How do discretionary HR practices promote organizational citizenship behavior towards individuals? The roles of psychological meaningfulness and job embeddedness

Purpose – Building on social exchange and social identity theories, this study aims to investigate the relationship between discretionary HR practices and organizational citizenship behavior towards individuals (OCBI) through the serial mediation pathways of psychological meaningfulness and job embeddedness. Design/methodology/approach – Structural equation modelling was utilized to analyze data collected from 270 employees in the service industry in Jordan through an online survey. Findings – The results indicate that psychological meaningfulness mediates the impact of discretionary HR practices on OCBI. In parallel, job embeddedness serves as a mediator in the relationship between discretionary HR practices and OCBI. Furthermore, the analysis reveals a serial mediation effect, whereby psychological meaningfulness and job embeddedness jointly influence the link between discretionary HR practices and OCBI. Originality/value – This study offers a novel theoretical contribution by exploring the mechanisms through which discretionary HR practices promote OCBI. Specifically, it investigates the roles of psychological meaningfulness and job embeddedness as serial mediators in this relationship. While prior research has examined the direct effects of HR practices on OCBI, our study provides a deeper understanding by uncovering these underlying mechanisms. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to explore these mechanisms in such depth. Additionally, the research contributes to existing literature by examining the antecedents and consequences of job embeddedness, an area that has received limited attention. Keywords: Discretionary HR practices, job embeddedness, organizational citizenship behavior, psychological meaningfulness, Middle East