Organizational culture and turnover intention among Generation Z in Korea: Associations with job satisfaction and organizational commitment

This study examines the relationship between organizational culture and turnover intention among Korean Generation Z employees, addressing the widely held perception that they prefer organizational cultures different from those of previous generations. Drawing on Person, Organization (P, O) Fit theory, the study explores how different types of organizational culture are associated with turnover intention directly and indirectly through job satisfaction and organizational commitment. By focusing on these relationships within a Generation Z sample, this study aims to provide exploratory insights into how organizational culture is related to employee attitudes and turnover intention in the Korean context. To test these relationships, data from the third year (2022) of the second wave of the Human Capital Corporate Panel II (HCCP II), developed by the Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training (KRIVET), were analyzed. Specifically, 456 individuals born between 1995 and 2004 (Generation Z) were included in the analysis. The results indicate that an adhocracy culture was positively associated with job satisfaction and organizational commitment, while showing a negative association with turnover intention. A clan culture was also positively associated with job satisfaction and organizational commitment, while a hierarchy culture was positively associated with job satisfaction. In contrast, a market culture showed a limited association, being positively related only to organizational commitment. In addition, the indirect paths to turnover intention via job satisfaction and organizational commitment were not statistically significant. These findings provide exploratory insights into the associations among organizational culture, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention among Korean Generation Z employees.