Can idiosyncratic deals promote perceptions of competitive climate, felt ostracism, and turnover?

- This study examined felt ostracism as a negative outcome of idiosyncratic deals (i-deals).
- Data collected from 190 college-educated employees at five points in time over 18 months.
- Receiving and witnessing others' i-deals were related to feelings of being envied and of envy, respectively.
- The feelings of being envied and of envy were both related to greater perceived competitive climate.
- Perceived competitive climate was related to a greater experience of felt ostracism, which in turn was related to turnover.

Idiosyncratic deals (or i-deals) have been advocated as effective tools for promoting job motivation and productivity in the workplace. However, they do have some downsides that have not been adequately addressed. This study argues that developmental i-deals (e.g., special training opportunities) may have negative social consequences that lead to turnover, especially for young, educated employees who are sensitive to the presence or absence of special resources that help advance their career development. Data were collected from 190 college-educated employees at five points in time over 18 months. The results show that receiving developmental i-deals and witnessing coworkers' developmental i-deals were related to being envied and to envy, respectively. Further, the receiving and witnessing of developmental i-deals were found to have an interactive effect on these feelings. Being envied and envy promote the perception of a more competitive climate, which in turn was related to greater felt ostracism. Felt ostracism was found to be related to greater voluntary turnover. This study thus has gathered initial evidence that developmental i-deals might have negative social effects on young, educated employees.