From Passive to Proactive Motivation: The Importance of Flexible Role Orientations and Role Breadth Self-efficacy

Despite the widely held belief that a proactive workforce is necessary for competitive advantage, research investigating how to assess and promote such change is limited. Two potentially important precursors to proactivity include flexible role orientation (FRO) and role breadth self-efficacy (RBSE). These concepts have been shown to have construct validity and to be distinct from related dispositional variables, but their discriminant validity in terms of outcome variables has not been demonstrated. In this article, I show that FRO and RBSE are factorially distinct from outcomes commonly used in organisational research (job satisfaction, organisational commitment, and job strain). I also show that, as expected, the proactive motivation and traditional outcome variables have different relationships with various predictor variables. I outline the study implications, and suggest a broader research agenda on proactive motivation.     

Indsales Model: A Facet-Level Job Satisfaction Model among Salespeople

While a debate exists with regard to the measurement of job satisfaction as a global or multifaceted construct, research has yet to understand how the facets of job satisfaction behave in a developmental process. Using the INDSALES satisfaction scale, this research theoretically develops and empirically tests a multifaceted job satisfaction model using a sample of 226 business-to-business sales representatives. The results demonstrate the linkages among different elements of satisfaction and illustrate the interdependencies inherent to job satisfaction facets. Drawing from expectancy theory and the established relationships among satisfaction facets, sales organizations should focus their efforts on increasing salesperson satisfaction with policy and support and properly aligning salesperson expectations.     

Are organisational politics responsible for turnover intention in French Firefighters?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of different facets of perceived organisational politics and workplace attitudes onto turnover intention in the French Fire and Rescue service.MethodologyAn electronic survey was administered to fire department employees (n = 255) to investigate the effects of different forms of perceived organisational politics (POP) onto turnover intention, and test for mediation by affective organisational commitment and job satisfaction with structural equation modelling (Lisrel 8.80).FindingsBoth pay-and-promotion and general perceived organisational politics indirectly predicted turnover intention in French firefighters, although the total effect of pay-and-promotion politics was greater than general politics. Affective organisational commitment and job satisfaction mediated the effect of perceived organisational politics onto turnover intention.Practical implicationsPublic organisations, which have recently undergone reorganisations, should monitor perceptions of organisational politics to better understand the association with attitudes (such as affective organisational commitment and job satisfaction), as well as to predict turnover intention.Originality/valueThe study goes expands on the identification of various turnover intention's antecedents to contribute to consider understanding of its reasons, such as perceived organisational politics, where pay-and-promotion politics appears to be more salient factor than general politics. Affective organisational commitment and job satisfaction mediate the effects of POP onto turnover intention with nuanced effects. We also generated support for the order of factors in the model, where job satisfaction is a first-order predictor of turnover intention and organisational commitment second-order one. The POP Scale (Kacmar & Ferris, 1991) was validated in French.     

Job insecurity in a sample of Canadian civil servants as a function of personality and perceived job characteristics

Economic downturns and organisational changes have stimulated studies on the importance of job security for public employees; however, there has been some disagreement as to whether job insecurity should be defined using a single- or a two-factor model, on how to measure it and which antecedents and consequences are linked to it. Questionnaires measuring job insecurity as well as personality traits and job characteristics as possible antecedent variables, and job performance and job satisfaction as possible consequences were completed by a sample of 71 federal government employees during recent important government downsizing. A multiple regression analysis indicated that job insecurity, defined as a combination of organisational or personal vulnerability, was significantly related to only two antecedent variables, i.e., Neuroticism and job characteristics. Further regression analyses indicated that job insecurity was a statistically significant moderator but only between one consequence, i.e., intention to quit, and the job characteristics variable. These results along with methodological issues and further research, are discussed.     

Development of a global measure of job embeddedness and integration into a traditional model of voluntary turnover

Recent research on job embeddedness has found that both on- and off-the-job forces can act to bind people to their jobs. The present study extended this line of research by examining how job embeddedness may be integrated into a traditional model of voluntary turnover. This study also developed and tested a global, reflective measure of job embeddedness that overcomes important limitations and serves as a companion to the original composite measure. Results of this longitudinal study found that job embeddedness predicted voluntary turnover beyond job attitudes and core variables from traditional models of turnover. Results also found that job embeddedness interacted with job satisfaction to predict voluntary turnover, suggesting that the job embeddedness construct extends beyond the unfolding model of turnover (T. R. Mitchell & T. W. Lee, 2001) it originated from.     

Attributions and Appraisals of Workplace Incivility: Finding Light on the Dark Side?

Ample research demonstrates that workplace incivility has individual and organisational costs, but an important question remains unanswered: might it have benefits as well? We investigate this possibility by focusing on incivility appraisals—both negative and challenge appraisals (i.e. as an opportunity for learning, growth)—and their correlates. To explain this diversity of appraisals, we examine whether attributions (i.e. perceived intent to harm, perceived perpetrator control) predict perceptions. We conducted two multi‐method (quantitative and qualitative) surveys, one of which was multi‐source, of employees across a range of occupations. In Study 1, attributions that perpetrators acted with control and malicious intent fuelled negative appraisals of incivility, which undermined job satisfaction. Study 2 added to these findings by demonstrating that some targets formed challenge appraisals of uncivil encounters, especially when they attributed low malicious intent to perpetrators; challenge appraisal related to boosts in job satisfaction and thriving. These attitudinal outcomes then positively related to organisational citizenship behaviour, as reported by targets' coworkers. Showing paths to incivility harm (and potential benefit), our findings can inform interventions to alter the impact of workplace incivility.     

Disaggregating Job Satisfaction: Effects of Perceived Demands,Control, and Support

Purpose

Our purpose was to inductively examine how employees’ perceptions of stressor and resource work characteristics relate to nine distinct facets of job satisfaction, in accordance with the demand–control (–support) [JDC(S)] theory. Job satisfaction is a multidimensional construct composed of various facets that differ greatly from one other. However, most stress studies have examined job satisfaction at the global level. This may be problematic for managers looking to redesign the workplace to increase employee job satisfaction based on established recommendations from previous research.

Design/Methodology/Approach

Data were obtained from employees of a public sector human services organization that provides services to protect children from neglect and other forms of abuse (n = 343). A series of t tests for dependent correlations determined facet-level differences in satisfaction with demand and resource work characteristics.

Findings

We found different patterns of correlations across facets for all seven demand, control, and support workplace characteristics.

Implications

Those re-balancing types of demands, control, and support for workplace redesign should not presume consistent effects on all aspects of satisfaction with work. By doing so, expected positive outcomes may fail to materialize, perhaps to the detriment of workplace redesign as a whole in the minds of management. A more detailed approach to workplace redesign is recommended.

Originality/Value

This is the first study which adopts the JDC(S) framework to examine job satisfaction at the facet level. Our findings shed new light on how workplace characteristics relate to different aspects of satisfaction.     

Satisfaction and psychological well-being as antecedents of organisational commitment

Satisfaction and psychological well-being as antecedents of organisational commitment. The role of organisational commitment in public administration and its repercussions on the institution are examined in this study. It reports part of a larger research project that studies job satisfaction, life satisfaction, and psychological well-being as antecedents of organisational commitment. Data were collected from 697 public-sector employees, using questionnaires. Results showed that job satisfaction, life satisfaction, and psychological well-being were strong predictors of organisational commitment. Higher levels of job satisfaction, life satisfaction, and psychological well-being were associated with more favourable perceptions of organisational commitment. Furthermore, this study highlights the impact of dynamic work on the employee's commitment.     

COMMUNICATION SATISFACTION,JOB SATISFACTION,AND JOB PERFORMANCE

This field study of 327 hospital nurses investigated the relationship between perceived satisfaction with organizational communication and job satisfaction and job performance. The researcher developed a research model incorporating nine dimensions of communication satisfaction and hypothesized their varying relationships with job satisfaction and job performance. Correlation, multiple regression, and canonical correlation analyses revealed significant positive relationships between communication satisfaction and job satisfaction, and communication satisfaction and job performance. The communication satisfaction-job satisfaction link was stronger. The same facets of communication—supervisor communication, communication climate, and personal feedback—were found to be most strongly related to both job satisfaction and performance. Although the importance of the superior-subordinate communication relationship was confirmed, top management communication also was substantially related to job satisfaction and, to a lesser degree, job performance. Rank-order correlation results of this study were compared to several other studies and some congruent patterns were found.     

Uncovering the trail of positive affect in the job attitudes literature: A systematic review

A review of the organisational psychology literature suggests that researchers have examined at least four job attitude constructs: job satisfaction, work/task satisfaction, job involvement, and organisational commitment. Less, however, is known about why the four different job attitudes vary in magnitude as predictors of vital organisational outcomes. In this systematic review, I propose that positive affect is central in explaining the differential effects of these job attitudes on organisational outcomes. The review then explicates patterns of results underlying prior studies on these job attitudes and presents an overarching proposition: Accurate conceptualisation and measurement of the affective component underlying each job attitude will help illustrate how, and to what extent, each job attitude leads to desirable organisational outcomes. Finally, four key suggestions for further job attitudes research are presented: (a) enhancing conceptualisation and measurement of positive affect in job attitudes, (b) developing an overarching theory of positive affect, (c) focusing on discrete positive emotions, and (d) looking beyond existing current job attitude constructs. This work complements the current affective epoch of job attitudes research, uncovering the trail of positive affect as it has informed the job attitudes literature historically and suggesting its theoretical and practical developments for the future.     

Ethical leadership: A social learning perspective for construct development and testing

Leaders should be a key source of ethical guidance for employees. Yet, little empirical research focuses on an ethical dimension of leadership. We propose social learning theory as a theoretical basis for understanding ethical leadership and offer a constitutive definition of the ethical leadership construct. In seven interlocking studies, we investigate the viability and importance of this construct. We develop and test a new instrument to measure ethical leadership, examine the proposed connections of ethical leadership with other constructs in a nomological network, and demonstrate its predictive validity for important employee outcomes. Specifically, ethical leadership is related to consideration behavior, honesty, trust in the leader, interactional fairness, socialized charismatic leadership (as measured by the idealized influence dimension of transformational leadership), and abusive supervision, but is not subsumed by any of these. Finally, ethical leadership predicts outcomes such as perceived effectiveness of leaders, followers’ job satisfaction and dedication, and their willingness to report problems to management.     

The <Emphasis Type="Italic">Facet Satisfaction Scale</Emphasis>: an Effective Affective Measure of Job Satisfaction Facets

Purpose

Job satisfaction facets are theoretically and practically important variables. Most existing facet satisfaction scales, however, have two noteworthy limitations—they often do not clearly assess affective content, and they use non-parallel items. In the current paper, we examined the measurement qualities of the Facet Satisfaction Scale (FSS; [Beehr et al. (Journal of Applied Social Psychology 36:1523–1547, 2006)], a measure that may address the limitations of existing facet satisfaction measures.

Design/Methodology/Approach

We conducted four studies to examine the measurement qualities of the FSS: (a) Study 1 examined the FSS’s factor structure, (b) Study 2 examined its test-retest reliability and construct validity, (c) Study 3 further examined its construct validity, and (d) Study 4 examined the extent to which the FSS assesses the affective and cognitive components of job satisfaction.

Findings

We found that the FSS produced the hypothesized five-factor structure and that the FSS subscales each yielded high levels of internal consistency and test-retest reliability. We also found evidence of the construct validity of the FSS subscales, and we found that the FSS subscales are generally effective measures of the affective component of their respective job satisfaction facets.

Implications

As a result of the current findings, we recommend the FSS when researchers wish to measure the affective component of job satisfaction facets.

Originality/Value

Little previous research has examined the FSS’s measurement qualities. The current studies address this gap by providing evidence for the reliability and validity of the FSS. This is of value because the FSS addresses some limitations inherent to other facet satisfaction measures.

     

Job satisfaction: Identifying the important parts among computer sales and service personnel

This article examines overall and job facet satisfaction among computer salesN=552) and service (N=1489) personnel. Results of an anonymous questionnaire indicated that seven of nine job facets were similar in the two samples. However, facets in field service referring to the company and working conditions were replaced in sales by facets concerning work-related information and problem resolution. Existing multifacet measures of job satisfaction would not have identified problem resolution as an important facet. While they are valuable for basic research, standardized multifacet satisfaction measures may not be as useful when the goal is to improve the work situation by identifying issues of concern to employees in different occupations.     

Pronostic de l’intention de départ chez les sapeurs-pompiers volontaires en France

The fire departments in France currently experience a growing need in volunteer stuff. At the same time the turnover rate among volunteers remains high. Intention to leave was mainly examined on the population of permanent workers, while the antecedents of intention to leave among volunteers are still undervalued. We suggest the existence of specific effects different from those previously coined out in standard organisational settings. Thus, the present study seeks to identify first- and second-order factors of intention to leave among volunteer fire-fighters. The literature review leads us to the proposition of three conceptual models that vary in terms of main mediators. Either job satisfaction, or organisational commitment, or both of them are envisaged as having the main mediating effect in the model. One hundred and thirty-nine volunteer fire-fighters returned completed questionnaires. The data was further analysed via path analysis in LISREL 8.80. The results partly confirm the model, according to which job satisfaction mediates the effects of organisational commitment, job involvement, perceived organisational support and motivation. Two variables – satisfaction with supervisors and length of service – are identified as main predictors of intention to leave. Job involvement and perceived organisational support are confirmed as second-order mediators of the effects exercised onto turnover intention by affective and normative commitment, satisfaction with colleagues and work, as well as intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. The results also indicate the necessity to examine the role of different dimensions of organisational attitudinal variables independently. Thus, the most salient dimension of satisfaction refers to the relationship with supervisors. As regards organisational commitment, its calculate dimension appears to have no significant effects at all; while affective one is characterised by a weak effect on intention to leave contrary to the results previously reported. The only individual variable having a significant effect on intention to leave is the volunteer fire-fighter's length of service. We conclude that instead of seeking to identify the appropriate selection criteria helping to reduce the existing turnover rate among volunteer fire-fighters, it is time to focus further research on the practices of organisational socialisation in order to reduce the current level of turnover. The main conclusion of the study emphasises the role the attitudes towards organisation plays in the decision of a volunteer fire-fighter to resign.     

Is Involvement a Suppressor of the Job Satisfaction–Life Satisfaction Relationship?1

Previous research has demonstrated a considerable correlation between job satisfaction and life satisfaction. In addition, various researchers have hypothesized that job importance (work involvement) should be a moderator of this relationship. However, most empirical tests did not confirm this assumption. We argue that job importance cannot turn out to be a moderator because the subjective importance of work is already part of job–satisfaction judgments, a notion that has been advanced by Locke (1969) as implicit importance weighting. However, a suppressor effect can be predicted because job importance should be correlated with job satisfaction, but not life satisfaction. In a study of recently hired incumbents (N= 811) in a large German electronics company, we distinguished between job involvement and work involvement. We considered the latter, but not the former, being a measure of job importance. Work involvement, but not job involvement, turned out to be a suppressor of the relation between job satisfaction and life satisfaction.     

Relationships Among Job Involvement,Job Satisfaction,and Organizational Commitment for Nurses

The relationships among a cluster of attitudes toward work and job were investigated using a sample of 171 nurses. The hypothesis was that involvement in work and job, commitment to the employing organization, and satisfaction with the job (overall, and with specific facets of the job) would be significantly correlated. The results showed that involvement was not related to overall satisfaction but only to two specific facets, satisfaction with work and promotion opportunities. In contrast, the degree of relationship between overall and various facets of satisfaction and commitment and between involvement and commitment was moderately high.     

Person–Organisation Fit Across Cultures: An Empirical Investigation of Individualism and Collectivism

The present study extended person–organisation fit research by concentrating exclusively on one national culture dimension affecting organisational values: individualism–collectivism (I–C). Volunteers ( N =581) from two matched organisations (hospitals and management consultancies) in Australia and in South‐East Asia completed questionnaires measuring individuals' orientations on I–C and other organisational variables. Two types of fit were analysed: interactions between (1) individual I–C and national culture, and (2) individual I–C and organisational culture. These interactions were tested in relation to three outcome variables: organisational commitment, job satisfaction, and tenure. Both national and organisational differences were found with respect to I–C. Asian organisations were more collectivistic than Australian organisations, and hospitals were more collectivistic than management consultancies. In support of person–nation fit hypotheses, collectivists were more committed to their organisations and had longer tenure than individualists in Asian, as compared to Australian organisations. Interaction terms were significant even in the presence of direct effects of collectivism on organisational commitment and tenure. The same results were not found for job satisfaction. Predicted effects of person–organisation fit were not found at the organisational level within cultures.