Felt obligations to reciprocate to an employer, preferences for mobility across employers, and gender: Three-way interaction effects on subsequent voice behavior

• Felt obligations to reciprocate should relate to voice behavior.
• This study examined preferences for job stability and gender as moderators.
• Data were collected from 209 college-educated employees over 8 months.
• The obligations–voice relationship was stronger for those with greater preference for job stability.
• The two-way interaction effect was even stronger for males rather than for females.

Previous research suggests that employees engage in voice behavior to reciprocate for the positive treatment they receive from employers, but less is known about individual differences in employees' willingness to engage in voice behavior to that end. The present study proposes that felt obligations to the organization relate more strongly to voice behavior when employees also have stronger preferences for job stability (rather than job mobility). We also propose that this two-way interaction will be further moderated by gender; specifically, males who feel strong obligations to reciprocate and have strong preferences for job stability are especially likely to engage in voice behavior. Data collected from 209 employees over an 8-month period support both the proposed two-way and three-way interaction effects. Thus, while the norm of reciprocity is widely held, the effects of felt obligations to employers on voice behavior also depend upon both gender differences and individual differences in preferences for job stability.