OF THE STUDY……………………………………….. 117
3.3 SUMMARY…………………………………………………………… 124

4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY…………………………………………… 125

4.0 INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………… 125

4.1 BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE RESEARCH OBJECTIVES………… 125
4.2 RESEARCH DESIGN ……………………………………………… 126
4.2.1 Unit of Analysis…………………………………………………..… 127
4.2.2 Time Frame of the Study…………………………………………… 127
4.3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND JUSTIFICATION………… 128
 viii

4.3.1 The Qualitative Approach…..……………………………………… 128

4.3.2 The Quantitative Approach………………………………………… 129
4.4 OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF VARIABLES ……………… 131
4.4.1 Organizational Commitment……………………………………….. 131
4.4.2 Occupational stress………………………………………………… 134
4.4.3 Demographic Variables……………..……………………………… 136
4.5 THE VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY OF RESEARCH
INSTRUMENTS…………………………………………………... 137
4.5.1 Ensuring Validity…………………………………………………… 138
4.5.2 Ensuring Reliability………………………………………………… 138
4.6 THE PILOT TESTING …………………………………………… 139
4.6.1 Validity of the Research Instruments……………………………… 141
4.6.2 Reliability of the Research Instruments…………………………… 141
4.7 SAMPLING PROCESS………………………………………….... 142
4.7.1 Sampling Population ……………………………………………… 142
4.7.2 Sample Selection……………………………………………...…… 143
4.8 DATA COLLECTION…………………………………………… 143
4.9 STATISTICAL TECHNIQUES …………………………………. 144
4.10 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY……………………………..… 144
4.11 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS…………………………….…… 145
4.12 SUMMARY ……………………………………………………… 145

5 RESULTS………………………………………………………………… 147

5.0 INTRODUCTION………………………………………...…..….. 147

5.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF THE RESPONDENTS……………… 148
5.2 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS
INVENTORY…………………………………………………… 149
5.2.1 Alpha Reliability Coefficient of OSI-R………………………… 148
5.2.2 Inter-Correlation of Subscales of OSI-R……………………….. 150
5.2.3 Items Total Correlation of NGO Employees on Occupational
Stress Inventory ………………………………………………….. 151
 ix

5.2.4 Percentile Ranks of OSI-R………………………………………. 153

5.2.5 Levels and Percentages of Stress………………………………… 154
5.3 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS OF ORGANIZATIONAL
COMMITMENT QUESTIONNAIRE………………………...... 155
5.3.1 Alpha Reliability Coefficients of OCQ………………………….. 156
5.3.2 Inter-Correlation of Subscales of OCQ………………………….. 156
5.3.3 Items Total Correlations of OCQ………………………………… 158
5.3.4 Percentile Ranks of NGO Employees on OCQ………………….. 159
5.3.5 Levels and Percentages of Commitment ………………………... 161
5.4 STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF THE DATA RELATED
TO THE RESEARC HHYPOTHESES………………………… 161
5.5 RESULTS RELATED TO UNHYPOTHESIZED VARIABLES 178
5.6 SUMMARY OF THE RESEARCH RESULTS………………… 182
5.7 SUMMARY……………………………………………………… 184

6 MAJOR FINDINGS, LIMITATIONS, SUGGESTIONS FOR

FUTURE RESEARCH AND CONCLUSIONS---------------------------- 185

6.0 INTRODUCTION………………………………………………… 184

6.1 DISCUSSION……………………….…………………………… 185
6.1.1 Answers to Research Questions………………………………….. 187
6.2 CONCLUSIONS …………………………………………………. 200
6.3 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY………………………………… 201
6.4 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH ………………… 202
6.5 APPLIED SIGNIFICANCE……………………………………… 204
6.6 MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS FOR NGO MANAGEMENT… 206
6.7 SUMMARY……………………………………..…………………... 208

BIBLIOGRAPHY ……………………………………………………………...... 209

WEB REFERENCES... ………………………………………………………...... 243

UNPUBLISHED DISSERTATION REFERENCES…………………………...... 246

 x

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendix Page

APPENDIX A: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE LETTER……………… 249

APPENDIX B: DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION………………….. 251
APPENDIX C: OCCUPATIONAL STRESS INVENTORY …….…… 252
APPENDIX D ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT
QUESTIONNAIRE……………………………………. 260
APPENDIX E LIST OF THE SURVEYED NGOS ………………….. 263
APPENDIX F: DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION OF THE
STUDY SAMPLE…...…………………………………. 265
APPENDIX G: PILOT STUDY REPORT…………………………....…... 267
 xi

LIST OF TABLES

Table # Page

1 Alpha Reliability Coefficient of OSI…………………………………… 149

2 Inter-Correlation of Subscales of OSI ………………………………… 150
3 Items Total Correlation of NGO Employees on Occupational
Stress Inventory………………………………………………………… 151
4 Percentile Ranks of OSI……………………………………………….. 153
5 Levels and Percentages of Stress ……………………………………… 155
6 Alpha Reliability Coefficients of OCQ………………………………… 156
7 Inter-Correlation of Subscales of OCQ………………………………… 157
8 Items Total Correlations of OCQ……………………………………….. 158
9 Percentile Ranks of NGO Employees on OCQ…………………………. 159
10 Levels and Percentages of Commitment ………………………………… 161
11 Correlation of Subscales and Total Scale of OSI with OCQ……………. 162
12 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI and OCQ for
nature of organization……………………………………………………. 163
13 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on ORQ and PSQ…… 164
14 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI
for Qualification …………………………………………………............. 165
15 One-Way Analysis of Variance of NGO Employees Scores on OSI
for the Variable Qualification…………………………………………… 166
16 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI
Subscales for Experience…………………………………………….. 167
17 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on Coping
strategies for the variable Qualification……………………………… 168
18 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ
for Qualification ……………………………………………………… 169
19 One-Way Analysis of Variance of NGO Employees Scores
on OCQ for the Variable Qualification………………………………. 170
 xii

20 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Age… 171

21 One-Way Analysis Of Variance of NGO Employees Scores On
OCQ for Variable Age………………………………………………. 171
22 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO employees on OSI for Age …… 172
23 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on
OCQ for Experience ……..…………………………………………….. 173
24 One-Way Analysis of Variance of NGO Employees’ Scores
on OCQ for the Variable Experience ………………………………… 174
25 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Income… 174
26 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI for Income … 175
27 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ
for Job Position ……............................................................................... … 176
28 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ
and its subscales………………………………………………………….. 177
29 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI for Gender … 178
30 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Gender… 179
31 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI
for Marital Status ……........................................................................... 180
32 Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ
for Marital Status………………………………………………………… 181
 xiii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

AC Affective Commitment

AKF Aga Khan Foundation

AKDN Aga Khan Development Network

ANOVA Analysis of Variance

CC Continuance Commitment

CHRP Certified Human Resource Professional

df Degree of Freedom

F F Ratio

H Hypothesis

HRD Human Resources Development

HR Human resources

HRDN Human Resources Development Network

M Mean

NC Normative Commitment

NGO Non Governmental Organization

NGOE Non Governmental Organization Employee

NGORC NGO Resource Centre

n Number of Items

NIOSH National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health

OC Organizational Commitment

OCQ Organizational Commitment Questionnaire

 xiv

OD Organizational Development

OSI Occupational Stress Inventory

OSI-R Occupational Stress Inventory- Revised Edition

ORQ Occupational Role Questionnaire

ORS Occupational Role Stress

PV Probability Value

PRQ Personal Resource Questionnaire

PR Personal Resource

PSQ Personal Strain Questionnaire

PS Personal Strain

C Correlation

SDPI Sustainable Development Policy Institute

SD Standard Deviation

TVO Trust for Voluntary Organizations

UN United Nations

UNO United Nations Organization

UNDP United Nations Development Programme

UNICEF United Nations Children Emergency Fund

UNV United Nations Volunteers

WHO World Health Organization

# Number Sign
 xv

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to extend my sincere appreciation and gratitude to the many people who helped

make this dissertation possible.

I would like to extend my appreciation to Brig (R) Dr. Aziz Ahmad Khan Rector, National

University of Modern Languages and the members of Ph.D. synopsis approval committee, who

kindly reviewed the synopsis of this doctoral research. Special thanks are due to Dr. Shazra

Munnawer Dean of the Faculty of Advanced Integrated Studies and Research, for her guidance

during my research.

I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Zahid Mahmood for his precious

time, valuable insight and expert guidance over the past three years. His patience, encouragement

and faith in my abilities have motivated me and allowed me to grow as a researcher.

A special thank is also due to Dr. Zulkaif, Director Academics of Air University, Brig ®

Mohammad Yasin, Dr. Fauzia Khurshid and Dr. Khurshid Ahmad for their guidance, support and

encouragement during my research. And finally my wife Amina and daughters Mishaal, Faryal and

Sarah, who have been my constant inspiration and comfort over many years which allowed me to

preserve and accomplish my aim despite many difficulties and challenges. Without their support

this would not have been possible.

 xvi

DEDICATION

To my parents, for their unconditional love and prayers to make my dreams a reality.

To my wife, Amina and daughters, Mishaal, Faryal and little Sarah for being an endless source

of love and support throughout this journey.

To my admiring sister Fauzia, who has always been a source of inspiration and support for me.
 1

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION TO THE FIELD OF ENQUIRY

INTRODUCTION

This research investigates the relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan. This chapter introduces the concept, relationship

and factors associated with occupational stress and organizational commitment as they

influence the employees’ and organization’s work performance. The chapter further explains

the statement of problem, research objectives, research questions, brief introduction of the

conceptual framework of the study, significance of the study and introduction of the

methodology. The final part of the chapter presents the structure of the investigation as well as

the definition of key terms including occupational stress, organizational commitment and

NGOs.

1.1 BACKGROUND

Occupational stress and organizational commitment have long been concerns for

employees and employers because of the impact and influence they wield on work

performance. In today’s world, stress has become a worldwide phenomenon, which is

virtually there, in some form, in every workplace. In today’s work life, employees are

generally working for longer hours, as the rising levels of responsibilities require them to exert

themselves even more strenuously to meet rising expectations about work performance.

Omolara, (2008) described occupational stress as the adverse psychological and physical
 2

reactions that occur in an individual as a result of their being unable to cope with the demands

being made on them.

Before embarking on any study regarding the relationship between occupational stress

and organizational commitment in NGOs in Pakistan, it is important to understand the

organizational structure, issues and problems confronting this sector so that any research or

study done may address them appropriately as occupational stress and organizational

commitment are influenced by the ways in which the organizational structure is established.

The non-governmental organizations have a long history of serving marginalized

communities and helping governments toward achieving their national developmental goals.

The work environment in this sector is multidimensional because of the diverse functions

these organizations perform. Most non-governmental organizations, engaged in the promotion

of developmental initiatives function at the grassroots level, essentially working with the

marginalized sections of society: the rural poor, the urban slum dwellers, women, children and

minorities, the tribal, peasants and labor. Their work encompasses a range of services in the

field of education, health, drinking water, irrigation, sanitation and capacity building of the

poor and marginalized to facilitate them to play a more active role in defining and working

towards their own development (UNDP, 2002, p. 191).

In Pakistan, NGOs have evolved in different directions and they present a wide variety of

programmes and structures. By far the most common activity of NGOs relates to charity,

relief and welfare-oriented provision of services in health, education and financial support for

the under-privileged, handicapped, widows, orphans etc. Some of these activities focus on
 3

provision of basic services where government facilities are either not available or are

inadequate, with an emphasis on critical needs, not on community participation or long-term

sustainability or empowerment for the beneficiary population (Zia, 1996). Some other

activities of NGOs are more developmental in nature and involve attempts to address longer-

range issues of community mobilization and organization, participation and empowerment,

while dealing with specific community or sectoral problems.

Nevertheless, despite the fact that the NGO sector in Pakistan is a rapidly growing sector,

it is facing numerous challenges both internally and externally (Andrabi, 2002). Externally,

NGOs have to deal with criticism and occasional hostility for a number of reasons including

their inability to manage or deliver according to expectations, and sometimes they face lack of

credibility because of their foreign and domestic affiliations or exclusive groupings. The

negative media publicity about NGOs and the unfortunate functioning of some opportunistic

elements sometimes further aggravate the negative public impressions (Khan, 2005).

On the other hand, internally, the NGOs, particularly the smaller grassroots level

organizations, are facing problems relating to inadequacies in the areas of management,

capacity building, human resource development, institutional strengthening and sustainability.

Thus, all these challenges and expectations create a high stress environment not only for the

organization as a whole but the individual NGO workers as well, who are expected to show

loyalty and organizational commitment in face of all challenges. However, it is important to

understand that promoting organizational commitment is vital for an improved level of

service. This can be achieved by developing a comprehensive organizational strategy that

should address stress reduction elements by investigating the overall function of the
 4

organization including its climate and values, its provision of social support and rewards and

the relationship of its workers with the organization.

Organizational commitment is widely illustrated in the human resources management

and organizational behavior literature as a key factor in the relationship between individual

and organization. The level of commitment strongly influences the retention level of

workforce and affects employees work performance.

A search of the extensive literature reveals a long list of factors that are related with the

development of organizational commitment. Keeping in view the phenomenon of

organizational commitment, now when we look at the NGO employees we find that they are

expected to show a high level of commitment to the mission, objectives of organizations and

its activities. The traditional image of an NGO worker is that of a selfless and tireless person

and they themselves tend to expect that because their work is for a good cause, they should be

immune to pressures and occupational stress.

Ironically, in Pakistan the people receive services from NGOs but at the same time

considers them as agents of the west, because they receive funding from western donors

agencies, so sometimes the NGO workers have to face a hostile and life threatening work

environment (Zia, 1996). NGO employees are thus expected to have a high level of

organizational commitment to face such a high degree of occupational stress. However, the

salaries and facilities provided to NGO employees are not that attractive compared to

corporate and for-profit organizations of Pakistan (Andrabi, et al., 2002). As mentioned

earlier also occupational stress and organizational commitment are influenced by the ways in
 5

which the organizational structure is established through social support, organizational

policies and relationships at work. Somehow, these factors seem perhaps the most neglected

ones in NGOs in Pakistan. This may be oneof the main reasons for high degree of staff

turnover in the NGO sector of Pakistan (TVO, 2004).

Previous researches have established that occupational stress has a negative relationship

with organizational commitment (Omolara, 2008; Cooper & Bright. 2001), psychological

well-being (Dubinsky, 1998)), and job involvement (Tehrani, 2004). Occupational stress is

positively related to turnover and absenteeism and tension (Van de Ven, 2002). From the

literature, it also seems that the phenomenon of occupational stress directly affects employees

lives and work performance. Although there is an agreement concerning the negative impact

of stress on organizational commitment, there is not enough evidence on the causes and

effects of stress and its influence on employees’ organizational commitment in the NGO

sector in Pakistan.

It appears that a clear gap exists in the availability of empirical data to understand the

relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment among NGO

employees in Pakistan. The absence of such knowledge may seriously affect NGO managers’

ability to develop appropriate strategies for stress management and promotion of

organizational commitment in NGO sector, which is a major contributor to employment in

Pakistan. The focus of this study is to examine the relationship of occupational stress with

NGO employees’ organizational commitment in Pakistan.

 6

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Several studies point out that the relationship between occupational stress and

organizational commitment has remained a topic of interest ever since it was introduced.

These studies point to that the continued interest is the result of the belief that, if properly

managed, employees’ organizational commitment can lead to valuable consequences such as

organizational success, reduced employee turnover and non-attendance. This quest to harness

the possible organizational pay back has resulted in a number of researches that focus on the

scenery and relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment.

An extensive review of the literature revealed that a great deal has been written about the

causes and adverse effects of occupational stress as well as the importance of organizational

commitment for the realization of organizational and professional goals. However, very few

studies ware found which addressed this relationship in the NGO sector in Pakistan. The

previous research has been conducted mostly in the domain of occupational stress related to

dimensions like job satisfaction (Khan, 2005; Haider et al., 1986; Cochinwala & Imam, 1987),

personality characteristics (Khurshid, 2008) and motivation (Andrabi, 2002; Mufti & Hassan,

1965).

The review of the literature also shows some reports on the state of Pakistani NGO

employees’ occupational stress (TVO, 2004), job satisfaction (UNDP, 2004) and personnel

management related problems (NGORC, 2000). These reports provide a general description of

the issues faced by the NGO sector in Pakistan. However, these reports do not specifically

highlight the factors that caused or contributed to those problems.

 7

In addition, each NGO has its own area of interest and they function in a unique work

environment with their stakeholders. Therefore, such general descriptions about the

employees’ issues, and problems might not be enough. Empirical evidence is still needed to

unravel the relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment in the

NGO sector.

The problem to be investigated is to, “examine the relationship between occupational

stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan. Further, this study aims

to explore the level, causes and dimensions of occupational stress and the level and forms of

organizational commitment of the NGO employees’ in Pakistan”.

1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The objective of this empirical study was to examine the relationship between

occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan. The

literature review failed to provide any viable data about the nature and level of occupational

stress and its relationship with the organizational commitment of NGO employees in Pakistan.

Therefore, this study attempts to help fill this vacuum by providing additional information that

might be of interest to the researchers, NGO managers, international donor agencies and

government of Pakistan. The specific objectives of this study are:

1. To determine the relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment.

2. To find out the level, causes and dimensions of occupational stress of NGO employees in

Pakistan using appropriate measuring instrument.

 8

3. To explore the level and forms of NGO employees’ organizational commitment.

4. To analyze and ascertain the affects of various demographic variables including, age,

experience, job position, gender, qualification, income and marital status, on the

occupational stress and organizational commitment of NGO employees.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

To achieve the specific research objectives, following are the five distinct but related key

research questions:

1. What is the relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment?

2. What is the level and dimensions of NGO employees’ occupational stress?

3. What is the overall level of NGO employee’s organizational commitment?

4. What forms of organizational commitment are manifested among the NGO employees

and which one is the most dominant?

5. What is the influence of demographic factors (age, experience, job position, gender,

qualification, income and marital status) on occupational stress and organizational

commitment of the NGO employees in Pakistan?

1.5 INTRODUCTION TO THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY

A conceptual framework is proposed in this chapter, and elaborated in Chapter 3, to

logically explain the interconnection among variables of the study. A number of hypotheses

about the relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment were

formulated while developing the conceptual framework. These hypotheses were then tested in

the empirical phase of the research. The proposed conceptual mode in Chapter 3 (Figure 1)
 9

shows three variables including occupational stress, organizational commitment and

demographic variables. It illustrates the stress process including the identification of

occupational role stress, personal strains in the workplace and the coping resources, the three

forms of organizational commitment including affective, normative and continuance

commitment.

To explore the occupational stress of NGO employees, this study treats it as an

independent variable that influences the organizational commitment. An increase in job stress

may lead to augmented strain and decreased organizational commitment, which eventually

results in poor employee work performance. Work experience envelops from a combination of

employees’ opinions about the work they do; the organization they belong to; and the

interpersonal relations these entities bring together. The employees’ opinions play an

important role in their decisions to enter, stay with or leave the organization.

In this study, organizational commitment serves as a dependent variable for antecedents

such as age, experience job position, gender, qualification, income and marital status as a

predictor of various outcomes such as turnover, intension to leave, job satisfaction and work

performance. Furthermore, this study aims at investigating how do employees belonging to

different age groups, different experience level, job positions, different genders,

qualifications, income level and different marital status in an organization perceive and

experience occupational stress and how these factors affect employees’ organizational

commitment.
 10

1.6 BRIEF INTRODUCTION OF THE METHODOLOGY

This is a descriptive correlational research in which scientific methodology was used to

answer the research questions. A random sample of 500 men and women NGO employees

was collected from 37 selected NGOs. The units of analysis was subgroups of NGO

employees based on age, gender, qualification, number of years in profession, marital status

and income. For the purpose of this study, the internationally known instruments including

occupational stress inventory (OSI-R), organizational commitment Questionnaire (OCQ) and

the individual data form were used. A pilot study on a sample of 80 NGO employees was

conducted in order to determine the reliability and validity of OSI-R and OCQ.

1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Occupational stress and organizational commitment have long been worry for employees

and employers, and it has been deliberate among varied professional groups. In the available

literature, the work of NGOs is portrayed as challenging and intrinsically stressful, even a

high degree of occupational stress may be measured a part of their job. Besides this, the

workers are expected to show a high level of organizational commitment to their job and

organizations at all times.

Studies on occupational stress and organizational commitment have been at length

carried out by past researchers mainly in the western countries. Due to lack of studies

addressing the issue of NGO employees’ occupational stress and organizational commitment

in Pakistan, it is questionable whether western findings can be applied in the non-western

context, like Pakistan. For instance, people in the western countries have an individualistic
 11

direction toward job whereas people in the South Asian countries in general have a collective

direction. Therefore, more studies are needed to erase the doubton the applicability of western

studies in the Pakistan context. The present study is unique as it is an attempt to describe the

relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment in the context of

NGOs in Pakistan.

In Pakistan, some studies have addressed the causes of occupational stress, but its

relationship with organizational commitment in the NGO sector has not been studied by the

researchers so far. This research is significant because this relationship is being studied for the

first time in the NGO sector in Pakistan.

This study is significant because of the insights and contributions it provides for the

NGO managers to better understand the occupational stressors inherent in the functions of

their workforce through the antecedents including age, experience, job position, gender,

qualification, income and marital status. Furthermore, this study develops an understanding of

the commitment process and its relationship with occupational stress to endorse commitment

among employees and achieve their organizational goals effectively. NGO management can

utilize the research findings to formulate suitable strategies to address the stress related

problems of their employees. Exploration and understanding of this relationship in the NGO

sector in Pakistan is going to be a unique contribution of this study.

This study will be relevant to not only NGO management, but to all the stakeholders of

development including national and international funding agencies and government of

Pakistan for developing policies and programs for addressing occupational stress reduction
 12

effectively and for the promotion of widespread organizational commitment for improved

work performance and quality of life.

1.8 DESCRIPTION OF CONCEPTS USED IN THE STUDY

The following key terms have been defined with the support of the literature to serve the

purpose of the study:

1.8.1 Occupational Stress

Stress that happen due to a person’s employment is termed occupational stress.

According to Cooper&Bright (2001), the most widespread definitions of occupational stress

may be classified into three types. The first type of definition is stimulus based. It considers

stress as an environmental based stimulus, forced upon the person. The second type of

definition is response based. It defines stress as an individual’s psychological orphysiological

response to the situationalforces. The third definition of stress applies an interactive approach

often called the stressor-strain approach.

Keeping in view all the above definitions, for the purpose of this study, occupational

stress is defined as the harmful emotional (that is anxiety and depression), physical (that is

insomnia, headaches, and infections), and behavioral responses (that is job dissatisfaction, low

commitment and poor work performance) that occurs when work necessities do not match the

capabilities, possessions and needs of the worker. The present study treated occupational

stress as an independent variable that could influence the organizational commitment.

1.8.2 Organizational Commitment

 13

The focus of the present study is on organizational commitment as a multifaceted concept

that represents the relationship between an employee and his/her employer. The definition of

organizational commitment adopted is that of Allen & Meyer, (1993) which looks at

commitment as a three component thought, which has an attitudinal aspect, a continuance

aspect and a normative aspect.

This approach is relevant to the current research as like in Siu, (2002) it is argued that

different factor s within the organization influence the development of different factors within

the organization that influenc e the growth of different forms of organizational commitment.

In order to further explore the scenery and forms of organizational commitment of NGO

employees, the present study treated it as a dependent variable that could be inclined by

occupational stress.

1.8.3 Non-Government Organization-NGO

The term NGO is used in a variety of ways all over the world and, depending on the

context in which it is used, can refer to many different types of organizations. Generally, an

NGO is an organization that is not part of the governmental structure. The term NGO came

into use with the establishment of the UNO in 1945 with provisions of the UN Charter for an

advice-giving role for organizations that are neither governments nor member states.

Under the law of Pakistan NGOs can be registered under Societies Registration Act,

1860, Voluntary Social Welfare Agencies (Registration and Control) Ordinance.1961, or

Companies Ordinance (Nonprofit Companies: Section 42), 1984. ‘Non-government’

 14

organization is defined by the Government of Pakistan (2001a: 61) to include privately

owned, charity, trust, foundation or other organization.

1.9 STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS

In achieving the aims of the research, the chapters are presented in the following

sequence:

Chapter 1- Introduction to the Field of Enquiry

This chapter explains the concept, relationship and factors associated with

occupational stress and organizational commitment. The chapter further explains the

statement of problem, research objectives, study questions, brief introduction of the

conceptual framework of the study, significance of the study and introduction of the

methodology. The final part of the chapter presents the structure of the investigation as well as

the definition of key terms including occupational stress, organizational commitment and

NGOs.

Chapter 2 – Literature Review

This chapter provides a through review of the relevant literature and a detailed

theoretical assessment of the major concepts of occupational stress and organizational

commitment. In this chapter, relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment has been defined; the relevant theories, models and research findings specifically

related to occupational stress and organizational commitment are discussed. The chapter also

discusses the viewpoint on occupational stress and commitment in NGO sector of Pakistan.

Chapter 3 – Theoretical Framework

 15

This chapter discusses the theoretical framework of the study of the relationship

between occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan.

The chapter also includes discussion on the relationship of variables, testable hypothesis,

demographic characteristics of NGO employees and summary of the chapter.

Chapter 4 – Methodology

The research design is discussed in detail. This chapter includes information pertaining

to the population, sample, choice of measuring instrument, research procedure and

delimitations of the study.

Chapter 5– Results

In this chapter, the results of the empirical research are reported. The sample profile of

the target population are elaborated, determinants of reliability, validity and descriptive

statistics of the research instruments are discussed, and statistical analysis of the data related

to the research hypotheses is reported.

Chapter 6– Discussion, Conclusions, Limitation, Suggestion for Further Research and

Significance of the Study

In the final chapter, discussion on the major findings of the study and related back to

the initial problem statement, hypothesis and findings of previous research, conclusions are

drawn, limitations of the study are explained, the suggestions are made for the future

investigations in this field and finally applied significance of the study is discussed.
 16

1.10 SUMMARY

The purpose of this chapter was to provide an overview of this study. The detailed

research objectives, statement of problem and research questions had been delineated in order

to address the problem and the structure of thesis was outlined. In the next chapter, the

findings of the literature review are discussed with the focus on the concept and relationship

of the occupational stress and organizational commitment. Relevant theories, models and

research findings specifically related to the identification of role stressors, personal strains,

and the coping resources and organizational commitment with its three forms including

affective, normative and continuance commitment are discussed.

 17

CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW
INTRODUCTION

In chapter 2 the most relevant research, theories and models pertaining specifically to

occupational stress and organizational commitment are discussed. This literature review will

provide a theoretical assessment of the major concepts of occupational stress and

organizational commitment to understand their relationship in the NGO sector of Pakistan.

2.1 STRESS: THE CONCEPT AND PHENOMENON

In the past two decades, interest in the concept of stress and research on stress has

reached an all time high (Goldberger & Breznitz, 1993). Originally, stress was seen primarily

as a physical ordeal to which humans take action. More lately, it has been linked to physical

measures, as well as the assessment of actions, which is a cognitive occurrence (Jones et al.,

2001). Stress as a conception gained fame from in 1940’s after Second World War onwards.

A large number of soldiers out in the open to battle conditions developed indications of stress,

ranging from mild nervousness to more disorder that is unbearable. As research in the field of

psychology development, there was an advancement of considerate the disorders linked with

battle of stress. The emotional problems that developed were supposed to be due to stress

(Lazarus, 1999).

HansSelye, a biologist, had been lively in the popularization of the stress idea. One of

his most significant modern theories of psychological stress was in print in 1956, in his book
 18

TheStress ofLife. The literature pursued on stress indicates that Selye was the first researcher

to make use of the term“stress”to explain physical and psychological answer to respond to

difficult conditions. Selye explained the concept of stress using the conditions distress (bad

stress) and eustress (good stress). The degree of insist is basic in Seyle’s clarification of

distress. (Le Fevre, et al., 2003). Distress is stand for by either too much or too little insist. A

moderate level of demand is eustress.

Selye investigated the physiological reactions to stress, as a distracted response of the

body to any insist made upon it. He defined stressor as any incentive that reason a stress

response. If the stimulus does not decrease, a stress-response the supposed general-adaptation-

syndrome results, which has three distinct, stages (Selye, 1956):

1. Alarm-reaction - an living being is exposed to a stimulus that it has not modified to. It act

in response by going into a stage dominated by a upset response that finally leads to

another rejoinder in which the organism begins to offset the initial alarmreaction.

2. Stage-of-resistance – the organism has made to order to the stressoror stimulus and any

indication improve.

3. Stage-of-tiredness – if the stressor has been particularly harsh and long-drawn-out the

symptoms come back and the organism becomes tired.

2.2 DEFINITIONS OF STRESS

Stress is defined as “a state of worry that arises from an actual or apparent demand that

calls for an change behavior” (Lazarus, 1999). Stress generally has been familiar as an

disagreeable emotional condition, which is said to occur when there have been extended,
 19

increasing or new force that are significantly greater than the coping resources (Siegrist,

2001). The penalty of stress include health harms and reduction in work showsuccess.

It pressure negatively on the organization and the individual’s physical and mental

system. This could result in summary performance, absenteeism, accidents, unprincipled

behavior, displeasure and sickness.

Physiological responses to stress are referred to as the ‘fight orflight’ response. The

fight response is the body reacting to the need to cope by reacting. Continued high levels of

stress can direct to serious health circumstances including hypertension cancer, and

psychological illnesses such as sadness or collapse (Palmer, et al., 2003).

Two persons exposed to the similar situation could have dissimilar responses due to

the purpose nature of the variables. The reasons why individuals practice stress differently

may include internal and external factors. The interior factors may be personality, age gender,

and people past experiences. External factors that may influence response to stress include

atmosphere, diet, and drug. Behavioral response to stress also differs, as people choose

behaviors that they think will help them grip stress (Zwickel, 1994).

2.2.1 Occupational Stress

Stress caused due to a person’s work or employment is termed as occupational stress. The

job stress, or occupational stress is used interchangeably (Dollard, 2003). McGrath (1970) has

provided one of the most widely accepted definitions of occupational stress: ‘aapparent,

substantial inequity between demand and response ability, under circumstances where failure

to convene the demands has significant, apparent cost (p.20).” Occupational Stress is careful
 20

to be a person psychological state, which has to do with the person’s perception of the work

environment and the moving practice of it (Cox, et al., 2000). In the past decade, effects of

economic globalization and quick echnical changes have resulted in increased workloads and

a faster pace in the work place. Up to date trends such as organizational downsizing, struggle

for funding, and high insist jobs have led to rising occupational stress (Dollard, 2003).

Jones, et al., (2001) consider that the term work-related stress has in the past been used to

contain a variety of environmental stimuli, stress response and other factors that influence the

association between the two. Unmanaged stress for employees can result in shorthand long

term off-putting health effects including tiredness, bodily pain, depression, sleep turbulence,

and even demise (Brock & Grady, 2002; Le Fevre, et al., 2003).

The basis and characteristics of occupational stress have been the subject of much

research. Sutherland & Cooper (2000, pp.3-23) developed five categories of possible sources

of psychosocial and occupational stress.

Other factors that are potential stressors include live events that may cause stress such as

home, family and demands, matrimonial troubles, and conflicts between job and family

demands (Sutherland & Cooper, 2000).

The above definition highlights three important ideas, namely that (a) situational

demands cause individuals to adapt; (b) individuals be probable to react and adapt in different

ways to stressors, and (c) that some form of responses will occur, be it physical andor

psychological. Furthermore, it can also be incidental that there are two distinct types of
 21

stressors; those which are found within the individual, which include personal principles,

attitudes and self-concepts, and those that kick off outside the individual, which include

environmental and workrelated stressors (Kinman & Jones, 2001).

The aforementioned definitions clearly reflect that the researchers have viewed the

concept of occupational stress in numerous ways. It is not just an environmental stimulus or

responseto environmental demands, but also a lively relational concept. There is constant

communication between the person and the environment, which is refereed by a complex set

of ongoing cognitive processes.

2.3 THEORIES OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS

There are a variety of occupational stress theories. These explanations of occupational

stress differ according to the emphasis for the induction of stress and the different outcomes

for the management of stress (LeFevre et al., 2003; Dollard, 2003). Theories of occupational

stress have been categorized by as either interactional (Cox, Griffiths, & Rial-Gonzalez,

2000).

2.3.1 Interactional Theories

Interactional theories of stress focal point on the structural features of the person’s

interface with their work environment (Dollard, 2003). Early researchers used fundamental

input-output or stimulus-response approaches, whereby the scale to which major life events or

features of work design predicted a negative outcome – be it, psychological, physsiological or

behavioral ( Jones& Kinman, 2001). In the 1930s and 1940s, Conversely, stimulus-based

definitions of stress deem stress to be an self-regulating variable (generally environmental)

 22

that causes an individual to respond. Modern definitions of stress take into account both the

individual and the environment.

More recently, the specific conditions under which stressors lead to nervous tension

have become the predominant focus of research. This focus includes the way in which factors

in the individual or the environmental interact to determine the level of negative effects

practiced as strain (Jones & Kinman, 2001). In the occupational stress literature, the

environmental-stimulus-individual response definition cause what is known as the stressors

and strainapproach. The relationship between stressors and strain is consideration to be causal.

Hence, much of the research focuses on sensing various occupational stressors and examining

their relationship to diverse indices of nervous tension, including measuring individual and

organizational factors that might restrain this relationship (Hart & Cooper, 2001).

Frese, (1999) believe social support as one variable that intercede the relationship

between stressorsand strain. By providing emotional support in the form of loving;

corroboration of the appropriateness of one’s accounts; and instrumental support, coworkers

and supervisors support one’s sense of fit in the work group. Moreover, such social support is

thought to serve as a buffer-between occupational stressors and adverse effects on health.

Frese also offer data for the ‘buffer hypothesis’. He found that the relationship between

occupational stressors and dysfunction changes as a purpose of difference in social support –

when social support is lofty, the association is lesser.

2.3.2 Transactional Theories

 23

Transactional theoriesof stress focus on the person’s touching response related to their

surroundings. The traditional causal model of stress has been prolonged from a uniidirectional

conceptualization to a transactional explanation, whereby stress is “entrenched in an ongoing

procedure that involves individuals handle with their environments, making appraisals of

those encounters, and efforts to cope with the issues that arise” (Cooper, et al., 2001, p. 12).

At the transactional analysis, strain occurs because of a perception that environmental

demands go beyond personal possessions (Lazarus & Folkman, 1986). Moreover, causation

can be mutual, whereby the level of nervous tension experienced by an individual may

produce a tendency to meet stressors..

According to Folkman and Lazarus (1991), assessment comprises the successive

processes of primaryappraisal continuous-monitoring of environmental-conditions with a

center on whether there are likely to be consequences for the individual’s happiness, and

secondary evaluation, what can be done should such cost occur, that is, the identification of a

possible managing strategy. Coping refers to any effortful attempt to vary environmental

circumstances or manage feeling regardless of outcome (Lazarus & Folkman, 1991).

Following to the operation of a coping plan, reappraisal of the situation, and of the final

effects of the coping response, occurs. The cognitive-nature of the appraisalprocess and the

inevitability of its influence on the success of coping construct evaluation of coping outcomes

largely one-sided and, therefore, very difficult to gauge (Hart & Cooper, 2001).

The discussion on the interactional or transactional theories of occupational stress

exposed that the researchers have conceptualized these theories in more than a few

fundamentally dissimilar ways. The central point of interactional-theories of stress is the

 24

structural appearance of the person’s communication with their work environment, whereas,

the transactional-theories of stress center on the person’s moving reactions and cognitive

development related to their environment.

2.4 MODELS OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS

Employers and governments around the world have had an increasing interest about

the occupational stress for the last two decades and therefore, a lot of research has been

undertaken in this field. Some of the more popular and widely used models are discussed

below and an attempt has been made to bring to light the commonalities in the research and to

draw a model suitable for the present research. Stress is multifaceted, requiring that more then

one stressor to be focused on at any one time. All the models discussed below take this

complexity into account.

2.4.1 The Person-Environment Fit Model

A review of the literature suggests that researchers have attempted to find a

clarification regarding the possible relations that exist between stress, an individual and the

environment. It has been theorized that if there is not anprecise fit between the person and the

surroundings, nervous tension will occur (French, Caplan, & Harrison, 1982). More

specifically, a person-environment fit suggest that individuals fit positive occupations based

on the communication of a huge number of variables.

Lazarus and Folkman (1986b) believe that the interaction between how an individual

involve the environment is a compound process that is a result of a diversity of factors and not

any singlevariable. The theory has involved researchers who believe there is relationship to
 25

stress (Pithers et al., 1995; Sutherland et al., 2000). This theory was lending some empirical

evidence by Sutherland et al. (2000). Their research supported the idea that stress and strain is

related to events of fit” (Sutherland et al., 2000, p. 306).

2.4.2 Beehr and Newman’s Facet Model

Beehr and Newman’s Facet model (1978) future that occupational stress could be

broken down into a number of facets that stand for categories of variables to be studied.

Personal facet refers to the even characteristics that employees bring with them to the work

place, the time facet, which reveals that the process of individual’s acuity of stressor in the

environment is embedding with of time context.

2.4.3 Occupational Stress Inventory Model

The study of occupational stress examines stress-strain-coping, and the impact of the

communication of these three elements on the worker. The Occupational Stress Inventory-

was developed by Dr.SamuelOsipow to assist vocational behavioralcounselors in working-out

programs to address occupational stress (Osipow & Davis, 1998).

Osipow's model regard as how stress is related to the various aspects of work roles that

have been established in the literature. To determine the level of occupational stress, the

individual's slanted negative response to stress must be measured (Osipow & Davis, 1998).

Thus, psychological strain is also measured, as stress-strain interact (Cartwright & Cooper,

1997; Kahn, 1986). Under the category of psychological strain, the OSI-R looks at emotional

and subjective. Sleeping disarray, eating disorder, useof alcohol, and social removal are also

examined (Osipow & Davis, 1998).

 26

Researchers have also looked at the OSI-R scores of Australian workers in a variety of

professions, ranging from general whitecollar jobs, topositions in military, and found that

stress-coping predict variance in strain. The best measures to predict interpersonalstrain were

found to be role-overload, role-boundary, and accountability (Osipow & Davis, 1998). The

OSI-R symbolize a comprehensive model of occupational stress-strain-coping, and is based

upon the research in stress management that established association among these three factors

(Spokane & Ferrara, 2001).

The OSI-R (Osipow & Davis, 1998) explores stressstrain-coping through 140

questions, ten in each of the 14 field, which are contained in the following segments:

Occupational Role

1. RoleOverload: toomuch to do; not sufficient training; time limit

2. RoleInsufficiency: underutilization; lack of career advancement

3. RoleAmbiguity: vague expectations; conflicting demands

4. RoleBoundary: vague authority lines; conflicting supervisors

5. Responsibility: bulky decisions; significant results

6. PhysicalEnvironment: high levels of sound

Personal Strain

1. VocationalStrain: dread; boredom; problems concentrating

2. PsychologicalStrain: depression; anxiety; touchiness; lack of comedy

3. InterpersonalStrain: frequent quarrels at work or home; withdrawn

 27

4. PhysicalStrain: health worries or symptoms (colds, cardiovascular)

Personal Resources

1. Recreation: regular leisure activities

2. Selfcare: regular- exercise program;

3. SocialSupport: one reliance friend for work; one person who afford love; a feeling of

closeness to someone

4. RationalCognitive: systematic approach to problem-solving; ability to set and follow

priorities; ability to stay on task and get work done

Literature on occupational stress inventory indicates that earlier versions have been at

length critiqued and authenticated in over 60 studies (Osipow & Davis, 1998; Spokane &

Ferrara, 2001). In the development of the OSI-R, based upon the OSI, intercorrelations among

each of the total questionnairescores for each segment, and each of the 14-domains were

calculated.

Osipow&Davis, (1998) examined the reliability of OSI-R through testretest and

internal steadiness analysis with the normative sample. On the testretest analysis, all

correlations between two administrations were significant. Several studies have examined the

effectiveness of specific stress interference, and other instruments as outcome measures, such

as the Emotional Exhaustion Frequently segment from the Maslach Burnout Inventory

(Higgins, 1986; Kagan et al., 1994). These studies suggest that definite types of behavioral or

cognitive interference were effective in reducing stress and that the OSI-R part were

responsive measures of behavior effects (Osipow & Davis, 1998, p 21).

 28

The occupational stress models demonstrate the stress procedure. The perceived stress

and resultant strain could, among other things, have an effect on work routine. The difference

between perceived stress and experienced strain is considered critical to any successful model.

In addition to the above build, a definition of coping resources is well thought-out vital for

any model of occupational stress.

The objective of this research is to examine the relationship between occupational

stress and organizational commitment of NGO employees in Pakistan. Such examination

requires exploring the nature and overall level of occupational stress of target population.

Based on the review of literature, Occupational Stress Inventory Revised Edition (OSI-R)

(Osipow & Davis, 1998) was found to be most suitable for this study in gauging the level of

perceived occupational stress of NGO employees. Drawing mainly from Osipow research

model; the hypothesized model of research has been developed for this study shown in

Chapter 3 (Figure # 1). The model illustrates three main dimensions of the OSI-R including

occupational role stress, personal strain and coping resources and their hypothesized

relationship with organizational commitment and the demographic factors including age,

experience, job position, gender, qualification, income and marital status, which were

empirically testing in the NGO sector.

2.5 CAUSES OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS

The causes of occupational stress are many and different for each individual. In

addition, the causesof stress are difficult to analyze. Many studies of stress at work have
 29

shown that there is a diversity of organizational factors that are active in causing stress

(Sutherland & Cooper, 2000).

McGrath exposed that there are six possible course of stressors in an organizational

setting including taskbased stress; rolebased stress, stressintrinsic to behavior, stressarising

from the physical environment, stressarising from the social environment, and stresswithin the

person system. Pontage and argue that a shiftneeds to occur in seeing stress from a traditional

point of view as a individual problem positioned in individuals to seeing it as an pointer of the

ineffectiveness of work environments, systems and practices.

2.5.1 Organizational Factors

The following are critical organizational factors which may cause occupation stress:

2.5.1.1 Organizational Structure and Management: Cooper et al., (2001) believes that

psychological damageis often due to the civilization and management style inside an

organization. He highlighted that factors relating to organizational arrangement and climate

that are that allow employees little sharing in decisions touching their work; lack of enough

communication between managerial and non-managerial levels. It indicate that limited chance

for advancement, inadequate performancefeedback, performance appraisal events being too

little and biased be in command of systems and culture within the organization, may be

perceived as stressors.

2.5.1.2 Work Stressors: Warshaw preserve that work stressors can only be fully understand if

the importance of work to the employee is understood. The apparent threat or failure to satisfy
 30

these basic needs symbolize a source of stress in the work place. Cheek and Miller conclude

thatnot being concerned in decision-making has been recognized across all occupational

groups to be the most significant source of stress (Steenkamp, 2003).

2.5.1.3 Relationship at work: Sutherland and Cooper (2000, p. 46) preserve poor-work-

relations as low levels of supportiveness and low attention in problem-solving within the

organization. Problems of unsteadiness may occur in situations where the relationship

between a supervisor and subordinate are harmful. Opposition amongst contemporaries and

differences in character clashes amongst members can give riseto stress (Cartwright &

Cooper, 1997).

Jarvis (2002) found that issues such as social-support amongst have an impact on levels

of stress amongst teachers. Negative relations and the nonattendance of support from

colleagues can be major stress for employees. Conversely, having right of entry to social hold

up from other people in the organization can reduce strain and ease emotional-exhaustion.

Employees’ relationships with their greater are found to be affectedby stress, in those workers

who are under-pressure report that their bosses do not give them helpful disparagement, that

perceived discrimination is established and that seniority is apparent negatively under force

(Kinman & Jones, 2001). In the not for profit sector organizations, particularly civil society

organizations, the management style in general is participatory with flat organizational

structures. As a result, there has been an erosion of the formal managerial role and authority in

some organizations, which may create a stressful situation for some managers (Abdelrahman,

2007).
 31

According to Sutherland and Cooper (2000), the quality of interpersonal associations

at work is important in that helpful relationships are less likely to create force associated with

competition. In addition, the relationship can be potentially stressful when the leadership style

is demanding and acknowledgment and praise for effort are valuable for bosssubordinate

association. In combination with this, point to that in situation where the relationship between

supervisor and subordinate is harmful, problems of emotional unsteadiness may occur

(Cartwright and Cooper, 1997).

2.5.1.4 Lack of RewardRecognition: Cooper & Bright, (2001) indicatethat one of the major

causal factors to jobstress is lack of rewards and recognition.

2.5.1.5 Negative Publicity: Ongoingpublic criticism, lack of admiration for workers as

professionals by the people they deal with add to workers burnout as one of the most common

and grave afflictions. The NGOs in Pakistan have to deal with criticism and occasional

hostility for a number of reasons including their inability to manage or deliver according to

expectations, and occasionally because of lack of credibility due to their affiliations or

exclusive groupings, which sometimes results in public rage and attacks. The negative media

publicity about NGOs and the unfortunate functioning of some opportunistic elements also

further aggravate negative public impressions (Khan, 2005).

NGOs themselves are confronted with a number of issues, both internally and

externally. The rapidly growing sector of NGOs in Pakistan is facing numerous challenges

(UNDP, 2002). With the fast changing scenario, NGOs, particularly the smaller grassroots

level organizations, are facing problems relating to inadequacies in the areas of management,
 32

capacity building, human resource development, institutional strengthening and sustainability.

Although the organizational structures of most of the NGOs in Pakistan is flat however,

sometimes the decisions are imposed by the international donor agencies without consultation

with the NGO management, which causes them stress. Besides there is a high degree of

uncertainty about the continuance of projects in NGO due to limited funding, which keeps

employees under constant stress of losing jobs (Zia, 1996).

2.5.2 Job Demands

2.5.2.1 Working Conditions: Seyle believes that a positive level of stimulation is needed for

performance, but when the stimulation exceeds overability to meet the demand placed on the

employee, a feeling of suffer exhaustion is experienced. In contrast, when employees are not

confront or stimulatedby a job, or do not believe that their contribution isvalued, and poor

morale are qualified. Working conditions of job have been linked to mental health. It was

found that poor psychological health related directly to disagreeable working conditions,

physical-effort and speed in job performance and extreme, not convenient working hours.

(Osipow & Davis, 1998).

2.5.2.2 Quantitiesand QualitativeOverload: Qualitative excess, as a source of stress, is

linked to low levels of selfesteem, as individualslack the necessary ability to do a new job. In

contrast, qualitative underload is damaging, as the individual is not given the chance to use

acquiredskills and abilities, resulting in feelings of powerlessness to demonstrate talents

(Sutherland & Cooper, 2000). Chaka (1998) point to that a person’s physical and

psychological wellness could be adversely exaggerated by work that is dull and repetitive.
 33

The above research indicates that the work overload is a possible source of occupational stress

that adversely affects both health and job satisfaction.

2.5.2.3 Work EnvironmentalFactors: Environmental factors reason stress are those

universal factors that are not intrinsic to workers, but depend on the environment of the

organization. NGO employees often complain about the lack of management support, lack of

information regarding changes, constant change and the organizational demands as amongst

their greatest source of stress. (Zia, 1996). Cooper and Bright (2001) stated that along with the

workenvironment, the personrole at work has been identified as the major source of stress

because of role conflict, accountability for people and conflict of role border. Career

development is another area having stress impact and lack of safety.

NGOs perform a variety of functions and the working conditions and job demands in

this sector very high in Pakistan. The workers are mostly deployed in field for tasks such as

disaster relief, emergency aid and community support and mobilization. Once deployed,

however, many workers feel dismayed by the lack of on-site support. However, the financial

resources of many NGOs do not permit them to provide adequate home office support and

supervision for workers in the field (Abdelrahman, 2007).

Workers experience feelings of disconnection during their fieldwork from those in

charge and this adds to their job related stress. Separation from family, friends & home;

intense physical labor; severe living conditions; limited communication; potential for injury;

lack of sanitation; risk of illness and the shock of dealing with the values of a different culture

represent commonly reported “ground effects” problems (Thomas, 2001).

 34

2.5.3 Role Stress

The most greatly researched-dimensions of role stress are role vagueness and role-

conflict. Stress occurs because of role ambiguity (Jones et al., 2001). Role disagreement

strangeness of the prospect linked with a role has been associated with lowered job approval,

higher jobtension, and physiologicalstress (Sutherland & Cooper 2000; Yousef, 2003). The

extra-facets of role stress the shape and power of load, apparent lack of energetic between a

worker's ability and growth and the supplies of the job and answerability for people for the

happiness of subordinates, generation, or the society have also been connected with strong

welfare (Jones et al., 2001). Roleambiguity, roleconflict and level of answerability for others

are often looked upon as the major sources of stess.

2.5.3.1 Role Ambiguity: Role ambiguity refers to the degree to which employees be short of

clarity about their role or the task stress at work (Spector, 2000). It occurs when an employee

does not know or realize the prospect and demands of the job (Kahn & Cooper, 1993).

2.5.3.2 Role Conflict: According to Lopopolo (2002), role conflict happens when an

employee experiences mismatched stress or incompatiblegoals nearby tasks linked with their

job that can persuade negative emotionalresponse due to apparent inability to be effective on

the job. Furthermore, having to do tasks that are not perceived to be part of one's job role can

potentially lead to stress linked with roleconflict (Cooper & Sutherland, 2000).

2.5.3.3 Role Overload: The number of dissimilar roles an individual has to complete can lead

to extreme demands on the individual’s time and may create doubt about the ability to do

these roles adequately (Driscoll & Cooper, 2002).

 35

Malik, (2003) carried out a study to explore the occupational role stress, psychological

well-being and motivational orientation of Medical profession in Pakistan. He used

occupational role stress scale by Pareek, work motivation inventory by Amabile and scale of

CPI. The study included sample of both private and public sector doctors. Result indicated

highly significant inverse correlation between the occupational role stress and psychological

well being. The scores of extrinsically motivated medical professional have significantly

inverse correlation with psychological well-being. Study found that high occupational role

stress decreases the psychological well-being.

The highly experienced medical professionals reported lesser magnitude of

occupational role stress, whereas, the younger medical professionals showed low level of

psychological well being. The role overload and changing requirements of job roles are

considered main causes of stress in NGOs (Khan, 2005). There is a high degree of multi

tasking as individuals, in most of the cases are expected to perform both office and field

related tasks.

2.5.4 Individual Factors

O’ Driscoll and Cooper (2002) affirmed that individual dissimilarity may play a major

role in the affiliation between work-relatedstressors and psychologicalstrain. Internal

distinctiveness are found to be one of the most imperative sources of stress, as it not only put

in to a worker’s vulnerability to stress, but might also dictate how they switch the stress that

they run into and what they are able to endure (Omolara, 2008). Many factors add to theses

difference, ranging from personality, motivation, incapability to deal with problems in an area

of know-how, fluctuations in facility, to insight into personal motivations and increase areas.
 36

2..5.4.1 Self-Efficacy: Brockner et al., (1993) indicates that persons with low selfefficacy tend

to react more to exterior proceedings because they familiarity more hesitation about the

rightness of their perceptions and emotional reactions. These individuals often seek social

approval by conventionality with others’ expectation, and tend to allow unenthusiastic

feedback on one area of their behavior.

2.5.4.2 Locus of Control: Situational control refers to the scope to which persons believe

they can exert manage over a specific aspect of their job, such as the pace of work or the

events for task conclusion, scheduling of tasks and decision freedom (O’Driscoll & Cooper,

2002).

2.5.4.3 Social Support: Stress can be caused, not only by the weight of relationships, but also

by the lack of plenty social hold up in different condition. This may therefore be both a

stressorand a copingstrategy. In studies cited by Osipow & Davis (1998), socialsupport, the

abilitytodraw on friendsand coworkers, reduced the impact of allstressors with the exception

of physicalenvironment. There is consistentevidence that employees with more support from

others experiencelower straint (Lee & Ashforth, 1996), and where an employee is look with

potentially stressful weight and problems in the work-place may reduce the impact of the

force on the individual’s wellbeing.

The literature on the reason of occupationalstress has revealed many complex and

wide ranging reason of occupational stress including organizational factors, job stress and

individual factors. However, NGOs work is considered essentially stressful in Pakistan as

 37

employees’ experience it mainly due the complex organizational structures of NGOs, multiple

roles the workers have to play, physical and psychological strains, and lack of security. There

is hardly any focus on the occupational stress of NGO employees as a factor affecting their

work performance, organizational commitment or job satisfaction (Zia, 1996). Since the

complex web of the NGO structures in Pakistan does not seem to consider stress management

an issue to reckon with, therefore minimal professional guidance or support is available to

address this extremely significant factor directly. One of the causes of absence of professional

guidance and support in stress management is mainly due to lack of research in this area in the

NGO sector. Therefore, extensive research is required with focus on identification of various

causes and levels of occupational stress of NGO employees in Pakistan.

2.6 EFFECTS OF STRESS

It has been well-liked in stress writing to categorize the response to stress. There are a

variety of feelings reflecting the individual nature and situationalfactors. These damages are

seen as unwanted consequences of stressors. Apart from their own unwanted nature, some

strains may have additional nega consequences for individual task performance and well-

being (Cooper, et al., 2000). According to Kyriacou (1989), symptoms of stress in workers are

manifested in frustration, damage performance, and split relationships at work and at home.

Researchers agree that a certain extent of stress is a usual part of life, but prolonged stressors

could lead to signs that are physicalpsychological or behavioral (O’Driscoll & Beehr, 2002).

2.6.1 Effects of Stress on Psychological Functioning

Everyday workersencounter stress and most of the stresscomes and goes without

leaving any enduring imprints but when stress is severe and piles up the demands then one’s
 38

psychological functioning may be affected. Stress has an obvious crash on an individual’s

psycholoogical wellbeing. There is evidence that stress has unenthusiastic implications for

organizations, individual workers. According to Maslach, Schaufeli, & Leiter, (2001) a range

of negative ending are also likely for individual workers exaggerated by stress including

health problems, mental complaints and physical problems.

Spector (2000) described that suffer exhaustion is a upset psychological state; a person

pain from burnout is expressively exhausted, has low workmotivation, it involves being

miserable about work and having littleenergy and keenness for the job. suffer exhaustion

contains emotional tiredness, depersonalization and concentrated personal events. High levels

of suffer exhaustion have been associated with low levels of apparent control and high levels

of roleconflict, healthsymptoms, and meaning of give up the job and work-overload

(Sutherland & Cooper, 2000).

Abdelrahman, (2007) found that 15 to 20 percent of emergency response personnel

working in NGOs suffer from post-traumatic stress disarray, 22 percent of people who

knowledge trauma and don't manage it will still have symptoms up to one year after the event,

two-thirds of NGO employees exposed to trauma have moderate or severe distress.

2.6.2 Physiological Effects of Stress

Cartwright and Cooper (1997) hypothesize that when an individual is faced up to with

a demanding situation, worry or pressure, the anxious system can be triggered to make active

a wide variety of hormonal emission. According to Tucker-Ladd (1996) the hormonal reply

determine the severity of the individualanxiety reactionsmind-set, power level, level of

 39

hopelessness, and physicalstate of health after knowledge a stressfulevent. Dollard (2002)

maintains that when the test is short term the bodies firstreaction is adaptive, allow the person

to set in action energy capital to combat the stressor.

Some professional staff such as female social organizers and community workers have

to travel to other villages, which can cause stress and may be considered as an inappropriate

or unacceptable behavior in their family’s social setup thus increasing conflict and stress.

Some NGOs in Pakistan work on certain complex and often controversial issues in the

society, such as HIV and AIDs awareness and family planning, so their staff becomes the

victim of negative criticism. For example, women health workers and teachers in the rural

areas often suffer from a high occupational stress because of public image of the organization

they work with (TVO, 2007).

2.6.3 Behavioral Effects of Stress

Tucker-Ladd (1996) explained common behavioral-effects ensuing from occupational

stress includinghyperactivity, eruption of emotions, worry with a certain situation, compulsive

thoughts, holding a complaint, excessive perturbing, tetchiness, extreme sleeping, poor

reminiscence, feeling frightened and annoyance with delays. Some workers face problems

such as lack of social hold up, skepticism of the local the public, exposureto lifethreatening

risks. They feel that in the end they themselves are responsible for their own safety and

security, which add to their increased levels of stress.

For NGO relief workers anger, fear, fatigue, despair and physical stress reactions are

common responses to the realities of humanitarian assistance. Without proper mental health

support, NGO employees may unwittingly add to their problems by seeking relief in stress
 40

management strategies that actually create more stress than they resolve (Abdelrahman,

2007). NGOs make provisions for mental health support and other social support activities

depending on their size and resource availability, however, organizational leadership of many

in the development sector NGOs seems least interested in such activities.

For workers it more likely reflects the fear of being supposed as weak or insufficient,

leading to refutation by contemporaries. It is regrettable that the commitment to others and

high values of behavior that force workers to go into the caring aid area can also leave them

susceptible to feelings of disgrace or failure in the face of perturbing but normal affecting

upsets (Cooper et al., 2001).

Both male and female workers unanimously state their apprehension about the long

hours they are expected to put into their work, usually without any financial incentive or

reward. Their long absences from home affect their family life and the quality of their

relationships with their children (Khan, 2005). In Pakistan’s largely traditional society,

women are expected to fulfill almost all the household duties and to be solely responsible for

child care, but when the female NGO employees have to work long hours as well as most

weekends, not to mention long and frequent field trips all this eventually negatively affects

and disrupts their family life ( Zia, 1996).

2.6.4 Effects of Occupational Stress on Organization

Occupational stress has its cost and it is knowledgeable at both the individual and

organizational level. The wider organizational and financial effects of stress resolution around

the changes in the system in which individual purpose. Individual behavior and its effects on
 41

the system can be seen as being a range, with absence due to sickness and taskperformance at

one end, and labour turnover, low group-morale, output and poor labour-relations, at the other.

The latter are less affected by a single individual’s behavior (Cooper et al., 2001; Ivancevich

& Matteson, 1980). Job satisfaction and organizational commitment can be damagingly

affected by stressful circumstances, although it should be noted that certain occupations are

considered to be inherently more stressful than others (Cooper et al., 2001). Low self-

confidence amongst employees and managers is normally an organizational strain that

requires an organizationwide process to offset. If an appropriate action is not taken it can

result in reduce productivity and high turnover, resulting in losses in profits anddent in the

bottomline of the organizations.

Absenteeism is a majorcost of stress to theorganization. The problem isuniversal and

go faster rapidly. Analysts have recognized the direct link between employee’s promptness of

attendance on the job and the common levelof health and wellbeing. Turnover can to some

scope be attributed to expected and stressrelated causes. Retirement and discharge are

encountered in business process. However, stress can lead to near the beginning retirement,

medical boarding and dismissal of often competent employees. The costs of employ and

training new employees reduce in general efficiency and disrupt other workers. The estimated

cost of labour proceeds is five times an employee’s monthly salary (Jones & Bright, 2001).

Working for NGOs in Pakistan is fraught with insecurity, as employees have no job

security and nor the certainty about their contract extension. In addition, once their contract

ends they do not know how soon they will be able to find another NGO job. These employees

are therefore, constantly changing jobs within the NGO sector, moving frequently from one
 42

NGO to another. Most employees find this very stressful, and this insecurity probably

constitutes the main disadvantage of employment within the ‘third sector’. Disagreements

between donor agencies and NGO directors or government authorities can render NGO

employees still more vulnerable (NGORC, 2000).

In addition to the sense of insecurity which short-term employment creates, there is

very little space for promotion within NGOs, because of the project-based nature of most of

the jobs. Once a person is hired for a particular project, there is no room for promotion within

the period of this contract. The person’s position in the next contract will probably be at more

or less the same level. They feel that they do not need to compete very hard; but it is

frustrating for others, who resent the fact that they cannot advance their careers as they might

have done in the public or private sector, for instance (Abdelrahman, 2007).

In summary, the extensive review of the literature done on causes and effects of

occupational stress clearly indicates that the occupational stress, if not managed well and on

time, can produce devastating results both for the organization as well as for the employee, as

it may lead to lower job satisfactions, low level of organizational commitment, absenteeism

and high turnover. Literature also indicates that occupational stress is a dynamic relational

concept and not simply an environmental stimulus or a response to environmental demands.

There is a constant interaction between the person and the environment, which is

mediated by a complex set of ongoing cognitive processes. An individual’s perception and

interpretation of a situation is a key determining factor in regarding a situation as stressful or

 43

otherwise. An employee’s response to stress can be psychological, physiological or both. The

way in which an individual copes with stress has a significant impact on behavior during

performing job duties, because it determines the individual’s execution of control over the

demands placed on him/her.

Highly committed NGO employees are rare to find in Pakistan. There are some

professional cadres where qualified and experienced workers are scarce, such as, lady health

workers, community mobilizers, disaster response workers and emergency first aid givers.

Hence, it is the responsibility of NGO management to provide proper work environment to

their professional staff so that they may remain committed to the organization and contribute

towards the organizational objectives in a best possible manner.

It seems that there is greater realization of occupational stress as an important issue to

deal with in the western countries, whereas, very little research has been done on this subject

in Pakistan. Perhaps this important area of research has not yet grabbed the attention of

researchers in Pakistan. There is a serious need to investigate state of NGO employees’

occupational stress to understand this phenomenon better and for formulation of appropriate

stress management strategy in the NGOs for enhanced individual and organizational

performance and better quality of life.

2.7 GROWING INTEREST IN ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

There has been a lot of research take on in the field of organizational commitment in

the developed-countries. Organizational commitment is widely illustrated in the human

 44

resources development and behavioral sciences literature as a key subject in the relationship

between individual and organization. It can take a variety of forms and has the potential to

influence organizational efficiency and employee well-being (Simone, 2003). The key issues

discussed in the below section include background of organizational commitment,

contemporary theories of organizational commitment, forms of organizational commitment

and research on the demographic factors and their relationship with organizational

commitment.

2.7.1 Background of Organizational Commitment

A review of the text on organizational commitment exposed that the earliest concept of

organizational commitment originated from research work of Barnard (1938), Simon (1945),

Becker (1960) and Kanter (1979). According to Barnard, an individual’s choice to join an

organization is based on the conviction that the organization can fulfill a personal require and

if there is an imbalance between inducements and contributions, the individual may leave the

system. In his opinion, organizational effectiveness is dependent on individuals’ commitment

to cooperate in furthering the organizational goals. Therefore, maintaining the commitment of

individuals is very important to an effective organization (Barnard, 1938).

Elaborating on Bernardidea, Simon (1945) put down emphasis on the importance of

individuals making decisions based on the organization’s best interest. By calling this choice

as recognition, he introduced the idea of Identification and described it as “the process

whereby an individual substitutes organizational objectives for his own aims and the value

indices, which determine his organizational decisions”. Identification comprised of three

 45

elements including personal interest in organizational success, a sense of ownership of the

organization, and focus of thought.

Kanter (1979) widened the idea of organizational commitment by highlighting that

organizational commitment incorporated more than one approach. He identified the

behavioral requirements of organizational commitment as continuance, cohesion and control.

According to Kanter, all three areas of organizational commitment must be maintained

simultaneously (Kanter, 1979).

After reviewing the early definitions of organizational commitment, the common

subject that emerged was that ‘commitment is a psychological state that differentiate the

employee’s relationship with the organization, and has implications for the decision to

continue membership in the organization”. Early researchers of organizational commitment

have provided a foundation for modern theories.

2.7.2 Defining Organizational Commitment

Organizational commitment can take a variety of forms and has the potential to power

organizational effectiveness and employee well-being. Organizational commitment is defined

as an employee’s level of identification and involvement in the organization (Simone, 2003).

Johns, (2005) defined organizational commitment as the extent that an individual accepts,

internalizes, and views his or her role based on organizational values and goals.
 46

Porter et al., (2005) saw organizational commitment as a well-built belief in an

organization’s goals, and values, a willingness to put forth considerable effort on behalf of an

organization and a strong desire to stay a member of the organization. They suggested that

employees who exhibit high organizational commitment are better-off at their work, spend

less time away from their jobs and are less likely to leave the organization (p.171).

Meyer and Allen (1987) defined organizational commitment as a psychologicalstate

that distinguish the employee-relationship with the organization with its inference for the

decision to continue association in the organization. The large consequences of organizational

commitment are maintenance, creative behavior, and employee well-being. It is generally

understood that a positive attitude towards the organization is reproduced in a high level of

organizational commitment. It relates to the behavior that is favorable to organizational

effectiveness, for instance higher level of commitment is supposed to be associated with low

turnover, limited tardiness, low absenteeism, and enhanced job presentation. It helps

employees in the acceptance of principles and goals of the organization (Dollard, 2002).

2.8 CONTEMPORARY THEORIES OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

The contemporary theories of organizational commitment came from Becker’s side-

bet theory (1960), the Mowday, Porter, Steers, and Boulian Model (1974), the O’Reilly and

Chatman Model (1986) , the Meyer and Allen Three-Component Model (1984, 1990).

2.8.1 The Becker’s ‘Side-Bet’ Theory (1960)

The first modern theory of organizational commitment was the “side–bet” theory

presented by H.S. Becker in 1960. The “side- bet” theory believed that “commitment comes
 47

into life form when a person, by creation a side bet, links extraneous interests with a steady

line of activity” (Becker, 1960, p. 32). Becker (1960) concerted on what he termed the “side-

bet” theory, which attempted to give details the process by which employees connect

themselves to organizations through investments such as time, effort, and reward. These

investments, however, have costs, which decrease to some degree an employee’s

independence in his or her future activity. Through investments, employees are locked into

organizations because of costs associated with leaving the organization (e.g. pension plans,

seniority, and firm specific knowledge).

Education is included as a side-bet based on the idea that the less education one has the

fewer the career alternatives available (O'Reilly and Chatman 1986). A short level of

education increases the number of side-bets an employee must make in the organization and

this should add to his/her commitment. Salary is considered as a side-bet, as those with higher

salaries have more to lose and, therefore, are presumably less likely to leave their

organizations (Ritzer and Trice 1969). Gender is considered as a side-bet variable "because of

its middle relationship with marital status and its attendant role responsibilities" (Alutto,

Hrebiniak and Alonso 1973). Position is considered as an investment "because higher

positions are decision-making positions, which over an extensive period of time may

result in some loss of professional capability and so limit options and because supervisory

positions are a reward from the organization which should enhance the employee's recognition

(Sheldon 1971).
 48

Becker’s effort was criticized in that the “side-bet” model only identified the behavior

of the individual. Commitment was seen as an trade between the individual and organization

for certain rewards or payments (Porter, Steers & Mowday (2005). Research in organizational

commitment embarks on to be distinguished as pertaining to either attitudinalcommitment or

behavioralcommitment. Porter, Steers & Mowday (2005) explained attitudinal commitment as

the degree to which an individual and the organizational goals are matching. Attitudinal

commitment studies measured the past history and consequences of commitment.

The objective of studies on attitudinal commitment was to show that the results of a

strong commitment were lesser absenteeism (Iverson & Buttigeg, 1999; Mathieu & Zajac,

1990; Somer et al 1998), lower turnover (Lee & Maurer, 1999; Somers & Birnbaum, 2000),

and elevated productivity (Angle et al.,1994; Meyer, Allen, and Smith, 1993; Meyer, et al

2002). An additional purpose was to establish what individual characteristics and

circumstances contribute to the growth of high commitment. “Behavioral commitment relates

to the process by which individuals turn into locked into a firm organization and how they

deal with this difficulty” (Meyer & Allen, 1997, p. 9). The objective of behavioral

commitment research was to find out the circumstances in which individuals be converted into

committed to the organization.

2.8.2 The Mowday, Porter, Steers, and Boulian Model (1974)

Mowday, Porter, Steers, and Boulian began to hypothesize about organizational

commitment in both attitudinal and behavioral contexts. Mowday et al. (1982) described

organizational commitment as the comparative “strength of an individual’s recognition with

 49

and involvement in a particular organization, which is characterized by conviction in and

acceptance of organizational goals and values, willingness to exert effort on behalf of the

organization” (p. 27). Organizational commitment as defined by Mowday et al. (1979) has

three major componentsincluding a strong belief in and acceptance of the organization’s goal;

a willingness to exert considerable effort on behalf of the organization; a definite desire to

maintain organizational membership. Building on Mowday and his colleagues’ organizational

commitment theory, O’Reilly and Chatman reviewed individual psychological attachment to

the organization.

2.8.3 The O’Reilly and Chatman Model (1986)

O’Reilly and Chatman (1986) endeavored to clarify the construct of organizational

commitment. Commitment was defined as the psychological addition felt by the individual for

an organization, which reflects the degree to which the individual internalizes or adopts the

distinctiveness or perspectives of the organization. There are three sovereign bases for

psychological attachment: compliance, identification, and internalization.

O’Reilly and Chatman (1986) believed obedience occurred when an individual to put

on specific rewards adopted the approach and beliefs of an organization. Recognition

occurred when an individual compliments the beliefs and principles of the organization

without adopting them as their own. Internalization takes place when the attitudes and

viewpoint of an organization are the same as the person. Through criticisms of their work and

sustained research, O’Reilly and Chatman (1986) restructured their framework to recognize

two dimensions, compliance and normative, a combination of internalization and recognition.

 50

During the time O’Reilly and Chatman commence their effort on organizational commitment,

Meyer and Allen also began their work on organizational commitment. Meyer and Allen’s

model was conceptualized by the Becker model (cost attachment) and the Mowday, Porter,

Steers, and Boulian model (affective attachment).

2.8.4 The Meyer and Allen Three-Component Model (1984, 1990)

Meyer and Allen’s (1997) Model of organizational commitment put forward that “by

understanding when and how commitments get bigger and how they form attitudes and

behaviors, organizations will be in a better position to anticipate the force that change will

have and to manage it more effectively”. Meyer and Allen defined organizational commitment

as “a psychological connection between the employee and his or her organization that makes

it less probable that the employee will voluntarily go away the organization” (Allen & Meyer,

1991, p. 252).

Meyer and Allen (1984) first recognized two components of organizational

commitment, those of affectiveattachment and costattachment. However, after continued

research, Meyer and Allen (1990) identified a third constituent, that of obligation. The three-

component model was developed because of three common subject matter within the

commitment literature as noted by Meyer and Allen. Some of the common definitions within

the affective orientation subject comprise “an attitude or a way toward the organization which

links or attaches the individuality of the person to the organization” (Sheldon, 1971, p. 143)

and “the relative force of an individual’s recognition with and involvement in a particular

organization” (Mowday, Porter, and Steers, 1982, p. 27).

 51

Some of the frequent definitions within the cost-based topic are “proceeds associated

with continued participation and a cost associated with going away” (Kanter, 1999, p. 504)

and “commitment comes into being when a person, by building a side-bet, links unconnected

interest with a reliable line of activity” (Becker, 1960, p. 32). Definitions within the

compulsion theme include “the totality of internalized normative force to act in a way which

meets organizational goals and interest and the committed employee considers it morally right

to stay in the company, regardless of how much status improvement or satisfaction the firm

gives him or her over the years” (Wiener & Vardi, 1982, p. 42).

In summary, the theories of organizational commitment explain the large forms and

the individual’s relationship with the organization, indicating that it is a complex

phenomenon, which may influence an employee’s nature of relationship with the

organization. NGO employees operate in high stress work environment and generally assumed

to have a high degree of commitment to their organizations. In order to understand this

dynamic aspect in the NGO sector of Pakistan this study is an attempt to explore various

forms of NGO employees’ organizational commitment.

Drawing from the Meyer and Allen model, 1997, the research model developed for

this study shown in Chapter 3 ( Figure #1) deems organizational commitment as a dependent

variable for the antecedents together with age, gender, qualification, position, income and

experience of NGO employees. As for a complete understanding of organizational

commitment in the NGO sector, there is a need for an empirical analysis of the system of

values or valuables with which bets can be made and relationship of individual organizational
 52

goal congruence can be established in the NGO sector of Pakistan. In order to illustrate the

importance of organizational commitment, the next section will provide an extensive review

of recent studies conducted on organizational commitment.

2.9 RECENT RESEARCH ON ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

Organizational commitment is one of the most often researched variables in the area of

organizational behavior, since it is assumed to influence just about any employee behavior

that is of benefit to the organization, including performance, attendance, and retention

(Simone, 2003). The studies in the review vary in setting but provide valuable insight into the

relation between the demographic variables and organizational commitment.

Brady (1997) examined the organizational commitment of professional staff in health

and human service organizations. The results of the study revealed that affective commitment

was significantly related to age and annual salary, but not related to years of experience.

Results revealed that persistence commitment was not significantly related to age, years of

experience, or annual salary. Normative commitment was not significantly connected to age,

years of experience, or annual salary. The study also investigated the differences between

organizational commitment and race, marital status, and level of education. Results revealed

no significant dissimilarity between affective commitment and race, marital status, and level

of education. Results also revealed no significant difference between continuance

commitment and race, marital status, and level of education.

King (2002) carries out a meta-analysis to summarize the relations between the three-

component Organizational Commitment Scale (OCS) and the organizational commitment

 53

questionnaire (OCQ) in their antecedents, correlates, and consequences. A meta-analysis is a

quantitative empirical view from the results of a number of studies that will provide evidence

of relationship among the defined variables (Hunter & Schmidt, 1990). There were no

significant correlations between normative commitment and education (-.08), age (.17), and

tenure (.18).

Schneider (2003) examines the relationship of selected demographics to organizational

commitment. The revised OCS was used to assess the commitment rank of managers used in

the study. The results revealed a significant relationship between AC and age and income, and

NC and income. To further investigate if the variables would account for variance of affective

and normative commitment, a stepwise multiple regression was conducted. Results revealed

that income and learning were predictors of affective and normative commitment. Regression

analysis indicted that 6 percent of variance in commitment was accounted for by income alone

and 3 percent when education was added to the equation. A limitation of the study may be

found in the selection of sample from the people. The population consisted of managers who

worked for organizations with a minimum size of 200 employees throughout the United

States. Although exact management titles were coded on the list, signal of type of

organizations was not identified for the sample.

Foosiri (2002) examined the relationship between organizational commitment

(affective, continuance, normative) and the antecedents of age, education, and salary of Thai

employees within the American Chamber of Commerce in Thailand. The original

Organizational Commitment Scale using a seven point Likert scale was used to measure
 54

organizational commitment among the variables. Results revealed a significant relationship

between affective commitment and education and salary, a significant relationship between

continuance commitment and education, and a significant relationship between normative

commitment and age and education. Results also revealed a positive correlation between age

and affective, normative, and continuance commitment, a positive correlation between salary

and affective commitment, and a negative correlation between education and continuance and

normative commitment.

In a meta-analytic revision, Matthieu and Zajac (1990) identifiedthe following

antecedents toorganizational commitment: personal , role states, jobcharacteristics, group-

leader relations, and organizational characteristics. Extending Matthieu and Zajac’s (1990)

findings, Meyer, et al. (2002) and Riketta (2002) found through meta-analyses that

demographicvariables of age, gender, job level and organizational tenure had only minor

important relationships with affective commitment. This finding supports the argument that

somewhat than recruiting those who might be predisposed to being affectively committed, it

would be better to manage knowledge following entry to the organization (Meyer et al.,

2002). However, they did find significant correlations between affective commitment and

overall job satisfaction (.65).

On hand, research in organizational commitment literature suggests that affective

commitment correlates significantly with a broader range of result measures, and correlates

morestrongly than persistence and normativecommitment. In a meta-analysis of more than 40

studies exceeding 16,000 employees, Allen and Meyer (1993) found significant positive
 55

correlations among affective commitment measured with the independent measures of

compound or overall performance.

Lim (2003) scrutinized the variables of age, education, gender, and years of service in

current organization in relative to organizational commitment by using the Organizational

Commitment Scale. The t-test was used to assess the organization commitment level of

employees at a Korean classified organization. The outcome revealed no significant

differences for age and affective organizational commitment, continuance organizational

commitment, and normative organizational commitment. Results also revealed no significant

differences between educational level and affectiveorganizational commitment, and

continuance organizational commitment. Outcomes revealed no significant difference

between yearsof service in current organization for affective organizationalcommitment,

continuance commitment, and normative commitment. There was a significant difference

found for affective commitment and continuance. A limitation from this study was that the

instrument was interpreted into Korean and a loss of validity or meaning may have occurred

during the process.

Heinzman (2004) examined the relationship between the variables of tenure, and job

satisfaction to organizational commitment. The sample for the learning consisted of

employees at two manufacturing firms. The revised OCS was used to assess the organizational

commitment level of employees. The results of a correlation revealed that affective

commitment has a significant relationship to tenure but not age, continuance the study may be

establish in the population used for the study. Meyer and Allen (1997) hypothesized that
 56

organizational characteristics, which include organizational size and structure, has an

influence on affective commitment. The population for the study was include of two separate

organizations of different organizational size (N=50, N=200) which may influence

commitment level.

Huang (2004) investigated the level of organizational commitment among higher

educational institutions. The study assessed the variables of age, marital status, and length of

employment. The original OCS assessed faculty’s commitment level to the organization. The

results revealed no significant association between age and affective organizational

commitment, continuance commitment, and normative commitment. No significant

relationship wasfound between maritalstatus and affective commitment, continuance

commitment, and normative commitment. Results also revealed no significant relationship

between length of employment and affective commitment and normative commitment. There

was a significant relationship found between length of employment and continuance

commitment. The instruments used in the study were translated to Chinese. After reviewing

the responses to descriptors, the researcher indicated that “the translated questions in the

affective commitment portion of the instrument did not suitably measure what was occurring

in the sample” (Huang, 2004, p. 88).

Jex, (2002) stated that workerswho have high levels of affective commitment tend to

work harder and exert more effort than employees who possess inferior levels of affective

commitment, in some cases high level of effort will translated into higher levels of

performance. He further found that organizationalcommitment defend individual from

 57

negative outcomes experienced at job either because those who are committed to the

organization have connected more closely to the person at work or because they have found

meaning in their work (p. 21).

According to Greenberg and Baron, (2000) when people are intensely committed to

their organizations, they carry out differently. The high level of commitment be inclined to be

associated with lowlevel of absenteeism and voluntaryturnover as more committed individuals

are less likely to look for new jobs than less-committed ones. Zajac, (1999) found that the

corrected between affective-commitment and turnout was .12 and correlation with lateness

was -.11. Findings show that high-level of commitment tends to show lower level of absence.

All forms of commitment are negatively associated with turnover would appear to be a

positive thing for organization.

Lawthom, Patterson, West and Staniforth, (1996) examined the insight of the work

environment of 156 female and 898 male managers in a manufacturing industry in Britain.

Results exposed that women reported the organizational environment as more reflexive,

welfareoriented, focused on excellence, and wellorganized, as well as having clearervision

and being more focused. Women also reported higher levels of effort, performance

monitoring, training and skill development, co-operation, and lower level of employee -

autonomy. The researchers finished that women had higher levels of organizational

commitment than men. Wahn, (1998) identified that women in human resource positions

reported superior levels of continuancecommitment than male human resource professionals.

The study also revealed a positive relationship between tenure and continuance commitment
 58

and a negative relationship between educational , level in ladder and continuance

commitment. In conclusion, women come into view to have the same or greater organizational

commitment to their place of work than men.

In summary, the literature review on organizational commitment clearly reflects that its

influence has far reaching effects; organizational commitment does not only stand for staying

with the organization for along period of time, instead, it is a quite complex phenomena where

many interrelated factors influence the levels of commitment. Organizational commitment is a

very broad concept and it cannot be generalized as its nature and forms vary from profession

to profession. The concept of commitment encompasses multiple factors that contribute in

either promoting or weakening the individual’s work performance and relationship with the

organization. The literature review also revealed that a lot of research has been conducted on

organizational commitment and its relationship with occupational stress in the developed

counties, however, not even a singly study describing the state of organizational commitment

and its relationship with occupational stress in Pakistan was found.

It has been discussed in the previous sections that NGO employees in Pakistan work in

a high stress environment and it may influence their physical and psychological functioning.

This study attempts to investigate the level and forms of organizational commitment of the

NGO employees in Pakistan and examines its relationship with occupational stress. It will

help NGO management in understanding the nature and general level of organizational

commitment of NGO employees for managing them more effectively, which may result in

improved performance and reduced employee turnover in NGOs of Pakistan. The forms of
 59

organizational commitment and the factors that may influence it are discussed in the following

section.

2.10 FORMS OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

Meyer and Allen (1997) have been at the fore front of the multidimensionalapproach

to organizational commitment. From the three themes, Meyer and Allen identified the three

forms of organizationalcommitment as affective, continuance, and normative. The three forms

were found to be related, but distinguishable from each other (Meyer et al., 2001).

2.10.1 Affective Commitment: According to Meyer and Allen, (1997) “Affective

organizational commitment refers to an employee’s affection to, recognition with, and

participation in the organization” (p.11). An employee who has a strong affective

organizational commitment to an organization stays with the organization because he or she

needs to continue working in the organization. Meyer and Allen (1997) found that the best

forecaster of affective organizational commitment was work experience. Employees whose

work knowledge are steady with their expectations and whose basic needs within the

organization are satisfied have a stronger level of affective commitment to the organization.

Employees with strong affective commitment stay with the organization because they have no

wish to leave.

Meyer et al., (2002) dispute that an individual would develop emotional attachment to

an organizationwhen he or she recognize with the goals of the organization and is willing to

assist the organization in achieving these goals. They give details that identification with an

organization happens when the employees possessed values are congruent with organizational
 60

values and the employee is able to internalize the values and goals of the organization. With

this, there is psychological recognition with and a arrogance of association with their

organization (p. 12).

Schneider, (2003) suggests that affective organizational commitment is the most

widely discussed form of psychological add-on to an employing organization. This could be

because affective organizational commitment is associatedwith attractive organizational

outcomes. Meyer, (2001) reported that affective commitment hasbeen found to associate with

a wide range of proceeds, absenteeism, job performance and organizational nationality-

behavior. The cost of affective organizational commitment are lower earnings and turnover

intentions, better on-the-job behavior, and betteremployee healthand well-being (Angel &

Lawson, 1994; Meyer et al., 2001).

2.10.1.1 Factors Influencing Affective Commitment

Although numerous things have been hypothesized to be variables linked with

affective commitment, Meyer and contemporaries (Meyer & Allen, 1991; Meyer & Allen,

1997; Meyer & Herscovitch, 2001) suggested that these variables can all be categorized into

two major categories: personalcharacteristics and organizationalcharacteristics.

2.10.1.1.1 Personal Characteristics: An analysis of the organizationalcommitment literature

revealsa long list of demographic that have been associated with organizational commitment.

Variables associated with organizationalcommitment that may be of significance for NGO

employees in general include personal characteristics such as age, experience, job position,

gender, qualification, income and marital status. These variables have been discussed in detail
 61

in chapter 3 with reference to the conceptualframework of the study. In this section, only

those characteristics of particular interest related to affective commitment will be reviewed

further.

Age: Allen and Meyer (1993) studied the relationship betweenage and affective

commitment. In a study of librarians and hospital employees, they obtained a statistically

significant positivecorrelation between age and affective commitment. Age has been regarded

as the positivepredictor of organizational commitment for a variety of reasons. Simone (2003)

argues that asworkers age, alternative employment options generally decrease, making their

current jobmore attractive. They furthermore state that older individuals may have more

commitment to the organization because they have a deep investment and greater history with

the organization than younger workers.

Lim (2003) examined the variables of education, gender, and years of service in

current organization in relation to organizational commitment. The Organizational

Commitment Scale assessed the organizational commitment. The statistical t-test was used to

assess the organization commitment level of employees at a Korean private organization. The

results revealed no significant differences for age and affective commitment (.56),

continuance commitment (1.33), and normative commitment (94).

Mohammad et al. (2004) examined the levels of organizational commitment felt by

Jordanian managers in various types of organizations. The survey consisted of 332 supervisors

from the middle management level at ministries, public institutions, nongovernmental

 62

organizations and private companies. The study showed a negative relationship between

organizational commitment and age, educational levels and length of service.

Other researchers have not been able to show a significant link between age and

organizational commitment. For example, Hawkins (1998) in a learn of the affective

commitment levels of high school principals established a statistically non-significant

correlation between age and affective commitment. Colbert and Kwon (2000) in a study of

collegeuniversity internalauditors failed to show any reliable relationship between age and

organizational commitment. Overall, age seem to have an inconsistent although moderate

correlation with affective commitment.

Gender: As far as gender is worried, the reports are inconsistent. Mathieu & Zajac,

(1990) in a metaanalytic study of 14 studies with 7420 subjects involving gender and

organizational commitment obtained a mean of correlation of -.089 for organizational

commitment and gender. Although they report a feeble relationship between gender and

attitudinal commitment, they suggest that gender may affect employee’s insight of their

workplace and attitudes towards the organization. Wahn (1998) on the other hand argues that

a woman can show higher levels of continuance organizational commitment than men can.

She cites causes such as the fact that women face greater barriers than men when, seeking

employment as possible explanations to the high continuance commitment of women. She

argues that having overcome these barriers women would be more committed to continue the

employment relationship.
 63

Although the literature quoted here is not comprehensive on the subject of the effect of

gender on organizational commitment, it appears as if gender makes no difference on the

organizational commitment levels.

Tenure: Mathieu and Zajac (1990) reviewed 38samples that included 12290subjects

and established a positive link between organizational possession and affective commitment.

They report an overall weighted mean correlation. Meyer and Allen (1993) indicated that an

analysis of organizational term showed a mild relationship with organizational commitment.

They showed that middle tenure employees exhibited less measured commitment than new or

senior employees did.

In a study of Japanese industrial workers, Tao, Takagi, Ishida and Masuda (1998)

bring into being that organizational term forecast internalization. Dependable with other

researchers, Hawkins (1998) found a statistically significant constructive correlation between

organizational commitment and tenure. They found that employees with a longertenure had a

higher degree of organizational commitment than that of their complement. Taylor, (2003)

found out that commitment augments with the numbers of years spent in an organization. This

is because distance end to end of service suggests the accumulation of the organizational

career. Similarly, it binds one to the organization.

Although the relationship between gender, age and tenure and educational level and

organizationalcommitment hasbeen extensivelystudied, the literature has yet to provide strong

and consistent evidence to enable and unequivocal understanding of the association. However,

Meyer and Allen cautioned that one cannotassume that growing older makes one develop
 64

senior affective commitment. They argue that positive friendship might simply be because of

the differences in exacting generational cohorts that were studied. On the other hand, the older

employees might have more positive work know-how than younger employees might.

Overall, empirical evidence suggests that age and affective commitment are significantly

related (Meyer & Allen, 1997).

2.10.1.1.2 Organizational Characteristics: Meyer &Allen (1997) suggest that affective

commitment develops as the result of experiences that satisfy workers need to feel physically

and psychologically ease in the organization. These experiences include those that lead to a

perception of favours from the work place. Employees who perceive a high level of support

from the organization are more likely to feel an obligation to repay the organization in term of

affective commitment.

The above discussion highlights the affective commitment and its correlates. There has

been extensive research work done on this dimension. Every organization desires to have

employees who should be emotionally attached to it and fully involved in what the

organization is doing. Affective commitment seems quite complex as its correlates such as

age, tenure, gender, qualification affect one another. It is influenced by the ways in which the

organizational structure is established, social support, organizational policies and relationships

at work. This study will make a comparative analysis of affective commitment with

continuance and normative commitment in the NGO sector in order to identify the strength of

each form.
 65

2.10.2 Continuance Commitment: According to Meyer and Allen (1997), “Continuance

organizational commitment refers to the awareness of cost linked with departure from the

organizations” (p. 11). Employees with a strong continuance organizational commitment to an

know that leaving the organization may be harmful to them fiscally due to the lack of

employment option and a loss of savings. These investments include jobeffort,

organizationspecific skills that might not be transferable or greatercosts of leaving the

organization that discourage them from seeking option employment, work friendships and

supporting deals. Simone (2003) explains this type of attachment as transactional attachment.

He argues that employeescalculate their savings in the organization bottom on what they put

into the organization and what they place to gain if they stay with the organization. For

example, an individual may decide not to change employers because of the time and money

attached in an organization’s departure plan.

In addition to the terror of losing investments, individuals expand continuance

organizational commitment because of a perceived need of alternatives. Meyer and Allen

(1997) argue that such an individual’s commitment to the organization would be based on

perception of employment options exterior the organization. This occurs when an employee

starts to believe that his/her skills are notmarketable or that he does not have the skillrequired

to compete for the position in the field. Such an employee would feel joined to his current

organization. People whowork in environment where the skillsand training they get is very

industry precise can possibly develop such promise. As a consequence, the employee feels

bound to commit to the organization becauseof the monetary, community, psychological and

other costs linked with departure the organization. Unlike affective commitment, which
 66

involves emotionalattachment, continuance commitment reflects a calculation of the costs of

leaving versus the benefits of continue. The consequences for continuance commitment are

lower turnover and turnover intention, consequently, there was no of on-the-job behavior and

employee health and well-being.

2.10.2.1 Correlates of Continuance Commitment

Continuance commitment refers to the employee’s choice to carry on employment

because it would be costly to depart the organization. Continuance commit can develop

because of any deed or event that amplify the costs of leaving the organization, provided the

employee be familiar with that these costs have been incurred. They sum up these actions and

events in the terms of two sets of antecedent variableinvestments and employment alternatives

(Meyer and Allen, 1997).

Investments: In terms of organizationalcommitment, investments are any actions that

would result in substantial possible loss should the individual decide to depart the

organization. Once an employee realizes that moving to a new organization would result in

the penalty of benefits, the employee might make a decision to stay within the current

organization rather than lose the reserves. Such an employee develops continuance

commitment as he stays with the organization as a calculated choice rather than an keenness

to do so.

Taylor, (2003) suggests that organization can easily get employees to feel that they

have made big reserves in the organization. He stated that organizations have only to offer
 67

opening and workingconditions that are aggressive with other potential employers. Typically,

asset factors include promotion, advance of work group network presentation bonuses and the

accumulation of vacation, sickleave, family policies, and departure benefits. If these cannot be

easily matched by other employers, the employees might remain attached with the

organization even though they are no longer effectual.

Employment alternatives: The other theorized antecedent of continuance

organizational commitment is the employment alternatives. Meyer and Allen, (1997) suggest

that an employee’s awareness of the ease of use of alternatives will be negatively correlated

with continuance organizational commitment. They consider that employees who think they

have viable options will have weaker continuance organizational commitment than those think

their alternatives are limited.

If the employee had functional for work and has not been winning on several

occasions, such an employee might start to think that he has no choices and would rather

continue with the current employer. On the other hand, an employee who hasbeen approached

by other organizations might believe that he has amplealternatives and would not feel tied to

the current employer.

The availability of alternative employment does not power continuancecommitment on

its own (Tiell, 2006). It may often work in combination with the extent to which family

factors permit or enable an employee’s ability to move or take up a job. Even though an

employee might have a improved paying job offer and it rotate out that there are no schools
 68

for his children or his spouse would not be able to find employment in the new town, the

employee might choose to decline the offer and remain with the current employer.

In addition to supposed alternatives, timebased variables such as age and tenure are

also conjecture as factors linked with continuance organizational commitment (Meyer &

Allen, 1997). Studies using these as variables have shown diverse results. For some

employees, the perceived cost associated with departure an organization will add to as they

get elder and increase their organizational term. For others, however, the costs of departure

might actually decrease as knowledge and skills add to. For this reason, they recommend that

age and tenure are best consideration of as substitute variables of build up investments and

professed alternatives and not as direct predictors of continuance organizational commitment.

Associated with timebased investments is the employee perception about the transferabilityof

their skills and their educationto other organizations will determine their ruling of the

availability of alternatives. Those employees who think their educational or training savings

are easily transferable elsewhere would tend to distinguish lack of alternatives and thus

expressed stronger continuance commitment to their organization (Meyer and Allen, 1997).

Meyer and Allen (1997) highlight the fact that neither investments nor option will

have an influence on continuance organizational commitment unless or until the employee is

conscious of them and the insinuation of losing them. Thus, the employee’s recognition that

investments and/or lack of option make leaving more costly stand for the process that

develops continuance organizational commitment. Recognitionplays a centralrole in this

process raises twopoints. First, it means that people who are in impartially similar state of
 69

affairs can have different levels of continuance commitment. Second, for some costrelated

variables to power continuance organizational commitment, a particular activateing event is

required to focus the employee’s concentration on these variables. The final point to make in

that is the specific set of variables that pressure an employee’s continuance commitment

might be idiosyncratic to that person. It can include both work-related and non-work related

variables.

The above discussion indicates that the continuance commitment is based on side bets

theory and reflects an employee’s perception of the loss he or she may suffer if he or she

leaves the organization. This form is quite different from affective commitment and it

describes that the decision of a person to stay with an organization is a calculated one rather

than a wish to do so. The research point to that the employment alternatives obtainable to the

individual are unenthusiastically correlated to the continuance organizational commitment.

The NGO employees many have a stronger continuance commitment and there could be many

reasons for it. For example, as a whole, the employment opportunities in Pakistan low and

there is a high degree of unemployment, therefore, those who get a job in any field would

prefer to stay due to lack of attractive alternative to their current employment. It will be

interesting to empirically test the strength of NGO employees’ continuance commitment and

to compare it with the other forms of organizational commitment.

2.10.3 Normative Commitment: The third component, normative organizational

commitment, reflects an emotion of “obligation to carry on employment” (Meyer & Allen,

1997, p. 11). An employee with a strong normative organizational commitment feels he or she
 70

has a moral obligation to stay in the organization. Normative organizational commitment was

developed on the basis that the organization made a particular kind of venture in the

employee, which gives the employee a sense of compulsion to the organization. Researchers

have overlooked this view of organizational commitment, as comparatively few studies

openly address normative organizational commitment (Taylor, 2003).

Schneider, (2003) regarded normative organizational commitment in terms of the

ethical obligation the employee develops after the organization has spend in him/her. He

argued that when an employee starts to sense that the organization has spent either too much

timeor money developing and traininghim/her, such an employee might feel an compulsion to

stay with the organization. For example, an employee whose organization paid his tuition

whilehe/she was improving requirement might believe he/she can reimbursethe organization

by counting to work for it. In general, normative organizational commitment is most likely

when individuals find it difficult give in return the organization’s investment in them.

Simone, (2003) on the other hand defined and measured normative organizational

commitment in terms of principles. He argued that similarity between an individual’s and

organization’s values leads to the development of organizational commitment as an

employee’s receipt of an organization’s goals and values. Jarvis, (2002) agree with Allen and

Meyer, (1991) and refer to normative organizational commitment as moral c organizational

ommitment. They highlighted the dissimilarity between this kind of organizational

commitment and affective organizational commitment because normative commitment

reflects a intellect of duty or obligation or calling to work in the organization and not
 71

emotional organizational attachment. They described it as the degree to which an individual is

psychologically attached to an organization through internalization of its organizational goals,

values and missions. This type of commitment differs from continuance organizational

commitment because it is not reliant on the personal calculations of hollow costs. The

consequences for normative organizational commitment are lower earnings and turnover

intentions, better on-the-job behavior and better employee health and well-being ( Meyer et

al., 2001).

2.10.3.1 Factors Influencing Normative Commitment

Compared to affective and continuance organizational commitment, very few factors

have been portrayed as variables associated with normative organizational commitment.

According to Meyer and Allen (1997), normative organizational commitment power develop

based on the psychological agreement between an employee and the organization.

Psychological agreement refers to the beliefs of the parties concerned in an exchange

relationship regarding their mutual obligations. Although psychological contracts can take

different shapes, they further suggest that the transactionaland relational might be closely

relatedto continuance organizational commitment. They describe transactionalcontracts as

more point and based on principles of economic swap. Furthermore, they consider relational

contracts more relevant to normative organizational commitment while transactional

agreement might be involved in the development of continuance organizational commitment.

Meyer and Allen (1997) also submit to the possible role that early socialization

experiences might have in the development of normative organizational commitment. They

 72

suggest that socialization can carry with it all sorts of messages about the suitability of

particular attitudes and behaviors within the organization. Amongst theseattitudes could be the

idea thatemployees owe it to the organization to carry on employment. They assume

internalization to be the process involved in the development of normative organizational

commitment during the early on days of assuming service with an organization. They reason

that through a multifaceted process involving both conditioning and representation of other,

individuals can develop normative organizational commitment.

Turner & Chelladurai, (2005) suggested that normative organizational commitment

develops on the basis of particular kind of venture that the employees finds difficult to

respond. For example, if an organization support tuition payments on behalf of employees, the

employee might feel painful and grateful. Given the norms of reciprocity, the employee might

expand feelings of obligation to the organization as he/she tries to put right the imbalance.

Cultural and individual differences live in the extent to which people will internalize

reciprocity norms and therefore in the degree to which organizational savings will lead to

feelingsof gratitude

The literature on motivation towork with the not for profit organizations indicate that

the workers have a passion and strong aptitude for the work that they choose for themselves

(Abdelrahman, 2007). They feel that they are working for a cause and enjoy a kind of sense of

accomplishment and pride in their work, therefore, the feeling of obligation to remain with the

organization may develop. It would be interesting to investigate as to which form of

organizational commitment is dominant among NGO employees in Pakistan. In order to

empirically examine the strength of the three forms of organizational commitment, this study
 73

hypothesizes that NGO employees have stronger normative commitment than affective and

continuance commitment.

To sum up discussion on the forms of organizational commitment, it can be assumed

that these forms do not exist in isolation among the workers; rather they co-exist and

complement each other where one of the forms might be more dominant than the others at any

particular time evoking work behavior related to any specific form of commitment. It is

important to understand that three different forms of organizational commitment are not

mutually exclusive. An employee can develop one or any combination or none of the three

aspects of commitment. These aspects of organizational commitment differ only because of

their underlying motives and outcomes.

2.11 MEASURING INSTRUMENTS OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

As discussed in the previous sections, organizational commitment may be generally

defined as a strong faith in and acceptance of organizational objective and values, a

willingness to exert effort on behalf of the organization, and a wish to maintain organizational

association (Porter, et al., 1974). Building from this definition, Mowday, Steers, and Porter

(1979) developed the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ) as a measure of

employee commitment to work organizations. This instrument became the most widely used

unidimensional measure of organizational commitment (Meyer, et al., 2002). However, the

OCQ was not lacking disapproval. While some researchers found support for the OCQ

measuring a single factor (e.g. Morrow, 1983; Meyer & Allen, 1984), other researchers found
 74

support for multidimensionality within the tool (Luthans & Youssef (2007); Koh, Steers, &

Terborg, 1995; Yousef, 2003).

Regular with their understanding of organizationalcommitment as a multidimensional

construct, Meyer and Allen (1987) proposed a ThreeComponent Model, including affective

commitment, continuance commitment, and normative commitment. Meyer and Allen (1997)

recommend that the three components should not be seen as equally restricted, but as

components that can variously coexist. Three scales were constructed to appraise the model:

the Affective (ACS), Continuance (CCS), and Normative (NCS) Commitment Scales (Allen

& Meyer, 1990; Meyer & Allen, 1991; Meyer, et al., 1993).

Responses to each of the 6 items are rated using a 5-point Likert scale with response

options: 5=strongly agree, 4=agree, 3=neutral/undecided, 2=disagree, 1=strongly disagree.

Likert scales are the most ordinary questionnaire plan used “to decide the relative strength of

dissimilar substance” (Babbie, 2001, p. 6).

The OCQ was found to improved appraisal organizational commitment than the earlier

dimension instruments of organizational commitment. Therefore, the revisedOrganizational

Commitment Questionnaire developed by Meyer and Allen (1997) was selected to assess

NGO employees' perceptions of organizational commitment in this study. In this research the

affective and normative component are of particular interest due to their relevance to not for

profit organizations and employees’ motivation for work. The OCQ description and its

validity and reliability are further discussed in chapter 4.

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2.12 EFFECTS OF LOW ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

Low organizational commitment can bring about numerous undesirable adverse effects

on work outcomes. There have been conclusive evidences provided by numerous past studies

on organizational commitment that associate low commitment with greater than before

absenteeism, augmented intention to give up and poor job presentation (Simone, 2002).

2.12.1 Absenteeism

According to Babbie, 2001, low down organizational commitment results in higher

absenteeism speed. When employeesare not present, employers have to bear the costs linked

with absenteeism at the place of work. According to Zakaria (1988), absenteeism can be

dysfunctional and financially expensive. Firstly, it could distress and disrupt the daily process

of an exaggerated unit or organization. Thenorganizations have to bear the extensive cost of

absenteeism, which includes together direct and indirect price such as lossof output, use of

conditional workers, overtimecost.

Although, there is no estimate on the cost implications of absenteeism in the NGO

sector in Pakistan, however, when employees are absent from work, not only are their

replacement workers sought but these employees have to be burdened with the workload of

the absent workers. Problems also arise when the replacement employees are not skilled or

familiar with the job tasks thus giving rise to frustrations on the part of the clients or

community and the employee concerned.

 76

Eventually, they feel angry, exhausted and stressed giving rise to lower motivation,

increased job dissatisfaction and poor job performance. Thus, this kind of escape-avoidance

behavior would not be beneficial to any profession.

2.12.2 Turnover Intentions

Studies seem at turnover meaning and actual turnover as one of the unwanted

outcomes of low organizational commitment (Bishop, et al., 2000; Somers & Birnbaum,

2000). According to some approximation, 50% of the NGO employees leave the profession

within five years (Colbert & Wolff, 1992; Odell & Ferrano, 1992). Abdelrahman, 2008

reports that NGO workers in the sample reported moderately low level of commitment and

one third of the employees surveyed planned to leave their profession to pursue their careers

outside of NGO in order to avoid the job stress.

When NGO employees have the intention or inclination to terminate from their jobs,

commitment to the profession is greatly affected like time spent on seeking employment

elsewhere. The subsequent outcome that most likely would occur when employees have a

strong desire to quit their jobs is actual turnover. Past studies have indicated that turnover

intentions are the strongest predictors of turnover (Tett & Meyer, 1993). Therefore, when

NGO employees indicate intentions to quit, eventually, they would dropout, resulting in

employee attrition.

Over time employees, attrition can give rise to many other effects such as undermining

teamwork, bringing about a demoralizing impact on new hires, creating negative public

reactions, causing disruptions to day-to-day activities, and lowering performance caused by

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operational disruptions. Therefore, measures should be taken to address the problem of

quitting intention among NGO employees to avoid the adverse effects of NGO workers’

attrition or turnover.

High incidence of dropout among NGO employees can greatly affect the effectiveness

and functioning of organizations. NGOs would lose out in terms of expertise, training and

talent that have been invested on them. Thus, valuable human resources are wasted. In order

to avoid the adverse effects of turnover intention and actual turnover, efforts should be taken

to enhance commitment of employees to their jobs and profession.

2.12.3 Performance

Past studies conducted mainly in the western countries have reported a marginally

significant positive interaction of commitment in the prediction of overall job performance

(Richards et al., 2002; Baugh & Roberts, 1994; Mathieu & Zajac 1990). The greater the

commitment level, the greater the performance level. These studies imply that individuals who

are committed to the organization tend to perform better. This is because committed

employees usually put on a better effort in the workplace (O’Malley, 2000). High

organizational commitment as opposed to low organizational commitment also entails a

thoughtful attention, stewardship and preciseness towards the relationship that the employee is

in. In the NGO environment, employees who portray such behavior and orientations generally

bring in positive outcomes such as higher quality work performance and achievements.

A study conducted by Khan et al., (2005) found a significant association between

commitment and academic achievements of teachers working in the not for profit rural school
 78

in Pakistan. When teachers were committed to their work, the academic achievements of

students tend to be higher. Related to commitment, Khurshid, (2008) also found a positive

relationship between organizational commitment and university teachers work performance.

Although, there might be some intervening factors but all these previous studies have

concluded that there is a positive link between organizational commitment and job

performance. Therefore, having a committed workforce is a worthwhile goal to pursue due to

its potential impact on both individual and organizational performance.

Based on the findings of past studies, the importance of commitment cannot be further

denied. It is something worth developing in employees as the consequences to an organization

or profession with employees displaying low commitment can be extensively and financially

costly. Therefore, it is an issue that deserves serious attention from the management. The

study of NGO employees’ organizational commitment is important as NGOs receive large

amounts of international funding to prepare and develop a workforce for rendering a vital task

of community development in Pakistan.

Therefore, NGO employees’ attitudes towards their work and profession are very

important. An NGO workforce with low commitment level can be a major hindrance in

optimal work performance at both the individual and organizational level. A pool of well-

educated, highly skilled and strongly motivated and committed NGO employees, displaying

willingness to exert efforts and time on behalf of the profession are crucial for NGO to

achieve its goals. The following section highlights literature review on the state of

occupational stress and organizational commitment of NGO employees in Pakistan.

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2.13 OCCUPATIONAL STRESS AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT IN

NGOs

NGO sector in Pakistan is growing rapidly and playing a vital role in complementing

the efforts of government in the development of Pakistan. The work environment in this sector

is multidimensional because of the diverse functions these organizations perform. The staff is

expected to show a high degree of flexibility and rigor at all times. At an internal level, NGOs,

particularly the smaller grassroots level organizations, are facing problems relating to

inadequacies in the areas of management, capacity building, human resource development,

institutional strengthening and sustainability, which are affecting their organizational system

and structure resulting in occupational stress.

With government bodies experiencing a decline in fiscal support and public credibility,

NGOs are being pushed into a developmental role, without always having sufficient capability

to handle the tasks, resultantly some of the roles assumed by NGO employees were

traditionally of government departments, e.g., health care, disaster relief, emergency medical

care (Zia, 1996). Some opportunistic elements have emerged to take monetary advantage from

the organizations; and some elements within government have been instrumental in trying to

discredit many of the established NGOs and setting up alternative structures, controlled or

patronized by them (Edwards & Hulme, 1995).

Occupational stress and organizational commitment are influenced by the ways in

which the organizational structure is established, social support, organizational policies and
 80

relationships at work. These factors are perhaps the most neglected ones in NGOs. This may

be one of the main reasons for high degree of staff turnover in the NGO sector of Pakistan. It

is increasingly acknowledged that NGO employees often experience high levels of work-

related demands and stress, and are therefore particularly at risk of stress and burnout

(Abdelrahman, 2005; Khan et. al. 2005; Dollard el al., 2003). NGO employees face many

significant challenges related to (Knudsen, Johnson, & Roman, 2003; Pierce & Long, 2002;

Freeman et al., 2003) the client population (complex circumstances, reluctance to engage,

stereotype image of NGOs), community attitudes towards NGO workers and working

conditions (e.g., remuneration, availability of professional development, job security, social

support, heavy workloads).

Demanding workloads are common in the NGO sector organizations. Indeed, working

long hours in high pressure environments is considered appropriate and acceptable in many

areas of the workforce. However, it has been well established that a heavy workload and

work-related pressures are key factors in the development of work-related stress (Dollard et

al., 2000; Lee & Ashforth, 1996). High workloads have also been linked with lower job

satisfaction (Brown & Mitchell, 1993; Ellickson & Logsdon, 2002; Muchinsky, 1993),

increased anxiety and frustration, depression and low organizational commitment (Beehr et

al., 1992; Spector, 2000).

Anecdotal evidence suggests that stress is a significant issue for the NGO employees

in Pakistan and therefore identification of factors that can prevent stress is a high priority. No

studies were identified that could provide an estimate of the level and dimensions of NGO

employees occupational in Pakistan. Some evidence was provided by international research.

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Shoptow, Stein, & Rawson, (2000) found that higher levels of emotional exhaustion of NGO

employees were linked with less workplace support and lower levels of self confidence

concerning work-related skills. Farmer (2002) found that the major stressors for NGO workers

in working in drug treatment clinics were organizational and client-related factors. High

workloads, staff shortages, unsupportive work relations, poor physical work conditions and

difficult patients featured as the main sources of stress for workers and more than half the

workers also experienced high levels of emotional exhaustion (Farmer, 2002).

Lopopolo, (2002) found that employees who experienced more conflicts were less

committed to the organization. Individuals who participated in and enjoyed extra-mural

activities were more committed to their organization. Employees who participated in decision

making authority reported a relatively higher level of organizational commitment. The final

relationship found was that individuals using rational/cognitive coping skills were highly

committed to their organization.

Laschinger et al, (2001) found workplace autonomy to be positively related to staff

nurses’ organizational commitment. Individuals displaying higher level of affective

commitment were more resistant to job strain and burnout. Lopopolo, (2002) conducted a

study on occupational stress and organizational commitment of staff nurses in Community

Hospitals and found that workload, time pressure, poor relationship with staff, pressure from

patients, organization management problems and career issues had a negative correlation

between source of occupational stress and organizational commitment. The research indicates

that understanding the above relationship led to beneficial consequences such as

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organizational effectiveness, improved performance, reduced turn over and reduced

absenteeism.

Schabracq and Cooper, (2000) believe that occupational stress at work is a well known

factor for low motivation and morale, decrease in performance, high turnover and sick-leave,

accidents, low organizational commitment, low quality products and services, poor internal

communication and conflicts. Moreover, Chusmir and Franks, (1988) argued that all the

aforementioned problems are related, directly or indirectly, to stress and they have an effect

on overall organizational efficiency and effectiveness.

Organizational commitment as an experiential construct is generally regarded as a

psychological state characterizing an employee’s relationship with the organization that has

implications for the employee’s decision to remain with or leave the organization. (Kendall et

al., 2000) Furthermore, commitment reflects employee’s acceptance of the goals of the

organization and willingness to engage in behavior that is specified in the job description, as

well as those that are considered to be beyond the job expectations. As to the cause and effect

relationship between organizational commitment and job satisfaction, it is likely that a give-

and-take relationship exists (Varca, 1999). Thus, an organizational stressor may first affect

commitment, but as commitment continues to decrease, it is difficult to picture a scenario

where satisfaction will stay at the same level (Elizur & Kosloswsky 2001). Similarly, an

individual stressor that elicits dissatisfaction from the job will eventually loosen the

employee’s ties to the organization.

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It has been argued that employee attitudes, beliefs and values vary across countries

(Clark, 1990), and since the studies on occupational stress and organizational commitment

have been conducted mainly in the western countries the applicability of their results can be

questioned in non-western context like Pakistan, where there is a lack of empirical evidence

on the subject to allow comparative analysis. Moreover, working in the NGO sector

organizations in Pakistan is not without substantial challenges. It involves dealing with a host

of issues, includes managing the systemic obstacles that surround the NGO wok, the diverse

nature of the professions involved, whilst not always having the optimum resources to deliver

quality services to the community (Khan, el al. 2005).

The literature pursued on occupational stress and organizational commitment

established that both are widely accepted as two major issues in organizational life.

Occupational stress has a negative relationship with organizational commitment (Omolara,

2008; Dollard et al., 2002). Although there is an agreement concerning the negative impact of

occupational stress on organizational commitment, there is not enough evidence on how stress

influences commitment as the adverse effects of occupational stress on the level of

commitment in the NGO sector of Pakistan have not been studied by the researchers so far, as

empirical evidence directly addressing this relationship in the context of NGOs in Pakistan

has not been found.

In order to promote commitment for an improved service rendering in the NGO sector,

an organizational strategy seeking to address stress reduction effectively will need to

investigate the overall function of the organization including its organizational climate and
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values, its provision of social support, rewards and the relationship of its workers with the

organization. Thus, the present study is unique in the context of NGOs in Pakistan as it is an

attempt to describe the correlation among variables of the study. A number of hypothesis

about the levels, dimensions and relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment have been developed and hypotheses will be tested in the empirical phase of the

research. The findings of this research will help NGO managers to understand the above

issues well and to address them to subsequently reduce workers stress. Study also focus on

stress coping resources and strain that will help understand how people deal with stress. It is

hoped that the outcomes of this study will help NGO management in developing policies and

programs by addressing occupational stress reduction effectively and by promoting

widespread organizational commitment for improved work performance and quality of life.

2.14 Commentary on the Literature Review

The purpose of the literature review was to scrutinize the research objectives and to

have a clear perspective of concept of occupational stress and organizational commitment;

their interrelationship and how other theorists and researchers looked at this relationship. The

first objective of the research was to determine the relationship between occupational stress

and organizational commitment. For this purpose, the literature on both occupational stress

and organizational commitment was examined. The definitions reviewed on occupational

stress highlighted that situational demands cause individuals to adapt. Individuals tend to react

and adapt in different ways to stressors either through physical and or psychological response.

It can also be inferred that there are two distinct types of stressors, those which are found

within the individual and those that originate outside the individual. The definitions of
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occupational stress reflect that this concept has been conceptualized in several fundamentally

different ways. It is not simply an environmental stimulus or a response to environmental

demands, but a dynamic relational concept. There is a regular interaction between person and

the environment, which is mediated by a complex set of ongoing cognitive processes. The

theories and models of occupational stress have also been discussed at length in the literature

review.

The review of interactional and transactional theories of occupational stress revealed

that the previous researchers have conceptualized these theories in several fundamentally

different ways. The emphasis of interactional theories of stress is the structural features of the

person’s interaction with their work environment, whereas, the transactional theories of stress

focus on the person’s emotional reactions and cognitive processes related to their

environment. The models explained the stress process and the consequences experienced by

individuals as strain in one form or the other. The models elaborated the effects of perceived

stress and resulting strain on the work performance.

The second objective of the research was to find out the level, causes and dimensions of

occupational stress of NGO employees in Pakistan using appropriate measuring instrument. In

order to examine the second objective of the research, the literature on the causes and

dimensions of occupational stress was reviewed and it has exposed many intricate causes of

occupational stress such as organizational factors, job demands, occupational roles and

individual factors. These causes have been discussed with reference to the NGO employees in

Pakistan. The review of the research literature indicated that the NGO employees experience a
 86

high degree of occupational stress mainly due the complex organizational structures of NGOs,

multiple roles the workers have to play, physical and psychological strains, and lack of

security. There seems a serious lack of interest on the part of NGO management and a

minimal professional guidance or support is available to address this extremely significant

issue.

It seems that there is greater understanding of occupational stress as an important issue

to deal with in the western countries, whereas, very little research has been conducted on this

subject in Pakistan. Work of NGO employees is generally considered a high stress job and

there are numerous organizational, roles related, environmental and individual causes of stress

affecting both the individual and organizations. Perhaps this important area of research has not

yet grabbed the attention of researchers in Pakistan as hardly any research was found on the

NGO employees’ occupational stress in Pakistan. There is a serious need to investigate the

various dimensions and the level of occupational stress among NGO employees in Pakistan to

understand this phenomenon better and for better stress management which will lead to

improved quality of life and enhanced work performance.

The literature on the choice of measuring instruments of occupational stress was also

reviewed. The occupational stress inventory model has been discussed in detail. The

measurement of occupational stress, consisting of the three domains of occupational stressors,

occupational induced psychological strain and coping resources available to counteract the

effects of stress were elaborated. The underlying factors for each of the domains were used to

develop the scales on which the measurements would be based. After the review of various
 87

theories and models, the Occupational Stress Inventory Revised Edition (OSI-R) developed by

Osipow was found to be most appropriate for this study in measuring the level of perceived

occupational stress, resulting strain and coping resources of NGO employees.

The third objective of the research was to explore the level and forms of NGO

employees’ organizational commitment. The concept of organizational commitment was

reviewed in detail in the literature review. The key issues discussed were background,

definition, contemporary theories and forms of organizational commitment as well as recent

research on organizational commitment. Organizational commitment is a very broad concept

and it cannot be generalized as its nature and forms vary from profession to profession. The

literature clearly reflects that organizational commitment has far reaching effects.

Organizational commitment does not only stand for staying with the organization for a long

period of time, instead, it is a quite complex phenomenon where many interrelated factors

influence the levels of commitment. The concept of commitment encompasses multiple

factors that contribute in either promoting or weakening the individual’s work performance

and relationship with the organization.

The theories of organizational commitment elucidate the broad forms and the

individual’s association with the organization, demonstrating that it is an intricate

phenomenon, which may influence an employee’s nature of relationship with the

organization. The literature review also included detailed elaboration of the forms of

organizational commitment including affective commitment, normative commitment, and

continuance commitment. It is important to understand that three forms of organizational

commitment are not mutually exclusive. These forms co-exist and complement each other
 88

where one of the forms might be more dominant than the others at any particular time evoking

work behavior related to any specific form of commitment. An employee can develop one or

any combination or none of the three aspects of commitment. These aspects of organizational

commitment differ only on the basis of their underlying motives and outcomes.

The present study focuses mainly on affective and normative commitment as these are

more relevant to not for profit organizations and employees. The choice of research

instrument to measure organizational commitment was also discussed in this chapter.

Organizational Commitment Questionnaire-OCQ developed by Meyer and Allen (1997) was

found to better assess organizational commitment than the earlier measurement tools. Based

on the findings of past research studies it was concluded that organizational commitment is

something worth developing in employees as the consequences to an organization or

profession with employees displaying low commitment can be extensively and financially

costly. Therefore, it is an issue that deserves serious attention from the NGO management.

The fourth objective of the research was to analyze and ascertain the affects of various

demographic variables including, age, experience, job position, gender, qualification, income

and marital status, on the occupational stress and organizational commitment of NGO

employees. The literature pursued on the affects of various demographic variables on

occupational stress and organizational commitment highlighted interesting facts about the

demographic variables. The role of demographic characteristics and their effect on both

occupational stress and organizational commitment is discussed in detail in Chapter 3.

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This study also attempted to review the available literature on the state of NGO

employees in Pakistan, which revealed that NGO employees mostly work in a high stress

environment and it can influence their physical and psychological functioning. They are

generally expected to show a high degree of commitment to their profession and

organizations. Their attitudes towards work and organization are very important. An NGO

workforce with low commitment level can be a major hindrance in optimal work performance

at both the individual and organizational level. A pool of well-educated, highly skilled and

strongly motivated and committed NGO employees, displaying willingness to exert efforts

and time on behalf of the profession are crucial for an NGO to achieve its goals.

The NGO sector in Pakistan has not received the attention of Pakistani researchers,

despite the fact that this sector plays a major role in the developmental process of the country.

The present study is unique as it is an attempt to describe the relationship between

occupational stress and organizational commitment in the context of NGOs in Pakistan. This

study also focuses on stress coping resources and strain that will help understand how people

deal with stress. The outcomes of this study will help NGO management in developing

policies and programs by addressing occupational stress reduction effectively and by

promoting widespread organizational commitment for improved work performance and

quality of life.

2.15 SUMMARY

This chapter introduced the concept of occupational stress and organizational

commitment and various popular definitions, theories and models pertaining to this research
 90

were identified and discussed. It provided an overview of the literature regarding variables

associated with both the occupational stress and organizational commitment at both the

individual and organizational level and their relationship in the NGO sector in Pakistan. The

OSI-R and OCQ and their scales were defined with relevant research discussed. Demographic

variables have also been examined with an emphasis on the importance of an analysis of the

defined variables. The literature indicates that there is an inverse relationship between

occupational stress and organizational commitment and this may affect the individuals’

working in NGOs. It was noticed that many studies were conducted on this subject in various

settings in the western countries; however, there is a serious lack of studies addressing the

issue of NGO employees’ occupational stress and organizational commitment in Pakistan.

The next chapter discusses the conceptual framework and the testable hypothesis of the study.

The dependent and independent variables of the study are operationally defined and discussed

and the antecedents including NGO employees’ age, tenure, income and qualification, gender,

job position and marital status are elaborated.

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CHAPTER 3

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

INTRODUCTION

This chapter discusses the theoretical framework of the study. The main objective of this

chapter is to build a conceptual model, which would encapsulate the available knowledge and

describe the relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment for

enhancing the organizational effectiveness in the NGO sector in Pakistan. The key issues

discussed in this chapter are; the stress process including the identification of role stressors;

personal strains in the workplace; the coping resources; the three forms of organizational

commitment including affective, normative and continuance commitment; the antecedents

including NGO employees’ age, tenure, income and qualification, gender, job position and

marital status and the testable hypothesis of the study.

3.1 DESCRIPTION OF THE CONCEPTUAL MODEL

The hypothesized relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment and each of the selected demographic characteristics is discussed below. The

proposed conceptual model illustrates three variables including, occupational stress,

organizational commitment, and demographic characteristics of NGO employees. At this

stage, it is appropriate to integrate the foregoing discussion into the conceptual model, as

depicted in the following figure:

92
 93

The review of the literature reveals that both occupational stress and organizational

commitment are multifaceted, consistent and unified variables. In order to further explore the

occupational stress of NGO employees, this study treats it as an independent variable that can

influence the organizational commitment.

The occupational stress part of the model presented in this research will draw primarily

from the Occupational Stress Inventory Model of Osipow (1998) as discussed in Chapter 2.

This study views stress as an interaction between the NGO employees and their work

environment. This contact between the stressors and the strains, both inclined by the personal

perception the individual has as to the fit between himself and the environment. Finally if the

result of the stressors leads to strain then there are cost for the person psychologically,

physically and behaviorally.

Coping stress means, psychological and physical resources used by the NGO employees

to oppose the effects of occupational stress.

Commitment in the place of work can take a variety of forms and has the possible to

power organizational efficiency and well-being of employees. The three forms of

organizational commitment recognized by Meyer and Allen were affective, continuance, and

normative commitment. In general, there is a negative relationship between organizational

commitment and occupational stress (Omolara, 2008).

Work experience develops from a mixture of employees’ insight about the work they

do, the organization they fit in to and the interpersonal relationships these entities bring
 94

together. Therefore, an increase in job strain may lead to increased occupational stress,

decreased organizational commitment, and eventually result in poor service delivery by the

organization.

In this study, organizational commitment had been defined as overall commitment of

NGO employees to their organization. It served as a dependent variable for antecedents such

as age, tenure, income and qualification and as a predictor of various outcomes such as

turnover, intension to leave, job satisfaction and work performance.

NGOs have been the subject of numerous academic and policy studies over the past 30

years. There is now a substantial literature that discusses their actual and potential role in

development, democratization, poverty alleviation and relief and rehabilitation work

(Abdelrahman, 2005). Much of this literature tends to present NGOs as the main agent of

change, ‘third sector’ or a sector that supplements the efforts of governments in the state-led

development. NGOs have evolved in different directions and they now present a wide variety

of programmes and structures around the world.

For the purpose of this study, the term NGO is defined as an independent voluntary

association of people acting together on a continuous basis, for some common purpose, other

than achieving a government office, making money or illegal activities. NGO employee is

defined as employee of a registered non-governmental organization working at any level

including junior staff, middle and senior management level, working both in the office and

field based work environment.

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The demographic characteristics included in this research are age, experience, marital

status, qualification, position, income and gender. In chapter 2, the research regarding certain

demographic factors influencing certain forms of organizational commitment have been

discussed. However, in this section the role of demographic characteristics (age, experience,

marital status, qualification, position, income and gender) are discussed specifically with

reference to the conceptual framework of the study, showing their effect on both occupational

stress and organizational commitment.

Age: According to the previous research, older workers spoken decreased amounts of

environmental stress but increased amounts of Role excess and liability than younger workers

(Osipow et al., 1984).

From the above research examining age as a variable in the communication of stress,

strain, and coping it seems that the findings are inconsistent as overall, age as an important

variable has mixed consequences and is of interest in this study. The wide research review has

revealed a positive correlation between age and organizational commitment (Mathieu &

Zajac, 1990). One of the possible causes of this relationship is assumed to be the shortage of

alternatives for the older employees whose options are further undermined by the financial

loss the move might incur. Thus, in this research, a positive relationship between age and

commitment is foreseen.

Experience: The work experience of an NGO worker may influence his aptitude to cope

with occupational stress. A general assumption is that more knowledge the workers have less

stress they might experience. As mentioned in the research propositions of this study also
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there can be a number of reasons for this assumption. It is possible that since an individual

becomes recognizable with the organization and develops relations he becomes more

comfortable in the work environment thus experiencing less stress contrast to a new or entry

level employee.

Job position: Job position has been conceptualized and used in this study as an

individual NGO worker’s place in the organization. The workers holding mid or senior level

management positions in NGOs interact with the community much less than the lower level

and field staff. Therefore, the nature of sources of occupational stress at each level of

authority may be considerably different. Thus, in this study, a important positive relationship

between job position and organizational commitment is expected.

Gender: In the NGO sector of Pakistan, there is a fair degree of gender representation in

all respects. This may not be the NGO’s own choice but in some cases a condition imposed by

the international donor agencies (Khan, 2005). It is important to study the way in which both

male and female NGO employees behave in a similar situation. There is incessant debate

concerning the role that gender plays in relation to occupational stress and organizational

commitment. Studies investigative various types of respondent groups had mixed results,

making gender a variable of curiosity for this study.

Educational Qualification: In this study, the educational qualification of NGO

employees is given great importance. The way in which qualified people handle stress and

show their commitment towards their organization is different than less qualified workers, and
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this aspect needs to be studied. Previous researches indicate that higher education correlates

with a significant reduction in stress. Sowa et al. (1994) also found that 82% of respondents in

their study reported that training helped them deal with stress. (Sowa et al., 1994, p. 26). This

research hypothesizes that higher educational qualification and training may serve as an

effective coping resource and it could be assumed that highly qualified and trained NGO

employees would experience less job strain than workers who are less qualified.

However, the level of education is predictable to have a negative relationship with

organizational commitment. The rationale for this forecast is that people with low level of

education in general have more difficulty changing jobs and, therefore, demonstrate a greater

commitment to their organizations (Steers, 1977).

Income: Income is measured as an important factor responsible in determining the

people’s lifestyle and socialstatus in any society. In the NGO sector in Pakistan, the salary

structures are vague and the level of pay is based on negotiations done at the time of hiring.

Sometimes employees working even at the same level, receive considerably different pay

packages. There a common impression in the NGO sector that “senior management skims the

cream”, meaning they receive very high salaries compared to the mid and lower level

employees. Moreover, there is a sizeable difference in the salary structures of national and

international NGO in Pakistan.

Marital Status: Married people have more family household tasks and need more

stability and safety in their jobs; and therefore, they are likely to be more committed to their

existing organization than their unmarried counterparts are. In addition, married people have
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different coping strategies for stress than the single ones. It is assumed that married people are

able to handle stress in a better way than the unmarried employees are.

Marital status of an NGO worker has also come out as a dependable predictor of

organizational commitment. Findings reported by Hrebiniak and Alutto (1972), John and

Taylor (1999), and Tsui, Leung, Cheung, Mok, and Ho (1994) indicate that married people are

more committed to their organization than unmarried people. Therefore, this study assumes

that marital status is positively related to commitment.

3.2 HYPOTHESIS OF THE STUDY

The literature review presented in chapter 2 clearly indicates that both the occupational

stress and organizational commitment are complex and interrelated concepts and may affect

individual and organizational work performance. However, this relationship has not been

empirically examined in any of the previous studies in the NGOs sector in Pakistan. Hence, it

becomes significant as well as interesting to study this relationship exclusively in the NGOs in

Pakistan, which are working in a large number to supplement the efforts of government in

development by providing a variety of services to the poor and marginalized community. In

addition, the diverse socio-political setup of this sector lends itself for comprehensive research

opportunities for studying the relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment.

The purpose of this section is to elaborate a series of research hypothesis, which will lead

to the formation of the conceptual framework. The hypotheses formulated for this research are

as following:
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H1: There is an inverse relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment.

This research treats the relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment as inverse for NGO employees. It means, higher the occupational stress the

lower will be the organizational commitment of NGO employees and vice versa. Therefore,

an increase in occupational stress may lead to decreased level of organizational commitment,

and eventually result in lower work performance.

Cooper, et al., 2001; Murphy, 1995 believe that occupational stress at work is a well

known factor for retreating in performance, high turnover, low organizational commitment,

poor internal communication and conflicts. Moreover, Chusmir and Franks (1988) argued that

all the aforementioned problems are linked, directly or indirectly, to stress and they have an

result on overall organizational competence and success.

As to the cause and effect relationship between organizational commitment and

occupational stress, it is likely that an inverse relationship exists (Varca 1999). Thus, an

organizational stressor may first affective organizational commitment, but as commitment

organizational continues to decrease, it is difficult to imagine a situation where satisfaction

will stay at the same level (Elizur & Kosloswsky 2001). Similarly, an individual stressor that

elicits dissatisfaction from the job will eventually release the employee’s ties to the

organization. The literature perused on the relationship between occupational stress and

organizational commitment in the context of NGOs in Pakistan revealed no results, therefore,

 100

in order to test this relationship empirically, this study hypothesizes that there is an inverse

relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment.

H2: NGO employees experience stress mainly due to their occupational roles which leads to

high personal strain.

From the literature review, it appears that NGO employees suffer occupational stress

more due to occupational roles, which manifests into strain like vocational strain,

psychological strain, interpersonal strain, and physical strain (Osipow 1998) which in turn

affect them physically, psychologically and behaviorally. NGO employees’ occupational roles

are multidimensional. However, the work environment in this sector is highly unstable,

particularly the staff deployed in the field such as teachers, lady health workers, social

organizers, disaster relief, emergency aid workers and community support workers who

receive minimal support from their organization while they play their occupational roles in the

field.

Workers may experience feelings of disconnection during their fieldwork from those in

charge and this adds to their occupational role stress. Separation from family, friends & home;

intense physical labor; severe living conditions; limited communication; potential for injury;

lack of sanitation; risk of illness and the shock of dealing with the values of a different culture

represent generally reported “ground effects” problems (Thomason, 2003). It would be

interesting to examine the nature of occupational stress and its affects on NGO employees

working both in office and field based work environment in Pakistan. Therefore, for this study
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it is hypothesized that NGO employees experience stress mainly due to their occupational

roles which leads to high personal strain.

H3: Highly qualified and experienced NGO employees experience less occupational stress

than the less qualified and less experienced employees.

The literature indicates that enhancement in education and training correlates with a

significant reduction in stress. Sowa found that 82% of respondents in their study reported that

training helped them deal with stress (Sowa et al., 1994, p. 26). Cooper & Bright, (2001)

found that length of service was positively correlated with job satisfaction. In addition, it can

be expected that the longer an individual is with an organization, more comfortable the

individual becomes with the organization probably because of the number of trainings they

receive, either through on the job or off the job, thus, they may experience less stress

compared to that of an entry level employee (Tyler and Blender, 2002). This research

hypothesizes that the highly qualified and experienced NGO employees experience less

occupational stress than the employees with less qualification and experience.

H4: Highly educated NGO employees are more capable of coping with occupational stress

than the less educated ones.

This research hypothesizes that higher education may serve as an effectual coping

resource for occupational stress. It means that educated employees of NGOs may be able to

make better use of psychological and physical resources such as self-care behavior, seeking

social support from family and peers, cognitive skills, and recreational activities to counter the
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effects of occupational stress. Therefore, this study hypothesizes that highly educated

employees are more capable of coping with occupational stress than the less educated ones.

H5: NGO employees have stronger normative commitment than affective and continuance

commitment.

The concept of organizational commitment has been examined in detail in chapter two

in terms of affective, continuance and normative organizational commitment. It has been

discussed that the affective organizational commitment is a positive feeling of identification

with, attachment to, and involvement in the work of organization. Whereas, continuance

organizational commitment is the extent to which employees feel committed to their

organizations by virtue of the costs that they feel are associated with leaving (e.g., investments

or lack of attractive alternatives). And normative organizational commitment is employees’

feelings of obligation to remain with the organization (Meyer and Allen, 1997).

As a whole, the employment opportunities in Pakistan and in the NGO sector in

particular are very less and overall there is a high degree of unemployment in the country.

People in any field in general and staff working on entry and lower level positions in

particular, usually lack attractive alternatives to their current employment. Consequently, they

are left with no choice but to stay with their existing employers for a long period. However,

for working in the development sector a certain type of passion and aptitude is required. The

workers enjoy a kind of sense of accomplishment and pride in their work itself and therefore,

the feeling of obligation to remain with the organization may develop. It may not be because
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they have a high level of normative or affective commitment, but because of lack of attractive

alternatives available.

It would be interesting to investigate as to which form of organizational commitment is

dominant among NGO employees in Pakistan. In order to empirically test it, this study

hypothesizes that NGO employees have stronger normative commitment than affective and

continuance commitment.

H6: NGO employees with higher qualification have lower organizational commitment than

NGO employees with lower qualification.

The literature on organizational commitment indicates that the education and experience

of workers influence their level of organizational commitment. It is interesting to note that the

level of education is expected to have a negative relationship with organizational commitment

(Cooper et al., 2000). The rationale for this prediction is that people with higher qualification

have more employment opportunities and may switch jobs easily, whereas, staff with low

levels of education generally have more difficulty changing jobs and therefore show a greater

commitment to their organizations. Khurshid, (2008) and Siu, (2002) have reported findings

consistent with this justification. However, it is still to be seen how this link operates

particularly in the NGO sector of Pakistan. Therefore, this study hypothesizes that there is an

inverse relationship between NGO employees qualification and their organizational

commitment.

H7 The level of organizational commitment of NGO employees increases with age,

experience, income and job position.

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Research has shown that age is positively linked to organizational commitment (Siu,

2002; Cooper et al., 2001). One possible explanation for this relationship is that there are few

employment options available to older employees and older and experienced employees

realize that leaving may cost them more than staying (Mowday, et al., 1998). Biggs, et al.,

(1995) found that age for health care workers was completely correlated with job satisfaction.

The individuals with more job experience working on the high-level positions and

receiving higher salaries identify with, care about their jobs, and are thus less likely to quit

their jobs. However, this assumption still empirically needs to be tested in the NGO sector.

Thus, in this research, a positive relationship between organizational commitment and age,

experience, income and job position is predicted.

3.3 SUMMARY

The conceptual framework developed and presented in Figure 1 depicts hypothesized

relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector of

Pakistan. It illustrates the stress process including the identification of role stressors, personal

strains in the workplace, and coping resources. The theoretical model treats occupational

stress as an independent variable. The three forms of organizational commitment shown in the

model are affective, normative and continuance commitment. Organizational commitment has

been treated as a dependent variable for antecedents of NGO employees’ age, tenure, income

and qualification, gender, job position and marital status. It serves as a predictor of various

outcomes such as turnover, intension to leave, job satisfaction and work performance.
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Finally, based on the theoretical model, specific testable hypothesis related to

occupational stress and of organizational commitment and their relationship in the NGO

sector have been developed. The next chapter presents the research methodology to be

employed in the current study and outlines the manner in which data will be analyzed.
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CHAPTER 4

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

INTRODUCTION

This chapter describes the research methodology and the process of data collection

needed to empirically test the conceptual framework developed in the previous chapter. This

study explores the relationship between occupational stress and employees’ organizational

commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan. To ensure the accuracy of results it is therefore

important to choose an appropriate research methodology. Before discussing the research

design and methodology, the next section presents a brief overview of the research objectives,

which have already been discussed in detail in Chapter 1.

4.1 BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The main objective of this pragmatic study was to contribute to a superior understanding

of the relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO

sector in Pakistan. As indicated in the literature review in chapter 2, occupational stress and

organizational commitment have received a lot of attention of researchers and writers in the

West, but this relationship has not been studied in the NGO sector in Pakistan. This study,

therefore, attempts to help fill this gap by providing empirical information that might be of

interest to researcher and the stakeholders of NGOs. The objectives of this study are restated

here more specifically, which are:

1. To determine the relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment.
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2. To find out the level, causes and dimensions of occupational stress of NGO employees in

Pakistan using appropriate measuring instrument.

3. To explore the level and forms of NGO employees’ organizational commitment.

4. To analyze and ascertain the affects of various demographic variables including, age,

experience, job position, gender, qualification, income and marital status, on the

occupational stress and organizational commitment of NGO employees.

4.2 RESEARCH DESIGN

The aim of a research design is to provide a intended and prepared way of achieving

the research objectives and to augment validity and reliability. The present study is a

descriptive correlational study that seeks to explore the relationship between occupational

stress and organizational commitment in NGOs of Pakistan. This type of study requires a

research that does an in-depth investigation and description of phenomena, and systematically

classifies the variables of a construct and describes the attributes as accurately and precisely as

possible. In order to attain the aim of the research design, it should address the serious

questions including the unit of analysis, time frame of the study and the method of data

collection. All these components are therefore discussed in the following section .

4.2.1 Unit of Analysis

In this study, the unit of analysis is NGO employees of Pakistan. Most non-

governmental organization employees, engaged in the promotion of developmental initiatives,

function at the grassroots level, essentially working with the marginalized sections of the

Pakistani society: the rural poor; the urban slum residents; women, children and minorities;

the tribal, peasants and labor. Their work encompasses a range of services including
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education, health, provision of clean drinking water, irrigation, disaster response, relief and

rescue, sanitation, as well as organizational and capacity building of the poor and

marginalized community to facilitate them to play a more vigorous role in defining and

working towards their own development (UNDP, 2002). Taking into account the nature of

work NGO employees are engaged in, occupational stress is considered to be a part of their

jobs and they are anticipated to show a high level of organizational commitment at all times.

The participants’ identity was kept confidential and their privacy was strictly maintained in

the study.

4.2.2 Time Frame of the Study

While the best alternative would be to follow a longitudinal study involving detailed

records of behavior over an extended time period and to observe organizations in as much

detail as possible and for as long as possible, and to survey or interview different participants

at a series of intervals but the limits of resources, organizations privacy and time constraints

preclude such an approach. However, the quantitative research method adopted for this study

as it aimed at maximizing the informative power of the data gathered to gain insights about

the organizations and individuals. The following section provides a detailed justification for

the research methodology used in this study.

4.3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND JUSTIFICATION

Research method refers to the means of bring together and examine empirical proof.

To make sure validity and reliability a research should make use of both quantitative and

qualitative methods where it come into view appropriate (Allan, 1998).

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In the following sub-sections, both the qualitative and quantitative approaches are

briefly evaluated:

4.3.1 The Qualitative Approach

Qualitative methods are more effective for seeking a through description within a

limited area, but they are not appropriate for detection of co-variance between variables, in

difference to quantitative methods (Thompson, 2003). The qualitative research method may

be helpful for understanding the relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment if the purpose of the research was to study the impact of this relationship on few

individuals over a period of time in any one particular NGO.

Qualitative methods provide less clarification of variance statistical terms than

quantitative methods, they can give way data from which process theories and rich

explanations of how and why procedure and outcome crop up can be developed (Marcus and

Robey 1988) taking all of the above into account it was decided to adopt an approach for this

research which can be called the quantitative method.

4.3.2 The Quantitative Approach

According to Garber (1999), “Quantitative research methods put importance on the

making of detailed and generalizable statistical conclusion. The data composed by using the

quantitative techniques be likely to be numerical and are open to explanation by use of

statistics: thus the data are said to be quantitative and there is certain impartiality about

actuality, which is quantifiable(p.28)”.

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Quantitative methodologies, however, have been criticized for their lack of notice to

procedure aspects, for frequently meeting data only from the top of an organization, and for

their failure to find significant relationships (King, 1990).

The quantitative research method was selected for this study for the following specific

reasons:

Firstly, the researcher believed that quantitative move toward would be more suitable

to understand in detail the nature of dealings among major variables and to provide a rich

relative basis for interpreting and validating the results.

Secondly, because in quantitative research draw near which consists of techniques,

methodologies and activities which permit the observation account of organizational

phenomena in such a way that the relationship among major variables can be identified and

empirically documented;

Thirdly, collecting a large amount of data from structured questionnaire survey will

provide a wide reporting that may result in a real picture of the entities and observable fact

under study.

And finally, examination of the literature on occupational stress and organizational

commitment also provides a strong support of the empirical quantitative method as the most

productive research approach in the studies of the present kind.

4.4 OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF VARIABLES

The main aim of this research was to examine the relationship between occupational

stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan. The variables which
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have been identified in this study included organizational commitment, occupational stress

and demographic factors. Occupational stress is viewed as an independent variable and its

interaction with organizational commitment is taken as a dependent variable. The interaction

with the antecedence of NGO employees’ age, experience, job position, gender, qualification,

income and marital status is hypothesized to be a cause-effect relationship. The operational

definitions of the study variables, description and justification of the use of the measurement

instruments are discussed below:

4.4.1 Organizational Commitment

For the purpose of this study, organizational commitment has been operationalized and

refers to an overall commitment of NGO employees towards their organizations. This study

examines organizational commitment in terms of affective, continuance and normative

commitment.

4.4.1.1 Development and Rationale of the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire -

OCQ

The organizational commitment questionnaire developed by Meyer and Allen (1987)

was used to measure the dependent variable organizational commitment (Appendix D).

Organizational Commitment Questionnaire- OCQ is based on the Three-Component Model of

Meyer and Allen (1991) including affective commitment, continuance commitment, and

normative commitment.
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The OCQ statements represent possible feelings that an individual might have about

his/her work place. The respondents were asked to rate each of the statements on the

following 5-point Likert scale:

1. strongly disagree

2. disagree

3. undecided

4. agree

5. strongly agree

4.4.2 Occupational Stress

Stress refers to any professed job related, environmental, social, or internal insist

which requires the individual to readjust his /her usual behavior patterns scope of the job

related stress.

For the purpose of the present study the operational definition of occupational stress is

that: “Occupational stress refers to intrinsic and extrinsic stressors of NGO employees in

Pakistan which are related to their job including; Stress associated with various work roles;

personal strains due to physiological, psychological and behavioral processes that occur under

the influence of stress and disrupt the normal functioning of NGO employees”.

4.4.2.1 Development and Rationale of the Occupational Stress Inventory Revised

Edition- OSI-R

The Occupational Stress Inventory Revised Edition- OSI-R (Appendix C) developed by

Osipow & Davis (1998) was used to measure occupational stress. The decision to use the OSI-
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R was largely because of its numerous applications as an instrument and availability of

reliability information.

4.4.2.2 Description of Occupational Stress Inventory Revised Edition- OSI-R

The OSI-R is a self-report inventory consisting of three questionnaires covering all three

dimensions of occupational stress. Each of the three is composed of five-point Likert scale

items. The questionnaire takes about thirty minutes to complete. The three dimensions can be

used together, like in this study, or individually based on the research questions. The three

dimensions are further divided into the following scales:

1. Occupational Roles Questionnaire (ORQ) – The occupational roles questionnaire (ORQ)

measures the amount of stress provoked by the employment roles.

2. Personal Strain Questionnaire (PSQ) – The personal strain questionnaire (PSQ) is

separated into four subscales measuring the results of the occupational stressors, as

manifested in personal strain.

3. Personal Resources Questionnaire (PRQ) – The personal resources questionnaire (PRQ) is

comprised of four sub scales and it measures coping instrument utilized by the subject.

The subscales calculated comprise exercise, self-care, community support, and

impartial/cognitive coping.

The respondents were asked to rate each of the 60 items on the following 5-point Likert

scale:

1. strongly disagree

2. disagree
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3. undecided

4. agree

5. strongly agree

4.4.3 Demographic Variables

The NGO employees include individuals working at any level, performing any type of

work assignment in the office or field environment. The demographic variables of age,

experience, job position, gender, qualification, income and marital status were selected for the

present study and the same have been elaborated at length with valid references in Chapter 3.

An Individual Data Form (Appendix B) was utilized to gather information regarding

demographic variables directly related to this study. The data form consisted of questions

related to individual’s organization, job title, qualification, work experience, monthly income,

age, marital status, gender and nature of job contract.

4.5 THE VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY OF RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS

Examining the validity and reliability of research instruments is a prerequisite for any

empirical study. The following section explains measures taken by the researcher to ensure

validity and reliability of both Occupational Stress Inventory-OSI and Organizational

Commitment Questionnaire-OCQ:

4.5.1 Ensuring Validity

In the literature review validity is promoted by formulating hypothesis which describe

the goal of the research, providing conceptual descriptions of all the relevant concepts and
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constructs that are used in the research, as they are seen theoretically and used empirically in

the research.

4.5.2 Ensuring Reliability

In order to promote the reliability of the research, the following controls were incorporated

in the research design:

• The individual’s anonymity was ensured, as they were not required to write down their

name on the questionnaire.

• The attempt was made to establishing rapport with the respondents as a note explaining

the reason and purpose behind the questionnaire and how the results were be used was

given along the questionnaire ( Appendix A).

• As discussed in the pervious sections of the literature review, both OSI and OCQ have

been used in a number of other research projects with similar goals.

• The occupational stress inventory and organizational commitment questionnaire, both

comply with the stringent validity and reliability requirements, were tested for reliability

before use and the results are discussed in the following section.

Before employing the research instruments for the present study, a pilot study was

conducted to assess the validity and reliability of the both OSI and OCQ.

4.6 THE PILOT TESTING

The main purpose of pilot-testing of scales was to ensure the general feasibility of the

data collection method, and specifically to assess the validity and reliability of the research

instruments including OSI and OCQ. The pilot test involved the administration of survey
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instruments, which guided in the formation of the final questionnaire, to a convenience sample

of respondents who were employed at various levels in NGOs.

From the “NGO directory” maintained by NGO Resource Centre (2000), a

convenience sample of six NGOs was drawn. The population of the pilot study consisted of

eighty managers and staff who were working in offices and field. The respondents selected for

the pilot study were as similar as possible to the target respondents of the main study. They

were approached at their workplace and were asked to fill out the questionnaires in the

presence of the researcher.

4.6.1 Validity of the Research Instruments

The pilot study assisted in the analyzing the validity of both OSI and OCQ. It helped

in identification of redundancies in both OSI and OCQ, in rewording and re-sequencing

questions and in estimating the time required for completion of the questionnaire. The

statistical reliability analysis of both instruments was done by employing Alpha Reliability

Coefficient and Split half Reliability Analysis. The construct validity was examined by

computing items total correlation and inter-scale correlation and cutoff scores table was

developed with the help of percentile ranking. The results of statistical analysis for both OSI

and OCQ reflected that both the instrument were internally consistent.

Based on the responses and comments from the pilot study respondents, and feedback

from the panel of experts the items of OSI were reduced to 60 items from 97and of OCQ were

also reduced from 24 items to 15 items. The face validity of the research instruments was

judged through the written and verbal comments of the respondents regarding the clarity of
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questions and instructions. In addition to the pilot testing of the research instruments, these

instruments were also reviewed by a panel of experts at Human Resources Development

Network (HRDN). The valuable feedback received from the experts was taken into

consideration in preparation of the final version of the questionnaires (Appendix G).

4.6.2 Reliability of the Research Instruments

In the present study, the reliability of OCQ was measured in two ways. The split half

reliability of OCQ was computed. The results indicated the reliability coefficient for part 1 (11

items) was .75 and for part 2 (13 items) .60. The results reflected that the instrument was

internally consistent (Chapter # 5 Table 8). The alpha reliability coefficient of OCQ figure

was .55, which reflected that the instrument was internally consistent (Chapter # 5 Table 6).

The inter-correlations of OCQ with its subscales and total scale of OCQ were computed. The

results revealed that all the scales had positive correlation with each other and with the total

scale of OCQ. The highest inter correlation existed between Normative and Affective

commitment. R= .59 (Chapter # 5 Table 7).

The reliability of OSI-R was measured in two ways. The split half reliability of OSI-R

was computed. The results indicated that the reliability coefficient for part 1 (49 items) was

.4346 and for part 2 (48 items) .4471, which reflected that the tool was internally consistent

(Table 3). The alpha reliability coefficient of OSI-R yielded a reliability coefficient figure of

.66 for the entire .97, which indicates that the instrument is internally consistent (Chapter # 5

Table 1).
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The detailed report of pilot study including the research instruments used for pilot

testing, results of the statistical analysis can be seen at Appendix (G).

4.7 SAMPLING PROCESS

Sampling is a fundamental method of inferring information about an entire population

instead of measuring every member of the population. Developing the proper sampling

technique can greatly affect the authenticity of the results. The number of informants from

each organization was not pre-determined, a questionnaire was then distributed to the

respondents and they were also given detailed instructions for completing the survey in the

covering letter accompanying the questionnaire (Appendix A).

4.7.1 Sampling Population

The population of the study included all NGO employees in Pakistan. Since it would

be almost impossible to reach all the employees of NGOs all over Pakistan, it was, therefore,

necessary to sample the population. The planned sample size was 37 NGOs based in eight

major cities of Pakistan (Appendix E).

The selection of the NGOs was therefore, done on the basis of the following criteria:

the organization must be registered as an NGO with the government of Pakistan; the NGO

must have a minimum staff of at least 30 members; the NGO should be working in Pakistan

for more than 5 years. No specific sample size of employees from each organization was pre-

determined but the process of judgment sampling was adopted. However, it was decided to

include only those employees within NGOs who have some professional status in the
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organization. Workers involved in unskilled labour such as cleaners, loaders and office

attendants were excluded.

The employees included in the sample frame were office and field staff including

senior executives, professional staff like health workers, teachers, IT persons, librarians,

vaccinators, community mobilizers, researchers, campaign managers, social organizers, field

coordinators, and administrative support staff like admin officers, office secretaries, accounts

officers, coordination officers and other similar positions. As the results will be generalized, it

is essential that the sample should be the representative of all the employees of NGOs.

4.7.2 Sample Selection

In Pakistan, most of the head offices of NGOs are based mainly at the provincial

headquarters level. As their presence at the district and community level is through loosely

organized networks which are difficult to approach due to their scattered operations and lack

of communication in the field, therefore, both national and international NGOs who met the

criteria and also gave consent to approach their staff to administer the research questionnaire

were selected. The sample of thirty-seven NGOs whose head offices were based in the eight

major cities of Pakistan were selected (Annex E). A sample of 500 NGO employees was

randomly collected from the selected NGOs.

4.8 DATA COLLECTION

For data collection, the staff was approached in their job settings and was briefed

about the nature and purpose of the research. The respondents were assured of the

confidentiality of the results. After their willingness, the occupational stress inventory and
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organizational commitment questionnaires were handed over to them to complete the scales in

one session. A soft copy of the research questionnaire was also provided to some of the

respondents on request. Also to internally circulate the research questionnaires in some

organizations, the web administrators of their organizations were contacted with the soft copy

of the questionnaires in simple MS word and PDF format, which was circulated among the

staff members via e-mail.

During the survey a total of 689 NGO employees of the selected NGOs were given the

research questionnaires. The total number of responses received was 64% (N=443). Also 300

HRDN members belonging to the NGO sector were contacted via email to and the response

received was 11.4% (N= 57).

4.9 STATISTICAL TECHNIQUES

The statistical package for social sciences (SPSS-13th Edition) was used to conduct the

analysis of the collected data. Various statistical techniques were employed to examine the

data such as arithmetic mean, standard deviation, correlation analysis, percentile analysis and

analysis of variance. As these techniques are appropriate to test the internal consistency,

construct validity, average, dispersion, determination of cut off scores, variance and

relationship among different variables.

4.10 LIMITATIONS OF THE METHODOLOGY

The research methodology adopted for this research has certain limitations which

should be taken into consideration if any generalizations or conclusions are to be drawn from

the research findings. The data was collected through survey questionnaires using the
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quantitative approach. This approach has some limitations including the fact that standardized

questionnaires impose restrictions on the depth of data, which can be collected about the

phenomenon under investigation. Moreover, standardized questionnaires reflect the opinions

and perceptions of only those who choose to respond.

The study was delimited to eight major cities of Pakistan and the data was collected

from both male and female NGO employees with a minimum of one year work experience.

The minimum educational qualification of the employees who could participate in this

research study was graduation. The limitations of the research have been discussed further in

chapter 6.

4.11 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

The ethical integrity is very important in any research because it is a probing process

with the potential to infringe on participant’s rights; therefore, this study has been conducted

in conformity with the informed consent and concern for participant’s anonymity. The

necessary permissions from the management of NGOs were obtained before data collection.

The participation in the study was purely on a voluntary, anonymous and confidential basis,

and the privacy was strictly guarded because of the sensitivity of the nature of topic. The

participants were explained about the confidentiality verbally and in writing through the

survey questionnaire cover letter (Appendix A).

4.12 SUMMARY

This chapter presented the research methodology used in this study and its

justification. It illustrates research design of the study, the unit of analysis and operational
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definition of organizational commitment, occupational stress and demographic variables

included in the study, details about research instruments including OSI, OCQ and individual

data form used for data collection, the procedure of data collection and data analysis, details

about pilot study for measuring of the reliability and validity of the instruments and ethical

considerations. The next chapter presents results of the empirical research, results related to

the research hypothesis and a summary of the results.

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CHAPTER 5

RESULTS
INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this research study was to examine the relationship between

occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan; to explore

the level, causes and dimensions of occupational stress and the level and forms of

organizational commitment of the NGO employees in Pakistan. In the previous chapters the

theoretical concepts related to occupational stress and organizational commitment were

reviewed; a conceptual framework of the study was proposed; and research methodology and

design was developed. The main objective of this chapter was to report the results of data

analyses performed to examine the validity and reliability of the research instruments and the

results of empirical research undertaken. The instruments were developed and used for the

collection of data from a sample of 500 respondents working in various NGOs of Pakistan.

In order to test the hypotheses of the study various statistical analyses were carried out

including percentile analysis, correlations analysis, split-half reliability analysis, mean,

standard deviation and analysis of variance. The reliability of each scale and subscale of

Occupational Stress Inventory Revised Edition - (OSI-R) and Organizational Commitment

Questionnaire- (OCQ) were computed. Mean and standard deviation of respondents’ scores on

all subscales and total scale of OSI-R and OCQ were computed. The correlation matrixes were

computed to examine the inter-relationships of OSI-R and OCQ. Inter-scales correlations and
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items-total correlations were computed to verify the internal consistency. Coefficient of

correlations was calculated to define the scale reliability and validity.

The relationships of demographics variables with occupational stress and

organizational commitment was examined by computing the mean and standard deviation.

Analysis of variance was also computed to measure the differences in responses of the NGO

employees on different work related variables.

5.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF THE RESPONDENTS

The target population for this study was NGO employees working at all levels. A total

of 37 organizations were contacted. The questionnaires were handed over to respondents by

visiting their organizations. A soft copy of the research questionnaire was also provided to

some of the respondents on request. Also to internally circulate the research questionnaires in

some organizations, the web administrators of their organizations were contacted with the soft

copy of the questionnaires in simple MS word and PDF format, with the request to circulate

them among the staff members via e-mail.

During the survey, 689 NGO employees of the selected NGOs were given the research

questionnaires. The total number of responses received was 64% (N=443). However, 26

participants indicated that they were not eligible to participate because their work experience

was less than a year so they did not provide any information, 6 individuals sent back e-mails

refusing to participate.
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Human Resources Development Network – (HRDN) reported that their network

membership from the development sector of Pakistan comprised of primarily NGO employees

(HRDN, 2007). Since that was the target population, an e-mailing list consisted of 300 HRDN

NGO sector members was obtained from HRDN Pakistan. The representative of HRDN

circulated the research questionnaires and individual data form via email to all NGO sector

members (N=300) on behalf of the researcher. The response received was 11.4% (N= 57), 12

respondents returned the questionnaire stating that they were no more employed in the

development sector and hence they did not qualify for the study. A total of 80 e-mails were

bounced back stating reasons including, permanent fatal error in the e-mail address, e-mail

address permanently blocked or client left the organization.

Finally a random sample consisting of 5% NGO employees (N=25) of individuals who

did not respond to the survey was contacted by phone. Despite the assurance to maintain the

privacy of their responses, some of the staff members showed reluctance in filling up the

questionnaire citing the common excuses of the lack of time or ineligibility to participate

because of not associated with the development sector anymore.

The following sections illustrate the results of statistical analysis done to examine the

validity and reliability of OSI-R and OCQ.

5.2 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS INVENTORY-

REVISED EDITION
Scale and subscales reliabilities of OSI-R were determined on the main sample by using

the statistical procedures including Alpha Reliability Coefficients, Inter-Correlation of the

Subscales of OSI, Items Total Correlations, Percentile Ranks, Levels and Percentages of

Occupational Stress.
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5.2.1 Alpha Reliability Coefficient of OSI-R

Alpha reliability coefficient of OSI-R and its subscales were determined on a sample

of 500 NGO employees.

Table 1

Alpha Reliability Coefficient of OSI-R (N=500)

Subscales Alpha coefficient

ORQ .73**

PSQ .48**

PRQ .69**

Total .90**

*P <0.05 **p <0.01

Table 1 portrays the Alpha reliability coefficients of OSI-R for its subscales of ORQ,

PSQ and PRQ. It ranges from .48 to .90, which indicates that all the subscales of OSI-R are

internally consistent with each other and correlated with total scale.

5.2.2 Inter-Correlation of Subscales of OSI-R

Inter-correlations of the subscales of OSI-R were calculated.

Table 2

Inter-Correlations of the Subscales of OSI-R-R (N=500)

Subscales ORQ PSQ PRQ

ORQ

PSQ .54** .62**

PRQ .32**
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Total .84* .86** .60**

**p < 0.01

Table 2 indicates inter-correlation of the subscales and total scale of OSI-R. Result

shows that all subscales have positive correlation with each other and with total scale of OSI-

R. The highest correlation exists between PSQ and total scale of OSI-R (r = .86**) because

they are measuring the same construct.

5.2.3 Items Total Correlation of NGO Employees on Occupational Stress Inventory

Items analysis was performed on OSI-R, and items total correlation was calculated on

a sample of 500 NGO employees.

Table 3

Items Total Correlations of NGO Employees on OSI-R (N=500)

Items Correlations Items Correlations

1 29 31 .27

2 .28 32 .17

3 .28 33 .51

4 .29 34 .67**

5 .23 35 .63**

6 .40 36 .61**

7 .41 37 .22

8 .35 38 .31

9 .36 39 .25
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10 .39 40 .53

11 .32 41 .37

12 .27 42 .45

13 .28 43 .57**

14 .27 44 .40

15 .29 45 .53

16 .24 46 .33

17 .34 47 .53

18 .20 48 .32

19 .23 49 .25

20 .44* 50 .30

21 .33 51 .59**

22 .53 52 .20

23 .78** 53 .59**

24 .19 54 .20

25 .44 55 .69**

26 .23 56 .29

27 .33 57 .27

28 .39 58 .21

29 .37 59 .16

30 .27 60 .20

*p <0.05, **p <0.01

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Table 3 describes the item total correlations of OSI-R. The result reveals that all the

selected 60 items have positive correlation with the total scale of OSI-R. It indicates that all

60 items of OSI-R are significant for measuring the occupational stress of NGO employees.

The correlations ranged from .16 to .78.

The analysis of results of alpha reliability coefficient, inter-correlation of subscales of

OSI-R, items total correlation of Occupational Stress Inventory indicate that it has enough

reliability, content and construct validity to measure the occupational stress in the present

sample, therefore, it could be considered as a valid and reliable research instrument for the

present sample.

5.2.4 Percentile Ranks of OSI-R

In order to determine the overall stress level of NGO employees, the percentile rank of NGO

employee’s scores on OSI-R were calculated

Table 4

Percentiles Ranks of OSI-R (N=500)

Percentiles OSI-R

5 136

10 142

15 148

20 151
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25 154

30 156

35 159

40 161

45 163

50 165

55 167

60 171

65 173

70 180

75 187

80 190

85 193

90 197

95 207

*p <0.05, **p <0.01

Table 4 shows the percentile ranks of NGO employees’ score on OSI-R. The

percentile ranks were calculated in order to identify the levels of occupational stress among

the Ngo employees. The three percentile ranks including mild, moderate and high on OSI-R

were calculated. The scores ranged from 136 to 207. The score of 154 falls on 25th percentile,

illustrating mild occupational stress. Score of 165 falls on 50th percentile characterizing
 131

moderate occupational stress, whereas, score of 187 falls on 75th percentile demonstrating

high occupational stress.

5.2.5 Levels and Percentages of Stress

The levels and percentages of stress were determined on the main sample of the study.

To determine the stress scores on the OSI-R, the percentages for three levels including mild,

moderate and high level of occupational stress were computed.

Table 5

Level and Percentages of Stress on OSI-R (N=500)

Levels of Stress n Percentages

Mild Stress 77 15%

Moderate Stress 188 38%

High Stress 235 47%

Table 5 portrays levels of occupational stress of NGO employees. It indicates that 15 %

employees experience mild occupational stress, 38% have moderate occupational stress,

whereas, 47% have high level of occupational stress. The results indicate that the majority of

NGO employees experienced a moderate or higher level of occupational stress. As indicated

in the literature review that working environment in NGOs in Pakistan is stressful with

minimal organizational support. Working in a high stress environment may result in negative

physical, psychological and behavioral job strain. This issue is further discussed in chapter 6.
 132

5.3 DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT

QUESTIONNAIRE -OCQ

The statistical procedures used to determine the scale and subscales reliability of OCQ

on the main sample included: Alpha Reliability Coefficients, Inter-Correlation of the

subscales of OCQ, Item Total Correlations, Percentiles Ranks and Levels and Percentages of

organizational commitment.

5.3.1 Alpha Reliability Coefficients of OCQ

Alpha reliability coefficients of OCQ were determined on a sample of 500 NGO

employees.

Table 6
Alpha Reliability Coefficients of OCQ (N=500)
Subscales Alpha coefficients

NC .65**

AC .84**

CC .59**

Total .87*

*p <0.05, **p <0.01

Table 6 describes the Alpha reliability coefficients of OCQ. It ranges from .59 to .87,

indicating that the subscales of OCQ including NC, AC, and CC have enough reliability with

the total scales of OCQ, meaning thereby that all subscales of OCQ are internally consistent

for measuring organizational commitment.

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5.3.2 Inter-Correlation of Subscales of OCQ

For the determination of the validity of OCQ, inter-correlation of subscales and total

scale of OCQ were calculated.

Table 7

Inter-Correlation of Subscales of OCQ (N=500)

Subscales NC AC CC

NC

AC .67**

CC .70** .57***

Total .85*** .53*** .56***

**p < 0.05, ***p < 0.01

Table 7 describes the inter-correlation among the subscales and total scale of OCQ. The

result revealed that the subscales NC, AC and CC have positive correlation with each other

and with total scale of OCQ.

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5.3.3 Items Total Correlations of OCQ

For the determination of item analysis, items total correlation was computed on the

respondents’ scores.

Table 8
Items Total Correlation of OCQ (N=500)

Items Correlations Items Correlations

1 .46 ** 9 .33**

2 .56 ** 10 .32**

3 .65 ** 11 .33**

4 .59 * 12 .56**

5 .61 ** 13 .41**

6 .61 ** 14 .45**

7 .25 ** 15 .25**

8 .38**

*P<0.05 **p<0.01

Table 8 describes the results of the items total correlation of scores of NGO employees on

OCQ. The correlation ranges from .25 to .65 and indicates that all fifteen items of the

questionnaire are positively correlated with the total score of OCQ.

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The above analysis of results for measuring the validity and reliability OCQ indicates

that the scale has enough reliability and validity and could be considered as suitable research

instrument for measuring the organizational commitment for the present sample.

5.3.4 Percentile Ranks of NGO Employees on OCQ

The percentile ranks were determined on the main sample of NGO employees for OCQ.

Table 9

Percentiles Ranks of OCQ (N=500)

Percentiles OCQ

5 38

10 39

15 41

20 42

25 43

30 45

35 46

40 46

45 47
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50 48

55 49

60 50

65 50

70 52

75 53

80 54

85 56

90 57

95 59

Table 9 reveals percentiles rank of respondents’ scores on OCQ. It describes three

levels of organizational commitment including, low, moderate and higher organizational

commitment. The scores for OCQ ranged from 38 to 59. The score of 43 falls on 25th

percentile indicating low organizational commitment score of 48 falls on 50th percentile

indication moderate organizational commitment and the score of 53 falls on 75th percentile

rank indicating high organizational commitment.

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5.3.5 Levels and Percentages of Commitment

Table 10

Levels and Percentages of Commitment (N=500)

Levels n Percentages

Low Commitment 113 23%

Moderate Commitment 190 38%

High Commitment 197 39%

Table 10 shows the frequencies and percentages for the three levels of organizational

commitment on a sample of 500 NGO employees. It illustrates 23% respondents fall in the

category of low organizational commitment, 38% moderate and 39% respondents fall in the

category of high organizational commitment. The results of all adopted statistical procedures

indicate that OCQ has enough reliability and validity to measure organizational commitment

for the present sample

The following section shows the results of statistical analysis of the data performed to

test the hypothesis of the study.

5.4 STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF THE DATA RELATED TO THE RESEARCH

HYPOTHESES

H1: There is an inverse relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment.
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Table 11

Correlation of Subscales and Total Scale of OSI-R with OCQ

Scales ORQ PSQ PRQ OSI NC AC CC OCQ

TOTAL TOTAL

ORQ 1 .548** .320** .840** .296** .098* -.021 -.179**

PSQ .548** 1 .410** .863** .268** .205** .108* -.075

PRQ .320** .410** 1 .629** .228** .290** -.030 -.062

OSI
.840** .863** .629** 1 .337** .226** .034 -.40**
TOTAL

NC
-.296** -.268** -.228** -.337** 1 .171** .263** .859**

AC .098* .205** .290** .226** .171** 1 .101* .530**

CC -.021 .108* -.030 .034 .263** .101* 1 .568**

OCQ

TOTAL -.179** -.075 -.062 -.140** .859** .530** .568** 1

 139

Table 11 describes the inter-correlations among subscales and total scales of OSI-R

and OCQ. It illustrates that as a whole there is a negative correlation between subscales of

OSI-R with OCQ (-.40**), meaning that higher score on occupational stress leads to lower

score on organizational commitment of the employees. The results reflect that there is an

inverse relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment.

Table 12

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI-R and OCQ for nature of

organization (N=500)

Scales Office Based Service Delivery

(n=231) (n=269)

M SD M SD

OSI-R 155.96 20.95 170.24 21.94

OCQ 57.97 6.54 48.26 6.912

Table 12 shows the scores of OSI-R and OCQ on the variable nature of organization.

The mean score of employees working in service delivery organizations is higher on OSI-R

and lower on OCQ (OSI-R M= 170.24, OCQ M= 48.26) compared to the scores of employees

in the office based organizations. It means that employees working in service delivery

organizations have higher occupational stress and resultantly have lower organizational

commitment. These results further validate the results shown in table 11 that higher score on

occupational stress will lead to lower score on organizational commitment.

 140

Therefore, the statistical results shown in table # 11 and 12 confirm H1 that there is an

inverse relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO

sector in Pakistan.

H2: NGO employees experience stress mainly due to their occupational roles which leads to

high personal strain.

For testing the second hypothesis of this study, the mean and standard deviation on the

subscales of OSI-R were calculated.

Table 13

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on ORQ and PSQ (N=500)

Subscales Officer Based Service Delivery Total

(n=231) (n=269) (N=500)

M SD M SD M SD

ORQ 79.39 10.11 88.72 18.75 168.11 28.86

PSQ 47.73 9.9 49.68 10.80 97.41 20.7

Table 13 portrays the results of the OSI-R for the second hypothesis of the study. The

result illustrates that NGO employees have more role related stress (ORQ M 168.11, PSQ M=

97.41). It further describes that the employees working in service delivery organizations have

higher scores on ORQ than office based employees (ORQ Service Delivery M= 88.72, Office

Based M= 79.39).
 141

It was pointed out in the literature review in chapter #2 that NGO employees have high

occupational role stress and some of the main reasons cited were the nature of jobs, work

environment and lack of enough organizational support. High occupational role stress

manifests into strain like vocational strain, psychological strain, interpersonal strain, and

physical strain (Osipow 1998) which may affect them physically, psychologically and

behaviorally. Thus, the research results confirm this assumption. The research results of ORQ

and PSQ confirm that NGO employees have high occupational role stress which results in

high personal strain.

The results also reflect that the occupational role stress and personal strain level among

field based NGO staff is higher compared to the office based staff. The field environment for

NGO employees is highly unstable and they receive minimal support from their organization

while they perform their duties in the field. Thus, the above results confirm the research H2

that NGO employees experience stress mainly due to their occupational roles which leads to

high personal strain.

H3: Highly qualified and experienced NGO employees experience less occupational stress

than the less qualified and less experienced employees.

Table # 14, 15 and 16 have been developed to test H3 and the details are as follow:

Table 14

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI-R for the variable

Qualification (N=500)
 142

OSI Total Graduate Master Above Master

(n=112) (n=356) (n=32)

OSI Total M SD M SD M SD

173.25 22.35 167.39 20.85 160.62 23.68

Table 14 describes the scores of NGO employees on OSI-R for the variable

qualification, illustrating that employees with less qualification experience more occupational

stress (Graduate M= 173.25, Above Master M= 160.62). The mean and standard deviations of

employees based on qualification of graduate, master and above master degree revealed that

the NGO employees with less qualification experienced more occupational stress compared to

the highly qualified employees. Thus, these findings support the research hypothesis that the

highly qualified employees experience less occupational stress compared to the less educated

employees.

Table 15

One-Way Analysis of Variance of NGO Employees Scores on OSI-R for the Variable

Qualification (N=500)

Source df F P

Job Title 499 5.382 .005*

***P<0 .01
 143

Table 15 shows the analysis of variance performed on the responses of NGO

employees for the variable qualification. It shows a significant difference between the scores

of NGO employees with different qualification levels, F (3, 497) = 5.382, P< .005**.

Table 16

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI-R Subscales for Experience

(N=500)

OSI Total 3 Years 3-7 Years 7 and Above

(n=116) (n=205) (n=179)

M SD M SD M SD

ORQ 85.55 11.77 80.31 10.04 80.44 10.20

PSQ 50.39 9.07 49.24 10.03 48.49 11.33

PRQ 42.44 5.77 38.90 5.95 39.37 5.98

Total 178.39 21.86 168.46 19.94 167.31 23.19

Table #16 presents the analysis of the second component of the hypothesis #2 related

to the NGO employees’ work experience. It reveals that the level of occupational stress is

more among the employees with less work experience compared to the employees with more

work experience (3 years M= 178.39, 7 and above years M= 167.00). It further describes the

stress is highest among less experienced employees due to occupational roles, which supports

the findings of the research hypothesis #2 as well.

 144

It seems from the results that qualification and work experience are important variables

in determining the level of occupational stress. Employees with higher qualification and with

longer stay at a workplace feel more comfortable and confident in meeting their job demands

and may effectively cope with the occupational stress. Thus, the empirical results presented in

table # 14, 15 and 16 validate H3 that highly qualified and experienced NGO employees

experience less occupational stress than the less qualified and less experienced employees.

H4: Highly educated NGO employees are more capable of coping with occupational stress

than the less educated ones.

Table 17

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on Coping strategies for the variable

Qualification (N=500)

OSI Sub Scale Graduates Master Above Master

(n=112) (n=356) (n=32)

M SD M SD M SD

PRQ 39.90 5.75 32.71 5.91 28.84 6.00

Table 17 shows the results of respondents’ scores on OSI-R subscale PRQ. The results

indicates that NGO employees with higher qualification have low mean score on PRQ as

compared to employees with less qualification (M=28.84), which means that the level of

education is an important factor in handling the stressful situations. Qualified employees can
 145

manage stressful situations by using effective stress coping techniques. The above results

support the H4 that highly educated employees are more capable of coping with occupational

stress than the less educated ones.

H5: NGO employees with higher qualification have lower organizational commitment than

NGO employees with lower qualification.

To examine the H5 the mean and SD and analysis of variance of NGO employees

responses on OCQ for qualification was performed. Table # 18 and 19 show the results.

Table 18

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Qualification (N=500)

OCQ Graduate Master Above Master

(n=112) (n=356) (n=32)

M SD M SD M SD

NC 19.95 4.38 22.42 4.75 20.68 5.40

AC 15.43 2.40 12.03 2.60 13.44 2.01

CC 15.30 2.18 12.54 2.33 13.18 2.64

Total 50.61 6.57 47.00 6.66 44.12 6.74

Table 18 reflects the results of NGO employees on OCQ for the variable qualification.

The results show that the employees with higher qualification have low level of organizational

commitment (Graduate M= 50.61, Above Master= 44.12).

 146

Table 19

One-Way Analysis of Variance of NGO Employees Scores on OCQ for the Variable

Qualification (N=500)

Source df F P

Qualification 499 4.018 .012**

**P < 0.05

Table 19 indicates a significant difference in the response of NGO employees for the

variable of qualification. It is in line with the results of the previous table showing that

employees with lower qualification have higher scores on OCQ.

The discussion in the literature review indicated that the level of education was

negatively related to organizational commitment as greater number of job options that may be

available to employees with higher levels of education. It was expected that the NGO

employees with higher qualification may report lower organizational commitment, as they

might have more opportunities in the job market, consequently, resulting in their lower

continuance commitment and higher turn over. Thus, the above results support the research

hypothesis # 5 that employees with higher qualification have low organizational commitment

than employees with less qualification.

H6: The level of organizational commitment of NGO employees increases with age,

experience, income and job position

The results for analysis of the relationship of age, experience, income and job position

with organizational commitment are shown in tables 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 and 27.
 147

Table 20

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Age (N=500)

OCQ 20-30 Yrs 30-40 Yrs 40 and Above

(n=169) (n=214) (n=117)

M SD M SD M SD

NC 19.84 4.91 20.10 4.15 22.01 5.20

AC 15.27 2.64 15.13 2.17 16.90 2.94

CC 12.49 2.33 14.90 2.93 14.42 2.38

Total 47.62 7.11 47.86 6.04 53.35 7.28

Table 20 illustrates the results for OCQ on the variable age. It indicates that age

influences the level of employees’ organizational commitment as the older NGO employees

are more committed towards their organization than the younger ones (20-30 years M= 47.62,

40 years and above M= 53.35).

Table 21

One-Way Analysis Of Variance of NGO Employees Scores On OCQ for Variable Age

(N=500)

Source df F P

Age 499 5.082 .002**

**P < 0.01

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Table 21 indicates that there is a significant difference in the commitment level of

employees on the variable age, F = (3,497) = 5.082, P < .002**.

Table 22

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO employees on OSI-R for Age (N=500)

OSI 20-30 Yrs 30-40 Yrs 40 and Above

(n=169) (n=214) (n=117)

M SD M SD M SD

ORQ 80.47 11.36 80.72 10.13 80.74 9.99

PSQ 49.25 10.30 49.35 10.30 47.05 10.47

PRQ 39.04 5.88 38.81 5.91 38.58 6.04

Total 168.77 20.86 168.90 21.44 166.38 22.85

Table 22 shows the results of OSI-R for and its subscales on age. The results indicate

that younger employees experience more occupational stress than older ones (20-25 years M=

168.77, 40 years and above M= 166.38). The mean scores of PSQ and PRQ are lower for

older employees (PSQ M=47.05, PRQ M= 38.58).

The results related to the variable age indicate that age is an important factor in

determining the level of organizational commitment because the level of commitment

increases with age. Moreover, in the NGO sector, the opportunities may diminish with
 149

increase in age. That is why the older workers, due to their stronger investment may prefer to

stay with an employer for a longer period. The results related to age and OSI-R indicate that

younger employees experience more occupational stress compared to older ones. The older

NGO employees experience less personal strain and have better coping resources in dealing

with strain than the younger employees.

Table 23

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Experience (N=500)

OCQ Total 3 Years 3-7 Years 7 and Above

(n=116) (n=205) (n=179)

M SD M SD M SD

NC 19.37 4.55 20.51 4.45 24.11 5.08

AC 15.41 2.10 14.72 2.62 16.41 2.62

CC 12.51 2.34 12.49 2.34 15.58 2.31

Total 47.29 8.99 47.72 9.41 56.1 10.01

Table 23 describes the results for OCQ on the variable experience. It shows that the

employees with more work experience have higher organizational commitment as compared

to employees with less work experience (3 years M= 47.27, 7 years and above M= 56.1). The

literature pursued on the relationship of experience and organizational commitment suggested

a positive link between them, as for an employee the cost of leaving an organization after a

longer stay may be very high, which may result in stronger continuance commitment.
 150

Interestingly the above results indicate that both the continuance and normative types of

organizational commitment get stronger with more experience.

Table 24

One-Way Analysis of Variance of NGO Employees’ Scores on OCQ for the Variable

Experience (N=500)

Source df F P

Experience 499 3.137 .044*

**P < 0.01

Table 24 shows that variable experience shows significant difference on NGO

employees’ commitment level, F = (3,497) = 3.137, P < .044**. The results related to the

variable experience show that it is positively associated with organizational commitment.

Employees with more work experience develop higher organizational commitment may be

because of reasons such as emotional attachment, satisfaction resulting from the use of their

skills and contributions made towards building the organization.

Table 25

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Income (N=500)

________________________________________________________________________

OCQ up to 10000 10000-20000 20000 and above

(n=81) (n=169) (n=250)

 151

M SD M SD M SD

NC 15.54 5.24 19.49 4.19 21.42 4.76

AC 15.72 2.31 15.01 2.50 17.00 2.59

CC 12.74 2.01 12.54 2.33 12.46 2.42

Total 44.00 9.56 47.07 9.02 50.88 9.77

Table 25 describes the results for variable income on organizational commitment. It

indicates that NGO employees with high-income level have a higher score on the total scale of

OCQ (up to 10000 M= 44.00, 20000 and above M= 50.88). Income seems positively

associated with the organizational commitment because it directly affects an individual’s

lifestyle and status.

Table 26

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI-R for Income (N=500)

OSI up to 10000 10000-20000 20000 and above

(n=81) (n=169) (n=250)

M SD M SD M SD

ORQ 83.97 12.19 82.09 10.87 78.59 9.20

PSQ 49.22 8.8 50.43 11.09 47.52 10.31

PRQ 39.82 5.63 39.05 6.11 38.37 5.86

Total 173.02 21.18 171.58 22.58 164.48 20.37

 152

Table 26 shows results for variable income on occupational stress. It indicates that

employees with lower income level have higher occupational stress than employees with

higher income. (up to 10000 M= 173.02, 20000 and above M= 164.48). From the results,

employees’ income level seems positively associated with the occupational stress.

Table 27

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Job Position (N=500)

OCQ Managers Office Staff Field Staff

(n=168) (n=256) (n=76)

M SD M SD M SD

NC 25.05 4.17 17.93 4.70 20.13 5.25

AC 12.37 2.23 14.87 2.76 12.44 2.23

CC 12.56 2.18 12.45 2.39 11.71 2.43

Total 50.00 6.07 45.27 7.01 45.29 6.35

Table 27 illustrates results for variable of job position on organizational commitment.

It shows that the employees holding senior positions have a higher level of organizational

commitment than others (managers= 50.00, field staff= 45.29).

The results shown in table # 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 and 27 endorse the research H6

that the level of commitment increases with age, experience, income and job position. All

these factors are found to be positively related with organizational commitment. An

employee’s age, experience, income and job position all may contribute in strengthening
 153

his/her position and enhancing the status in an organization, which consequently influences

his/her level organizational commitment.

H7 : NGO employees have stronger normative commitment than affective and continuance

commitment.

Table 28

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ and its subscales (N=500)

NC AC CC

OCQ M SD M SD M SD

23.05 4.17 19.93 4.70 19.13 5.25

Table 28 shows the results of OCQ on its subscales of NC, AC and CC. The results

indicate that the normative commitment is stronger than affective and continuance

commitment among employees (NC M=23.05, AC M= 19.93, CC M= 19.33).

The reasons for NGO employees’ strong organizational commitment and particularly

normative commitment have been discussed in the literature review. Since most of the NGOs

in Pakistan are involved in developmental, social welfare, relief and community development

work, NGOs may possibly create a feeling of pride among their employees, resulting in a

sense of emotional attachment to the organization. It seems that NGO employees may feel that

it is their moral duty to stay with the organization and to help achieve its mission that

promotes a sense of normative commitment among them. The above results corroborate the
 154

H7 that NGO employees have stronger normative commitment than affective and continuance

commitment.

5.5 RESULTS RELATED TO UNHYPOTHESIZED VARIABLES

In the present study, seven hypotheses were formulated to measure the objectives of

the research and to answer the research questions. However, based on the data trends two un-

hypothesized variables, worthwhile to mention, namely gender and marital status were

included. The findings related to these variables are shown in tables # 29, 30, 31, 32 below.

Table 29

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI-R for Gender (N=500)

OSI Male Female

(n=275) (n=225)

M SD M SD

ORQ 79.53 10.35 84.00 10.56

PSQ 48.77 10.37 48.79 10.52

PRQ 38.91 5.8 38.75 6.09

Total 167.21 20.99 171.56 22.23

Table 29 shows the scores of NGO employees on OSI-R for the variable gender. The

results reflect that female NGO employees have higher occupational stress than the male

employees (Female M=171.56, Male M= 167.21). The mean scores on ORQ is the highest for

females which indicates that female employees experience more occupational role stress

(Female M=84.00, Male M= 79.53).

 155

One possible explanation for higher female occupational role stress may be the

multiple roles that females play in their life in Pakistani society. Balancing between their work

and domestic roles might lead to higher occupational role stress.

Table 30

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Gender (N=500)

OCQ Male Female

(n=275) (n=225)

M SD M SD

NC 20.38 4.77 20.63 4.71

AC 15.13 2.46 17.12 2.60

CC 12.47 2.24 14.60 2.43

Total 47.94 6.82 52.35 6.66

Table 30 indicates the scores of NGO employees on OCQ for the variable gender,

showing that female employees are more committed towards their organization than the male

employees. The mean scores on OCQ are the highest for female staff (Female M=52.35, Male

M= 47.94).
 156

Table 31

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OSI-R for Marital Status (N=500)

OSI Married Unmarried

(n=112) (n=356)

M SD M SD

ORQ 79.64 10.45 81.85 10.47

PSQ 48.64 10.61 48.94 10.23

PRQ 38.68 5.84 39.02 6.03

Total 166.98 21.75 169.82 21.29

Table 31 explains the scores of NGO employees on OSI-R for marital status. The

results show that unmarried employees have higher occupational stress than the married

employees (Unmarried M= 169.82, Married M= 166.98). The mean scores on ORQ are

highest for unmarried employees (M=81.85) which indicate that unmarried employees receive

highest stress from the occupational roles.

 157

Table 32

Comparison of Mean and SD of NGO Employees on OCQ for Marital Status (N=500)

OCQ Married Unmarried

(n=112) (n=356)

M SD M SD

NC 24.00 4.97 20.83 4.52

AC 14.93 2.80 15.28 2.26

CC 18.43 2.25 12.60 2.39

Total 52.36 10.02 48.71 9.17

Table 32 shows the scores of NGO employees on OCQ for marital status. It illustrates

that married employees are more committed towards their organization than the unmarried

employees (Unmarried M=48.71, Married M= 52.36). The mean scores on NC are the highest

for married employees (M= 24.00) showing that they have a strong normative commitment

towards their organization.

The above results shown in tables # 29, 30, 31, 32 related to the two un-hypothesized

variables, which are gender and marital status indicate some interesting findings. The results

indicate that female employees experience more occupational stress, particularly occupational

role stress at work. However, their level of commitment is higher compared to the male
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employees. It was also seen that unmarried employees experience more occupational stress,

however their level of commitment is lower compared to the married employees.

5.6 SUMMARY OF THE RESEARCH RESULTS

This study contributes to the literature on the relationship between occupational stress

and organizational commitment in the NGO sector of Pakistan. It provides empirical evidence

to the theoretical model that links occupational stress with organizational commitment. It was

found that there is an inverse relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment, and though majority of NGO employees experience high or moderate

occupational stress, NGO employees working in service delivery organizations are found to

have overall higher occupational stress which, therefore, manifests itself in the form of lower

organizational commitment. It is interesting to observe that NGO employees have more role

related stress.

One significant finding is that younger employees experience more occupational stress

than the older ones, showing that age and experience contribute significantly in improving the

ability to cope with stress. But on the other hand it is also noted that the employees with more

work experience have higher occupational stress as compared to employees with less work

experience.

Another notable finding is that female NGO employees have higher occupational stress

than the male employees. Particularly, they experience higher level of occupational role stress.

The level of education also shows its impact in determining the level of occupational stress.
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The NGO employees with a higher level of education are observed to have better occupational

stress coping tendencies than those having lesser qualification.

Most of the NGO employees are able to maintain a moderate or high level of overall

organizational commitment. The normative commitment among employees is higher than

affective and continuance commitment. Age seems to have a statistically significant

relationship with organizational commitment of employees working in the NGO sector of

Pakistan. As older NGO workers are found to be more committed towards their organization

than the younger ones. NGO employees with higher level of income have higher

organizational commitment. Whereas, the experienced NGO employees reported stronger

normative and continuance commitment on the subscale of OCQ.

More experienced employees are found to be more committed towards their

organization than the less experienced ones. Compared to the other NGO employees, NGO

managers have a higher level of organizational commitment and stronger normative

commitment. Female employees are more committed towards their organization than the male

employees. They have stronger affective and continuance commitment than their male

colleagues. NGO employees with higher qualification have a lower level of organizational

commitment as compared to the staff with less qualifications. Unmarried employees have

higher occupational stress, whereas married employees are more committed towards their

organizations than the unmarried ones.

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5.7 SUMMARY

In this chapter, the results of the empirical research were reported. The

characteristics of the respondents of the study were elaborated, determinants of reliability,

validity and descriptive statistics of both OSI-R and OCQ were discussed, statistical analysis

of the data related to the research hypotheses was reported and summary of key research

findings was presented. The next chapter covers further discussion and interpretation of the

study results, conclusion, recommendations and suggestions for the future research.
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CHAPTER 6

DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION, LIMITATIONS AND

SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH

INTRODUCTION

This chapter provides the discussions and interpretations of the results of this study.

Furthermore, this chapter also discusses the conclusions drawn as well as the limitations of the

study followed by the suggestions and propositions for the future research.

6.1 DISCUSSION

The purpose of this study, primarily, was to examine the research objectives, which

included; firstly, to determine the relationship between occupational stress and organizational

commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan; secondly, to find out the level, causes and

dimensions of NGO employees’ occupational stress; thirdly, to explore the level and forms of

NGO employees’ organizational commitment; and finally, to analyze and ascertain the affects

of various demographic variables including, age, experience, job position, gender,

qualification, income and marital status, on the occupational stress and organizational

commitment of NGO employees. In order to examine the research objectives, the following

study questions were developed:

1. What is the relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment?

2. What is the level and dimensions of NGO employees’ occupational stress?

3. What is the overall level of NGO employee’s organizational commitment?

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4. What forms of organizational commitment are manifested among the NGO employees and

which one is the most dominant?

5. What is the influence of demographic factors (age, experience, job position, gender,

qualification, income and marital status) of occupational stress and organizational

commitment on the NGO employees in Pakistan?

To answer the research questions, an extensive review of the literature was undertaken

highlighting different theories, models and recent research work in the area of occupational

stress and organizational commitment. The literature reveals that there are multiple factors

that contribute to occupational stress which, therefore, makes it a complex phenomenon to

study and its significance is all the more because it directly affects or influences an

employee’s organizational commitment. Though the relationship between occupational stress

and organizational commitment has been studied in various settings, however, no study

directly addressing this issue in the NGO sector in Pakistan was found.

Most of the previous researches conducted in the domain of occupational stress and

organizational commitment in Pakistan were related to dimensions like role stress and work

environment (Khan, 2005), job satisfaction (Cochinwala & Imam, 1987; Haider & Najam,

Shah & Syed, 1990; Khan, 1973) and motivation (Mufti & Hassan, 1965). Present research,

therefore, intends to create an empirical evidence to unravel the relationship between

occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan. The

answers to the above research questions are discussed in detail in the following sub section.
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6.1.1 Answers to Research Questions

Based on the empirical results of this study, following are the answers to the research

questions:

Research Question 1: What is the relationship between occupational stress and

organizational commitment?

In order to answer the first research question it was hypothesized that there was an

inverse relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment. To analyze

this relationship inter-correlation between total scales and subscales of OSI-R and OCQ were

calculated. The results illustrated that as a whole there was a negative correlation between the

total scale of OSI-R with OCQ (-.40**), which meant that higher score on occupational stress

led to lower score on organizational commitment of the NGO employees (Chapter #5 , Table

11).

It was also found out that the nature of organization also affected the relationship

between occupational stress and organizational commitment. The mean score of employees

working in service delivery organizations was higher on OSI-R and lower on OCQ compared

to employees working in the office work organizations (OSI-R M= 170.24, OCQ M= 48.26),

which meant that employees working in service delivery organizations have higher

occupational stress and resultantly have lower commitment (Chapter #5, Table 12). These

results validated that there is an inverse relationship between occupational stress and

organizational commitment.
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These results are consistent with the results of numerous studies cited by Siu (2002),

Omolara (2008) and Jex (2002) who proposed that there is a negative relationship between

occupational stress and organizational commitment. Khurshid, (2008) carried out a study on

the relationship of personality characteristics with occupational role stress and organizational

commitment among the university teachers in Pakistan. A significant negative correlation was

found between occupational role stress and organizational commitment. Demographic

variables of age, gender, marital status, qualification, income, type of employment,

experience, and working extra hours significant correlated with personality, stress and

organizational commitment and contributed significantly to stress and commitment.

Altaf (1999) studied the relationship between organizational commitment and

occupational stress on doctors and teachers in Pakistan. He used organizational commitment

questionnaire- OCQ for measurement of organizational commitment and scale of Rizzo for

stress, anxiety measurement. The result indicated a significantly negative relationship between

the organizational commitment and occupational stress. The result also revealed that teachers

are more committed towards their organization as compared to doctors. The level of stress

was also high among teachers as compared to doctors.

Moore and Chawla, (1994) did a study on law enforcement and health care

professionals on organizational commitment and occupational stress. They found a significant

relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment. Individuals who did

not have sufficient training or education to perform their jobs were less committed to their job.

Individuals, who had problems with work quality, had poor attitudes towards work or showed
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lower organizational commitment. Individuals who experienced a high level of role conflict

and ambiguity also decreased their level of organizational commitment.

The possible reason for the large turn over of employees in NGOs in Pakistan

(NGORC, 2000) could be the result of the highly stressful work environment, which puts

strain on the employees leading consequently to lower organizational commitment and high

turnover. Therefore, the study results establish that there is an inverse relationship between

occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan.

Research Question 2: What is the level and dimensions of NGO employees’ occupational

stress?

To answer the second research question the overall occupational stress level of

respondents was measured. For the purpose of analysis, the levels of occupational stress

including mild, moderate and high were determined and the percentages of NGO employees’

scores on OSI-R were calculated. The OSI-R scores ranged from 136 to 207 (Chapter # 5,

Table 4). The levels and percentages of stress were determined on the main sample. The

analysis indicated that 15 % NGO employees had mild stress, 38% had moderate stress,

whereas, 47% NGO employees experienced high level of occupational stress (Chapter #5,

Table 5).

The results revealed that the majority of NGO employees experienced a moderate or

higher level of occupational stress. Previous research studies by Khan (2005), TVO (2004)

and Uddin (2004) showed that working environment in NGOs in Pakistan is stressful;

particularly fieldwork puts workers in many kinds of physical and psychological hazards with
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minimal organizational support. Working in a high stress environment may eventually result

in negative physical, psychological and behavioral job strain. Moreover, most NGO jobs are

temporary and based on project funding from the international donor agencies and these

international agencies strictly fund the staff salaries for the duration of the project only. There

is hardly any NGO in Pakistan, which provides organizational support and professional help

to its employees to effectively deal with occupational stress (TVO, 2007). Hence, the lack of

stress coping resources could also be one of the main causes of high occupational stress in

NGOs in Pakistan.

The results of the OSI-R for the second hypothesis of the study showed that NGO

employees experience high occupational role stress (ORQ M 168.11, PSQ M= 97.41)

(Chapter #5, Table 13). The results also show that the occupational role stress experienced by

NGO employees working in service delivery organizations is higher than the office based

employees (ORQ Service Delivery M= 88.72, Office Based M= 79.39).

The literature perused on NGOs indicates that NGO employees often have conflicting

job demands and the role conflicts are caused by the inadequate information and authority

with which to perform a job, such role ambiguity leads to confusion and/or consequent role

stress (Abdelrahman, 2007). Nasir & Haq, (1995) examined the relationship between job

stress, job satisfaction and the level of job commitment among the government officials in

Pakistan. The result indicated a significant but negative correlation between job induced stress

and job satisfaction i.e., higher the stress, lower the job satisfaction. The job-induced stress

also indicates a significant negative correlation with the organizational commitment. Thus, the
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above results confirm that NGO employees experience a moderate to high level of

occupational stress mainly due to their occupational roles.

Research Question 3: What is the overall level of NGO employee’s organizational

commitment?

To answer the research question, the level of organizational commitment was

determined and the percentages of NGO employees’ scores on OCQ were computed. To

determine the cutoff scores for OCQ, percentile ranks were calculated. The cutoff scores

ranged from 38 to 59 (Chapter #5, Table 9). The levels, frequencies and percentages of

organizational commitment on the main sample of NGO employees indicated that 23% of the

respondents fell in the category of low organizational commitment, 38% in moderate and 39%

of the respondents fell in the category of high organizational commitment (Chapter #5, Table

10). The results indicated that the majority of NGO employees had a moderate or higher level

of organizational commitment.

Chughtai & Zafar, (2006) studied the influence of organizational commitment on two

organizational outcomes including job performance and turnover intentions among the

university teachers in Pakistan using OCQ. The results of the study indicated that the personal

characteristics, facets of job satisfaction and two dimensions of organizational justice as a

group were significantly related to organizational commitment of teachers. Organizational

commitment level of teachers was found as high and negatively related to turnover intentions

and positively related to a self-report measure of job performance.

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Thus, despite working in a high stress environment, it is significant to note from the

results of this study that the overall level of organizational commitment of NGO employees is

moderate to high.

Research Question 4: What forms of organizational commitment are manifested among

the NGO employees and which one is the most dominant?

The three forms of organizational commitment have been discussed in detail in chapter

#2. The results of OCQ indicated that the NGO employees’ have a positive organizational

commitment on all the three subscales NC, AC, and CC (NC M=23.05, AC M= 19.93, CC

M= 19.33) (Chapter # 5, Table 28).

An important hypothesis of the research was that the normative commitment was

stronger than affective and continuance commitment among NGO employees. The results on

the subscales of OCQ showed that normative commitment was higher than affective and

continuance commitment among the NGO employees (Chapter # 5, Table 28). A possible

explanation for stronger normative commitment could be a sense of emotional attachment to

the organization, as explained in answer to research question three and the satisfaction of

serving the community in a tangible way.

Thus, the results showed that out of the three forms of organizational commitment

manifested by NGO employees, normative commitment was found to be the most dominant

form of organizational commitment.

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Research Question 5: What is the influence of demographic factors (age, experience, job

position, gender, qualification, income and marital status) on occupational stress and

organizational commitment of the NGO employees in Pakistan?

Following is the discussion on the influence of each demographic factor on NGO

employees’ occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO sector of Pakistan:

Age: One of the hypotheses was that the level of commitment increases with age,

experience, income and job position. The results illustrated that older workers were more

committed towards their organization than the younger ones. The analysis of variance

indicated that there was a significant difference in the commitment level of workers on the

variable age. F = (3,496) = 5.082, P < .002** (Chapter#5, Table 21). It can be assumed that

after an employee has worked for an organization for an extended period of time they become

emotionally attached. With age comes experience and opportunities for better position within

the organization, which can increase an employees desire to remain with the organization.

Moreover, by leaving the organization the employee has to surrender financial rewards,

personal relationships and retirement benefits. The above results confirm the research

hypothesis that level of commitment increases with age, experience, income and job position.

Experience: It was assumed that highly experienced employees go through less

occupational stress than the less experienced ones. The results show that the employees with

more work experience have higher occupational stress as compared to employees with less

work experience. The results related to organizational commitment on experience illustrated

that experienced employees were more committed towards their organization than the less

experienced employees (Chapter#5, Table 21). The experienced NGO employees reported
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higher normative and continuance commitment on the subscale of OCQ. Analysis of variance

for experience also showed that there was a significant difference in the responses of

employees. F (2, 499) = 3.137 p<.044 (Chapter#5, Table 24).

Job Position: Job position is an important factor in order to see the difference in responses

that an employee gives in a situation as a manager, staff or a field worker. The results

illustrated that as employees become more experienced and are promoted to the higher

positions they experience more occupational stress as compared to workers with less work

experience and working on a lower level (Chapter#5, Table 27). Seniority level is an

important contributor to the different perceptions of stress, Senior NGO managers’ perceived

higher levels of occupational role stress. Moreover, employees holding management positions

in NGOs have a higher level of organizational commitment than others, particularly normative

commitment (Chapter#5, Table 27). A previous research indicates that NGO managers feel

stronger commitment due to the feeling of serving the community in tangible ways and the

experience of working with the likeminded people (Abdelrahman, 2007). Holding a

management position also means higher income and status in their organizations.

Gender: Gender was found to be a contributing factor affecting the differ rences in the

level of occupational stress. The female NGO employees reported higher level of occupational

role stress than the male employees. The mean and standard deviation scores for OSI-R total

and its subscales for gender were calculated. The results indicated that the female NGO

employees had higher occupational role stress than the male employees. The mean scores on
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ORQ were the highest for female staff (M=84.00), indicating that the females experience

more occupational role stress than male employees (Chapter#5, Table 29).

Comparison of mean and standard deviation of employees on OCQ for gender

highlighted that female employees were more committed towards their organization than the

male employees were. The mean score for female employees on AC (M=17.12 and CC

(M=14.60) were higher showing that female NGO employees have stronger affective

commitment than their male colleagues (Chapter#5, Table 30).

This finding is supported by Colbert and Kwon (2000) and Boezeman, (2007) who

reported that women had higher organizational commitment compared to men and that there is

a statistically significant relationship between gender and organizational commitment. Altaf

(1999) explored the relationship of organizational commitment and occupational stress on

doctors and teachers and reported that females were more committed to their organization and

experienced more occupational stress as compared to the males.

Researchers who have reported differences in the organizational commitment of men

and women have argued that women tend to have stronger continuance commitment because

they find it difficult to obtain employment and therefore would hold on to it once they have

found it. However, the women in the present study, probably, do not have lack of alternatives

as they are qualified professionals and most NGOs in Pakistan try to ensure the equal

employment opportunity for both men and women in their employments (TVO, 2007).

Qualification: One of the hypotheses of the research was that highly qualified and

experienced employees experiences less occupational stress. The mean and standard
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deviations of employees based on qualification of graduate, master and above master degree

revealed that those who were less qualified experienced more occupational stress. The results

illustrate that highly qualified staff have lower mean score (M=28.84) on OSI-R subscale PRQ

(Chapter#5, Table 14).

The findings also support the research hypothesis that the individuals with a higher

level of education have better coping tendencies than those having lesser qualification

(Chapter#5, Table 17). It was assumed that employees with higher qualification have low

organizational commitment than employees with less qualification. The results showed that

the staff with higher qualification had a lower level of organizational commitment as

compared to the staff with lower qualification (Chapter#5, Table 18). The analysis of variance

of NGO employees for the variable qualification indicated a significant difference in the

response of NGO employees F (2, 499) = 4.018 p < .012 (Chapter#5, Table 19).

In general the level of education of respondents of this study was high, as out of the

(N=500) total population, (N= 112) respondents had a graduate degree, (N= 335) master

degree and (N=53) above master degree. It was expected that employees with higher

education level would report lower organizational commitment, as they would perceive

themselves as marketable with more alternatives. This difference could be because people

with better qualification have more opportunities in the job market, consequently, resulting in

their higher turn over.

Income: The mean and standard deviation results of OSI-R for income show that the

stress level is higher among the employees with low-income level and least reported stress
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was found among the higher income group of NGO employees (Chapter#5, Table 26). The

statistical analysis results of OCQ for income indicated that NGO employees with high-

income level have a higher score on the total scale of OCQ, meaning that income is positively

associated with the employees’ organizational commitment (Chapter#5, Table 25).

Marital Status: The mean and standard deviation results on OSI-R for marital status

revealed that the unmarried employees have higher occupational stress than the married ones

(M=169.82) (Chapter#5, Table 31). The possible explanation for high occupational stress

among unmarried employees could be lack of family support and inadequate coping

tendencies. The mean and standard deviation results on OCQ for marital status illustrated that

the married NGO employees were more committed towards their organizations than the

unmarried ones (Chapter#5, Table 32).

A possible reason for married employees’ high organizational commitment can be that

married employees have more family responsibilities and their family liabilities demand more

financial stability and security, therefore, married employees are more committed than the

unmarried ones.

Hence, the above results indicate that the demographic factors including age,

experience, job position, gender, qualification, income and marital status significantly

influence NGO employees’ occupational stress and organizational commitment.

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6.2 CONCLUSION

The present study provides an insight into level and dimensions of occupational stress

and its relationship with organizational commitment in the NGO sector in Pakistan. The

results of this investigation support this conjecture that there is an inverse relationship

between occupational stress and organizational commitment, which means that a high level of

stress may inversely influence organizational commitment. A majority of NGO employees

reported experiencing high or moderate occupational stress, mainly caused by the

occupational roles that they play. NGO employees working in service delivery organizations

reported higher overall occupational stress and lower organizational commitment compared to

the employees working in the office environment. Interestingly, most of the NGO employees

have reported moderate or higher level of overall organizational commitment; particularly the

normative form of organizational commitment was higher than the affective and continuance

commitment.

The results of this study also provide insights into the demographic variables that may

influence or relate to the occupational stress and organizational commitment of NGO

employees. Age and job position seemed to have a statistically significant relationship with

occupational stress and organizational commitment. It was interesting that NGO employees

who had a scope of promotional opportunity showed increased level of organizational

commitment. The strongest form of commitment manifested by NGO employees was

normative commitment. Besides enhancing the level of commitment, age and experience also

contribute significantly in improving the ability to cope with stress and in building a stronger

relationship with the organization.

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The study found that the highly qualified employees had better occupational stress

coping tendencies. Interestingly, NGO employees with higher qualification manifested a

lower level of organizational commitment as compared to the staff with less qualification.

Female NGO employees reported higher occupational stress mainly due to the occupational

roles, than the male employees. However, their level of organizational commitment was

stronger than the male employees. The strongest form of commitment manifested by females

was affective commitment. The unmarried employees experienced higher occupational stress

but their organizational commitment level was lower than the married employees.

Taking the literature and empirical study into account, it is evident that the theoretical

and empirical findings largely correspond and the results were in line with the stated

hypotheses. The above results of this study also concur with the findings of the other similar

researches discussed in the literature review.

6.3 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

The following limitations of the present investigation are to be kept in mind when

interpreting the results.

• Causal relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment could

have been inferred more effectively if additional information such as performance

ratings, absenteeism records and medical records of the respondents’ would have been

provided or some other objective measures and not simply relying on self-report results.

However, it was not possible to gain access to employees’ personal information, as the

NGO management was reluctant to share such information considering it as an intrusion

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into both employees’ and organization’s privacy as well as a hindrance in their routine

work.

• The respondents may have completed the questionnaires during a part of the year that

was overwhelming, during a heavy season, or during a “down time.” The time in which

the respondent completed the questionnaires may have influenced their occupational

stress level and commitment to their organization.

• The responses to the self-reported questionnaires may have been subject to social

desirability, which may have occurred when participants responded to questions the way

they thought the researchers wanted them to respond.

• NGOs experience ongoing restructuring due do the funding shortages and demands from

the donor agencies which may influence the employees organizational commitment and

stress level. If respondents experienced a recent or current restructuring in their

organization, that may have influenced their responses regarding organizational

commitment.

6.4 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH

The results of this study suggest several avenues for future research. Occupational stress

and organizational commitment appear to be useful areas for continued examination. To

explore the influence of various demographic variables like age, experience, salary, years in

job position in relation to occupational stress and organizational commitment, the researcher

suggests longitudinal studies as these kinds of studies can provide a better insight into the

effects of these variables on various forms of occupational stress and organizational

commitment for enhancing effectiveness of the NGO sector.

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Similarities and differences across occupational groups also need further investigation.

There was a significant difference in the level of occupational stress of employees working in

service delivery areas and employees working in the offices. Given the results of this study, it

would be of value if, besides variables suggested earlier, additional studies investigate the role

of psychological resilience of NGO employees working in fields.

A difference was found in the level of organizational commitment of males and females.

Here also additional research on differences in working environment or working conditions,

pattern of employment, advancement within organizations and occupations, and benefits

among different genders and occupational groups may give a valuable insight into the

antecedents, correlates and consequences of occupational stress and organizational

commitment of the diverse occupational groups working in the NGO sector of Pakistan.

Qualitative studies are needed in all fields to explain or give meaning to results. Because

the nature of NGOs working in Pakistan varies considerably, therefore, their working

environments are different from each other. Hence, a qualitative study will give a better

indication of the employees’ level and dimensions of occupational stress and organizational

commitment. Similarly, the strong influence of moderating and mediating variables factors

outside of work should also be addressed when performing future research in this field.

In the future studies, quantitative statistical methods such as regression analysis can also

be used to establish the relationship between key variables. Further research may also look

into the nature and pattern of employee turnover intensions and related constructs.
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6.5 APPLIED SIGNIFICANCE

The current study builds upon previous researches that examine the causal relationship

between occupational stress and organizational commitment by incorporating the correlational

survey design, a diverse sample of NGO employees from all over Pakistan, and appropriate

statistical techniques in order to strengthen the findings. Thus, this research attempts to be

thorough in its methodological design, statistical procedures and theoretical ideas. This

research is unique in that this relationship has been studied for the first time in the NGO sector

in Pakistan. This study includes both insights and contributions for the NGO managers and

their donors to better understand the occupational stressors and commitment process in order

to develop committed employees and achieve their organizational goals effectively.

Lack of commitment to the organization is one of the major negative consequences of

occupational stress. This study found that a majority of NGO employees reported

experiencing high or moderate occupational stress, mainly caused by the occupational roles

that they play. It is a serious concern because of the negative effects that occupational stress

can have on employees’ physical and psychological health, which can consequently lead to

productivity and performance problems for organizations. Thus, it becomes imperative for

NGO managers to formulate a comprehensive strategy for stress management that will address

the stress related problems of the NGO employees, which can eventually lead to an improved

level of organizational commitment.

Most of the NGO employees have reported moderate or higher level of over all

organizational commitment particularly the normative commitment, which reflects employees

obligation rather than desire to contribute to the organization. NGO management should
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create a supportive work environment and should look into ways to foster and strengthen the

affective and continuance commitment of their employees by providing comprehensive

training, growth opportunities, and by providing equitable rewards and market related

incentives for employees at all levels. The results of the study also indicate that demographic

factors, both personal and organizational factors do have a statistically significant role in the

understanding the relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment in

the NGO sector.

Organizations that require their employees to develop organizational commitment

may have to work on the factors causing occupational stress, especially role stress. NGO

management should utilize the information about the levels and dimensions of occupational

stress and formulate appropriate strategies and intervention programme to address the stress

related problems of their employees. NGO management should demonstrate their commitment

to the employees and create a supportive work environment, which will be mutually

beneficial.

This study has significantly contributed to the scarce literature available on the

relationship between occupational stress and organizational commitment in the context of

NGOs in Pakistan The strategic nature of the human resources function requires continuous

research. Therefore, there is a strong need in Pakistan to continue both qualitative and

qualitative research in this sector so that ample empirical data is available for NGO decision

makers to effectively manage the human resources and improve work performance of

individuals as well as organizations.

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6.6 MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS FOR NGO MANAGEMENT

It is imperative for an organization to recognize that both individual and organizational

level interventions are required to ensure an effective stress management for achieving a

stronger organizational commitment. The following recommendations are made based on the

study findings:

• It is important to formulate a comprehensive strategy for stress management. This may

provide a more effective, broad- based intervention programme that will address the stress

related problems of the NGO employees, which can eventually lead to an improved level

of organizational commitment.

• NGO management needs to devise regular stress management programs tailored to meet

the need of employees. It may include workshops on life skills and stress coping

techniques. Such programs need to be customized to provide for both the field based and

the office based NGO employees and not solely for the senior level managers. Such

programs should be evaluated based to measure the effectiveness. The process should be

well documented and monitored, with periodic follow-up.

• Employee assistance programs, with the necessary access to counseling and therapy

should be made available to all NGO employees. This type of employee service would

help to deal with stress related to work, family and trauma, which may influence the

individual’s ability to perform optimally.

• Further research on the occupational stress and organizational commitment in the NGO

context in Pakistan should be encouraged. As it will provide useful empirical data to the
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NGO managers, HRD practitioners and donor agencies for better management of their

organizations and human resources.

• NGO management should share all information openly and accurately with employees and

provide explanation of managerial decisions that affect employee welfare, the future of the

organization and other employee related issues.

• The NGO project proposals for funding should have an elaborate HRD component and the

funding agencies should assist more for HRD initiatives.

• Select and adopt appropriate HRM practices that would contribute to the perception of the

organization’s commitment to its employees and indirectly to the development of

organizational commitment.

• As shown in the findings of this research, female field-based workers and young NGO

employees suffer from occupational stress the most. NGO management should carefully

design the tasks related to female and field based employees and remove the role

ambiguities from their jobs. The roles and responsibilities should be assigned keeping in

view the socio-cultural environment of the area.

• Provide a more supportive work environment to help perform their jobs effectively. Field

based employees should be supported by establishing effective communication links and

enhanced field operational support.

• Ensure clarity in the roles and responsibilities of the employees, which in turn will help in

coping with the occupational role stress and reducing turnover intentions of NGO

employees in Pakistan.

• Provide a reasonably comfortable work environment to all employees.

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6.7 SUMMARY

In this chapter, the research question were answered in the light of the results of the

empirical research. The conclusion, recommendations of the study, suggestions for the future

research, applied significance of the study and managerial implications for NGO management

were discussed.
 1

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Stress. Unpublished M. Phil thesis, Quaid -e-Azam University Islamabad.

Chaka, L. T. (1998). An Investigation into perceived sources of stress and coping amongst

correctional officers of the Department of Correctional Services: Pietermaritzburg,

Kwazulu/Natal, South Africa. Unpublished M.Ed dissertation, University of Natal.

Chang, S. H. (1990). The effect of stress management intervention on job stress in child case

workers (Doctoral dissertation, Drake University, 1990). Dissertation Abstracts

International, 52, 202 7.

 39

Foosiri, P. (2002). An empirical study of organizational commitment and antecedents of Thai

employees within the American Chamber of Commerce in Thailand. Dissertation

Abstracts International, 63(11), 3998A. (UMI No. 3069475)

Garbers J ed. (1999). Effective research in the human sciences: research management for

researchers, supervisors and masters and doctoral candidates. Pretoria: Van Schaik.

Heinzman, J. (2004). The relationship of age, tenure and job satisfaction to organizational

commitment: A study of two mid-western firms. Dissertation Abstracts International,

65(9), 4882B. (UMI No. 3144702)

Heydarifard, R., (2001). Evaluation of organizational commitment relationship with efficacy of

principals of high schools of Kermanshah within 2000-2001. Dissertation of Msc.

Tarbiat-e-Moallem University.

Huang, Y. (2004). Job satisfaction and organizational commitment among faculty at Taiwan's

higher education institutions. Dissertation Abstracts International, 65(8), 2849A. (UMI

No. 314333)

Ik-Whan G. Kwon, Doyle W. Banks, (2000). The Role of Job Control as a Moderator of

Emotional Dissonance and Emotional Intelligence Outcome Relationships. The Journal

of Psychology, 70. 606-622.

Johns, R. (2005). Determinants of organizational commitment among U.S. workers. Masters

Abstracts International, 43(6), 2039. (UMNI No. 1426620)

Khurshid, F. (2008). The relationship of personality characteristics with occupational role

stress and organizational commitment among the university teachers in Pakistan.

 40

Unpublished doctoral dissertation, National University of Modern Languages,

Islamabad.

Kruger, A. C. M. (1992). Identification of stress in adolescents: A psycho-educational

Perspective. Unpublished Doctoral Thesis. Pretoria: University of South Africa.

Malik, N.I. (2003). Occupational Role Stress, Psychological Well- Being and Motivational

Orientation of medical Professionals. Unpublished Research Report. Quaid-e- Azam

University Islamabad.

Ryan, R. R. (1996). A survey of occupational stress, psychological strain and coping

resources in licensed professional counselors in Virginia. Doctoral dissertation,

Virginia, Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1997.

Schneider, S. (2003). Organizational commitment, job satisfaction and job characteristics of

managers: Examining the relationships across selected demographic variables.

Dissertation Abstracts International, 64(4), 1331A.

Simone, A. (2003). The effects of gender and marital status on simulated hiring decisions.

Masters Abstract International, 42(3), 1067. (UMI No. MQ84581)

Steenkamp, C. (2003). Stress in a medium and awaiting trial correctional environment.

Unpublished Master’s Dissertation, University of the Western Cape.

Trivette, P. S. (1993). A national survey of occupational stress, psychological strain and

coping resources in elementary school counselors. Doctoral dissertation, Virginia

Polytechnic.
 41

Appendix A

Survey Questionnaire Letter

Dated: M/D/YY

Title, First name, Last Name

Postal Address

Subject: Occupational Stress and Organizational Commitment in NGO Pakistan

Dear------:

We have asked you that you fill out the questionnaire because of your involvement and

experience of working in the NGO sector in Pakistan.

This study aims to investigate the relationship between occupational stress and

organizational commitment in NGOs of Pakistan as they relate to workers performance and

quality of life. This survey consists of two, relatively simple questionnaires, copies of which are

attached. We estimate it will take under 20 minutes to complete in most circumstances. We

realize that your time is a very scarce resource, and appreciate your devoting time to this study.
 42

We assure you that your name and response will remain strictly confidential and will not

be used for anything other than this study. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this

matter, please fell free to contact us at the below mentioned numbers.

Thank you for your attention and your cooperation.

Yours Sincerely

Zahir Uddin Butt Dr. Zahid Mahmood

Doctoral Candidate Associate Professor

NUML University Islamabad Bahria University Islamabad
0333-5574562
051-2521969
 43

Appendix B

DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION

Organization:

Job Title:

Qualification:

Job Experience: A. 1-3 years B. 3-7 Years C. 7 years and above

Monthly Income: A. up to 10000 B. 0-20 Thousand C. above 20 thousand

Age: A. 20-30 years B. 30-40 years C. 40 years and above

Marital status: A. Married B. Unmarried

Gender: A. Male B. Female

Nature of Contract: A. Permanent B. Contract C. Volunteer

 44

Appendix: C

SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRES

OCCUPATIONAL STRESS INVENTORY

INSTRUCTIONS

The questionnaires contain descriptive statements about occupational stress and organizational

commitment. Please read each statement carefully and decide if you ever felt this way about your

profession. Please not that there is no right or wrong answer. You have to give your own opinion

about each item. Please circle your response to each statement according to the following five-point

scale in terms of your own agreement and disagreement of the statement.

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

Example:

If you strongly agree with any of the statements given in the questionnaire, you should mark on # 5

and if you strongly disagree with any statement please mark on # 1. For the statement, where you

cannot make a decision, mark on three and rate other categories accordingly.
 45

Occupational Stress Inventory

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

Occupational Roles Questionnaire (ORQ)

1. At work I am expected to do many different tasks in too little 1 2 3 4 5

time.

2. I feel that my job responsibilities are increasing. 1 2 3 4 5

3. I am expected to perform tasks on my job for which I have 1 2 3 4 5

never been trained.

4. I have to take work home with me. 1 2 3 4 5

5. I work under tight time deadlines. 1 2 3 4 5

6. I wish that I had more help to deal with the demands placed 1 2 3 4 5

upon me at work.

7. My career is progressing as I had hoped it would. 1 2 3 4 5

8. My job matches my skills and interests. 1 2 3 4 5

9. I am board with my job. 1 2 3 4 5

 46

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

10. My talents are being used well on my job. 1 2 3 4 5

11. My job has a good future. 1 2 3 4 5

12. I learn new skills at my work. 1 2 3 4 5

13. I have to perform tasks that are below my ability. 1 2 3 4 5

14. My supervisor provides me with useful feedback about my 1 2 3 4 5

performance.

15. When faced with several tasks I know which should be done 1 2 3 4 5

first.

16. I know where to begin a new project when it is assigned to me. 1 2 3 4 5

17. My supervisor asks for one thing, but really wants another. 1 2 3 4 5

18. The priorities of my job are clear to me. 1 2 3 4 5

19. I know the basis on which I am evaluated. 1 2 3 4 5

 47

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

20. I have more than one person telling me what to do. 1 2 3 4 5

21. I know where I fit in my organization. 1 2 3 4 5

22. My supervisors have conflicting ideas about what I should be 1 2 3 4 5

doing.

23. It is clear who really runs things where I work. 1 2 3 4 5

24. I frequently disagree with individuals from other work units 1 2 3 4 5

or departments.

25. I deal with more people during the day than I prefer. 1 2 3 4 5

26. I have on the job responsibility for the activities of other. 1 2 3 4 5

27. If I make a mistake in my work, the consequences for others 1 2 3 4 5

can be pretty bad.

 48

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

28. I worry about meeting my job responsibilities. 1 2 3 4 5

Personal Strain Questionnaire ( PSQ)

29. I don’t seem able to get much done at work. 1 2 3 4 5

30. I find myself getting behind in my work. 1 2 3 4 5

31. Often I have accidents on the job. 1 2 3 4 5

32. I make errors or mistakes in my work. 1 2 3 4 5

33. I am easily irritated. 1 2 3 4 5

34. I have been depressed. 1 2 3 4 5

35. So many thoughts run through my head at night that I have 1 2 3 4 5

trouble falling asleep.

36. Lately, I respond badly in situations that normally wouldn’t 1 2 3 4 5

bother me.
 49

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

37. I have a good sense of humor. 1 2 3 4 5

38. I wish I had more time to spend with close friends 1 2 3 4 5

39. Lately, I do things by myself instead of with other people. 1 2 3 4 5

40. I quarrel with members of the family. 1 2 3 4 5

41. I find that I need time to myself to work out my problems. 1 2 3 4 5

42. I am worried about how others at work view me. 1 2 3 4 5

43. I have been withdrawing from people lately. 1 2 3 4 5

44. I have unplanned weight gains 1 2 3 4 5

45. My eating habits are inconsistent. 1 2 3 4 5

46. I have aches and pains I cannot explain. 1 2 3 4 5

 50

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

Personal Resources Questionnaire (PRQ)

47 When I need a vacation I take one. 1 2 3 4 5

48 I am able to do what I want to do in my free time. 1 2 3 4 5

49 On weekends I spend time doing the things I enjoy most. 1 2 3 4 5

50 I set aside time to do the things I really enjoy. 1 2 3 4 5

51 When I’m relaxing, I frequently think about work. 1 2 3 4 5

52 I spend a lot of my free time on hobbies 1 2 3 4 5

53 There is at least one sympathetic person with whom I can 1 2 3 4 5

discuss my concerns.

54 I feel I have at least one good friend I can count on. 1 2 3 4 5

55 I feel that there are other jobs I could do besides my current 1 2 3 4 5

one.

56 I can establish priorities for the use of my time. 1 2 3 4 5

57 Once they are set, I am able to stick to my priorities 1 2 3 4 5

 51

= Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

58 I have techniques to help avoid being distracted. 1 2 3 4 5

59 When faced with a problem I use a systematic approach. 1 2 3 4 5

60 When faced with the need to make a decision I try to think 1 2 3 4 5

through the consequences of choices I might make.

Thank you for completing this questionnaire

 52

Appendix D

Organizational Commitment Questionnaire

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

Affective Organizational Commitment Scale

1. I would be very happy to spend the rest of my career with this 1 2 3 4 5

organization.

2. I enjoy discussing my organization with people outside it. 1 2 3 4 5

3. I really feel as if this organization’s problems are my own. 1 2 3 4 5

4. I do not feel ‘emotionally attached’ to this organization. 1 2 3 4 5

5. This organization has a great deal of personal meaning for me. 1 2 3 4 5

6. I do not feel a strong sense of belonging to my organization. 1 2 3 4 5

 53

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

Continuance Organizational Commitment Scale

7. I am not afraid of what might happen if I quit my job without having 1 2 3 4 5

another one lined up.

8. Too much in my life would be disrupted if I decided I wanted to 1 2 3 4 5

leave my organization now.

9. It would not be too costly for me to leave my organization now. 1 2 3 4 5

10. Right now, staying with my organization is a matter of necessity as 1 2 3 4 5

much as desire.

11. I feel I have too few options to consider leaving this organization. 1 2 3 4 5

Normative Organizational Commitment Scale

12. One of the major reasons I continue to work for this organization is 1 2 3 4 5

that I believe that loyalty is important and therefore feel a sense of

moral obligation to remain.

 54

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

13 If I got another offer for a better job elsewhere, I would not feel it 1 2 3 4 5

was right to leave my organization.

14 Things were better in the days when people stayed with one 1 2 3 4 5

organization for most of their career.

15 I do not think that wanting to be a ‘company man’ or ‘company 1 2 3 4 5

woman’ is sensible anymore.

Thank you for completing this questionnaire

 55

Appendix E

LIST OF SURVEYED NGOs

1. Human Resources Development Network, Islamabad

2. Care International

3. National Rural Support Programme Pakistan

4. Hashoo Foundation

5. Islamic Relief Pakistan

6. Muslim Aid

7. Sustainable Development Policy Institute Islamabad

8. Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund

9. Strengthening Participatory Organization - SPO

10. Caritas Pakistan

11. Rural Support Program Network- RSPN

12. Sight Savers International

13. Plan Pakistan

14. Pakistan Population Council

15. World Vision Pakistan

16. Merci Corps

17. Taraqi Foundation

18. Focus Humanitarian Assistance

 56

19. UNDP Pakistan

20. UNV Pakistan

21. UNICEF Pakistan

22. UNESCO Pakistan

23. USAID Pakistan

24. VSO Pakistan

25. Action Aid

26. Helping Hands

27. The Network for Consumer Protection

28. Water Aid Pakistan

29. National Commission For Human Development

30. Rozen

31. Civil Society Human and Institutional Development Pakistan.

32. Lead Pakistan

33. The Aga Khan Development Network Pakistan

34. Aga Khan University Hospital

35. Afghan Women Health Center Pakistan

36. Consumer Rights Commission of Pakistan

37. Sarhad Rural Support Programme

 57

Appendix- F

DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION OF THE SAMPLE OF THE STUDY

Category Classification Frequency Percentage

Nature of Organization Office Based 201 40.2

Service delivery 299 59.8

Job Title Manager 168 33.6

Office Staff 256 51.2

Field Staff 76 15.2

Qualification Graduate 112 22.4

Master 356 71.2

Above Master 32 6.4

Age 20-30 169 33.8

30-40 214 42.8

40 and above 117 23.4

Job Experience Up to 3 years 116 23.2

3-7 years 205 41.0

7 years and above 179 35.8

Income Up to 10000 81 16.2

10000-20000 169 33.8

20000 and above 205 41.0

 58

Category Classification Frequency Percentage

Marital Status Married 274 54.8

Unmarried 226 45.2

Gender Male 275 55.0

Female 225 45.0

Type of Job Permanent 187 37.4

Contract 158 31.6

Others ( Volunteer) 155 31.0

 59

Appendix: G

Pilot Study Report

By

Zahir Uddin Butt

(November 2007)

Introduction:

The main purpose of the pilot study was to ensure the general feasibility of the data

collection method, and specifically to assess the validity and reliability of the research

instruments including; OSI-Occupational Stress Inventory and OCQ- Organizational

Commitment Questionnaire. The pilot test involved the administration of survey instruments,

which guided the creation of the final questionnaires, to a convenience sample of respondents

who were employed at various levels in NGOs.

From the “NGO directory” maintained by NGO Resource Centre Karachi (Reference), a

convenience sample of six NGOs included Action Aid Pakistan, Save the Children Pakistan,

Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), Caritas Pakistan, Care International Pakistan

and Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund was drawn. The population of the pilot study consisted of

eighty managers and staff who were working in both offices and field. The respondents selected

for the pilot study were as similar as possible to the target respondents of the main study. They
 60

were approached at their workplace and were asked to fill out the questionnaires in the presence

of the researcher.

2. Results of the Pilot Study:

The pilot study helped in identification of redundancies in both OSI-R and OCQ, in

rewording and re-sequencing questions and in estimating the time required for completion of the

questionnaire. Based on the responses and comments from the pilot study respondents, and

feedback from the panel of experts the items of OSI-R were reduced to 60 items from 97and of

OCQ were also reduced from 24 items to 15 items.

The face validity of the research instruments was judged through the written and verbal

comments of the respondents regarding the clarity of questions and instructions.

In addition to the pilot testing of the research instruments, these instruments were also

reviewed by a panel or experts at SDPI and NUML University. The valuable feedback received

from the experts was taken into consideration in preparation of the final version of the

questionnaires.

The statistical reliability analysis of both instruments was done by employing Alpha

Reliability Coefficient and Split half Reliability Analysis. The Construct Validity was examined

by computing Items Total Correlation and Inter-Scale Correlation and Cutoff Scores table was

developed with the help of Percentile Ranking. The results of statistical analysis for both OSI-R

and OCQ are as following:

 61

Results of OSI

Table A

Item Total Correlations of OSI

Item Corrl Item Corrl Item Corrl Item Corrl

1 .398 26 .220 51 .251 76 .382

2 .396 27 .308 52 .376 77 -.066

3 .534 28 .265 53 .277 78 -.243

4 -.336 29 .296 54 .227 79 .292

5 .110 30 .436 55 .439 80 -.271

6 .086 31 .299 56 .152 81 .208

7 .118 32 -.351 57 .221 82 .155

8 .305 33 .374 58 -.102 83 .122

9 .337 34 .295 69 -.024 84 -.195

10 .289 35 .057 60 .219 85 -.080

11 .303 36 .206 61 -.097 86 -.231

12 .473 37 .176 62 .071 87 -.138

13 .303 38 .154 63 .130 88 -.433

14 .295 39 -.123 64 .399 89 .210

15 .191 40 .351 65 .328 90 .211

16 .160 41 .290 66 .179 91 -.383

 62

17 -.216 42 .200 67 .20 92 -.165

18 .241 43 .296 68 .391 93 -.406

19 .016 44 .518 69 .512 94 -.657

20 .252 45 .245 70 .264 95 -.496

21 .522 46 -.291 71 .167 96 -.408

22 -.294 47 -.116 72 .221 97 .547

23 -.231 48 .175 73 .144

24 .273 49 .105 74 .401

25 .360 50 .295 75 .357

Table A shows item total correlation of OSI. A total of 37 items including item # 4, 6, 9,

10, 15, 16, 20, 24, 26, 28, 35, 36, 38, 39, 42, 46, 47, 48, 49, 53, 56, 58, 60, 61, 62, 70, 71, 72, 73,

78, 82, 83, 85, 87, 89, 90 were found insignificant and were removed form the OSI

questionnaire.

Table B

Percentile Ranks of Respondents Score of OSI

In order to determine the levels of stress among NGO workers, percentiles ranks were

computed on the scores. The cutoff points were determined and categorized into groups

including mild, moderate and high stress.

 63

Percentile OSI TOTAL

5 268.0000

10 279.0000

15 281.0000

20 288.0000

25 290.0000

30 291.0000

35 293.7000

40 297.0000

45 297.0000

50 306.5000

55 311.0000

60 311.6000

65 314.0000

70 316.0000

75 317.0000

80 317.0000

85 318.8500
 64

90 319.0000

95 323.7500

Table B indicates the percentiles ranks of respondent scores on OSI-R. The score of 290

falls on 25th percentile illustrates mild stress. Score of 306 falls on 50th percentile and

characterized as moderate stress. Whereas, the score of 317 falls on 75th percentile, is

characterized as high stress.

Split Half Reliability Coefficients of OSI-R

The Split Half Reliability of OSI-R was computed. The results indicate the reliability

coefficient for part 1 (49 items) is .4346 and for part 2 (48 items) .4471, which reflects that the

tool is internally consistent.

Alpha Reliability Analysis of OSI-R

The alpha reliability coefficient of OSI-R yielded a reliability coefficient figure of .6603

for the entire 97, which indicates that the instrument is internally consistent.
 65

Results of OCQ

Table C

Item Total Correlation of OCQ

_______________________________________________________________________

Items Correlations

________________________________________________________________________

1 -.226

2 -.089

3 .712

4 .193

5 -.219

6 -.276

7 -.234

8 -.254

10 .183

9 .158

11 .461

12 -.101

13 -.369

14 .792

15 .197

16 .186

17 -0.91
 66

18 .153

19 -.105

20 .317

21 -.230

22 .210

23 -.198

24 .398

Table C shows item total correlation of OCQ. As a result of analysis items # 4, 5, 10, 15,

16, 17, 18, 19, 22, being were removed form the OCQ questionnaire being insignificant and with

limited face validity.

Table D

Percentiles Ranks of OCQ

In order to determine the cut off score and level of commitment on present sample, the

percentiles ranks of OCQ were calculated.

PERCENTILE OCQ TOAL

5 71.0000

10 71.1000

15 76.0000

20 76.2000
 67

25 77.0000

30 77.0000

35 77.0000

40 78.4000

45 79.0000

50 79.0000

55 80.0000

60 81.0000

65 81.0000

70 81.0000

75 85.0000

80 87.0000

85 88.8500

90 89.0000

95 92.0000

Table D reveals percentile ranks of respondent’s scores on OCQ. The score of 77 falls on

25th percentile, which is characterized as low level of organizational commitment. The score of

79 falls on 50th percentile characterize as medium level of organizational commitment. And the

score of 85 falls on the 75th percentile reflects as high level of organizational commitment.
 68

Table E

Correlation of OCQ with Subscales

SUBSCALES Affective Continuance Normative

Affective 1.0000

Continuance .1454 1.0000

Normative .5909 .4370 1.0000

OCQ TOAL .7007 .3610 .4705

Table E renders inter-correlation among the subscales and total scale of OCQ. Results

reveal that all the scales have positive correlation with each other and with the total scale of

OCQ. The highest inter correlation exists between Normative and Affective commitment. R=

.59

Split Half Reliability Coefficients of OCQ

The Split Half Reliability of OCQ was computed. The results indicate the reliability coefficient

for part 1 (11 items) is .7570 and for part 2 (13 items) .6090. The results reflect that the

instrument is internally consistent.

Alpha Reliability Analysis of OCQ

The alpha reliability coefficient of OCQ figure is .5562, which reflects that the instrument in

internally consistent.
 69

PILOT STUDY SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRES

INTRODUCTION

I am conducting this study as a part of my doctoral program in Human Resources

Development. You are requested to complete the enclosed questionnaires according to the

instructions. The information received from you will be kept confidential and will only be used

for research purpose. Your cooperation is highly appreciated.

Zahir Uddin Butt

 70

PILOT STUDY SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRES

INSTRUCTIONS

The questionnaires contain descriptive statements about NGO workers occupational stress

and organizational commitment. Please read each statement carefully and decide if you ever felt this

way about your profession. Please not that there is no right or wrong answer. You have to give

your own opinion about each item. Please circle your response to each statement according to the

following five-point scale in terms of your own agreement and disagreement of the statement.

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

Example: If you strongly agree with any of the statements given in the questionnaire, you

should mark on # 5 and if you strongly disagree with any statement please mark on # 1. For the

statement, where you cannot make a decision, mark on three and rate other categories accordingly.
 71

DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION

Organization _______________________________________

Job Title _______________________________________

Qualification _______________________________________

Job Experience _______________________________________

Monthly Income _______________________________________

Age _______________________________________

Marital status ________________________________________

Gender ________________________________________

Permanent / Contract (other) worker ________________________________________

 72

Occupational Stress Inventory

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

1. At work I am expected to do many different tasks in too little 1 2 3 4 5

time.

2. I feel that my job responsibilities are increasing. 1 2 3 4 5

3. I am expected to perform tasks on my job for which I have 1 2 3 4 5

never been trained.

4. I have to take work home with me. 1 2 3 4 5

5. I have the resources I need to get my job done. 1 2 3 4 5

6. I am the right person for this job. 1 2 3 4 5

7. I work under tight time deadlines. 1 2 3 4 5

8. I wish that I had more help to deal with the demands placed 1 2 3 4 5

upon me at work.

9. My job requires me to work in several equally important areas 1 2 3 4 5

at the same time.

10. My career is progressing as I had hoped it would. 1 2 3 4 5

11. My job matches my skills and interests. 1 2 3 4 5

 73

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

12. I am board with my job. 1 2 3 4 5

13. My talents are being used well on my job. 1 2 3 4 5

14. My job has a good future. 1 2 3 4 5

15. I am able to satisfy my needs for success and recognition in my 1 2 3 4 5

job.

16. I feel overqualified for my job. 1 2 3 4 5

17. I learn new skills at my work. 1 2 3 4 5

18. I have to perform tasks that are below my ability. 1 2 3 4 5

19. My supervisor provides me with useful feedback about my 1 2 3 4 5

performance.

20. I am uncertain about what I am supposed to accomplish in my 1 2 3 4 5

work.

21. When faced with several tasks I know which should be done 1 2 3 4 5

first.

22. I know where to begin a new project when it is assigned to me. 1 2 3 4 5

 74

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

23. My supervisor asks for one thing, but really wants another. 1 2 3 4 5

24. I understand what is an acceptable personal behavior on my job 1 2 3 4 5

25. The priorities of my job are clear to me. 1 2 3 4 5

26. I have a clear understanding of how my boss wants me to spend 1 2 3 4 5

my time.

27. I know the basis on which I am evaluated. 1 2 3 4 5

28. I feel conflict between what my organization expects me to do 1 2 3 4 5

and what I think is right or proper.

29. I have more than one person telling me what to do. 1 2 3 4 5

30. I know where I fit in my organization. 1 2 3 4 5

31. My supervisors have conflicting ideas about what I should be 1 2 3 4 5

doing.

32. It is clear who really runs things where I work. 1 2 3 4 5

 75

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

33. I frequently disagree with individuals from other work units or 1 2 3 4 5

departments.

34. I deal with more people during the day than I prefer. 1 2 3 4 5

35. I am responsible for the welfare of subordinates. 1 2 3 4 5

36. People on the job look to me for leadership. 1 2 3 4 5

37. I have on the job responsibility for the activities of other. 1 2 3 4 5

38. I worry about whether the people who work for/with me will get 1 2 3 4 5

things done properly.

39. My job requires me to make important decisions. 1 2 3 4 5

40. If I make a mistake in my work, the consequences for others can 1 2 3 4 5

be pretty bad.

41. I worry about meeting my job responsibilities. 1 2 3 4 5

42. My job is physically dangerous. 1 2 3 4 5

43. I don’t seem able to get much done at work. 1 2 3 4 5

 76

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

44. I find myself getting behind in my work. 1 2 3 4 5

45. Often I have accidents on the job. 1 2 3 4 5

46. The quality of my work is good. 1 2 3 4 5

47. Recently, I have been absent from work. 1 2 3 4 5

48. I find my work interesting and/or exciting. 1 2 3 4 5

49. I can concentrate on the things I need to at work. 1 2 3 4 5

50. I make errors or mistakes in my work. 1 2 3 4 5

51. I am easily irritated. 1 2 3 4 5

52. I have been depressed. 1 2 3 4 5

53. I have been happy, lately. 1 2 3 4 5

54. So many thoughts run through my head at night that I have 1 2 3 4 5

trouble falling asleep.

55. Lately, I respond badly in situations that normally wouldn’t 1 2 3 4 5

bother me.
 77

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

56. I find myself complaining about little things. 1 2 3 4 5

57. I have a good sense of humor. 1 2 3 4 5

58. Things are going about as they should 1 2 3 4 5

59. I wish I had more time to spend with close friends 1 2 3 4 5

60. I often quarrel with the person closest to me. 1 2 3 4 5

61. I often argue with friends. 1 2 3 4 5

62. My spouse and I are happy together. 1 2 3 4 5

63. Lately, I do things by myself instead of with other people. 1 2 3 4 5

64. I quarrel with members of the family. 1 2 3 4 5

65. I find that I need time to myself to work out my problems. 1 2 3 4 5

66 Lately, I am worried about how others at work view me. 1 2 3 4 5

67 I have been withdrawing from people lately. 1 2 3 4 5

68 I have unplanned weight gains 1 2 3 4 5

69 My eating habits are inconsistent. 1 2 3 4 5

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5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

70 Lately, I have been tired. 1 2 3 4 5

71 I have trouble staying asleep. 1 2 3 4 5

72 I have aches and pains I cannot explain. 1 2 3 4 5

73 I have lots of energy lately. 1 2 3 4 5

74 When I need a vacation I take one. 1 2 3 4 5

75 I am able to do what I want to do in my free time. 1 2 3 4 5

76 On weekends I spend time doing the things I enjoy most. 1 2 3 4 5

77 I hardly ever watch television. 1 2 3 4 5

78 A lot of my free time is spent attending sporting, movies and 1 2 3 4 5

concerts

79 I set aside time to do the things I really enjoy. 1 2 3 4 5

80 When I’m relaxing, I frequently think about work. 1 2 3 4 5

81 I spend a lot of my free time on hobbies 1 2 3 4 5

82 I am careful about my diet 1 2 3 4 5

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4 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

83 I get regular physical check ups. 1 2 3 4 5

84 I exercise regularly 1 2 3 4 5

85 I practice “relaxation” techniques. 1 2 3 4 5

86 There is at least one sympathetic person with whom I can 1 2 3 4 5

discuss my concerns.

87 There is at least one sympathetic person with whom I can 1 2 3 4 5

discuss my work problems.

88 I feel I have at least one good friend I can count on. 1 2 3 4 5

89 If I need help at work, I know who to approach. 1 2 3 4 5

90 I am able to put my job out of my mind when I go home. 1 2 3 4 5

91 I feel that there are other jobs I could do besides my current 1 2 3 4 5

one.

92 I periodically reexamine or reorganize my work style and 1 2 3 4 5

schedule.
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5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

93 I can establish priorities for the use of my time. 1 2 3 4 5

94 Once they are set, I am able to stick to my priorities 1 2 3 4 5

95 I have techniques to help avoid being distracted. 1 2 3 4 5

96 When faced with a problem I use a systematic approach. 1 2 3 4 5

97 When faced with the need to make a decision I try to think 1 2 3 4 5

through the consequences of choices I might make.

Thank you for completing this questionnaire

 81

Organizational Commitment Questionnaire

5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

Affective Organizational Commitment Scale

1. I would be very happy to spend the rest of my career with 1 2 3 4 5

this organization.

2. I enjoy discussing my organization with people outside it. 1 2 3 4 5

3. I really feel as if this organization’s problems are my own. 1 2 3 4 5

4. I think that I could easily become as attached to another 1 2 3 4 5

organization as I am to
this one.

5. I do not feel like ‘part of the family’ in my organization. 1 2 3 4 5

6. I do not feel ‘emotionally attached’ to this organization. 1 2 3 4 5

7. This organization has a great deal of personal meaning for 1 2 3 4 5

me.

8. I do not feel a strong sense of belonging to my 1 2 3 4 5

organization.

Continuance Organizational Commitment Scale

9. I am not afraid of what might happen if I quit my job 1 2 3 4 5

without having another one lined up.

10. It would be very hard for me to leave my organization 1 2 3 4 5

right now, even if I wanted to.

11. Too much in my life would be disrupted if I decided I 1 2 3 4 5

wanted to leave my organization now.
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5 = Strongly Agree 4 = Agree 3 = Undecided 2 = Disagree 1 = Strongly Disagree

12. It wouldn’t be too costly for me to leave my organization 1 2 3 4 5

now .
13. Right now, staying with my organization is a matter of 1 2 3 4 5
necessity as much as
desire.
14. I feel I have too few options to consider leaving this 1 2 3 4 5
organization.
15. One of the few serious consequences of leaving this 1 2 3 4 5
organization would be the scarcity of available alternatives.
16. One of the major reasons I continue to work for this 1 2 3 4 5
organization is that leaving would require considerable
sacrifice. Another organization may not match the overall
benefits I have here.
Normative Organizational Commitment Scale

17. I think that people these days move from company to 1 2 3 4 5

company too often.
18. I do not believe that a person must always be loyal to his 1 2 3 4 5
or her organization.
19. Jumping from organization to organization does not seem 1 2 3 4 5
at all unethical to me.

20. One of the major reasons I continue to work for this 1 2 3 4 5

organization is that I
believe that loyalty is important and therefore feel a sense
of moral obligation to remain.
21. If I got another offer for a better job elsewhere, I would 1 2 3 4 5
not feel it was right to leave my organization.
22. I was taught to believe in the value of remaining loyal to 1 2 3 4 5
one organization.
23. Things were better in the days when people stayed with 1 2 3 4 5
one organization for most of their career.
24. I do not think that wanting to be a ‘company man’ or 1 2 3 4 5
‘company woman’ is sensible anymore.

Thank you for completing this questionnaire