The relationship between leader-member exchange, perceived organizational support, and turnover intention: A study of the Portuguese navy

Abstract

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the level of turnover intention in the employees (both military and civilian staff), of the Portuguese Navy in times of austerity measures such as salary reductions or loss of the holiday allowances which were imposed by Portuguese Government, the International Monetary Fund, European Commission, and the European Central Bank. Furthermore, we also wanted to test the relationship among turnover intention, leader-member exchange, and perceived organizational support. Data was collected through an online self-report questionnaire (N=122), targeting groups of employees in the Portuguese Navy such as in the different naval bases. The findings indicate that there is a relevant high level of turnover intention in the employees working for the Portuguese Navy. The results also confirm that leader-member exchange mediates the relationship between perceived organizational support and turnover intention. Lastly, management implications of the findings, limitations, and suggestions for future research are also discussed.

O objetivo do presente estudo é investigar o nível de intenção de turnover nos colaboradores (ambos militares e civis) da Marinha Portuguesa em tempos de austeridades como redução salarial, corte nos subsídios de férias que foram impostos pelo Governo Português, Fundo Monetário Internacional, Comissão Europeia e Banco Central Europeu. Além disso, queríamos testar a relação entre intenção de turnover, leader-member exchange e suporte organizacional percebido. Os dados foram recolhidos através de um questionário online (N=122). O público alvo do mesmo são os colaboradores que trabalham na Marinha Portuguesa, por exemplo nas bases navais. Os resultados evidenciam uma alta intenção de turnover nos colaboradores da Marinha Portuguesa. Os mesmos também confirmam que leader-member exchange medeia a relação entre suporte organizacional percebido e a intenção de turnover. Finalmente, as implicações de gestão, limitações e sugestões para futuras investigações são discutidas também.