Beyond the call of duty: Effects of school learning culture, teacher self-efficacy, and informal learning on organizational citizenship behavior

As teachers face increasing expectations to go beyond their formal duties and engage in extra-role behaviors contributing to school success, understanding the underlying factors that drive these behaviors becomes crucial. This study investigates how school learning culture influences teachers’ organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) through the serial mediation of self-efficacy and informal learning across school leaders and teachers. Data were collected from 494 primary and secondary school teachers in China and were analyzed using structural equation modeling and multi-group comparisons. The results revealed that school learning culture was positively related to teacher self-efficacy, informal learning, and OCB directed toward the organization. Teacher self-efficacy and informal learning served as key mediators in these relationships, with distinct indirect effects observed between leaders and non-leaders. The study contributes to identifying pathways through which school learning culture fosters OCB and highlights the role of leadership in shaping these dynamics. Practical implications are also discussed. Copyright © 2025 Elsevier Ltd.