The moderating effect of emotional competence and perceived organisational support on the relationship between workplace incivility and turnover intention among employees in South African public government institutions

Barkhuizen, Jean

The moderating effect of emotional competence and perceived organisational support on the relationship between workplace incivility and turnover intention among employees in South African public government institutions

Thesis / Dissertation

2026

Publisher

University of Cape Town

Department

Organisational Psychology

Faculty

Faculty of Commerce

Abstract

Workplace incivility, subtle but harmful behaviours that violate norms of mutual respect, has been linked to a range of negative employee outcomes, including stress, disengagement, and heightened turnover intention. These effects are particularly concerning in the South African public sector, where high turnover threatens service delivery and strains already limited organisational resources. Despite growing international research on incivility, little is known about how personal and organisational resources might mitigate its effects in this context. Addressing this gap, and drawing on Conservation of Resources theory, this study examined whether emotional competence (the ability to perceive, understand, and regulate emotions) and perceived organisational support (employees' beliefs about how much their employer values and supports them) moderate the relationship between workplace incivility and turnover intention. These moderators were chosen for their theoretical relevance as potential protective resources and for their practical applicability in developing retention-focused interventions. A cross-sectional survey design was used to collect quantitative data from employees in local government institutions in the Western Cape, South Africa. The survey included validated, shortened versions of the Workplace Incivility Scale (WIS), the Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Emotional Competence Questionnaire (IIECQ), the Survey of Perceived Organizational Support (SPOS), and the Turnover Intention Scale (TIS-6). Convenience sampling was used, resulting in 210 valid responses (42.9% male, n = 90; 57.1% female, n = 120) after excluding incomplete cases. As hypothesised, workplace incivility was significantly and positively associated with turnover intention (r = 0.46; p < .001). However, neither emotional competence nor perceived organisational support significantly moderated this relationship, suggesting that other mechanisms may better explain resilience against the effects of incivility in this context.