The impact of organizational identification and self-esteem on organizational citizenship behavior: the case of Greek public hospitals

The importance of increased Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) for organizational success and prosperity is widely accepted among researchers. When it comes to hospitals, of course, success and prosperity presupposes that doctors and nurses need to provide more than they are expected to, in order to preserve human lives in the best possible way. In this context, the main purpose of this research, which has been carried out in Greek public hospitals, was to test two factors that are expected to positively affect OCB. In specific, doctors' and nurses' organizational identification and self-esteem impact on OCB was examined. Moreover, the influence of gender and permanency in employment relationship over the aforementioned relationships was examined. Statistical analysis of the data provided by 140 doctors and nurses confirmed the hypotheses stated. At the end of the paper, theoretical and practical implications of OCB for the effective human resource management in Greek public hospitals follow.