Assessing the mediating influence of job satisfaction in the relationship between human resource management, educational innovation and lecturer’s organizational commitment: A case study of private universities in Ho Chi Minh City

Abstract

Job satisfaction acts as a crucial mediating variable linking human resource management (HRM) and educational innovation to organizational commitment in private universities. This study aims to examine the indirect effects of HRM and educational innovation on organizational commitment through job satisfaction among lecturers in Ho Chi Minh City’s private higher education institutions. Using a quantitative approach, data from 487 valid responses were analyzed through structural equation modeling (SEM) and the bootstrap method with 2,000 resamples. The results show that satisfaction partially mediates the relationship between HRM and organizational commitment (VAF = 42.2%) and between educational innovation and organizational commitment (VAF = 25.3%). In contrast, the mediating role of educational innovation in the relationship between HRM and satisfaction is not supported (VAF = 17.0%). These findings confirm that job satisfaction is both a result and a transmission channel of HRM effectiveness and innovation activities. Theoretically, the study enriches the social exchange and expectancy frameworks by emphasizing satisfaction as an affective mechanism driving lecturers’ organizational attachment. Practically, it highlights the need for universities to improve both maintenance (income, welfare, stable working environment) and motivation (opportunities for professional development, career promotion, and performance recognition) factors to strengthen satisfaction and long-term engagement