The Moderating Role of Gender between Perceived Organizational Support and Teacher Commitment

Abstract

In the field of higher education, private universities have recently faced the dual pressures of institutional growth and high teacher turnover. Teacher commitment is considered a key factor in reducing turnover, and perceived organizational support plays a crucial role in promoting teacher commitment.  In addition, gender as a moderating variable should not be ignored as gender differences may affect teachers' perceptions of and responses to organizational support, thus producing different effects in the formation of teacher commitment. This study aims to explore the moderating role of gender between perceived organizational support and teacher commitment. Through data analysis of 417 teachers from five private universities in China, the study found that teachers' perceived organizational support and teacher commitment were both at moderate levels, and that perceived organizational support positively affected teacher commitment. Moreover, gender played a significant moderating role in this relationship, with female teachers demonstrating a stronger association between perceived organizational support and teacher commitment than male teachers. This conclusion further emphasizing the need to consider gender-differentiated management strategies when promoting teacher commitment.