Citizenship and Impression Management: Good Soldiers or Good Actors?

Abstract

Previous research on organizational citizenship behavior suggests that employees who engage in such behavior are good soldiers, acting selflessly on behalf of their organizations. However, such behaviors also may be impression enhancing and self-serving. In this article I provide a framework showing how impressionmanagement concerns may motivate citizenship behavior and address the consequences of citizenship in this context, as well as the interaction of impressionmanagement motives with motives identified in previous research on citizenship. Finally, I discuss the methodological issues associated with isolating self-serving from other-serving motivation and implications for future theory development.