The psychological contract, violation of the psychological contract, work–related anxiety and intention to quit of sport coaches in South Africa
Dhurup, M.; Keyser, E.; Surujlal, J.
Like most employer-employee relationships, the relationship between sport coaches and their
employers is governed by legal work contracts which clearly spell out the rights and obligations
of the two parties (the employer and the employee). However, formal contracts do not reflect all
the exchanges between the employer and the employee in the workplace. The unwritten
dimensions (psychological contract) also impacts on coaches’ employment relationships which is
often a neglected area of research. Hence, the purpose of this study was to examine whether the
psychological contract, violation of the psychological contract and work-related anxiety predict
sport coaches’ intention to quit the coaching profession. The study is located within a
quantitative research design. The respondents consisted of 151 (n=151) sport coaches sampled
through a convenience sampling technique in the Gauteng province, South Africa. The
PSYCONES Scale (employer obligations, employee obligations, violation of psychological
contract), Work-related Anxiety Scale and Intention to Quit Scale were used to collect data.
Descriptive and regression analysis were used to examine the relationship among the constructs.
The findings reveal that violation of the psychological contract and work-related anxiety of sport
coaches predict intention to quit. This study advocates the notion that, like in other organisational
contexts, it is essential for employers in the sport industry to identify and fulfil the psychological
contracts of sport coaches in the management of employee relationships between coaches and
their employees.
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