Wasta (favoritism and nepotism) as a practice exists in individualistic and collective societies. Studies demonstrated that wasta is associated with negative consequences on organizational productivity and job satisfaction of the organization personnel. Studies in the sociological field demonstrated that it is a social norm in some cultures. The aim of the current study was to investigate the relationship between providing and receiving wasta and psychological distress. Self-determination theory is utilized to explain this relationship by treating the basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness) as mediators. The data of this study come from gathering self-reported instruments of 1,088 educators who work for the Saudi education system. The findings showed that basic psychological needs mediated the relationship between engaging in wasta (benefitting from wasta and providing wasta) and psychological distress. Benefitting from wasta was a predictor of low needs satisfaction, which in turn predicted higher psychological distress (depression, anxiety, stress). In contrast, providing wasta to others was a predictor of higher needs satisfaction, which in turn predicted lower levels of psychological distress.
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