Boundary conditions of the impact of high-performance work systems on flourishing and job performance: an organizational justice perspective

Purpose This study examines the role of employees' perceptions of organizational justice in shaping the effects of high-performance work systems (HPWS) on job performance through employee well-being, operationalized as flourishing. Design/methodology/approach Using a two-source, two-wave time-lagged survey design, data were collected from 292 full-time employees across multiple industries. Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling in AMOS and the PROCESS macro. Findings HPWS positively influence employee flourishing, which mediates the relationship between HPWS and job performance. More importantly, the effect of HPWS on flourishing is contingent on employees' perceptions of organizational justice, thereby conditioning the indirect relationship between HPWS and job performance through flourishing. Originality/value While the past decade has seen growing interest in unpacking the how – the black box of HRM – relatively little attention has been paid to the when, or the boundary conditions under which HPWS influence outcomes. To the best of current knowledge, this is the first study to examine organizational justice as a boundary condition of the HPWS–outcomes relationship.