The influence of perceived organisational support and organisational commitment on turnover intentions within selected higher education and training institutions in the Western Cape

Abstract

High staff turnover has been a cause for concern for most organisations in South Africa. Tertiary institutions have not been spared. Tertiary institutions that are surviving are the ones that are offering some support to their employees especially in the light of the so-called “publish or perish” adage that is prevalent among tertiary institutions as they compete to be the best in research output and quality. The purpose of the current research study was to answer the question, “What is the influence of Perceived Organisational Support (POS) and organisational commitment on turnover intention among academic staff at selected higher education institutions in the Western Cape Province of South Africa?” In order to answer the research question explaining the hypothesised relationships, the research study developed a theoretical model and tested an explanatory structural model to explain the manner in which POS and organisational commitment contribute to turnover intention.