Changes in Psychological Contracts of Employees in Major Korean Corporations: An Exploratory Study Comparing 1997 and

This study examines how employees' psychological contracts in major Korean corporations have changed from the late 1990s to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, a period marked by diverse social and organizational shifts. Building on Kim and Min’s (1999) research, which analyzed data collected in 1997, we revisited the contents of psychological contracts in 2022 by surveying 139 employees across five major subsidiaries of a large conglomerate. The results revealed significant changes: the number of items perceived as organizational obligations decreased from 33 to 21, whereas the number of employee obligations dropped from 22 to 8. Specifically, perceived organizational obligations decreased in areas such as welfare benefits, training, work assignment, and organizational climate, while obligations related to performance-based pay, promotion, unbiased evaluation, and sufficient use of vacation time increased. As for employee obligations, there was a notable decline in the perceived duty to maintain interpersonal relationships and engage in self-development, accompanied by an increased emphasis on adhering to work hours and safeguarding information security. These shifts point to a movement away from paternalistic HR practices toward self-directed career development, as well as a reduction in the significance of long-term employment and a greater focus on the individual over organizational values. As a result, transactional contracts appear to be gaining strength within these organizations. These changes suggest that companies may need to reassess their HR strategies, emphasizing personalization and flexibility to better address the diverse needs of their workforce. Furthermore, the increased standard deviation in responses to obligation items highlights the growing variability in individual perceptions, further underscoring the need for more tailored HR approaches.