Compassion in hotels: does person–organization fit lead staff to engage in compassion-driven citizenship behavior?

Abstract

Existing research on person–organization (P-O) fit (POF) has ignored other-centered mechanisms in explaining why high levels of fit with the work environment increase employee’s organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Using four factors involved in the compassion process (common humanity, empathic concern, kindness, mindfulness), this article investigates employee compassion as a mediator that explains why POF affects OCB directed toward individuals (OCBI) and the organization (OCBO). Our structural equation modeling analysis on 280 Spanish hotel employees reveals that compassion mediates the relationship between POF and OCBs. However, considering the employment contract of the sample (temporary, permanent), the mediation for OCBO was partial and full among permanent and temporary staff, respectively. These findings suggest that staff who fit their hotel are more likely to be sensitive to others’ setbacks and misfortunes, lessening or alleviating them (compassionately) by performing OCBs. However, compared with permanent staff, temporary staff’s OCBO response to POF is more compassion-driven.