Psychological Capital as a Mediator in the Link between Organizational Socialization and Job Performance in Chinese Higher Education Teachers

This research examines the relationships between organizational socialization, psychological capital, and job performance within Chinese higher education institutions, with an emphasis on the implications for institutional sustainability. Utilizing a quantitative methodology, this study surveyed 1079 faculty members across various universities in China to assess how organizational socialization influences job performance (task, contextual, adaptive, and counterproductive dimensions) both directly and indirectly through psychological capital (self-efficacy, optimism, hope, and resilience). Statistical analyses with the Process 4.2. Macros for SPSS 29.01 have been conducted using model 4. The analysis indicates that organizational socialization has a positive direct effect on task performance, both contextual and adaptive, but a negative effect on counterproductive performance. A significant positive relationship between organizational socialization and each of the psychological capital components has been found. The psychological capital components each played a unique role in mediating the relationship between organizational socialization and the different performance dimensions. These findings suggest that strategic socialization practices can significantly improve both the immediate and long-term performance outcomes of faculty members. This study contributes to the understanding of how targeted socialization and psychological capital development can serve as levers for optimizing job performance in the academic sector.