A Self-Categorization Perspective of Idiosyncratic Deals and Creativity: Mediating Role of Perceived Insider Status and Moderating Role of Psychological Safety

Abstract

Purpose

Idiosyncratic deals (I-deals), a novel human resource management implement, has significantly contributed to attracting, retaining and motivating personnel to enhance creativity. Building upon self-categorization theory, this study investigates the impact of I-deals on creativity and the moderating role of psychological safety in this process by perceived insider status.

Participants and Methods

To mitigate common method bias and causal lag effects, this study was conducted in three phases with a half-month interval for data collection. In this study, a total of 331 employees from six enterprises in China were selected to test the hypotheses using Bootstrap and Johnson-Neyman methods.

Results

Results show that I-deals have a positive influence on creativity. Perceived insider status acts as intermediary between I-deals and creativity; Psychological safety strengthens the influence of I-deals on perceived insider status and further enhances the indirect influence of I-deals on creativity through perceived insider status.

Conclusion

This study demonstrates that organizations can leverage the unique characteristics of I-deals to fully showcase the diverse talents of their personnel, while simultaneously enhancing their psychological security. This, in turn, empowers employees to confidently propose new ideas and methods, thus catalyzing the generation of creativity.

Keywords:

• I-deals
• perceived insider status
• psychological safety
• creativity
• self-categorization theory

Data Sharing Statement

Both data and materials can be obtained from the correspondence author. His Email address is [email protected].

Ethics Statement

Prior to the start of our research, we submitted our research plan to the Academic Ethics Committee of the School of Business Administration of Henan Polytechnic University, and obtained the moral approval and review of the plan content. All the participants voluntarily participated in the questionnaire survey, and the participants and institutions written informed provided consent. It is our responsibility to ensure that the guidelines outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki are followed.

Consent for Publication

All participants agreed to publish this article. The manuscript has not been published, or submitted for publication elsewhere.

Author Contributions

All authors made a significant contribution to the work reported, whether that is in the conception, study design, execution, acquisition of data, analysis and interpretation, or in all these areas; took part in drafting, revising or critically reviewing the article; gave final approval of the version to be published; have agreed on the journal to which the article has been submitted; and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Universities of Henan Province (SKJZD2023-04).