The virtuous cycle of prosocial behavior and perceived prosocial impact in organizations: A longitudinal three-wave study

This study aims to deepen our understanding of the dynamics of prosociality in organizations. In particular, we propose a prospective and reciprocal relationship between two types of organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBI – prosocial organizational behaviors directed toward other individuals – and OCBO – prosocial organizational behaviors directed toward the organization) and perceived prosocial impact: engaging in prosocial behavior increases subjective sense of prosocial impact, which in turn motivates subsequent prosocial behavior. Using longitudinal data collected in three waves (N1=631, N2=240, and N3=148), we found that OCBI (but no OCBO), prospectively predicts perceptions of prosocial impact. Additionally, we find evidence for perceptions of prosocial impact prospectively predicting both subsequent OCBI and subsequent OCBO. As such, our research shows a virtuous cycle of prosociality between certain prosocial behaviors at work and the perception of prosocial impact at work, which has theoretical and practical implications for both employee well-being and motivation as well as the performance of organizations.