Serial Mediation of OCBI & OCBO in the Relationship Between Four Dimensions of Organizational Justice and Organizational Performance: Extending Social Exchange Theory in the Context of Academic Staff Justice Perceptions

Abstract

This study extends Social Exchange Theory by examining whether organizational citizenship behavior toward individuals and toward the organization operate as serial mediators in the relationship between four dimensions of organizational justice (distributive, procedural, interactional, informational) and organizational performance. While prior research has treated OCBI and OCBO as parallel mediators, this study tests a sequential pathway (justice → OCBI → OCBO → performance), arguing that helping behaviors directed at colleagues must translate into organization-directed citizenship before affecting institutional outcomes. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey was conducted with 335 academic staff from 14 federal and state universities in Northeast Nigeria a region characterized by resource scarcity, political instability, and post-insurgency recovery. Cluster sampling was employed. Data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with SmartPLS 4.0, including bootstrapping (5,000 subsamples), mediation analysis, and serial mediation (specific indirect effects). The Findings Results partially support the extended SET framework. Procedural justice (β = 0.206, t = 5.444, p < 0.05) and interactional justice (β = 0.199, t = 4.867, p < 0.05) significantly influence organizational performance sequentially through OCBI then OCBO. However, distributive justice and informational justice show no significant serial mediation effect. Notably, OCBI does not directly mediate distributive or informational justice; instead, these justice dimensions require transformation through OCBO to influence performance. The model explains 35.5% of variance in organizational performance (R2 = 0.355). This is among the first studies to empirically test OCBI and OCBO as serial (rather than parallel) mediators, demonstrating that individual-directed citizenship is a necessary antecedent to organization- directed citizenship in the justice-performance linkage. The study also challenges universal assumptions of SET by revealing context-specific anomalies (e.g., negative indirect effects of informational justice). University administrators should prioritize procedural fairness (transparent, consistent decision-making) and interactional fairness (respectful, dignified treatment) to sequentially foster colleague-helping behaviors, which then translate into organization-beneficial actions, ultimately enhancing institutional performance. Single-focused interventions on distributive justice (pay, rewards) may be insufficient. P-ISSN 2695 2416

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