The Impact of Collectivistic Values and Psychological Needs on Individual Performance with Conscientiousness Acting as a Moderator

Abstract

All organizations are made up of organizational structures, which are made up of individual members who require motivation, development, performance, and psychological fulfilment. Management must exercise caution in upholding collectivist values, which have their roots in classical sociological theory, which opposes citizens’ autonomous desires in relation to social needs in institutions. The application of sociological theory allowed the concepts of individualism and collectivism to be included in psychology and organizational sciences. The goal of this research is to determine the impact of collectivist values and psychological needs on job performance, with conscientiousness acting as a moderator. Participants in this study were employees of public companies in Kosovo that operate in the field of post and telecommunication. A sample of 394 workers from these companies was used to test the hypotheses. We used PROCESS macro model 4 and model 59, as well as multiple regression analysis, to test the research hypotheses. The findings revealed that horizontal and vertical collectivism has a significant effect on work performance. Furthermore, the findings revealed a positive indirect relationship between horizontal and vertical collectivism and job performance via the mediation of psychological needs. Moreover, there was a positive direct relationship between horizontal and vertical collectivism and the three psychological needs, with conscientiousness acting as a moderator. The indirect effect of horizontal and vertical collectivistic values on work performance was found to be significant with moderation of the relatedness for low conscientiousness.

1. Introduction

Cultural values are a very complex concept; they have been studied in various fields including psychology, sociology, and management. Individualism and collectivism as cultural values are the most researched variables in the study of different cultures.

Individualism and collectivism are the most researched variables in the study of various cultures. Since the 1960s, the concept of collectivist values has been shown to be effective in predicting behavioural patterns. Hofstede was the first to measure individualism and collectivism in a variety of cultures, and as a result of these measurements, these dimensions are considered as fundamental in terms of various cultural values [1]. According to Schwartz [2], individualists have personal objectives that may or may not coincide with the objectives of the groups to which they belong. Collectivism is a concept in which individuals are integrated and organically rooted in their social contexts, and they are willing to sacrifice their personal interests for the sake of the community [3].

Employee performance at work is another concept that is closely related to collectivist values. The individual performance of employees at work is defined by Williams and Karau [4] as a concept in which employees fulfil their jobs and obligations according to the description of the duties they have and are compensated by the employer according to the employment contract. Furthermore, studies have shown that collectivist values have an impact on work performance, and individuals who hold collectivist ideas and values perform better at work [5].

Collectivist values have a significant impact on the motivation and performance of employees at work; motivation positively affects the relationship between personality and academic performance [6].

The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of collectivist values and psychological needs on work performance with the moderating effect of conscience for employees of public enterprises Post and Telecom of Kosovo, companies that provide postal services, Internet, and communication in Kosovo.

Several studies in the existing literature have investigated the effect of collectivist values on work performance in various contexts. However, more studies are needed on the questions of how mediating and moderating variables act in this context. Our study adds to the literature by examining the mediating role of psychological needs and the moderating role of conscientiousness in the relationship between horizontal and vertical collectivism on work performance sub-dimensions (in-role and extra-role).

In this study, we first examined the impact of collectivist values (horizontal and vertical) on work performance (in-role and extra-role) for employees of Post and Telecom of Kosovo. Second, the effect of collectivist values on work performance was investigated when they were mediated by psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and connection). Third, we examined how conscientious personality moderates the indirect relationships between collectivism (vertical and horizontal) and performance (in-role and extra-role) via the mediating roles of psychological needs (autonomy, relatedness, and competence).

The motivation for this research is that there is no study in the literature or in Kosovo culture that deals with these concepts and their interactions between their sub-dimensions.

2. Literature Review

The definitions of the variables utilized in this study are provided below, including collectivism dimensions, psychological needs, individual performance, and conscientiousness.

2.1. Collectivism Dimensions (Vertical and Horizontal)

The two-dimensional conceptualization of individualism collectivism (IC) has proven to be a successful predictor of behavioural patterns since the 1960s, and Hofstede first measured individualism and collectivism in several different cultures [1]. As a result, these dimensions are considered fundamental in comprehending various cultural values. Furthermore, in the monograph [7], the following characteristics of individualism and collectivism were proposed:

• Individualists base their beliefs on notions that are independent of the groups to which they belong, whereas collectivists consider themselves vital members of a team or group [8].
• Collectivists believe that individual aims are aligned with group aims, and they believe that if there is a dispute, the group’s goals should take precedence over their own.

2.2. Psychological Needs

Self-determination theory (SDT) is a psychologically based theory that provides sufficient theoretical and empirical scientific data about psychological growth, well-being, and human motivation. This motivation theory has been applied successfully in a variety of disciplines, including healthcare, education, sports and physical activities, psychotherapy, and employee motivation and management [9]. Individuals must comprehend the technique supplied by SDT, as well as what is regarded as the essential nutrient to obtain these capabilities, to readily actualize their intrinsic potential. Individuals require the satisfaction of the three fundamental psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness to attain psychological growth, internalization, and well-being, much as plants require water and sunlight to thrive [10]. The need for autonomy is defined as the need to respect and approve one’s work values. It does not imply the desire to behave independently of others. People want to have ownership over their work and feel psychologically free [10]. For instance, if an employer asks an employee to accomplish a task during their lunch break and the employee agrees, autonomy is granted; yet, if the employee prefers to go out to lunch but is required to stay, autonomy is thwarted [11].

The second basic need in SDT is competence, which relates to the sensation of being effective and competent in one’s tasks and responsibilities. When a person believes they have the necessary abilities, resources, and experience to complete a task successfully, they feel competent [12,13]. The final basic need is relatedness, which satisfies the sense of being significant, supported, and respected by others, as well as the desire to love and care for others [14].

2.3. Job Performance (In-Role and Extra-Role)

Borman and Motowidlo [15] defined task performance as a notion in which personnel contribute to the technical element of the organization through their actions, either directly working on the technological processes in the organization or indirectly providing the necessary supply materials. Ref. [4] defined in-role performance as a notion in which employees accomplish their jobs and obligations according to the description of the duties they have and are compensated according to the employment contract. According to Motowildo et al. [16], task performance, in a wide sense, refers to the processes by which materials are turned into items produced by the firm, as well as actions that enable the company’s efficient operation. Because of this, work performance entails meeting the employer–employee contract’s standards. Extra-role performance differs from in-role performance in that it is not enough to meet formal job criteria; one must go above and above to assist others in completing tasks in organizations [17]. Contextual performance refers to activities that support the organizational, social, and psychological environments but do not directly contribute to organizational performance.

2.4. Conscientiousness

Conscientiousness is a personality attribute that characterizes individual distinctions. Conscientious people are well organized and loving, have self-control, feel responsible for others, and work hard to achieve their goals [18]. Employees who are more conscious analyse and implement their tasks in the workplace more carefully, adhering to their principles and beliefs. They think, analyse, and plan before acting, and they always follow rules and procedures [19]. According to McCrae and Costa [20], conscientious employees have better technical skills, are more organized, and have long-term plans. More responsible people are more attentive to their work, take more initiative, and work harder to complete their tasks. Barrick and Mount [21] found that conscientiousness can be viewed as a motivating concept that has a favourable impact on employee performance at work. In conclusion, people with higher conscientiousness are more motivated to complete their duties and obligations successfully and effectively. As a result, conscientiousness is an important predictor of job motivation and performance.

2.5. Research Hypotheses

To develop the research hypotheses, it is necessary to examine the existing literature, as well as the models and techniques used to test the variables of the study that deal with the effect of collectivist values and psychological needs on work performance.

Mohamed and Abukar [22] investigated the impact of organizational culture on the performance of University of Mogadishu employees in their study. The results of the SPSS analysis revealed that there is a strong positive relationship between organizational culture and employee performance. To achieve excellent results, the study recommends that employees’ skills be continuously improved. Gunaraja [23] conducted research in the Indian banking industry sector, examining the relationship between corporate culture and employee performance. Random sampling was used to select bank employees for interviews. According to the findings, more than half of the employees fully agreed that organizational culture has an impact on employee work performance and increases work productivity. Kim [24] conducted a study with employees from various industries of Korean companies to better understand their cultural value orientations. According to the findings of this study, collectivism has a positive impact on employee commitment at work but a negative impact on creativity, whereas individualism has a negative impact on employee commitment but a positive impact on creativity.

Paschal and Nizam [25] included employees from senior management and new staff in their study of companies in the Singapore telecommunications sector. According to the findings of this study, organizational culture dimensions such as ritual, values, and heroes have a significant positive effect on employee performance at work, whereas the symbol as a cultural value has no effect on performance. Their study conducted in Sarawak, Malaysia [26], included employees in multinational companies from different races who represent different cultural values. The impact of Hofstede’s cultural values on work performance was studied, including Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Individualism vs. Collectivism, and Femininity vs. Masculinity. The study’s findings, which were analysed using IBM SPSS 25.0, revealed a significant positive influence between organizational culture and the performance of employees working in multinational organizations. As a result, the first hypothesis is built on the findings of these previous studies.

Hypothesis (H1). 

There is positive relationship between collectivism dimensions (vertical and horizontal) and performance (role and extra-role).

Figure 1 illustrates the proposed model of the research hypothesis.

2.6. The Basic Psychological Needs as a Mediator

The SDT was used to investigate the impact of psychological needs across cultures. This theory is more commonly known as a Western theory, and it has been criticized for overemphasizing autonomy in relation to other psychological needs. It has also been claimed that autonomy is important for individualistic cultures, but not for collectivistic cultures, such as those found in East Asia [8]. Despite the criticisms, the research which included South Korea, Russia, Turkey, and the United States found that when people were more autonomous (i.e., volitional), they were psychologically healthier in all cultures, and the need for autonomy had a positive effect on both individualists and collectivists [27]. Furthermore, the effect of psychological needs on work performance has been investigated and analysed, for which various theories have been developed, including Maslow’s theory of the hierarchy of needs, Skinner’s theory of reinforcement, the theory of anticipation [28,29]. Many research work based on these theories have emphasized that these variables have a positive relationship. The authors Ek and Mukuru [30] discovered that employee motivation influences their performance in a study conducted in Kenya that included public technical training institutions. Another study on how motivation affects employee performance conducted by Qadir et al. [31], which included public university employees, found a positive relationship between motivation and performance. There has been little scientific research on the role of psychological needs in mediating the effect of collectivist values on work performance.

Junça-Silva and Menino [32] conducted a study that included 290 nursing home healthcare workers. The study’s goal was to examine the mediating role of intrinsic motivation and adaptive performance in the relationship between job characteristics and happiness using SDT. The intrinsic motivation of healthcare workers was found to have a positive effect on work characteristics such as autonomy, feedback, variety, meaning, and task identity, as well as better adaptive performance.

Sadaf et al. [33] investigated the role of three basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) in mediating the relationship between organizational culture and work commitment. According to the findings of the study, only relatedness as a basic psychological need mediated the relationship between organizational culture and work commitment, while the other two basic psychological needs played no significant role in this regard. Lee et al. [34] investigated the mediating effect of perceived psychological contract fulfilment between organizational culture and effective work engagement in their paper. This study included 640 employees from three high-tech companies in China. According to the study’s findings, perceived psychological fulfilment mediates the effects of organizational culture on affective commitment (involvement, sustainability, adaptability, and mission). Al-Musadieq et al. [35] investigated the effect of work motivation mediation on the impact of job design and organizational culture on human resource performance. This study examined the expert and qualified work of construction workers employed by the national consulting firm PT. Yodya Karya (Persero) at the central level and in 11 branches located throughout Indonesia. According to the findings of the study, work motivation has an indirect mediating effect between work design and human resource performance. As a result, we propose:

Hypothesis (H2). 

The basic psychological needs (autonomy, relatedness, and competence) play mediating roles in the relationship between collectivism (vertical and horizontal) and performance (role and extra-role).

2.7. Conscientiousness Personality as a Moderating Role

In this study, we go beyond the previous research by investigating the moderating effect of conscientiousness on collectivist values and employee performance, as well as the mediating effect of psychological needs. Previous research has found that employees with high conscientiousness are more organized, goal-oriented, and cautious in achieving their objectives [36]. As a result, conscientiousness, as one of the five-factor personality traits, is the best predictor of work performance [37]. However, the current paper hypothesizes that conscientiousness can act as a moderator in the relationship between collectivist values and job performance. Barrick et al. [38] in their study discovered that motivation has a positive moderating effect on the relationship between personality traits and work performance. Di Domenico and Fournier [39] conducted another important study in which they investigated conscientiousness, intelligence, and autonomous motivation in the simultaneous prediction of students’ grade point average (GPA). The study findings revealed that conscientiousness was a strong predictor of GPA at levels where autonomous motivation was low. Furthermore, several studies have been conducted in which conscientiousness acted as a moderator between various variables. Korkmazyurek et al. [40] conducted a study in three Turkish cities to examine the relationships between the psychological contract, organizational citizenship behaviours, and five-factor personality trait sub-dimensions (Extraversion, Agreeableness, Openness, Conscientiousness, and Neuroticism). According to the findings of the study, all dimensions of personality types have a moderate effect on psychological contract and organizational citizenship behaviour. Turiano et al. [41] studied the impact of personality types (conscientiousness) on narcotic substance use in middle age. The study was carried out in the United States and included approximately 4000 adults aged 25 to 74. The results showed that when the level of conscientiousness is high, the use of substances is lower. Lin et al. [42] in their paper investigated the moderating role of conscientiousness between work stressors, psychological strain, and work performance. This study included 250 employees from two different companies, and the results show that conscientiousness positively moderated the relationship between work stressors and psychological strain. Conscientiousness also moderated the relationship between difficult stressors and performance. As a result, the following hypothesis is proposed. Hassan et al. [43] investigated the effect of conscientiousness on work performance in the Pakistani context in their paper. This study included 612 employees from the microfinance sector from across Pakistan. The study’s findings demonstrated that conscientiousness is a reliable predictor of performance; the performance of the employees included in the study was strongly related to conscientiousness.

Hypothesis (H3). 

The conscientiousness personality plays moderating roles in the direct and indirect relationships between collectivism (vertical and horizontal) and performance (role and extra-role) with the mediating roles of psychological needs (autonomy, relatedness, and competence).

3. Methodology

During the empirical work on the subject of the impact of collectivistic values and psychological needs on individual performance with the moderating effect of conscientiousness, the methods of analysis, synthesis, and comparative methods were used, and data were collected through surveys.

3.1. Participants

The participants in this research were employees of two major public companies, Post and Telecom of Kosovo. The collection of data was approved by the management of both companies, and the process was organized by the human resources directors. The population of this study was 3728, while the total number of questionnaires distributed in all departments of these enterprises was 1193. From the distributed questionnaires, only 394 of them were collected by the convenient sampling method used for the search (return rate of 33.9%).

3.2. Procedure

We used PROCESS macro [44] model 4 and model 59, as well as multiple regression analysis, to test the research hypotheses, controlling for all demographic variables to investigate the relationship between independent and dependent variables. Prior to performing the search analysis, we structured the variables in the search tools based on them.

To accomplish this, we first translated all the study instruments into Albanian using Sinaiko and Brislin [45] five-step intercultural methodology. In the first step, the questionnaires were independently translated from English into Albanian by two professionals whose target language level was their mother tongue. In the second step, an independent translation was performed by a university lecturer in the field of management to ensure that the textual content was fair and that the questionnaires used in the study were generally understood.

In the third step, the research questionnaires were then translated back into the source language by professionals with advanced English language skills. The translations obtained in the fourth step were checked and compared with the original questionnaires to be studied; some necessary corrections were made during the professional interpretation process. In the final step, a researcher with a doctorate in the same field of study was asked to assess the appropriateness, content, and meaning of the instruments used in this study. We tested the validity and reliability of all scales for our sample after translation.

Prior to performing the regression analysis, we built all the study variables using the item loadings as calculating references. Our dependent variables in the study were sub-dimensions of in-role and extra-role job performance, and our independent variables were collectivism in vertical and horizontal sub-dimensions. The basic psychological needs, sub-dimensions of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, were both independent and dependent variables, with conscientiousness acting as a moderator.

3.3. Instruments

3.3.1. Scale of Psychological Needs

To assess psychological needs, we used the Basic Work Needs Satisfaction Scale developed and used in the study by [9]. We used the original scale, which had 21 items, to assess the three psychological needs, competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Participants answered these items on a 5-point scale (ranging from 1 = not at all true to 5 = very true).

3.3.2. The Collectivistic Values

To measure collectivist and individualistic values, we used 16 items from [1]. We created a 5-point rating scale from (ranging from 1 = Absolutely disagree to 5 = Absolutely agree).

3.3.3. Conscientiousness

To create the conscientiousness measurement, we used items used by Costa et al. [36] which were answered on a 5-point Likert-type scale from (ranging from 1 = never to 5 = always).

4. Results

To test the hypotheses of the study variables with hierarchical regression analyses, we used the mean score of each scale. To test the mediation and moderation hypotheses, we used the PROCESS macro [44], a statistical package for macrosocial sciences.

Table 1. Means, standard deviation, reliabilities, and correlations.

		Mean	SD		(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)
1	Age	42.406	10.24		1
2	Gender	1.59	0.49		0.055	1
3	Marital Status	1.94	0.45		0.334 **	−0.135 *	1
4	Education	1.98	0.75		−0.076	0.081	−0.084	1
5	Tenure	12.52	8.36		0.680 **	0.067	0.185 **	−0.087	1
6	Conscientiousness	4.42	0.42		−0.128 *	−0.038	−0.039	0.043	−0.126 *
7	Horizontal Collectivism	4.64	0.41		−0.082	0.009	−0.210 **	−0.005	−0.052
8	Vertical Collectivism	4.61	0.40		−0.037	0.038	−0.087	−0.128 *	−0.036
9	Autonomy	4.60	0.48		−0.133 *	0.048	−0.141 *	−0.065	−0.078
10	Relatedness	4.58	0.49		−0.113 *	0.085	−0.118 *	−0.098	−0.071
11	Competence	4.59	0.49		−0.167 **	−0.047	−0.206 **	−0.079	−0.111 *
12	Task Performance	4.69	0.37		0.010	0.019	−0.050	0.039	−0.039
13	Contextual Performance	4.53	0.47		0.058	0.063	−0.131 *	−0.104	−0.110 *
		(6)	(7)	(8)	(9)	(10)	(11)	(12)	(13)
1	Age
2	Gender
3	Marital Status
4	Education
5	Tenure
6	Conscientiousness	(0.72)
7	Horizontal Collectivism	0.451 **	(0.80)
8	Vertical Collectivism	0.422 **	0.522 **	(0.70)
9	Autonomy	0.362 **	0.398 **	0.288 **	(0.81)
10	Relatedness	0.348 **	0.474 **	0.463 **	0.312 **	(0.88)
11	Competence	0.349 **	0.406 **	0.354 **	0.356 **	0.371 **	(0.80)
12	Task Performance	0.215 **	0.288 **	0.388 **	0.189 **	0.258 **	0.289 **	(0.66)
13	Contextual Performance	0.356 **	0.458 **	0.425 **	0.262 **	0.334 **	0.294 **	0.329 **	(0.76)

N = 394, * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01

presents means, standard deviations, reliabilities, and correlations for all variables studied. The results from Table 1 show that the average age of the participants was 42.406 with a standard deviation of 10.24 years. When the average tenure of the participants was considered, the average tenure was found to be 12.52 years with a standard deviation of 8.36 years. The results also revealed that the mean of all study variables is greater than the mean value of 2.5, indicating that the participants correctly understood all the study variable questions.

Moreover, correlation analysis was performed to determine whether there was a relationship between the variables, and the direction and strength of the relationship. When Table 1 is examined for the demographics variables, age has positive correlations with marital status (r = 0.334, p < 0.01) and tenure (r = 0.680, p < 0.01), and negative correlations with conscientiousness (r = −0.128, p < 0.05), autonomy (r = −0.133, p < 0.05), relatedness (r = −0.123, p < 0.05), and competence (r = 0.167, p < 0.01). Gender has negative relations with marital status (r = −0.135, p < 0.05). Marital status has positive correlations with tenure (r = 0.185, p < 0.01) and negative correlations with horizontal collectivism (r = −0.210, p < 0.01), autonomy (r = −0.141, p < 0.05), relatedness (r = −0.118, p < 0.05), competence (r = −0.206, p < 0.01), and extra-role performance (r = −0.131, p < 0.05). Furthermore, education has negative correlations with vertical collectivism (r = −0.128, p < 0.05). Tenure has negative correlations with conscientiousness (r = −0.126, p < 0.05), competence (r = −0.111, p < 0.05), and extra-role performance (r = −0.206, p < 0.01).

On the other hand, when the control variables are examined, we can see that conscientiousness has positive correlations with horizontal collectivism (r = 0.451, p < 0.01), vertical collectivism (r = 0.422, p < 0.01), autonomy (r = 0.362, p < 0.01), relatedness (r = 0.348, p < 0.01), competence (r = 0.349, p < 0.01), in-role performance (r = 0.215, p < 0.01), and extra-role performance (r = 0.356, p < 0.01). Horizontal collectivism has positive correlations with vertical collectivism (r = 0.522, p < 0.01), autonomy (r = 0.398, p < 0.01), relatedness (r = 0.474, p < 0.01), competence (r = 0.406, p < 0.01), in-role performance (r = 0.288, p < 0.01), and extra-role performance (r = 0.458, p < 0.01).Vertical collectivism has positive correlations with autonomy (r = 0.288, p < 0.01), relatedness (r = 0.463, p < 0.01), competence (r = 0.354, p < 0.01), in-role performance (r = 0.388, p < 0.01), and extra-role performance (r = 0.425, p < 0.01). Autonomy has positive correlations with relatedness (r = 0.312, p < 0.01), competence (r = 0.356, p < 0.01), in-role performance (r = 0.189, p < 0.01), and extra-role performance (r = 0.262, p < 0.01). Relatedness has positive correlations with competence (r = 0.371, p < 0.01), in-role performance (r = 0.258, p < 0.01), and extra-role performance (r = 0.334, p < 0.01). Competence has positive correlations with in-role performance (r = 0.289, p < 0.01) and extra-role performance (r = 0.294, p < 0.01). In-role performance has a positive correlation with extra-role performance (r = 0.329, p < 0.01).

To test H1, we created four different hierarchical regression models (

Table 2. Regression analysis.

Independent Variables	Dependent Variables
	In-Role Performance
	Model 1 (1 Step)				Model 2 (2 Steps)
	β	SE	t	Sig.	β	SE	t	Sig.
Constant		0.15	31.094	0		0.501	5.14	0
Age	0.089	0.003	1.115	0.265	0.085	0.003	1.138	0.256
Gender	0.009	0.043	0.153	0.878	−0.005	0.041	−0.091	0.928
Marital Status	−0.59	0.05	−0.982	0.327	−0.009	0.047	−0.157	0.875
Education	0.036	0.028	0.645	0.219	0.090	0.027	1.687	0.093
Tenure	−0.84	0.003	−1.097	0.273	−0.063	0.003	−0.877	0.381
Horizontal Collectivism					0.112	0.059	1.704	0.089
Vertical Collectivism					0.333	0.060	5.170	0.000
R			0.093			0.420
R2			0.09			0.176
R2 change			0.09			0.122
F			0.552			11.490
Sig.			0.736			0.000
Independent Variables	Dependent Variables
	Extra-Role Performance
	Model 3 (1 step)				Model 4 (2 steps)
	β	SE	t	Sig	β	SE	t	Sig.
Constant		0.179	25.563	0.000		0.542	3.096	0.002
Age	0.314	0.004	4.110	0.000	0.307	0.003	4.736	0.000
Gender	0.052	0.052	0.955	0.340	0.045	0.044	0.979	0.328
Marital Status	−0.183	0.059	−3.170	0.002	−0.085	0.051	−1.716	0.087
Education	−0.125	0.034	−2.324	0.021	−0.088	0.029	−1.908	0.057
Tenure	−0.304	0.004	−4.149	0.000	−0.257	0.003	−4.166	0.000
Horizontal Collectivism					0.248	0.064	4.375	0.000
Vertical Collectivism					0.157	0.065	2.83	0.005
R			0.303			0.620
R2			0.092			0.385
R2 change			0.092			0.122
F			6.409			15.423
Sig.			0.000			0.000

N = 394.

). In Model 1, the effects of demographic variables such as age, gender, marital status, education, and tenure were examined to explain in-role performance. The results of this model revealed that demographic variables had no significant effect on role performance. For Model 2, demographic variables were entered in the first step and collectivism (vertical and horizontal) was entered in the second step, with in-role performance as the dependent variable. The results shows that only vertical collectivism had a significant effect on in-role performance (β = 0.333, p < 0.01). In Model 3, none of the demographic variables were related to extra-role performance. After controlling demographic variables (step 1), collectivism (vertical and horizontal) was tested in Model 4 to explain extra-role performance. According to the findings, horizontal collectivism significantly increased extra-role performance (β = 0.248, p < 0.01), while vertical collectivism significantly increased both in-role (β = 0.333, p < 0.01) and extra-role performance (β = 0.157, p < 0.05). All these findings indicated that horizontal collectivism increases in-role performance while vertical collectivism increases both in-role and extra-role performance, indicating that H1 is partially supported.

4.1. The Test of Mediation

To test H2, we used model 4 of the PROCESS macro by Hayes [44] to test the mediation hypothesis. Hypothesis 2 predicted an indirect relationship between horizontal and vertical collectivism and job performance (role and extra role) with basic psychological needs acting as mediators (autonomy, relatedness, and competence). The results of the direct and indirect effects are reported in

Table 3. Bootstrapping results for direct and indirect effects.

Direct Effect	Effect	S. E		t
HC → IP	0.136 *	0.057		2.3
VC → IP	0.282 **	0.055		5.09
HC → EP	0.385 **	0.067		5.74
VC → EP	0.353 **	0.067		5.25
Indirect effect	Effect	S. E	LL95%CI	UL95%CI
(95% Bias-Corrected
Confidence Interval method)
HC → Autonomy → IP	0.064	0.24	0.018	0.11
VC → Autonomy → IP	0.050	0.021	0.010	0.096
VC → Relatedness → EP	0.067	0.25	0.003	0.139

N = 394, * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01. HC, Horizontal collectivism; VC vertical collectivism; IP, In-role performance; EP, Extra-role performance; LL, Lower limit; UL, Upper limit; CI, Confidence interval; S.E, Standard error.

. Regarding the indirect effect, the Bootstrap 5000 results showed that horizontal collectivism has a positive effect on in-role performance with a part mediation of autonomy (β = 0.064, CI: 0.018, 0.115), and vertical collectivism has a positive effect on in-role performance with a part mediation of autonomy (β = 0.050, CI: 0.010, 0.096). The results also showed that vertical collectivism has a positive effect on extra-role performance with a part mediation of relatedness (β = 0.067, CI: 0.003, 0.139). Because there is no zero between the upper- and lower-level confidence intervals (CI), the results are significant. Based on the above results, we have partial mediation, which partly supports H2.

4.2. Testing for Moderated Mediation

To examine Hypothesis 3, we used the PROCESS macro model 59 developed by Hayes [44] to test moderated mediation. We estimated the parameters in three regression models. In Model 1, we evaluated the moderating effect of conscientiousness on the relationship between horizontal and vertical collectivism and job performance (in-role and extra-role). In Model 2, we assessed the moderating effect of conscientiousness between horizontal and vertical collectivism and three psychological needs (autonomy, relatedness, and competence). In Model 3, we evaluated the moderating effect of conscientiousness between three psychological needs and job performance (in-role and extra-role). As shown in

Table 4. Testing the moderated mediation effect of collectivism (vertical and horizontal) on performance (in-role and extra-role).

Predictors	Model 1 (JP)				Model 2 (PN)
	In-Role		Extra-Role		Autonomy		Relatedness		Competence
	b	t	b	t	b	t	b	t	b	t
HC					1.76	3.78 *	2.29	5.09 **	2.471	5.362 **
VC	2.59	7.53 **	--	--	1.43	3.04 *	1.74	3.91 *	2.09	4.55 **
HC × C	---	---	--	--	−0.341	−3.07 *	−0.438 **	−4.09 **	−0.505 **	−4.611 **
VC × C	−0.540	−6.619	--	--	−0.295	−2.64 *	−0.305	−2.89 *	−0.429	−3.926 **
Relatedness	---	---	--	--	---	---	---	---	---	---
Competence	---	---	--	--	---	---	---	---	---	---
Relatedness × C	---	---	--	--	---	---	---	---	---	---
Competence × C	---	---	--	--	---	---	---	---	---	---
R2	0.255	----			0.223	----	0.284	---	0.248	---
F	36.657 **	---			30.796 *	----	42.636 **	---	35.448 **	---
Predictors	Model 3 (JP)
	In-Role		Extra-Role
	b		t			b		t
HC	---		---			---		---
VC	---		---			---		---
HC × C	---		---			---		---
VC × C	---		---			---		---
Relatedness	---		---			2.210		3.741 *
Competence	---		---			8.600		9.432 *
Relatedness × C	---		---			−0.481		−3.595 **
Competence × C	---		---			0.382		2.932 *
R2	---		---			0.291		---
F	---		---			14.400 *		---

N = 394. Each column is a regression model that predicts the criterion at the top of the column. JP, Job performance; PN, Phycological needs; HC, Horizontal collectivism; VC, Vertical collectivism; C, Conscientiousness. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01.

, there was a significant effect of vertical collectivism on in-role performance in Model 1, β = 2.594, p < 0.01, but this effect was negatively moderated by conscientiousness, β = −0.540, p < 0.01. Model 2 revealed that horizontal collectivism had a significant effect on three psychological needs (autonomy, relatedness, and competence). In autonomy, β = 1.766, p 0.01, but this effect was moderated negatively by conscientiousness, β = −0.341, p < 0.05. In relatedness, β = 2.291, p < 0.01, and this effect was also negatively moderated by conscientiousness, β = −0.438, p < 0.01. Competence was also significant, β = 2.4716, p < 0.01, but was negatively moderated by conscientiousness, β = −0.505, p < 0.01. Vertical collectivism showed that it had a significant effect on three psychological needs (autonomy, relatedness, and competence). In autonomy, β = 1.432, p < 0.05, but this effect was negatively moderated by conscientiousness, β = −0.295, p < 0.05. In relatedness, β = 1.745, p < 0.01, but it was negatively moderated by conscientiousness, β = −0.305, p < 0.05. In competence, β = 2.099, p < 0.01, but it was also negatively moderated by conscientiousness, β = −0.4292, p < 0.01. Model 3 revealed that relatedness had a significant effect on extra-role performance, β = 2.210, p < 0.05, but this effect was negatively moderated by conscientiousness, β = −0.481. Similarly, the effect of competence on extra-role performance was found to be significant, β = 8.600, p < 0.05, but this effect was positively moderated by conscientiousness, β = 0.382. For descriptive purposes, we plotted the predicted collectivistic values against job performance, separately for low and high levels of conscientiousness (1 SD below the mean and 1 SD above the mean, respectively; Figure 2). Simple slope tests showed that for employees with high levels of conscientiousness, collectivist values did not have any impact on work performance, β = −0.0844, p = 0.2992. However, for employees with low levels of conscientiousness, vertical collectivism was significant for job performance, β = 0.4341, p < 0.01. In other words, the impact of vertical collectivism on work performance increases with the reduction in conscientiousness.

The bias-corrected percentile bootstrap method further indicated that the indirect effect of vertical collectivist values on extra-role performance was significant with the mediation of relatedness for low conscientiousness, β = 0.149, SE = 0.044, 95% CI = [0.070, 0.247]. Similarly, the indirect effect on extra-role performance was significant for employees with horizontal collectivist values, with the moderation of the relatedness for low conscientiousness, β = 0.133, SE = 0.047, 95% CI = [0.052, 0.236]. On the contrary, for employees with high levels of conscientiousness, the indirect effect was weak and unmodified. As a result, Hypothesis 3 was partially supported.

5. Discussion

The impact of collectivist values on work performance has been studied by many early researchers who have produced good empirical data. However, more data are needed for the questions of how mediating and moderating variables work in this context.

Unlike the previous research, this study investigated the effects of horizontal and vertical collectivism on work performance sub-dimensions (in-role and extra-role), the effect of these two variables through the mediation of psychological needs such as autonomy, competence, and relatedness, as well as the use of conscientiousness as a moderator. According to the findings of our study, employees of the public enterprises Post and Telecom of Kosovo with collectivistic tendencies (horizontal and vertical) promote work performance.

Regarding the first hypothesis, our findings revealed a positive relationship between horizontal and vertical collectivism and the two sub-dimensions of workplace performance. This finding indicates that a positive organizational culture improves employee efficiency and effectiveness at work. Keeping this in mind, we proposed that the management of these enterprises need to promote more horizontal and vertical collectivist values in these enterprises because employees who have these values are more effective at work and perform better in their workplaces. These findings are consistent with the findings of Agwu [46] and Gunaraja [23].

5.1. The Mediating Role of Psychological Needs

Our second hypothesis concerned the relationship between collectivism (vertical and horizontal) and job performance (in-role and extra-role) in terms of the mediation of psychological needs. We hypothesized that the three psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) would have a positive mediating role between collectivist values and job performance, but the results showed otherwise. Autonomy showed that there is an indirect positive mediating role between horizontal and vertical collectivism and in-role performance, while it was proven that relatedness shows a positive indirect relationship between vertical collectivism and extra-role performance. This study has important implications for the management of public enterprises. They should pay special attention to meeting the psychological needs of employees in the workplace. The more employees feel autonomous in their workplace, the better their work performance is. Additionally, meeting employees’ needs for relatedness also has a positive effect on their performance because it increases their support and respect from their colleagues. The findings suggest that meeting employees’ psychological needs at work has a positive effect on their motivation and work performance.

Our findings are not in line with those of [32], who in his study investigated the role of three basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness) in mediating the relationship between organizational culture and work commitment. According to the findings of the study, only relatedness as a basic psychological need mediated the relationship between organizational culture and work commitment, while the other two basic psychological needs played no significant role in this regard.

5.2. The Moderating Role of Conscientiousness

The impact of collectivist values on work performance has begun to gain empirical support from different authors. However, questions regarding the underlying mediating and moderating mechanisms remain largely unknown. Our study adds to the literature by examining the moderating role of conscientiousness in the indirect relationship between collectivism (vertical and horizontal) and performance (in-role and extra-role) through the mediating roles of psychological needs (autonomy, relatedness, and competence).

Our findings confirmed the moderating role of conscientiousness in the indirect relationship between horizontal and vertical collectivism and the three psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness). We discovered that conscientiousness moderated the relationship between horizontal and vertical collectivism and three psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness).

Furthermore, the results revealed that conscientiousness positively moderated the influence of vertical collectivism on in-role performance. Our results also support the view that individuals with collectivistic values show better performance on in-role performance. Post and telecom employees who possess more vertical collectivist values are more engaged and fulfil their work tasks more successfully. Our findings in this study are in line with those of [41].

Furthermore, in terms of performance, our findings revealed that the relationship between extra-role performance and relatedness is moderated by conscientiousness, as well as the relationship between competence and extra-role performance is moderated by conscientiousness. Our findings revealed that employees of public enterprises who are more conscientious and competent at work can perform even more work and tasks than those described in their workplace. Regarding the indirect effect of conscientiousness, the findings revealed a positive relationship between vertical collectivism and extra-role performance for low conscientiousness, as well as a positive relationship between horizontal collectivism and extra-role performance for low conscientiousness. Regarding the third hypothesis, our findings are consistent with those of previous authors [36,40].

This study’s key finding is that cultural values have a significant impact on employee performance at work. Meeting employees’ psychological needs at work also increases their intrinsic motivation, which has a positive effect on job performance. Managers of Kosovo’s public enterprises, post and telecom, must be mindful of psychological needs such as autonomy, competence, and connection. Fulfilling these psychological needs influences their internal motivation and improves their performance [32].

6. Conclusions

In conclusion, this study is one of the few that demonstrates the mediating role of psychological needs and the moderating role of conscientiousness between individualism, collectivism, and job performance (in-role and extra-role). It demonstrates how employees’ horizontal and vertical collective values influence work performance. The study’s findings add to the previous research by clarifying the effect of mediation and moderation between collectivist values and work performance. In this study, psychological needs served as a mediating mechanism between collectivist values and job performance. Furthermore, conscientiousness moderated the mediation mechanism both directly and indirectly. Our findings highlight the significance of the moderated mediation model in understanding the mechanism that links collectivist values and job performance among Kosovo post and telecom employees.

Based on the findings of the research, the management of the enterprise should promote the collectivist values of the employees; the promotion of these values affects the increase in work performance for the employees in these enterprises.

Also, the enterprise’s management should work harder to meet the psychological needs of its employees, as meeting those needs affects both their intrinsic motivation and their work performance.