From in-role to extra-role: Beneficiary-specific impact perceptions in workplace pro-environmental spillover

Research into spillover of pro-environmental behavior (PEB) has surged due to its cost-effective potential to enhance environmental policy and intervention implementation. We extend this work by moving beyond the traditional environmentally-focused mechanism and, instead, recognizing the dual nature of in-role PEBs. Drawing on altruism and prosocial theories, we propose that in-role PEB leads to both perceived environmental impact and perceived organizational impact, each driving different spillover patterns from in-role to extra-role PEB. Specifically, when employees perceive that in-role PEBs help the environment, positive spillover to subsequent extra-role PEB occurs; however, when employees perceive that in-role PEBs help the organization, there will be a curvilinear (U-shape) relationship to subsequent extra-role PEBs. Data from 311 employees, collected via an online survey through Prolific across three waves, support these hypotheses. By uncovering distinct spillover patterns tied to perceived impacts on different beneficiaries, this study emphasizes the importance of perceived prosocial impact and provides new insights into the mechanisms underlying PEB spillover effect beyond environment-relevant factors.