Does intrinsic motivation mediate the performance appraisal fairness – OCB relationship? Evidence from the public organizations in Nepal

Purpose This paper assesses the extent to which procedural fairness in PA (PF) and distributive fairness in PA (DF) affect the intrinsic motivation and the OCB of the government/public sector employees in Nepal. It also examines the mediating role of intrinsic motivation in the PF–OCB and DF–OCB relationships. Design/methodology/approach A total of 407 responses were collected from class III and class II (or equivalent) officers of the government/public sector of Nepal through an online survey. Model fit was assured using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Findings Path analysis using structural equation modelling showed that only DF affected IM and IM affected OCB. There was no mediation effect of IM in the PF–OCB relationship, while IM fully mediated the DF–OCB relationship. The study found that irrespective of the un/fairness in PA results, intrinsic motivation among public sector employees shapes their citizenship behaviour. Research limitations/implications Key directions for future research include addressing potential common method bias through multi-source data collection and exploring context-specific sociocultural factors influencing fairness and OCB in Nepal. Strengthening methodological approaches via scale validation and two-round data collection is also advised. Practical implications The findings suggest the need to reform the existing PA system of Nepal. Further, policymakers can formulate strategies to increase the level of intrinsic motivation. Originality/value This study contributes to the extant literature by reinforcing the influencing roles of IM in the OCB of the public sector employees and by demonstrating that results in the PA systems matter more in the fairness perceptions of the PA.