Business and Applied Management Journal
Vol. 4 No. 2 (2026)

The Moderating Effect of Work Engagement on Organizational Citizenship Behavior through Psychological Capital: Empirical Evidence from the Higher Education Sector

Ivan Batara (Universitas Bandar Lampung)
Iskandar Ali Alam (5Universitas Bandar Lampung)
Andala Rama Putra Barusman (Universitas Bandar Lampung)
Defrizal Defrizal (Universitas Bandar Lampung)
Helmita Helmita (Universitas Bandar Lampung)



Article Info

Publish Date
16 Jul 2026

Abstract

This study develops and empirically tests a conceptual framework explaining how work engagement influences Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) in higher education institutions, with Psychological Capital (PsyCap) as a moderating variable. The study is important because higher education institutions increasingly depend on faculty members who are willing to demonstrate discretionary behaviors beyond formal job requirements to enhance institutional effectiveness, adaptability, and long-term competitiveness. Drawing on the Resource-Based View (RBV) and Social Exchange Theory (SET), PsyCap comprising hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism is positioned as a strategic internal resource that strengthens the translation of engagement into sustained discretionary behaviors. Using SmartPLS 4, data from 262 faculty members across private universities in Lahat, Palembang, and Pagar Alam were analyzed. Results show that work engagement significantly predicts OCB (t = 2.494, p = 0.013), while PsyCap alone does not exert a direct effect (t = 0.473, p = 0.636). However, the interaction term PsyCap × Work Engagement demonstrates a strong moderating effect (t = 5.82, p = 0.000), with R² = 0.913 and f² = 0.319, confirming excellent predictive accuracy. These findings highlight PsyCap as strategic capital that amplifies engagement into citizenship behaviors, offering theoretical enrichment and practical implications for institutional resilience and competitiveness.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

bamj

Publisher

Subject

Humanities Economics, Econometrics & Finance Education Environmental Science Social Sciences

Description

Business and Applied Management Journal is Peer-reviewed refereed journal aiming at engaging academicians as well as practitioners. Focus on the areas of economics, finance, banking, capital markets, takaful and law. The aim of the Journal is to foster academic research by publishing original ...