Where Does Public Service Motivation Count the Most in Government Work Environments? A Preliminary Empirical Investigation and Hypotheses

Abstract

Recent research has demonstrated that public service motivation (PSM) is positively associated with the compatibility that public employees have to public organizations. However, the person–work environment (PE Fit) research also highlights the importance of compatibility not only between individuals and organizations (PO Fit) but also between individuals and jobs (PJ Fit). Hence, there is a need for research that investigates the level of the government work environment that PSM contributes to the most. Subsequently, this study sought to shed some light on the relationship that PSM has to PO Fit and PJ Fit. Using a sample of 205 randomly selected employees drawn from three public organizations in the States of Oregon, Indiana, and Kentucky, PSM was found to be a significantly better predictor of PO Fit, than PJ Fit. The implications of this finding for public administration research and practice are discussed.

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