Examining the relationship between organizational coaching and workplace counterproductive behaviours in the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to establish both the validity of Western theories within the Middle East, namely, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and to further improve and extend our understanding of the effect of organisational coaching on counterproductive behaviours, such as bullying and alienation. Design/methodology/approach – A sample size of 656 participants from 29 organisations and 14 different industries was employed. A research model was proposed, refined and tested through a quantitative paradigm using one dimension nonlinear principal components analysis, linear structural equation modelling (SEM) and MANOVA. Findings – The correlation analysis results show non-significant negative correlations between coaching and all of the organisational counterproductive behaviour dimensions but not certainty. It was found that a significant weak relationship exists between most of the mediator dimensions, while a strong relationship exists between job alienation and workplace bullying. Results of the linear SEM provide support that coaching is related to certainty. Furthermore, the results reveal that certainty mediates a significant link between coaching and organisational counterproductive work behaviours (job alienation and bullying). Originality/value – The study is considered the first in the UAE to investigate organisational counterproductive work behaviours (bullying and job alienation). The main contribution of this study is to quantify the relationship between organisational coaching and bullying and job alienation mediated by organisational climate dimensions.