Job Involvement, Job Embeddedness, and Organizational Commitment: The Mediating Role of Job Satisfaction in a Relationship-Oriented SME Context

This study investigates the effects of job involvement and job embeddedness on organizational commitment, with job satisfaction as a mediating variable, within a relationship-oriented small and medium enterprise (SME) context. Grounded in Social Exchange Theory, the research emphasizes how employees’ emotional and social attachment to their organization contributes to stronger affective commitment through enhanced job satisfaction. Data were collected from 37 employees of CV Dear Eleanor, an SME operating in the food and beverage sector in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Using Structural Equation Modeling with Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS), the results reveal that job involvement and job embeddedness significantly and positively influence job satisfaction. Furthermore, job satisfaction has a significant mediating effect on the relationship between both antecedents and organizational commitment. However, the direct relationship between job involvement and organizational commitment was found to be insignificant, indicating that employee commitment in SMEs is primarily driven by satisfaction derived from involvement rather than involvement itself. The findings reinforce the relevance of Social Exchange Theory in explaining employee behavior within relationally oriented SMEs, where interpersonal bonds and perceived organizational support play vital roles in shaping commitment. This study contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence on how job satisfaction functions as a psychological mechanism linking involvement, embeddedness, and organizational commitment in small-scale service enterprises. Managerially, the results highlight the importance of fostering employee satisfaction and relational attachment to enhance commitment and retention in SMEs.