An investigation into the effect of social support on job performance and job satisfaction in the Jordanian insurance industry

An increased sense of job performance and better job satisfaction can be achieved by receiving social support. In order to fulfil this purpose, this study aimed to determine the relationship be-tween social support on the one hand and job performance and job satisfaction on the other hand for the Jordanian insurance industry employees. Survey data were gathered from 269 employees from the Jordanian insurance industry. The PLS 3.0 software was used to process data using the structural equation modelling method. The study’s findings revealed that all social support factors were positively and significantly related to job performance and job satisfaction, including manager support, peer support, friends support, and others’ support. Hence, job performance and job satisfaction in the Jordanian insurance industry can be predicted by studying the existence of social support. The study’s findings concluded that the higher the social support, the higher the job performance and job satisfaction.


Introduction
Social support has been a central construct in understanding interpersonal relationships.A wide range of different perspectives and contexts exist on how social support is conceptualised among researchers.For example, Susskind et al. (2003) defined social support as "the extent to which employees believe that those around them care about them and are willing to provide them with work-related assistance."According to Hirsch (1981), social support "comes from other people who are in relationships with each other.The relationship between the people also develops into a personal relationship."Vangelisti (2009) there are many ways to define social support, including from psychological, social and communication viewpoints.The literature review suggested that sociological perspectives emphasise the degree to which individuals are integrated into a social group, while communication perspectives examine relationships between providers and recipients of support.Psychological perspectives assess the perceived availability of support, including the type of support received or perceived to be available (Vangelisti, 2009).Researchers have focused on contents, types, and sources of social support, resulting in wide differences in the specific aspects researchers emphasise.For instance, there are several types of social support, including emotional, instrumental, informational, and appraisal, while the sources of support are managers, friends, family and others.It is generally agreed that social support is therapeutic in health despite the different definitions and social support constructs (Branscum et al., 2016;Khatatbeh et al., 2021).Some employees receive inadequate training, low wages, and work longer hours than official employees due to excessive job demands (Foy et al., 2019;Orgambídez et al., 2022).The insurance industry was chosen based on its diverse nature in terms of employment, indicating that talent and capabilities are needed in every area (abdelqader Alsakarneh et al., 2018).Typically, the success of a service industry, such as insurance, depends on the effectiveness of human resources.The difference between human resources in insurance and other industries depends on how the insurance industry is regarded as a service company.The study's primary objective is to investigate the effect of social support (support from managers, peers, friends, and others) on job performance and job satisfaction in the Jordanian insurance industry.Therefore, studying the relationship between social support, job performance, and job satisfaction are essential, particularly in developing countries, such as Jordan, where little research has been undertaken on the topic.

Influence of Social Support on Job Performance
Social support is a critical feature of the workplace, which is reflected in the reciprocation of good relationships between employees (Chandra, 2012;Foy et al., 2019).Individuals who feel supported by social support are valued, informed, communicated with, cared for emotionally, and a part of a supportive network (Foy et al., 2019).Employees who feel supported are less likely to feel stressed and believe they receive fair work rewards.Support from managers, peers, and friends can positively affect job performance (Hoang et al., 2013;Demerouti et al., 2014).A peer support system helps employees believe that their peers are willing to assist them in completing their work duties through work-related assistance (Nasurdin et al., 2018).Menguc and Boichuk (2012) proposed a recent definition.As the term implies, peer support refers to how accommodating peers can be in times of need and how receptive they are to the person's problems at work.Peers can provide social support during stressful circumstances at work through peer support and counselling as friends (Nasurdin et al., 2018;Wu et al., 2020).Rousseau et al. (2009) emphasised that peer support comprises more than job-related information and help but also emotional and social support, such as empathy and care.

Fig. 1. Research Framework
Empirical evidence shows that Fernandes and Tewari (2012) and Nasurdin et al. (2018) discovered that peer support increased employee motivation and intention to stay above-line manager support independently.According to Ghosh et al. (2016), peer support was also found to predict work engagement based on a sample of 218 employees of India's public sector banks.Researchers and companies must pay attention to factors affecting employee adjustment (such as job satisfaction and job performance).In particular, social support has been shown to improve job performance at work and adjustability in the past (Lee et al., 2017).Supportive tools, information, and appraisals are all factors that can affect social support in the interplay between individuals.When a manager immediately offers emotional and operational assistance to an employee when they are perceived as having work-related stress, it would reduce the adverse impacts on the organisation (Gözükara & Çolakoğlu, 2015;Sultan and Rashid, 2015;Lee et al., 2017;Khatatbeh et al., 2021).Preventing stress from occurring in ordinary work environments by using socially supportive interactions is also possible.Getting support from friends, peers, managers, and others positively affects an individual.Hence, individuals believe in themselves and put more time and energy into their work.An expatriate would benefit from enhanced job performance in this case.Additionally, employees are more likely to receive rewards at work once the focal work value or capability is developed if they experience support from peers, managers, friends, or others.In other words, an employee the organisation supports will be more inclined to participate in a project that would reward their career and enhance their job performance (Alsakarneh et al., 2019).Accordingly, the following hypotheses were proposed in this study: H1: Manager support positively and significantly affects the job performance of insurance industry employees.

H2: Peer support positively and significantly affects the job performance of insurance industry employees.
H3: Friends' support positively and significantly affects the job performance of insurance industry employees.H4: Others' support positively and significantly affects the job performance of insurance industry employees.
In organisational psychology and management, job satisfaction is an interesting topic.Job satisfaction is the pleasure an individual obtains when one perceives that their job contributes to achieving their goals and values (Eneizan et al., 2021).According to Locke (1969), job satisfaction is the pleasure people gain from their job.As defined by Spector (1997), a person's job satisfaction refers to their overall attitude towards their job and different aspects and parts of their job.An individual's expectations and working conditions are important factors that contribute to job satisfaction.
Evidence indicates that social support influences job satisfaction (Yuh & Choi, 2017).According to previous studies, social support positively influences job satisfaction at various workplaces (Brough & Frame, 2004;Mintz-Binder, 2014;Yuh & Choi, 2017;Akkoç & Aysun, 2020;Khatatbeh et al., 2021;Bastian, 2022;Orgambídez et al., 2022).The relationship between social support and job satisfaction may vary based on the job characteristics or the specific aspect of social support the researchers chose to emphasise.When employees perceive greater social support, they are more likely to be satisfied with their jobs.
Social support can be defined as being cared for, respected, and part of an interpersonal connection that is mutually supportive (Wills, 1991).Community and social support are possible sources of social support (Taylor, 2011), peers (Chiaburu & Harrison, 2008), friends, and others (Sarason et al., 1990).'Perceived social support' and 'received social support' are commonly used terms to describe social support (Vangelisti, 2009;Wu et al., 2020).According to perceived social support, 'personal support' and 'social connections' are seen as accessible and appropriate, such as being valued, respected and loved by others.The social support of the society or organisation, or "thematic support," is measured in terms of the size and quality of the financial and material support it provides to individuals and groups (Eagle et al., 2019).
The definition of job satisfaction includes what it means and how it affects, enhances, and motivates employees' job performance (Dugguh & Dennis, 2014).Job satisfaction can be understood as whether a job physically and psychologically meets an employee's needs at work.Spector (1997) claimed that people's job satisfaction depends on whether they like or dislike their jobs.According to Kalleberg (1977), job satisfaction is measured by an individual's overall orientation towards the work role the individual occupies at the moment.Individuals' attitudes towards their entire work situation can define job satisfaction, which is a unitary concept (Wu et al., 2020).The social support employees receive plays a key role in the likelihood that they will be satisfied with their jobs (Ferguson et al., 2012;Zhang et al., 2015;Yuh & Choi, 2017).Employees tend to develop loyalty towards their organisations when they perceive and receive support from their managers, peers, friends, and others.In contrast, employees who feel unsupported are likely to be dissatisfied with their jobs and may be less committed to their organisations (Yang & Kim, 2016).Several empirical studies show a strong relationship between employee job satisfaction and social support.Since formal policies on family support are based on the informal judgment of managers, they are insufficient for minimising the demands related to work and family (Hammer et al., 2009).In general, informal manager support is a major factor contributing to reducing work-family conflicts (Allen, 2001).By providing support and empathy to an employee and understanding familial responsibilities, the manager enhances the employee's cognitive resources, thereby reducing conflict between work and family responsibilities (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007).An employee's well-being and contribution can be appreciated and valued by managers through their attention and appreciation (Kottke & Sharafinski, 1988).Consequently, employees who are well-treated by their employers tend to have a highly positive attitude towards them (Meyer & Allen, 1991).As representatives of an organisation, managers should support the organisation in general and lead to a positive organisational culture (Levinson, 1965).
Employees are satisfied with their jobs when managers support them in their work-family and family-work conflicts (O' Driscoll et al., 2003;Rajakala & Kumar, 2015).Work-family conflict can negatively affect performance and job satisfaction among employees in the workplace (Netemeyer et al., 2004;O'Driscoll et al., 2004;Cortese et al., 2010).Thus, this study proposes the following hypotheses: H5: Manager support is positively related to the job satisfaction of insurance industry employees.

H6: Peer support is positively related to the job satisfaction of insurance industry employees.
H7: Friend support is positively related to the job satisfaction of insurance industry employees.H8: Others' support is positively related to the job satisfaction of insurance industry employees.

Participants and Procedure
In December 2022, 269 insurance industry employees in Jordan participated in the current study.Two of the authors met with managers of human resource departments to explain the survey procedures and the objectives of this study.Letters explaining the study, questionnaires, and return envelopes were sent to the respondents.A seal was instructed on the questionnaires to ensure that they could be returned directly to the researchers at the site to ensure confidentiality.A total of 269 out of 333 questionnaires (80.8% response rate) were usable.The collected data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) PLS 3.0 software.

Measures
A total of 16 items were included in this question set and arranged in three sections.Social support dimension items comprised 16 items and were adopted from Chen et al. (2010), Rhoades et al. (2001), Karasek and Theorell (1990), and Karasek et al. (1998) and modified.The four items for job performance are derived and modified from Qomariyah and Wu (2013).The four job satisfaction items were adapted and modified from Weiss et al. (1967) andCammann (1983).All the items were tested to ensure the reliability and validity of the design.The results suggest that the measurement scales are reliable and suitable for being adopted in this study.

Analysis and Results
The data were analysed through structural equation modelling (SEM) using Smart PLS 4. This method involves a two-stage procedure.The measurement model is the first stage, and the structural model is the second stage.

Measurement model
The measurement model was conducted to determine the validity and reliability of the constructs.The results are provided in Table 1 and Figure 2 below.The loading values in Table 1 are all above the suggested value of 0.07 (Hair et al., 2013).The convergent validity of the constructs was also examined by employing average variance extracted (AVE).The values were above 0.5, as suggested by Bagozzi and Yi (1988).Additionally, the values for composite reliability were also found to be above the suggested minimum value of 0.7 (Hair et al., 2013) (see Table 2).Hence, convergent validity is maintained in the study constructs.

Table 2
Construct measurement summary In order to test the discriminant validity, the Heterotrait-Monotrait ratio of correlations (HTMT) was used in the current study (Henseler et al., 2016).The HTMT criterion is considered a new tool used to examine the discriminant validity.Henseler et al. (2016) stated that the HTMT tool performs better in examining discriminant validity than the Fornell-Larcker criterion.
Hence, HTMT was used in the current analysis, where the value of HTMT should be smaller than 0.90.Table 3 shows the values of HTMT.

Structural model
Bootstrapping was also performed to validate the structural model.Table 4 and Fig 4.

Discussion
According to the findings, the Jordanian insurance industry validated the relationship between social support by its dimensions (manager support, peer support, friends' support, and others' support) and job satisfaction.For instance, an employee in the insurance industry can perform better with high social support.Social support is one of the factors which can disrupt job performance.The positive influence of social support on job performance makes it an effective way of adjusting to negative pressures associated with the work environment.In addition to causing difficulties and reducing job performance, the lack of social support can cause job stress.In order to enhance job performance, such support must be increased for the individual to work more with pleasure.The study's results align with some studies (Ismail et al., 2013;Branscum et al., 2016;Lee et al., 2017;Nasurdin et al., 2018;Tremblay & Simard, 2018;Foy et al., 2019;Javadian & Hosseini, 2020;Putra et al., 2021;Liu et al., 2022).
The study's findings extend the existing evidence (Gözükara & Çolakoğlu, 2015;Zhang et al., 2015;Orgambídez-Ramos & de Almeida, 2017;Yuh & Choi, 2017;Wu et al., 2020;Khatatbeh et al., 2021;Orgambídez et al., 2022;Bastian, 2022) who have found that social support by its dimensions (manager support, peer support, friends' support, others' support) affects employee job satisfaction.This study found that social support directly affects job satisfaction.These findings indicate that social support is a form of employee human need that demands fulfilment and material rewards.Social support manifests the need to relate to other individuals within employees.Well-established interaction through the support received and given from managers, peers, friends, and others will foster a feeling of being valued and needed.The existence of social support will create a supportive atmosphere, positive communication, full of trust and respect for others.The atmosphere provides a sense of security, openness, and confidence in the individual in the company and the self.When employees perceive that the company treats them not only as production tools but as human beings by providing the support they need when working to achieve company goals, they will feel confident and secure in the company to ensure that employees feel satisfied.Job and feel happy working in the organisation.

Conclusion
The data analysis revealed that the social support factors impact job performance and job satisfaction in the workplace positively and significantly.Employees' job performance and job satisfaction will increase if they receive support from managers, peers, friends, and others.Thus, managers must motivate their employees, who are also insurance industry members.Employees in the insurance industry can gain greater support from their managers by showing respect, and affection, helping out when they need it, and being intimate with them.By paying attention to insurance industry employees' achievements, valuing their service, and considering them important, peers, friends and other individuals can encourage job performance and satisfaction.
. 3 illustrate the outcomes of the hypotheses.The results show that friends' support positively and significantly affects job performance and satisfaction.Manager support positively and significantly affects job performance and job satisfaction.Peer support positively and significantly affects job performance and job satisfaction.Others' support positively and significantly affect job performance and job satisfaction.The results of p-values and t-values are shown in Table

Table 1
Construct measurement summary

Table 4
Direct and moderation results