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Putting Strategic Human Resource Management in Context: A Contextualized Model of High Commitment Work Systems and Its Implications in China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 February 2015

Sunghoon Kim  and
Patrick M. Wright
Sunghoon Kim
Affiliation:
University of New South Wales, Australia
Patrick M. Wright
Affiliation:
Cornell University, USA
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Abstract

This study contributes to strategic human resource management (HRM) research by offering a contextualized model of HRM effectiveness. Building on HR attribution theory, we propose that the high commitment work system will be more effective in a context when: (i) employees are conditioned to trust employers and (ii) regulatory institutions are less restrictive, giving management more autonomy in human resource decisions. In such contexts, we argue that employees are more inclined to view the high commitment work system as an expression of the employer's genuine concern for employees. Hence, employees are more likely to reciprocate with high commitment. We find our contextualized HRM effectiveness model particularly useful in understanding HRM – firm performance relations in China where business environments are currently under transformation on both trust and regulations.

Keywords

contexthigh commitment work systemHR attribution theoryregulatory environmentstrategic human resource managementtrust情境高承诺工作系统人力资源的归因理论管制环境战略人力资源管理信任
Type
Perspective
Information
Management and Organization Review , Volume 7 , Issue 1 , March 2011 , pp. 153 - 174
Copyright
Copyright © International Association for Chinese Management Research 2011

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