BGSU professor pioneers research into quiet quitting by considering the role of broken promises

BGSU professor dives into the reasoning behind quiet quitting and how HR professionals can prevent it

By Branden Ferguson

Quiet quitting has evolved from a buzzword into a widespread reality in the workplace as industries and demands continue to shift, according to new research by a Bowling Green State University professor.

Truit Gray, Ph.D., an assistant professor of management at BGSU, is examining how human resources departments can foster employee engagement and mitigate quiet quitting and the associated risks. Data was collected across five studies and resulted in responses from nearly 900 unique participants across various industries. The studies combine to contribute to clarifying what quiet quitting is, what it is not and the causes and outcomes of it.

Gray recently had a paper published on the topic in Human Resource Management, a Financial Times top 50 journal.

"Quiet quitting is a workplace topic that has received a great deal of attention in practice, but academic work on the topic is still limited," said Gray.

Gray found that quiet quitting – intentionally performing the minimum job requirements – doesn't necessarily reflect poor performance. Instead, it represents a deliberate choice by an employee to put forth effort that is less than their full potential. The resulting level of performance depends on the employee's perception of what the minimum requirements entail.

After discussing what quiet quitting is and what it is not, Gray and his research team turned to unpacking the causes and outcomes of quiet quitting.

"One of my core research interests is psychological contracts, which consists of what an employee believes their organization has promised them in return for their effort," said Gray. "Specifically, employee psychological contracts may be fulfilled, which is when promises are met, or breached, which is when the organization fails to live up to promises."

Through the lens of psychological contracts, Gray examined the causes and consequences of quiet quitting. His research found that when employees perceive their organization has kept its promises regarding job characteristics (for example, skill variety and autonomy) and the fairness of the workplace, they are less likely to "quiet quit." This reduction in quiet quitting due to promise fulfillment also led employees to be more likely to engage in organizational citizenship behaviors (mentoring new hires, taking on additional tasks, etc.) and less likely to engage in counterproductive work behaviors.

Conversely, when organizations fail to meet these promises, employees are more likely to quiet quit and subsequently more likely to exhibit counterproductive work behaviors that are detrimental to the organization while also engaging in fewer helpful organizational citizenship behaviors.

"HR professionals must be aware of both the explicit and implicit promises made to employees – not just during hiring and onboarding, but throughout their entire employment," said Gray. "Overpromising with the goal of hiring and retaining exceptional talent may result in quiet quitting and subsequent detrimental outcomes should those promises not be kept."

The urgency of this problem is highlighted by U.S. Gallup polls. In 2024, employee engagement reached a decade-low, with only 31% of employees reporting that they were "being engaged" at work. A separate 2023 poll found that quiet quitters now make up at least 50% of the U.S. workforce.

As quiet quitting impacts workplaces across industries, Gray argues that the role of human resources is evolving. He believes that HR professionals must continue to move toward assuming a more active and involved role within organizations.

"What people expect from their organization has shifted dramatically in recent years," said Gray. "Trends such as remote/hybrid work, back-to-office mandates, and an increasingly diverse workforce require that HR departments become integral strategic leaders within organizations."

Gray notes that employees have always made mental calculations about their effort based on their perception of fairness. However, the intentionality of this calculation, which defines quiet quitting, has rarely been studied.

"My coauthors and I are eager to continue our research into quiet quitting," Gray said. "Our initial findings point toward an optimistic outlook that human resource managers may be able to limit the prevalence of quiet quitting and subsequent harmful outcomes by accurately communicating expectations and job characteristics."