Perceived Psychological Contract Breach During Internships and its Impact on Job Satisfaction Among Final-Year Students
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Perceived Psychological Contract Breach During Internships and its Impact on Job Satisfaction Among Final-Year Students
Author: Siddharth Barua
Guide: Rishika Binani
Abstract-Internships represent an important transition from school to work during which final-year students develop unwritten psychological contracts which are based on expectations of learning, organizational support, and professional growth. When these promises are not met, it leads Psychological Contract Breach (PCB) which influences job satisfaction and shapes early career attitudes. By synthesizing existing literature, the study reconceptualizes internships as psychological entry points into employment relationships. It practically informs HR professionals about expectation alignment and educationally by highlighting internships’ role in shaping employability perceptions and career readiness. To conceptualize Psychological Contract Breach and internship satisfaction the present study proposes-
BREACH Model:
• Breach of expectations
• Ruins relationships,
• Erodes engagement,
• Acknowledging needs, encourages
• Collaboration and restores
• Holistic job satisfaction.
Findings indicate that unmet expectations related to learning opportunities, mentoring, feedback, role clarity, and organizational fairness significantly influenced perceived PCB. Which resulted in reduced job satisfaction, disengagement, and negative career perceptions. The expectation reality discrepancies emerged as central mechanisms which drove breach perceptions. Supportive communication, structured mentoring, and effective socialization practices were identified as key buffering factors. This study extends psychological contract theory to the pre-employment stage by positioning internships as formative spaces where workplace trust, commitment, and employment expectations start to develop.
Key Words: Psychological Contract Breach (PCB), Internships, Job Satisfaction, Organizational Socialization, Graduate Employability, Early Career Identity Formation, Pre-employment Psychological Contracts, Expectation Formation and Misalignment.
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