The influence of talent management practices on talents’ intention to stay: an empirical study from China

Abstract

Purpose

Drawing on cognitive-affective personality system (CAPS) theory, this study proposes a chained multi-mediation model to examine the impact of talent management practices on talents’ intention to stay from the integration of cognitive perspective and affective perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

Three-wave data collected from 268 talents of Chinese organizations supported the research model. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to test the direct effects and the Bootstrap method was used to test the chain multi-mediation effects.

Findings

(a) Talent management practices positively affect talents’ intention to stay. (b) Perceived overqualification and perceived no growth mediate the relationship between talent management practices and talents’ intention to stay from a cognitive perspective. (c) Affective commitment mediates the relationship between talent management practices and talents’ intention to stay from an affective perspective. (d) “Perceived overqualification-affective commitment” and “perceived no growth-affective commitment” act as chain mediators between talent management practices and talents’ intention to stay, with the latter showing a stronger effect.

Originality/value

This study provided a comprehensive framework that examines the relationship between talent management practices and talents’ intention to stay from cognitive and affective perspectives. It contributes to deepen the understanding of the effectiveness of talent management practices and offer valuable management instructions for organizations to retain talents.

Citation

Wang, H., Li, X., Zhu, J. and Chen, X. (2024), "The influence of talent management practices on talents’ intention to stay: an empirical study from China", Employee Relations, Vol. 46 No. 4, pp. 895-912. https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-01-2024-0007