Ethnic obligation and employee well-being : The moderating role of relative deprivation

Abstract

In this paper, we propose that ethnic obligation is a norm that regulates the obligations of ethnic group members to each other and then examine its effects on well-being in a context where ethnicity is salient. Using a strain theory perspective, along with primary and secondary data sets, we found relative deprivation to be a moderator in the relationship between ethnic obligation and the well-being of individuals in both work and non-work contexts. The findings challenge previous findings on the structural perspective of ethnicity and help explain well-being in an under-researched cultural context.