Work Stress, Organizational Commitment and Personality of Employees at the Maquila Industry in Honduras

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(1)Work Stress, Organizational Commitment and Personality of Employees at the Maquila Industry in Honduras. by. Nancy Carolina Martinez Madrid. A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of. MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Major: International Human Resource Development. Advisor: Wei-Wen Chang, Ph. D. National Taiwan Normal University Taipei, Taiwan June, 2012.

(2) ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Firstly, I would like to start thanking God for his guidance, infinite blessings and giving me the chance to accomplish my dream of studying my Master Degree in Taiwan. On the other hand, I want to dedicate this achievement to my parents Ramon and Nancy. Thank you for all your love, support and faith in me. I am honored of being your daughter. You’re the best and I could have not done this without you. I love you with all my heart. This is yours. I also, want to thank my brothers Ramon and Carlos for always being there for me and care about everything that I am doing. Your support is really important for me. I love you guys!. I would like to thank my sister in law Any for all her help and encouragement during this process and for being there for my parents during all this time that I have not being at home. Thank you Any you are my sister. To my two grandmothers Cristina and Mercedes thank you for thinking of me all the time and praying for me every day. I want to specially thank my thesis advisor Dr. Chang for all your guide and support through this process. Without you I would have not been able to finish my thesis project. Thank you for all your caring and always being there for me. You are an amazing person. I respect and admire you so much. Moreover, I would like to thank to all my professors and IHRD staff for all your support, Lynn and Sandra thank you so much for everything!!!. I also, want to express my gratitude to Dr. Steven Lai and Dr. Pai-Po Lee for being my committee members. Thanks a lot for all your suggestions. To my family and friends in Honduras that helped me so much to gather the data for this study. Also, to all my friends in Taiwan for their caring and support, thank you so much. In addition, I want to thank ICDF for giving me the incredible opportunity of studying in Taiwan. Thank you so much..

(3) ABSTRACT Nowadays, work stress and organizational commitment has become an important issue for the organizations all over the world, because of the effect that these ones have on the employees’ well being and their performance in the organization. Due to the importance of it this study explored and discussed the relationship between employee’s work stress and organizational commitment. Moreover, it also analyzed the moderator effect that the employee personality has on the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. In order to reach this goal the present study was focused in the important Maquila Industry at Central America, which represents a 17.3% of the total economic activity of Honduras. Despite of, the importance and influence that this industry has on the Honduran economy, still the research using as an object of analysis the employees that work on the production department of this industry is really limited. On this study the SPSS software was used to analyze that data gathered among the production department employees at the Maquila Industry in Honduras. The correlation and hierarchical regression gave evidence that work stress and its variables have an effect on the employees overall organizational commitment. On the other hand, work stress is negatively related to the affective and continuance commitment but it showed no relation to normative commitment. Finally, only one of the five personality traits: conscientiousness show to have a moderator effect on the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. This study contributes and gives more information to the organizations in the Maquila Industry in order to help them to know more in deep the real situation of their employees at the production department. Keywords:. Work. stress,. organizational. commitment,. I. personality,. Maquila. Industry.

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(5) TABLE OF CONTENTS. ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................................... I TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................................. III LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... V LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................................... VII CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 1 Background of the Study ............................................................................................................. 1 Statement of the Problem ............................................................................................................ 4 Purpose of the Study ................................................................................................................... 6 Significance of the Study ............................................................................................................ 6 Delimitations of the Study........................................................................................................... 7 Definition of Terms ..................................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................................ 9 Work Stress ................................................................................................................................. 9 Maquila Industry ....................................................................................................................... 14 Organizational Commitment ..................................................................................................... 16 Personality ................................................................................................................................. 20 Work Stress and Organizational Commitment.......................................................................... 21 Work Stress, Organizational Commitment and Personality ..................................................... 21 CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODS ..................................................................................... 25 Research Framework ................................................................................................................. 25 Research Hypotheses................................................................................................................. 26 Data Collection .......................................................................................................................... 27 Research Procedure ................................................................................................................... 28 III.

(6) Research Sample ....................................................................................................................... 30 Research Instrument .................................................................................................................. 30 Control Variables ...................................................................................................................... 35 Instrument Validity ................................................................................................................... 37 Data Analysis ............................................................................................................................ 40 CHAPTER IV RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS ........................................................................ 41 Reliability .................................................................................................................................. 41 Descriptive Statistics ................................................................................................................. 42 Correlation among Work Stress, Organizational Commitment and Personality ...................... 44 Relationship between Work Stress and Organizational Commitment ...................................... 50 Moderating Effect of Personality .............................................................................................. 56 Discussions ................................................................................................................................ 59 CHAPTER V CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................ 63 Conclusions ............................................................................................................................... 63 Implications ............................................................................................................................... 66 Suggestions for Further Study ................................................................................................... 67 Research Limitations ................................................................................................................. 67 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................. 69 APPENDIX A. QUESTIONNAIRE ENGLISH/SPANISH VERSION ...................................... 75 APPENDIX B. PEER AND EXPERT REVIEW SUGGESTIONS ............................................. 81. IV.

(7) LIST OF TABLES Table 2. 1 Diverse Findings on the Relationship between Stress and Affective, Continuance and Normative Commitment ............................................................................................. 22 Table 3. 1 Work Stress Measurement ........................................................................................... 31 Table 3. 2 Organizational Commitment Measurement ................................................................ 32 Table 3. 3 The Big Five Inventory (BFI) ...................................................................................... 34 Table 3. 4 Reliability for Work Stress Scale (N=44) .................................................................... 39 Table 3. 5 Reliability for Organizational Commitment Scale (N=44).......................................... 40 Table 4. 1 Reliability for Work Stress Scale (N=116) ................................................................. 41 Table 4. 2 Reliability for Organizational Commitment Scale (N=116)....................................... 42 Table 4. 3 Demographic Information of the Sample (N=116) ..................................................... 44 Table 4. 4 Mean, Standard Deviation and Correlation of the Control, Work Stress, Organizational Commitment and Personality Variables............................................. 46 Table 4. 5 Hypothesis Pearson Correlation Results ..................................................................... 50 Table 4. 6 Results of Regression Analysis for Work Stress and Organizational Commitment (N=116) ....................................................................................................................... 51 Table 4. 7 Results of regressions analysis for Control Variables and Work Stress Variables on Organizational Commitment (N=116) ........................................................................ 53 Table 4. 8 Results of Regressions Analysis for Control Variables and Work Stress on Organizational Commitment Variables (N=116)........................................................ 55 Table 4. 9 Results of Regressions Analysis for the Moderating effect of Personality on the Relationship between Work Stress and Organizational Commitment (N=116) ......... 57 Table 4. 10 Hypothesis Regression Analysis Results ................................................................... 58. V.

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(9) LIST OF FIGURES Figure 3. 1. Research framework .................................................................................................. 26 Figure 3. 2. Research procedure ................................................................................................... 29. VII.

(10) CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The following chapter discusses the background of the study, statement of the problem, purpose, significance and delimitations of the study. Moreover, it also includes the definition of terms.. Background of the Study During the past two decades the globalization process has been inevitable and dynamic. The world has become a place that is moved by constant changes. Consequently, all the economies and organizations have to reinvent themselves constantly in order to compete to gain an important position at this nowadays competitive world. Therefore, currently on the worldwide economy nothing stays as the same for a long period of time. Due to the globalization process many countries in the world begin to remove and reduce the borders between them with one important objective in mind: develop their country’s economies. In order to compete with the rest of the world Latin America started promoting and emitting laws with the aim to attract foreign investors all this as part of the whole globalization process (Honduran Manufacturers Association, 2007). As a result, of all the different benefits for the national and foreign investors a space was opened and this gave the impulse to create the Maquila Industry.. Maquiladora or maquila is a factory that imports all the materials and. machinery using the benefits of a duty-free and tariff-free basis and then assembly or manufactures the products using low-priced labor hand and then re-exports the assembled product; generally back to the originating country (Maquiladora, 2011). Honduras is a country located in Central America and in here the Maquila Industry raised up when the government approved diverse laws which give to all the companies’ in the entire national territory several benefits that include tax exemptions (Central Bank of Honduras, 2001). The Maquila Industry in Honduras has been an important tool or element in the battle to lower the unemployment rate of the Honduran population (Central Bank of Honduras, 2005). This industry generates more than 106, 695 jobs, also it has to be highlighted that the manufacturing industry represents a 17.3% of the total economic activity of Honduras (Central Bank of 1.

(11) Honduras, 2009). As a result, in overall more than a half million of people are benefited without counting on the indirect jobs that the Maquila industry has generated (Honduran Manufacturers Association, 2007). Moreover, the globalization process has also established other type of changes for example new and different work demands, a new level of workload and diverse job complications for the employees in the organizations (Safaria, Othman & Abdul, 2011). Along with those changes, the concept of work stress is mentioned more often on the organizations. On the different literature review there are different studies that discuss how to manage the stress situations on the workplace (eg, Ornelas & Klainer, 2003; Ongori & Agolla 2008). There is a previous research on the stress on women that work in the basic level of the production department at the Maquila Industry. The results show that they are exposed to high work rates and in addition, they have to handle the pressure of reaching high production targets (Ledesma, Pulido & Villegas, 2009). Moreover, another previous study by Martinez and Chang (2011) the findings show that there are role conflict issues that middle managers at the production department on the Maquila Industry in Honduras face. This study makes reference to the elevated amount of pressure that this managers face because everybody has high expectations on their functions and due to their managerial positions. Hence, they have to satisfy the expectations from the whole staff of the production department. On the other hand, organizational commitment is a concept which also has become an important issue for the organizations. According to Allen and Meyer (1996) organizational commitment is “a psychological link between the employee and his or her organization that makes it less likely that the employee will voluntarily leave the organization” (p.252). Moreover, Martinez and Chang (2011) in their qualitative study findings mentioned that some of the middle level managers who work in the production department of this industry in Honduras use the commitment they have toward their organizations as a strategy to handle the situations with a lot of work demands and stress. In fact, many studies have analyzed the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment (Bersamin, 2006; Khatibi, Asadi & Hamidi, 2009; Michael, Court & Petal, 2009; Schmidt, 2007; Vakola & Nikolaou, 2005; Ziauddin, Khan, Jam & Hijazi, 2010). Different studies had some points in common but there were a few differences on the findings about the relationship of these two variables among some of these studies.. 2.

(12) Firstly in the relationship between overall stress and affective commitment, the research of Michael, Court and Petal (2009) and Khatibi, Asadi and Hamidi (2009) pointed out a negative correlation between the two variables. In contrast, Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) found a significant and positive relationship between stress and affective commitment. Secondly, regarding overall stress and continuance commitment there are some differences as well. Initially Michael, Court and Petal (2009) and Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) presented a positive and significant relationship between stress and continuance commitment. On the other hand Khatibi, Asadi and Hamidi (2009) showed a negative and no significant correlation between stress and continuance commitment. Thirdly, Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) indicate a positive and no significant relationship between stress and normative commitment. On the contrary, Michael, Court and Petal (2009) and Khatibi, Asadi and Hamidi (2009) who presented a negative correlation among stress and normative commitment. Finally, Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) found a positive relationship between stress and organizational commitment but in contrast, Khatibi, Asadi and Hamidi (2009) indicated a negative relationship between stress and organizational commitment. The results of the existing literature showed uncertain relationship between stress and organizational commitment. Therefore, this study considered to include another possible factor as the moderator of the relationship between stress and organizational commitment. In this study, personality is selected as the moderator. The literature review has mentioned how the positive personality traits of the employees exercise a positive influence on organizational commitment (Chang & Lee, 2006). In addition, another research based on the Big five factor model showed that. the personality traits. conscientiousness was a strong predictor for work commitment and as well, with less strength act as predictors: agreeableness and extroversion, but their results point out that openness to experience was not significantly influent on work commitment (Naquin & Holton, 2002). Moreover, it has been stated that the personality of each person is decisive to define the effective or ineffective manner that the individual has to face the stress of his/her daily activities at the organization (Srivastava, 2009). Furthermore, one of the Big five dimensions is the emotional stability which has been define as being confident, relax , stable, ability to handle 3.

(13) stress (Mount & Barrick, 1998; Sawyerr, Srinivas & Wang, 2009; Ulu & Tezer, 2010). Therefore, there seems a connection between the personality and the way the individuals handle the work stress situation on the work place. In general, despite of the background that the different literature reviews has given for the three variables: work stress, organizational commitment and personality, there is still a gap to fill in the existing literature. There are three important facts that have to be highlighted. Firstly, the little research on the employees of the production department that work on the Maquila Industry in Honduras has indicated that work stress is an issue among these employees and also, that the employee’s performance is affected by it (Martinez & Chang, 2011).Moreover, regarding employee commitment as given some evidence about the relationship with work stress. Therefore, there is previous proof of the influence of these variables on the employees. However, it is necessary to have a study that focus on the relationship of these variables in order to make a more profound analyzes. Secondly, based on the literature review have been show slightly differences between the findings on the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. Finally, the literature review has indicated a connection between personality and work stress and also, personality with organizational commitment. However, there has not being analyzed the moderating effect of personality on the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. Hence, in order to fill such a gap the purpose of this research is to examine the relationships between work stress and organizational commitment and the moderating effect of personality more in deep on the employees of the Maquila Industry that work at the production department. This aims to provide more information about the relationship between the three variables. In addition, it will study the Maquila industry which even though of its importance for the Honduran economy, still the research on it is really limited.. Statement of the Problem The 17.3% of the economic activity of Honduras corresponds to the Maquila Industry and as part of this contribution generates 106,695 jobs for the Honduran population. (Central Bank of Honduras, 2009). Moreover, about half million of people are benefited without counting the generation of indirect jobs (Honduran Manufacturers Association, 2007). Hence, there is a big amount of the Honduran population that is influenced by the Maquila Industry. 4.

(14) Even though, the data expressed on the literature review shows the importance of the industry there is only limited research on the employees of this industry. Furthermore, the study by Ledesma, Pulido and Villegas (2009) showed that the female workers at the basic level (84%) of the production departments have high stress level. These findings match with results of the study done by Martinez and Chang (2011) where the middle level managers of the production department experiment stress in their workplace. However, they made reference that these managers use the commitment that they have toward their organization as a strategy to handle those situation under a lot of stress. Hence, the existing literature review has indicated some signs of the existence and importance of these variables still there is not enough literature review to analyze in depth this issue. Consequently, there is a need of more research on this industry in order to contribute to the field showing the real situation of the Maquila Industry. Moreover, as it was mentioned previously on the study background and based on the literature review it can be shown the importance of the Maquila industry and also, it evidences that there are important issues as work stress and organizational commitment that should be study more in deep. Hence, there is a need of more studies on the Maquila Industry due to its importance for the Honduras economy. In addition, there is also a need of carrying out more examination in the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment because the literature has presented a few slightly differences on previous research findings. Thus, this study can contribute to do more analysis and compare with the previous findings. Furthermore, personality has shown a connection with organizational commitment and also, the literature review mentions its connection with work stress. However, despite of the evidence of some connection, still has not been analyzed the mediating effect that personality has on the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. In addition, it has to be mentioned that there is no previous study on how the personality of the employees in the Maquila Industry moderates their work stress situations and organizational commitment relationship. Thus, based on everything mentioned above it is necessary to conduct more research on this important industry using these three key variables: work stress, organizational commitment and personality.. 5.

(15) Purpose of the Study The previous little research on the Maquila Industry has made evident the presence of work stress and importance of the work commitment to handle the work stress situations (Ledesma, Pulido & Villegas, 2009; Martinez & Chang, 2011). Due to that evidence the purpose of this study is to contribute to the research of the employees of this important Industry in Honduras. Therefore, in order to help the organizations to improve the aim is to study the work stress, organizational commitment and personality of the employees that work in the production department at the Maquila Industry in Honduras. Based on all the mentioned before the purpose of this study is to: . Analyze the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment.. . Analyze the moderator effect of personality on the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment.. Significance of the Study The Maquila Industry has done an important contribution on the improvement of the unemployment rate of the Honduran population and moreover has a significant participation 17.5% on the total economic activity of Honduras (Central Bank of Honduras, 2005; Central Bank of Honduras, 2009). Regardless of the influence and importance that this industry has on the Honduran economy, still the research using as an object of analysis the employees that work on the production department of this important industry is really limited. However, the little research has given evidence of the presence of work stress and organizational commitment but there is no study that have had analyze the importance of the personality of the employees how this one influences their level of work stress and their commitment toward the organization. Hence, this study has the objective to contribute and give more information about the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment and how these ones are influenced by the personality of each individual. This will help to the organizations of the Maquila Industry to know more in deep the real situation of the employees at the production department and this can lead them to make the. 6.

(16) necessary changes. These changes are expected to make a positive impact on the efficiency of the production area.. Delimitations of the Study This research focuses on three main variables: work stress, organizational commitment and personality.. Firstly, work stress is covered analyzing three factors: role conflict, role. ambiguity and role overload (Griffin & Moorthead, 2010). On the other hand organizational commitment is also based on three main aspects: affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment (Allen & Meyer, 1996). Moreover, the personality is based on the Big Five Factor model: conscientiousness, agreeableness, emotional stability, extraversion and openness to new experience (John & Srivastava, 1999). The aim of the study is analyze the three main variables with the selected dimensions on each of them in the employees that work at the production department of the Maquila Industry at Honduras specifically on the textile and car-harness electronic sectors.. Definition of Terms Maquila: is a factory that imports all the materials and machinery using the benefits of a duty-free and tariff-free basis and then assembly or manufactures the products using low-priced labor hand and then re-exports the assembled product; generally back to the originating country (Maquiladora, 2011). Work Stress: stress is an individual’s reaction to a stimulus that causes excessive psychological or physical demands on that individual. For this research the work stress is operational analyzed through the type of roles: role conflict, role ambiguity and role overload (Griffin & Moorthead, 2010). Organizational Commitment: is the extent to which the employees feel identify and committed to an organization and its goals ( Zain & Gill, 1999). This feeling of identification to the organization is operational focused on three types of commitment: affective, continuance and normative commitment (Allen & Meyer, 1996).. 7.

(17) Personality: personality can be defined as the group of characteristics of an individual that illustrate and explain the consistent patterns of feeling, cognition and behaving (John, Robins & Pervin, 2008). This study analyzes the personality using the Big Five Personality Traits (John & Srivastava, 1999).. 8.

(18) CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter reviews the different literature review on work stress, the Maquila Industry, organizational commitment and personality.. Work Stress Stress is a concept that is progressively taking more significance among different researches that have evidence their interest to study the stress in the workplace as a whole including its causes and results for employees and organizations. In addition, diverse studies have focus their efforts on analyze how to manage the stress situations at the workplace (eg, LeFevre, Kolt & Matheny, 2006; Ongori & Agolla, 2008; Ornelas & Klainer, 2003). Moreover, stress is a concept that has to been easy to define. This is due to the fact that has a level of difficulty to define precisely. As a result, along the literature review there are different definitions of what is stress. Ornelas and Klainer (2003) defined stress as a result of the modern life and also, it’s an outcome of our willingness to balance the demands of the work and family life. Consequently, the demands are the stressors and the final effect is the stress on the person. Moreover, there is another concept that defines what stress is, but in a more specific way. This concept focuses on one important aspect of every person’s life: the workplace. According to the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (2007): Work-related stress is a pattern of reactions that occurs when workers are presented with work demands that are not matched to their knowledge, skills or abilities, and which challenge their ability to cope. These demands may be related to time pressure or the amount of work (quantitative demands), or may refer to the difficulty of the work (cognitive demands) or the empathy required (emotional demands), or even to the inability to show one’s emotions at work. Demands may also be physical, i.e. high demands in the area of dynamic and static loads. (p.2). The presence of stress at the workplace can have several negative consequences which cause a huge cost for the organization in terms of time and money. Schabracq and Cooper (2000) stated the different costs that an organization might face as a result of having employees that are 9.

(19) facing stress in the workplace. These costs are: reduced morale, defiance’s in the quality of the products and services, bad communication, disagreements, lost of customers, bad image and publicity, high turnover rate and sick-leave cost for replacements and permanent vacancies. The diverse results or consequences of stress can influence completely the whole work course. Therefore, it will end up on numerous complications at the moment to achieve the organizations' goals. Besides, there are some important statistical studies about the stress at the workplace in Europe and the United States; these results show the importance of this concept and also, the reality of the workers and the organizations. According to the results of the 2000 European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) the work related stress is the second most common workrelated health problem in the EU (back pain was more common) (Cited by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, 2007). In contrast, according to the 2001 “Attitudes in the American Workplace VII" the 82% of workers report that they are at least a little stressed at work. Another important information of the American Institute of Stress reports that job stress is really costly because it has an annual cost of more than $300 billion for the United States businesses. This cost represents the result of the increased rates on absenteeism, turnover, and productivity, medical, legal and insurance expenses. This cost also includes, the expenses of the worker’s compensation payments. On the other hand not only the organizations mentioned above have expressed the importance of work stress. Currently, employees have also perceived the importance and impact that stress has at the present time in their professional life. In a recent study on occupational stress conducted in Malaysia by Awang, Dollard and Winefield (2009), their results show that 77% of the interviewees agreed that the level of stress has been increased lately. The opinion of the participants on the increment of stress is based on the following declaration: ‘‘this is an undeniable fact. What we needed in the past was different from what we want now. Everything is moving fast. People need to move fast for them to cope with others. If not, we will be left behind’’ (p.141). Definitely, nowadays all the employees work hard to accomplish their career goals but they also, recognize the fact that the competition on this globalize world has increased. Hence, the level of stress has shown an increment, too. Nowadays, one important issue on the whole stress concept is to know the actual cause or root of this issue among the organizations. All the different aspects that cause stress in a person 10.

(20) are called stressors (Neelamegam & Asrafi, 2010). Therefore the stressors are all the different factors that produce discomfort or inconvenience for the employee as consequence this one will face stressful situations. According to Werner and DeSimone (2009) despite of the several differences that the researches can find on the definition of stress between all the studies, they mentioned that there is still some agreement on the literature review. They state that this agreement is the fact that stress is composed by three main factors: . The environmental force that affects the individual behavior, which is call stressor.. . The individual’s psychological or physical response to the stressor.. . Sometimes, the interaction between the stressors and the individual’s response.. The stress in the workplace can be produced by job content (work load and monotony at work), employment conditions (employment contract, job insecurity and shift work), working conditions ( physically demanding work and poor working conditions) and social relations at work ( mobbing experiences) ( Otto & Schmidt, 2007). Bhatti, Hussain, Shaikh and Suhail (2010) made a study on the causes of stress in organizations at different sectors such as service, manufacturing and distribution. The study was done in Sukkur, Pakistan using as a sample employees that work on these sectors. According to their results they categorized the causes of stress into two main groups: Extra-organizational stressors and intra-organizational stressors. The extra-organizational stressors are composed by: a) climate, b) economic and c) family. On the other hand, the intra-organizational stressors are formed by: a) leadership, b) company policies, c) working conditions, d) work load and e) office timings. Moreover, different studies have used as an object of analyze the three role stressors: role conflict, role ambiguity and role overload (Barr, Spitzmuller & Stuebing, 2008; Eatough, Chang, Miloslavic & Johnson, 2011; Elloy & Smith, 2003; Peterson, Smith, Akande, & Ayestaran, et al, 1995; Posig & Kickul, 2003). Griffin and Moorthead (2010) defined a role as “a set of expected behaviors associated with a particular position in a group or organization” (p.173). These authors also mentioned that each person perceive the role expectations in a different way, as a results the misunderstandings that 11.

(21) can occur on that process can lead to stress related problems as role conflict, role ambiguity and role overload. These three factors of the role stressors are the main variables of this research and they are explained more in detail below. Hence, this leads to the first hypothesis of this study: H1: Work stress is significantly related to organizational commitment.. Role Conflict Glazer (2005) define in his study role conflict as the contradiction between what the employee thinks it should be done and the rest of the staff expectations; which tend to occurred because the employee receives conflict messages from the others on how the job has to be done. Barr, Spitzmuller and Stuebing (2008) stated that “the employees who experience high levels of role conflict are under substantial demand” (p.234). The employees that experiment role conflict at their work positions will find themselves struggling in order to accomplish the goal of satisfying the different demands that come from the diverse sources of ambiguous work expectations (Eatough, Chang, Miloslavic & Johnson, 2011). According to Rahim (2011), the role conflict can also occur when the person is requested to execute two or more roles that include activities that are different or conflicting among each other. Thus, role conflict can occur in the workplace when the employees are drag into different directions by their superiors (Bersamin, 2006). There is little evidence on a previous research (Martinez & Chang, 2011) of the role conflict that middle managers at the production department on the Maquila Industry in Honduras face. This study makes reference to the high amount of pressure that this managers face due to the fact that everybody has high expectations on their functions because of their managerial positions. Therefore, they have to satisfy the expectations from the whole staff of the production department. Moreover, Bersamin (2006) wanted to find a negative relationship between role conflict and organizational commitment. However, the results presented a positive relationship between role conflict and organizational commitment. Based on the literature review the first subhypothesis of the hypothesis 1 was formulated: H1-1: Role conflict is negatively related to organizational commitment.. 12.

(22) Role Ambiguity Role ambiguity is when the role of the employee it is not clear and as a consequence this one does not what do (Griffin & Moorthead, 2010). Moreover, role ambiguity is when the employees are not clear about what the organization expects of them or also this can happen when they have not had any feedback regarding their work performance (Posig & Kickul, 2003). On the other hand according to the study of Bersamin (2006) there is a weak and positive relationship between role ambiguity and organizational commitment. This leads to the second sub-hypothesis of the hypothesis 1: H1-2: Role ambiguity is negatively related to organizational commitment. Role Overload According to Rahim (2011) role overload refers when the employees are requested to execute more amount work than what they can on a precise amount of time. In addition this author mentioned that this aspect as become a frequent issue on the organizations. Therefore, role overload also occurs when the role the employees is asked to execute goes beyond his/her capabilities (Griffin & Moorthead, 2010). A previous study on women that work on the basic level of the production department at the Maquila Industry shows that they are exposed to high work rates and in addition, they have to face the pressure of reaching high production goals. This leads them to have an intense work rhythm. (Ledesma, Pulido & Villegas, 2009). On the other hand another study on the middle managers at the production department in the Maquila Industry a study by Martinez and Chang, (2011) it was found that these employees face an elevated work rhythm and that the amount of work that they have is high as well. In addition, on the study of Bersamin (2006) it was predicted that the perceived work load on the employees affects negatively their organizational commitment level, however on its results was not found a relationship between both variables. 13.

(23) Based on the literature review the third sub-hypothesis of the hypothesis 1 was formulated: H1-3: Role overload is negatively related to organizational commitment. Hence, the stress in the work place can have different causes. Therefore, nowadays the most important thing for the organizations is to know which ones are the factors causing stress on the organizations’ employees. According to the literature review and the statistics mentioned above, it can be demonstrate that the stress in the work place has an effect and cost for the employee and the organization. The numbers also, proof the importance that this concept has on the European Union and the United States. However, one could not imagine that a country from Central America like Honduras can actually be facing work stress situations on one of its most important industries in this case the Maquila Industry.. Maquila Industry One important factor in the history of the Maquila Industry in Central America is that this one began with the foundation of a project named “Free Zones” which has its main goal to attract foreign investors, incentive the economic growth and increase trade rates in the region (Bogarin, 2007 Trade and Investment Magazine). According to Bogarin (2007) “Free Zones are defined as areas subject to special customs regulations that allow the manufacturing or commercialization of goods for exportation or re-exportation and provide services associated with international trade” (p.72). Hence, the Free Zones became an important element in the creation of the Maquila Industry in all the Central America’s countries. Moreover, to be more specific in Honduras the story with Maquila Industry started when the government emitted the Constitutive Act of the Free Zone of Puerto Cortes on July 19 th 1976 with the objective of benefit and incentive the national and foreign investors. This law gives to the companies’ different benefits: exemption of import tariffs and taxes for the entrance of merchandise related to the import and export activities and exemption on payment of the income tax. Then on May 20th 1998 was approved the Free Zone Act, these new laws were an extension. 14.

(24) of the benefits and also extend those benefits to the whole Honduran territory (Central Bank of Honduras, 2001). One of the major characteristics of the Maquila Industry is that needs a large quantity of labor hand for the massive production of diverse products. As a result, the industry has generated a positive effect on Honduras because of its contribution to lower the unemployment rate of the population (Central Bank of Honduras, 2005). The production of the Maquila generates more than 106,695jobs and also represents a 17.3% of the total economic activity of Honduras (Central Bank of Honduras, 2009). As a consequence from those salaries more than a half million of people are benefited without counting on the indirect jobs that the Maquila Industry has generated (Honduran Manufacturers Association, 2007). Moreover, there is previous study on the Maquila Industry and poverty in Honduras for this was used as sample women that work in that sector. During the study was done a simulation exercise and the results were that the poverty would increase by 1.5 % points if the Maquila Industry did not exist in Honduras (Hoyos, Bussolo & Nuñez, 2008). As it is pointed out in the literature review the Maquila industry, has made significant contribution to the Honduran economy, employment, and has a contribution on the battle against poverty levels. The economy part and contribution of the maquilas to the society its support by different literature review, but as it was mentioned before there is still a gap on the research of different topics using as a sample the employees of this sector. One important topic that is mentioned on the little research of the employees on this sector is the stress that employees face at their works. Europe and North America have previous research and analysis on work stress but there is still a gap to fill on this field for Honduras which has showed with the little research evidence that the employees in the Maquila Industry are facing work stress situations. However, Honduras it’s not the only country in Latin America showing signs of work stress on the Maquila Industry. Another good example of the same situation is Mexico. This country has different studies that have focused on studying occupational health on the employees at that industry and moreover it is mentioned the long working hours that the employees have on their works (Abell, 1999; Guendelmen & Silberg, 1993; Velasquez, Munguia, Navarrete & Zavala, 2006). 15.

(25) There is a study conducted in Tijuana, Mexico using as a sample women that work in the Maquila Industry (Guendelmen & Silberg, 1993). The results of this study show that women face long hours at work and low salaries. Moreover, they reported similar incidences of the service workers like depression and lack of control life. On the other hand, according to Abell (1999) stress is part of the women workers on the Maquila industry at Mexico. This is because they have to face pressure to achieve high production quotas. As it was mentioned before Honduras is a country where employees are facing stress situations on the Maquila industry. There is a previous study on the Maquilas that are located at Choloma which is situated in the north part of Honduras (Ledesma, Pulido & Villegas, 2009). The researchers used as sample women that work at the basic level of the production department. As a result the female workers showed high stress levels (84%). Another important finding of this study is that the workers have to face different demands; for example long work day, reach high production quotas and as consequences an intense work rhythm. In contrast, there is another study on this industry that shows that middle level managers on the production area are facing work stress and their works and also, the commitment toward their organization is an important aspect to handle that type of situation (Martinez & Chang, 2011).. Organizational Commitment According to Samgnanakkan (2010) organizational commitment can be defined as the force that creates a strong connection between the employee and the organization. On the other hand, organizational commitment can also be perceived as the intensity of ownership that the employee has for the organization’s values and objectives and as a result this performs in a most optimal way to reach them (Tanriverdi, 2008). Therefore, if the employees have an attachment for the organization’s goals they will be more efficient and committed on their work activities and this will be reflected on the organization’s results in a positive way. A person’s commitment toward the organization is ‘‘an effective response (attitude) resulting from an evaluation of the work situation which links or attaches the individual to the organization’’ (Mottaz, 1988, p. 468 cited in Tuzun, 2009, p.730). The employee’s commitment is derived from the interest that the employees have on their job and also from the employees’ strong belief on the organizations values (Tanrıverdi, 2008). 16.

(26) There are different definitions about organizational commitment and all of them have a point in common which is that organizational commitment is the bond between the organization and the employees. The existence of that bond allows to the organization to have more opportunities of having an effective accomplishment of its goals. There is a model for organizational commitment; which is form by three dimensions: affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment (Allen & Meyer, 1996). According to the results of a study by Meyer, Stanley, Herscovitch, and Topolnytsky (2002) the three type of organizational commitment have a negative correlations with withdrawal cognition, turnover intention, and turnover but that they present a different correlation with other work behaviors (i.e., attendance, job performance, and OCB). Martinez and Chang (2011) in their qualitative study make reference to the commitment that the middle level managers who work in the production department of the Maquila Industry in Honduras have toward the organization as a strategy to handle the situations where they have a lot of work demands and stress. Moreover, previous research pointed out that when the employees’ level of stress incremented as a consequence, their level of organizational commitment became lower (Michael, Court & Petal, 2009; Vakola & Nikolaou, 2005). This agrees with the findings of Khatibi, Asadi and Hamidi (2009) which indicated a significantly negative relationship between job stress and organizational commitment. However, in contrast Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) on their study found a positive relationship between job stress and organizational commitment. This research is based on the three dimensions of organizational commitment: affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment (Allen & Meyer, 1996). These three dimensions are explained more in detail below.. Affective Commitment The affective commitment is the connection, engagement and emotional connection that the employee has for the organization (Allen & Meyer, 1996).. 17.

(27) According to Nasr (2010) the affective commitment comes up from as a result of the good experiences that the employees have had in their organizations, where they feel that the treatment from the organization to them has been fair and positive. In addition, the presence of the affective commitment helps to build up on the employees a feeling of confidence on their potential and self esteem which at the end leads to strength the employee’s affective commitment (Michael, Court & Petal, 2009). The study of Schmidt (2007) makes reference on its literature review of the positive correlations that commitment has with job satisfaction and job involvement and more over, of the negative correlation that the affective commitment has with turnover, withdrawal cognitions and also, the absenteeism. Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) found a significant positive correlation between stress and affective commitment. Moreover, more studies showed that job stress has showed a negative influence on the affective commitment of the employees in the organizations (Khatibi, Asadi & Hamidi, 2009; Michael, Court & Petal, 2009). Based on the literature review the fourth sub-hypothesis of the hypothesis 1 was formulated: H1-4: Work stress is negatively related to affective commitment.. Continuance Commitment The continuance commitment is when the employee is aware of all the costs that would implicate moving to other organization (Allen & Meyer, 1996). Hence, the employees with this type of commitment are in the organization because they have to. Michael, Court and, Petal (2009) pointed on their study two major reasons for the cost of leaving the organization. Firstly, is the accumulation of side bets which are the things that are important for the employee in the organization. These are the rewards that the employee receives like their salary. Hence, the continuance commitment is enhance when the employee is better rewarded and to keep receiving all those benefits it is necessary for he/she to stay in the workplace. Secondly, they make reference to the lack of employment alternatives which means that the employee has to stay in the organization because there is low probability of finding a. 18.

(28) new workplace. Hence, the employees with a high level of continuance commitment are conscious of their necessity for staying in the organization (Nasr, 2010). The findings of Michael, Court and Petal (2009) and Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) showed a significant positive correlation between stress and continuance commitment . On the other hand, according to the results of Khatibi, Asadi and Hamidi (2009) there is a negative and no significant relationship between stress and continuance commitment. Based on the literature review the fifth sub-hypothesis of the hypothesis 1 was formulated: H1-5: Work stress is negatively related to continuance commitment.. Normative Commitment The normative commitment is when the employees stay on their jobs because of a feeling of obligation towards the organization feels that staying in the organization is an obligation (Meyer & Allen, 1996). The normative commitment comes from the internal pressure that the employee faces which is a consequence of a serial of norms that give to the individual a compromise with the organization. These norms come from their families, culture and organization (Michael, Court & Petal, 2009). Therefore, the employees have a tendency to perform according to ethics norms and do exactly what is requested by the organization (Nasr, 2010). Regarding the relationship between normative commitment and work stress there are some differences on the findings on the literature review. Firstly, the research of Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) shows a positive no significant relationship between normative commitment and work stress. In contrast, Michael, Court and Petal (2009) presented a negative and no significant correlation between stress and normative commitment and the study of Khatibi, Asadi and Hamidi (2009) showed a significant negative correlation among the employee’s stress and normative commitment. Therefore, no clear evidences support the relationship between these two variables. Based on the literature review the sixth sub-hypothesis of the hypothesis 1 was formulated:. 19.

(29) H1-5: Work stress is not related to continuance commitment.. Personality Personality can be defined “as a consistent behavior patterns and intrapersonal processes originating within the individual” (Burger, 2011, p.4). Gerber, Huber, Doherty, Dowling and Ha (2010) stated that the human being personality is created by the experience, family, culture, education and work experience. Therefore, through the different researches have come up to with a manner of measuring the personality characteristics through a model of the five factors or the Big Five (John & Srivastava , 1999); which has allows to understand more in detail the personality traits. Among the literature review the five-factor model or Big Five has been used frequently to analyze the structure of personality (DeYoung, Quilty & Peterson, 2007; Mount & Barrick, 1998; Sawyerr, Srinivas & Wang, 2009). The five factor model is a model composed by these main dimensions: conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, extraversion and openness; which have been used really often to study the structure of personality (Ulu & Tezer, 2010). Based on different literature review (Ulu & Tezer, 2010; Sawyerr, Srinivas &Wang, 2009; Mount & Barrick, 1998) the five dimensions are explained more in detail below. Conscientiousness refers to responsible, persistent, goal set and organized. Neuroticism makes reference to being neurotic, anxious, nervous and tense. Extraversion is being active conversational, confident, positive emotionality and friendly. Openness makes reference to be open-minded, creative and intellectual. Finally, agreeableness refers to being flexible, supportive, and considerate and humility.. This study will use as base the five-factor model or Big Five model (John & Srivastava , 1999) to analyze the personality of the employees on the Maquila Industry in Honduras.. 20.

(30) Work Stress and Organizational Commitment There is different literature review that has used as an object of study the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment (Bersamin, 2006; Khatibi, Asadi & Hamidi, 2009; Michael, Court & Petal, 2009; Schmidt, 2007; Vakola & Nikolaou, 2005; Ziauddin, Khan, Jam & Hijazi, 2010). The study of the relationship between job stress and organizational commitment by Michael, Court and Petal (2009) pointed out three major findings. Firstly, the fact that when employees experiment increments on their level of stress as a consequence, their level of organizational commitment becomes lower. Therefore, the job stress has negative influence on the affective commitment of the employees. Secondly, regarding the continuance commitment their results showed that the higher level of role conflict, the higher level of continuance commitment on the employee. Thirdly, they pointed out that the stress on the employee’s job does not affect their normative commitment to the organization.. Work Stress, Organizational Commitment and Personality Nowadays, the work stress has become an important issue for three main actors: the employees, employers and the society (Srivastava, 2009). Therefore, due to the importance of the topic for the organizations, among the literature review it has been found diverse studies that analyze the work stress from different perspectives. One of the main concerns is to know the cause of the work stress. This research is based on different studies that have analyze the work stress causes from the perspective of three role stressors: role conflict, role ambiguity and role overload (Barr, Spitzmuller & Stuebing, 2008; Eatough, Chang, Miloslavic & Johnson, 2011; Elloy & Smith, 2003; Peterson et al., 1995; Posig & Kickul, 2003). Hence, the work stressor analyze is based on the three role stressors: role conflict, role ambiguity and role overload. On the other hand diverse studies have analyzed the relationship of the wok stress with another concept important organizational commitment. 21.

(31) Different studies have indicated a relationship or connection among work stress and the three dimensions of organizational commitment (Bersamin, 2006; Khatibi, Asadi & Hamidi, 2009; Michael, Court & Petal, 2009; Schmidt, 2007; Vakola & Nikolaou, 2005; Ziauddin, Khan, Jam & Hijazi, 2010). Moreover, there are some differences among the findings of different studies regarding the relationship between stress and affective, continuance and normative commitment. Table 2.1 shows a comparison of the diverse findings on stress and organizational commitment dimensions. In addition, in the relationship between stress and organizational there are some differences among the findings. Firstly, Ziauddin, Khan, Jam and Hijazi (2010) on their study found a positive relationship between job stress and organizational commitment but, in contrast the results of Khatibi, Asadi and Hamidi (2009) indicated a significant and negative relationship between job stress and organizational commitment. Table 2. 1 Diverse Findings on the Relationship between Stress and Affective, Continuance and Normative Commitment Relationship. Michael, Court & Petal Ziauddin, Khan, Jam Khatibi, Asadi &. between:. (2009). & Hijazi (2010). 1.Overall stress and Negative correlation. Positive. affective commitment. correlation. 2.Overall stress and Positive continuance. significant Positive. correlation. Hamidi (2009). significant Negative significant relationship significant Negative. correlation. no. significant. commitment. relationship. 3.Overall stress and Negative normative. and. and. no Positive. significant correlation. and. no Negative significant. significant correlation. relationship. commitment. On the other hand, previous research by Ledesma, Pulido and Villegas, (2009) on the Maquila Industry in Honduras on the basic level employees of the production department showed the presence of high stress levels (84%).. 22.

(32) Moreover, on the little research available regarding this Industry in Honduras is one more study by Martinez and Chang (2011) on work stress among the middle level manager at the production department where is conclude that these employees are experimenting stress at the workplace and also, that they focus on their commitment toward their organization in order to handle the situations where they have a lot of work demands and stress. On the other side, there are different studies that have analyze the work stress and personality from different perspectives (Bowling & Eschleman, 2010; Brunborg, 2008; Srivastava, 2009). In fact, it is evident that the relationship between work conditions and personality traits will lead to different degrees of job stress (Brunborg, 2008). In addition, according to Srivastava (2009) “One’s personality plays prominent role in determining his effectiveness or ineffectiveness in dealing with day to day stress prevailing in an organization” (p.49). Furthermore, personality traits have an important and significant influence on organizational commitment (Chang & Lee, 2006). According to the results of the study by Naquin and Holton (2002) from the personality traits conscientiousness was a strong predictor for work commitment and also, with less intensity act as predictors: agreeableness and extroversion. In contrast, their results show that openness was not significantly influent on work commitment. Based on all the facts mentioned before, the second hypothesis has formulated: H2: Personality moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-1: Conscientiousness moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-2: Agreeableness moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-3: Neuroticism moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-4: Extraversion moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment.. 23.

(33) H2-5: Openness to new experience moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment.. 24.

(34) CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODS The main purpose of this chapter is to provide research framework structure, hypothesis, and the methodology that is going to be use on this study. In here is described in detail the sample selection and the instrument for the data collection.. Research Framework The research framework of this research was created based on the main purpose of the study that is, examining the relationship among work stress, organizational commitment and personality (See Figure 3.1). According to the research purposes and hypothesis, this study explores the relationship between work stress (X) and organizational commitment (Y). Moreover, it analyzes the moderator effect that the employee personality (M) has on the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. The work stress variable is composed by three factors: role conflict, role ambiguity and role overload. On the other hand, organizational commitment also is conform by three elements: affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment. Finally, the personality is base on the five factor model which includes these main dimensions: conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, extraversion and openness.. 25.

(35) Personality (M)     . Control Variables    . Conscientiousness Agreeableness Neuroticism Extraversion Openness. . Gender Age Education Work experience at the Maquila Industry Type of Industry. H2 Organizational Commitment (Y). Work Stress (X)   . Role Conflict Role Ambiguity Role Overload.   . Affective Continuance Normative. H1. Figure 3.1. Research framework. Research Hypotheses As it was mentioned before on the literature review there are different studies that have analyzed the relationship of work stress and the three dimensions of organizational commitment (Bersamin, 2006; Khatibi, Asadi & Hamidi, 2009; Michael, Court & Petal, 2009; Schmidt, 2007; Vakola & Nikolaou, 2005; Ziauddin, Khan, Jam & Hijazi, 2010). On the other hand there are also previous background on the study of work stress and personality (Bowling & Eschleman, 2010; Srivastava, 2009; Scott, 2008). Moreover, there is also literature review on the relationship between organizational commitment and personality (Chang & Lee, 2006; Naquin & Holton, 2002). However, there was not found literature review background on the moderating effect of personality on the relationship between work stress and 26.

(36) organizational commitment. In addition, there is only limited literature review on the work stress using as a sample the employees of the production department of the Maquila Industry in Honduras. Hence, based on the diverse literature review and the study main purpose; the following hypotheses were formulated: H1: Work stress is significantly related to organizational commitment. H1-1: Role conflict is negatively related to organizational commitment. H1-2: Role ambiguity is negatively related to organizational commitment. H1-3: Role overload is negatively related to organizational commitment. H1-4: Work stress is negatively related to affective commitment. H1-5: Work stress is negatively related to continuance commitment. H1-6: Work stress is not related to normative commitment. H2: Personality moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-1: Conscientiousness moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-2: Agreeableness moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-3: Neuroticism moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-4: Extraversion moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment. H2-5: Openness moderates the relationship between work stress and organizational commitment.. Data Collection This study used a quantitative research method in order to obtain the necessary data and analyze the relationship among the three main variables and their components. The data was gathered through questionnaires that were applied to the employees that work on the production department at the Maquila Industry. It has to be mentioned that in order to obtain a better foundation at the moment of collecting the data, it has been used as a base 27.

(37) questionnaire of previous studies. Firstly, work stress items were selected from two previous studies conducted by Zhao and Rashid (2010) and Kerr, McHugh and McCrory (2009). Secondly, for organizational commitment it will be used as base the items of the study conducted by Zain and Gill (1999). Finally, to analyze the personality it has been used as a base the questionnaire the Big Five Inventory (BFI-44) of the study conducted by John, Donahue and Kentle (1991).. Research Procedure The procedure to conduct this research has been divided in different steps (See Figure 3.2). The diverse steps are described in detail below: 1. Identifying the need of more research on the Maquila Industry. 2. Gathering different literature review on the topic. 3. Defining the main objective and purpose of the study. 4. Creating the research framework. 5. Selecting previous instruments (questionnaires). 6. Revising and validation of the instruments used on previous studies. 7. Conducting pilot study of the final questionnaire. 8. Revising and finalizing the reliability of the final questionnaire. 9. Administrating the questionnaires for data collection. 10. Testing the hypotheses. 11. Reporting results and providing suggestions.. 28.

(38) Identifing the need of the study. Literature review. Setting the main objective and purpose of the study. Research framework. Instrument selection. Revising and validation of the instrument. Pilot study. Reliability analysis. Data collection. Data analysis. Findings, conclusions and recomendations Figure 3. 2. Research procedure. 29.

(39) Research Sample The Maquila Industry has become an important aspect that has a positive effect on the Honduran economy is really important, due to the fact that provides 106,695 jobs (Central Bank of Honduras, 2009). Therefore, based on the literature review that proofs the importance of this sector for Honduras, it has been decided to conduct this study using as a sample employees that work in the Maquila Industry. On the other hand, this industry is form by different sectors, these are: textiles, computers, car harness-electronics, labels and dyes. As it was mentioned before the Maquila Industry has different sectors, but this study is center on the two sectors that generates the highest number of jobs. First, there is the textile, clothing and leather goods sector which has a participation of the 78.5%, giving 83,712 jobs; which makes them the sector that generates the biggest number of job sources. On the other hand, the second sector is the car parts (harness) and electronic components with a participation of the 8.8%, generating 9,403 jobs (Central Bank of Honduras, 2009). Moreover, the study used as a sample the employees that work on the production department of the textile and car parts (harness)-electronic components based on the fact that there is little research background on the study of the work stress on the production department of this industry (Ledesma, Pulido & Villegas, 2009; Martinez & Chang, 2011) . In addition, to add more support to these criteria, there is previous background which demonstrates that the production department in that industry is a key element on these organizations due to the fact that is where the final product is created and also is where the production goals are reached. Therefore, based on the literature review mentioned above the sample selected were the employees that work on the production department of the Maquila Industry in the sectors of: a) textile, clothing and leather goods and b) the car parts (harness) and electronic components. Moreover, for this study the total sample is composed by 116 participants from these sectors of the Maquila Industry in Honduras.. Research Instrument The research instrument for this study will be composed by three main parts. The first part is center on the work stress variable and is form by its three factors: role conflict, role ambiguity and role overload (See Table 3.1). The role conflict and role overload items were 30.

(40) selected from a research conducted by Zhao and Rashid (2010) who adopted the role conflict scale from Glazer and Beehr (2005) and the role overload scale they adopted from Peterson et al.'s (1995). According to the reliability study conducted by Zhao and Rashid (2010) the scale for role conflict has 0.88 Cronbach alpha and the role overload scale has 0.92 for reliability, both scales have more than 0.70 which is the conventional criterion. In addition, the role ambiguity items were select from the study conducted by Kerr, McHugh and McCrory (2009). They used the Health and Safety Executive Management Standards Indicator Tool to measure role in order to see if the employees understand their role in the organization and to see if the person does not have conflicting roles. This indicator tool has showed acceptable level of reliability. Edwards, Webster, Laar and Easton (2008) run the reliability test and the role scale presented a 0.83 Cronbach alpha. Also, Cousins et al. (2004) provide the reliability analysis of the indicator tool which on the role scale showed 0.83 Cronbach alpha as well. Table 3. 1 Work Stress Measurement Element. Code. Questionnaire component. Role Conflict. RC1. I have to do things that should be done differently. I work under incompatible polices and guidelines. I receive an assignment without the resources to complete it. I have to buck (bend) a rule or policy in order to carry out an assignment. I receive incompatible requests from two or more people. I have to work under vague directives or orders. I am knowledgeable of what is expected of me 0.83 at work.. RC2 RC3 RC4 RC5. Role Ambiguity. RC6 RA1. RA2 RA3 RA4 RA5. Cronbach Author alpha  0.88 Glazer & Beehr (2005). Kerr,McHugh & McCrory (2009)/HSE Management Standard. I know how to go about getting my job done. I know what my duties and responsibilities are. I am knowledgeable of the goals and objectives of my Department. I understand how my work fits into the overall aims of the organization. (continued). 31.

(41) Table 3.1 (continued) Element. Code. Questionnaire Component. Role Overload. RO1. There is a need to reduce some parts of my role. I feel overburdened in my role. I have been given too much responsibility.. RO2 RO3. Cronbach Author alpha  0.92 Peterson et al.'s (1995). RO4 RO5. My workload is too heavy. The amount of work I have to do interfere with the quality I want to maintain. Note. Adapted from “The mediating role of work-leisure conflict on job stress and retention of it professionals” by Zhao, L. & Rashid, H. 2010, Academy of Information and Management Sciences Journal, 13(2),25-40 and “HSE Management Standards and stress-related work outcomes” by Kerr,R.,McHugh,M.& McCrory,M. 2009, Occupational Medicine, 59,574–579.. On the other hand, the second part focused on the organizational commitment which was composed by three elements: affective, continuance and normative commitment (See Table 3.2). The 23 items were used on the study conducted by Zain and Gill (1999). They stated that their questionnaire was developed using items from Allen and Meyer (1990). On their reliability analysis the full scale (23 items) has a 0.88 Cronbach alpha. Table 3. 2 Organizational Commitment Measurement Element. Code Questionnaire Component. Affective Commitment. AC1 AC2 AC3 AC4 AC5 AC6 AC7 AC8. Cronbach Author alpha  I would be happy to spend the rest of my career with 0.88 Zain & this organization. Gill (1999) I enjoy discussing my organization with people outside it. I feel as if organization’s problems are my own. I do not think I could become as attached to another organization as I am to this one. I feel like “part of the family” at my organization. I feel emotionally attached to this organization. This organization has personal meaning to me. I feel strong sense of belonging to my organization. (continued). 32.

(42) Table 3.2 (continued) Element Continuance Commitment. Code CC1. Questionnaire Component It would be hard for me to leave my job at this organization right now; even if I wanted to.. Cronbach Author  alpha 0.88 Zain & Gill (1999). CC2. My life would be disrupted if I decided I wanted to leave my job at the organization now. CC3 I am afraid of what might happen if I quit my job without having another one lined up. CC4 It would be costly for me to leave my organization right now. CC5 Right now, staying with my organization is a matter of necessity as much as desire. CC6 I think I have few options to consider leaving this organization. CC7 One of the serious consequences of leaving this organization would be scarcity of available alternatives. CC8 One of the major reasons I continue to work for this organization is that leaving would require personal sacrifice- another organization might not match the overall benefits I have here. Normative NC1 I think people these days move from organization Commitment to organization too often. NC2 I believe that a person must always be loyal to his/her organization. NC3 Jumping from organization to organization seems unethical to me. NC4 I believe that loyalty is important and therefore I feel a strong sense of moral obligation to remain. NC5 If I got another offer for a better job elsewhere I would not feel it was right to leave my organization. NC6 I was taught to believe in the value of remaining loyal to one organization. NC7 Things were better in the days when people stayed with one organization for most of their careers. NC8 I think that wanting to be a “company man” or “company woman” is sensible. Note. Adapted from “A psychometric assessment of the Malay version of Mayer and Allen’s organizational commitment measure,” by Zain,A.Y. & Gill,R.1999, Malaysian Management Review.. 33.