Trust in Transition

Sammanfattning

This study examines how psychological contract violations (PCV) affect organizational identification (OID) in the context of reconstructing strategic change, specifically acquisitions. While existing literature has established the relationship between psychological contract breach (PCB) and OID, the emotional dimension of violation remains relatively unexplored. Drawing on a qualitative, abductive multiple case study design, ten semi-structured interviews were conducted across two Swedish companies, one in the automotive sector and one in healthcare, both of which had undergone acquisitions from private equity to non-private equity ownership. The study hypothesized a framework between the PCV and OID relationship, aiming to test whether the mitigating factors, established between PCB and OID, were applicable. The finding suggests that PCB occurred in both companies, while PCV partially materialized. This partial materialization was shaped not only by the mitigating factors, but also by employees’ perception of the breach as structurally inevitable rather than intentional, and by the strength of pre-existing relationships within the organizations. Of the five hypothesized mitigating factors, three were empirically confirmed: procedural and interactional justice, pre-existing OID, and colleague relationships. The latter emerged as the strongest, functioning as a bridging mechanism where group-level identification temporarily substituted organizational-level identification throughout the acquisition process. Perceived organizational support and communication were only partially present or absent, and could not be conclusively confirmed. Beyond the hypothesized framework, the study identifies three additional mitigating factors. Prior ownership type functions as a precondition shaping employees' psychological contracts before the transition begins. The organizational hierarchy was found to either buffer or amplify PCV depending on whether organizational support precedes managerial support. Lastly, tenure in position operates as the condition that makes both pre-existing OID and colleague relationships possible in the first place. Together, these findings contribute to PCV and OID literature by extending both frameworks into the context of reconstructing strategic change, and by demonstrating that a qualitative approach can capture the sequential and relational logic of violations.