BREACH OF THE PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTRACT AND PSYCHOSOCIAL RISKS : CONSERVATION OF RESOURCE THEORY IN INTERVENTIONRESEARCH

Abstract

Public organizations suffer from many transformations with sometimes serious consequences for public officers. The psychological contract (modeling
the employment relationship) that binds the agent to
his organization is called into question. This article
aims to discuss those processes in order to understand these changes and protect health of workers. It
aims to provide elements of understanding of the
relationship between breach of the psychological
contract and suffering at work in public organizations.
This intervention research examines the links
between rupture of psychological contract and damage of resources. This research takes place in a public service devoted to elderly and disabled people.
This intervention-research covered for a period of
one full year. We question both a public specific
psychological contract and usual constraints such as
increased workload and scarcity of resources.
Our results show the importance of collective
resources in the reconstruction process. The violation of the psychological contract primarily concerned basic resources which constitute the heart of
the contract. The research approach reveals the relevance of intervention-research methodology in the
development of occupational health management
theory.