Using the organisational attachment theory (St. Clair, 2000), this study explores organisational commitment as an aspect of individual’s psychological attachment (an individual’s psychological and emotional bond between the individual and the organisation). Organisational commitment relates to the emotional attachment of an employee to an organisation (affective commitment), feeling obligated to remain with the organisation (normative commitment), and concerns about the perceived loss or cost of leaving an organisation (continuance) (Coetzee et al., 2019; Meyer & Allen, 1991; Qureshi et al., 2017).

Employees’ organisational commitment reflects the attitudes and behaviour of an employee towards the organisation and the foundation of the psychological attachment that a person has towards a specific course of action, such as intention to stay within an organisation (St. Clair, 2000). Meyer and Allen (1991) distinguished between attitudinal and behavioural commitments. Attitudinal commitment involves the process that individuals follow in establishing relationships and connections with their organisations. Conversely, behavioural commitment involves the inability to leave the current employment because of several reasons and how individuals deal with the situation or reasons. According to Potgieter and Ferreira (2018), affective commitment originates from emotions and feelings in the workplace (such as loyalty, belongingness, pleasure and affection). Affective commitment can be enhanced by fulfilling basic psychological needs for feeling competent, feeling that one belongs and has close connections with and support from others (Meyer & Allen, 1991, 1997). Continuance commitment is a psychological state or mindset about the perceived threat of leaving an organisation (Meyer & Allen, 1991). Perceived threats may include the perceived costs of leaving (such as loss of salary, seniority, pension, loss of social connections, and job-specific competencies).

Employees may not want to lose some of the advantages or benefits offered by the organisation; therefore, they may choose to stay attached to the organisation (Meyer & Allen, 1991). However, employees may feel obligated to remain attached to an organisation (normative commitment). According to Meyer and Allen (1997), normative commitment is associated with the perceived responsibility to remain with the organisation, internalised through socialisation processes (familial and cultural) that occur both before and after the start of employment.

Meyer and Herscovitch (2001) found that affective commitment generates emotional attachments that can result in employees developing a sense of obligation (normative commitment) to remain with the organisation. Employees may, however, display normative commitment but have very low levels of affective commitment towards the organisation. Exploring organisational commitment through the lens of attachment theory (St. Clair, 2000), the psychological states of affective, continuance, and normative commitment, are temporary mindsets influenced by conditions and experiences in the organisational attachment system, which either support employees’ sense of employment security or give rise to perceived threats to their employment security. The constructs of career navigation and career well-being represent psychological needs that associate with an employee’s sense of psychological security within the organisation.

Career agility (as an attribute of career adaptability) is an attribute needed by individuals to display proactive career planning, make career decisions, explore career opportunities, and display career self-efficacy beliefs (Coetzee, Ferreira, & Potgieter, 2021b; Nilforooshan, 2020). Alisic and Wiese (2020) suggested that career agility is an important externally driven psychological attribute needed to effectively adapt to career insecurity and engage in career self-management behaviours.

Coetzee et al. (2021b) described career navigation as a facet of career agility where individuals can efficiently and positively display problem-solving behaviour, scan the environment for new career opportunities, and are aware of opportunities and challenges within the job market. Individuals with a high career navigation ability are open-minded career adapters and actively seek new jobs or career opportunities within the changing labour market context (Coetzee et al., 2021b).

Chamanifard, Nikpour, Chamanifard and Nobarieidishe (2015) found that career agility significantly influenced organisational commitment. Research by Coetzee, Bester, Ferreira and Potgieter (2020) showed that career navigation is an important career coping behaviour that influences an individual’s ability to display career self-management and career development behaviour.

Career well-being (as an intrinsic driven and positive psychological condition) reflects an individuals’ long-term contentment with their career outcomes, achievements, success, and changes, and commitment amidst the complexities of the new normal working context (Bester, Coetzee, Ferreira, & Potgieter, 2019). Coetzee et al. (2021a) differentiated between three facets of career well-being, including positive career affect (which involves feelings of career growth and satisfaction), career networking/social support (positive feelings about career and social support), and career meaningfulness (positive feelings about the value and worth of one’s career).

Positive career affect refers to positive emotions resulting from psychological states. Individuals with high positive career affect mostly feel satisfied with the given conditions to achieve their career goals. Typical positive affective career states of well-being include feeling satisfied with one’s chosen career and the achievement of career goals, feelings supported within one’s career, and feeling that necessary resources are available to support achieving career goals (Engelbrecht, 2019). Tugade and Fredrickson (2004) found that positive emotions decrease stress. Reich, Zautra and Hall (2010) found that positive emotions are coping mechanisms that can effectively suppress negative emotions and increase innovative thinking and problem-solving behaviour.

Career networking/social support refers to the perceptions of an individual that they have a network of people that supports their career goals and that this support network can easily be approached to assist in achieving career goals. Potgieter (2019) noted that individuals with a high career network/social support psychological state believe that feedback from the social support network may enhance their strengths. Several authors found social support to be an essential coping mechanism to deal with stressful conditions and situations (Ferreira, 2021; Potgieter, 2021; Reich et al., 2010).

Career meaningfulness alludes to the belief that one’s career has meaning, and being involved in this career is a matter of personal choice. According to Coetzee et al. (2021a), individuals with high career meaningfulness experience their career as worthwhile and valuable, and believe that their careers contribute to the bigger picture and enhance lives (Allan, Rolniak, & Bouchard, 2020; Coetzee et al., 2021a). Li (2018) found that a sense of purpose (which is related to career meaningfulness) is an essential coping mechanism in stressful working conditions. Reich et al. (2010) suggested that career meaningfulness significantly predicted career resilience, job satisfaction, and career well-being. Believing that one’s career has meaning, creates optimism about the future and denotes motivation to cope with stressful working conditions (Masten & Wright, 2010).

Whilst numerous studies report the importance of psychological attachment, no study was found on the mechanisms accounting for individuals’ psychological attachment in the new normal working context. To address this research gap, the present study focuses on career navigation (i.e. externally driven psychological states) and career well-being (i.e. intrinsic driven states) as explanatory mechanisms of psychological attachment.

A convenience sample of employed adults (n = 177, average age: 34 years, standard deviation [SD]: 10.14) participated in this research study. The majority of the participants were employed within South Africa (72%), although the sample was represented by adults across the world (Western Europe: 12%; Eastern Europe: 6%; Africa: 6%; the USA: 2%; New Zealand: 2%). Participants on the managerial level (39%) and staff level (38%) were almost equally represented. The sample consisted of predominantly white people (67%) which were mostly women (54%).

Data were collected via the professional LinkedIn online platform. An electronic link to the questionnaire was sent to all participants. Responses were captured on an Excel spreadsheet and converted into an Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) file for data analysis purposes.

Ethical clearance to conduct this study was obtained from the University of South Africa CEMS/IOP (ERC Ref#: 2020_CEMS/IOP_014). Research Ethics Review committee (No. 2019_CEMS/IOP_010).

Descriptive statistics, bivariate correlations, and multiple regression analysis were performed using SAS/STAT® software version 9.4M5© (2017). Tolerance (less than 0.20) and the variance inflation factor (VIF exceeding 4.0) were utilised to assess any concerns about multicollinearity. Results were interpreted at the 95% confidence interval (CI) level.

Table 1 shows that the internal composite consistency reliability coefficients for all the constructs were high (≥ 0.64 to ≤ 0.91). The well-being facet of affective state significantly and positively correlated with career navigation (r ≥ 0.18; p = 0.01; small practical effect), affective commitment (r ≥ 0.36; p = 0.001; medium practical effect), and normative commitment (r ≥ 0.28; p = 0.01; small practical effect). Affective state was also found to significantly and negatively correlate with continuance commitment (r ≥ –0.33; p = 0.001; medium practical effect).

Social support/career networking as a facet of career well-being significantly and positively correlated with career navigation (r ≥ 0.34; p = 0.001; medium practical effect), affective commitment (r ≥ 0.30; p = 0.001; medium practical effect), and normative commitment (r ≥ 0.23; p = 0.01; small practical effect). Social support/career networking was also found to significantly and negatively correlate with continuance commitment (r ≥ –0.16; p = 0.05; small practical effect).

Career meaningfulness significantly and positively correlated with career navigation (r ≥ 0.29; p = 0.001; small practical effect), affective commitment (r ≥ 0.38; p = 0.001; medium practical effect), and normative commitment (r ≥ 0.22; p = 0.01; small practical effect). Career meaningfulness was also found to significantly and negatively correlate with continuance commitment (r ≥ −0.16; p = 0.05; small practical effect). Career navigation significantly and negatively correlated with continuance commitment (r ≥ −0.17; p = 0.05; small practical effect) and normative commitment (r ≥ −0.19; p = 0.05; small practical effect).

Table 2 shows that all the three organisational commitment models were practically significant: Model 1 (affective commitment): F = 9.10; p = 0.0001; R² = 0.19 (small practical effect); Model 2 (normative commitment): F = 7.23; p = 0.0001; R² = 0.15 (small practical effect) and Model 3 (continuance commitment): F = 6.08; p = 0.0001; R² = 0.13 (small practical effect). The tolerance values for all the models were greater than 0.30 and the VIF values were lower than 0.26 which showed that multicollinearity was not a threat to the findings.

As shown in Figure 1 and Table 2, affective organisational commitment was positively and significantly predicted by career meaningfulness (β = 0.26; p = 0.008). Career navigation was a statistically and negative predictor or affective commitment (β = −0.21; p = 0.004).

Normative commitment was positively and significantly predicted by career networking/social support (β = 0.20; p = 0.03). Career navigation was a statistically and negative predictor or affective commitment (β = −0.30; p = 0.001). Continuance commitment was negatively and significantly predicted by career navigation (β = −0.217; p = 0.03) and affective career state (β = −0.41; p = 0.001).

The empirical study findings may have practical implications for enhancing employees’ psychological attachment within the new normal working context. The results suggest that organisational career development practices should be designed to cultivate the positive states of career well-being and career navigation attributes to enhance employees’ psychological attachment to the organisation. Psychological attachment to the organisation is generally considered instrumental to meaningful career goal achievement (Xie, Zhou, Huang, & Xia, 2017). Organisations should engage in interventions to enhance their employee’s psychological attachment to the organisation. Career development interventions can include career discussions with employees regarding the support they receive from the organisation to achieve career goals and expectations to enhance career meaningfulness. Organisations should facilitate social opportunities to form and develop social connections to enhance career networks and social support structures. Employees should be guided and provided with resources to navigate their careers and identify opportunities within the new normal working context. Such guidance may assist employees with the cognitive restructuring of change into a sense of competence rather than weakness in coping.