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Article
Publication date: 15 July 2019

Maryam Dilmaghani and Vurain Tabvuma

The purpose of this study is to compare the gender gaps in work–life balance satisfaction across occupations. Due to data limitations, the studies of work–life balance…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to compare the gender gaps in work–life balance satisfaction across occupations. Due to data limitations, the studies of work–life balance satisfaction have generally relied on researcher collected data. As a result, large-scale studies encompassing all occupations in the same social and policy context are rare. In several cycles of the Canadian General Social Survey, the respondents are directly asked about their work–life balance (WLB) satisfaction. The present paper takes advantage of this unique opportunity to compare the gender gap in WLB satisfaction across occupations in Canada.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper pools four cross-sectional datasets (N = 37,335). Multivariate regression analysis is used.

Findings

Women in management and education are found to have a lower WLB satisfaction than their male counterparts. Conversely, and rather surprisingly, a WLB satisfaction advantage is found for women in transport over males in this occupation. Further investigation shows that the female WLB advantage in transport is driven by the relatively low WLB satisfaction of males in this occupation, while the opposite is true for education.

Social implications

The findings are discussed in light of the WLB policies and their increasing gender-blindness.

Originality/value

This paper is the first large-scale study which compares the gender gap in WLB satisfaction across occupations, in a given policy context.

Details

Gender in Management: An International Journal , vol. 34 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1754-2413

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 February 2019

Dermot McCarthy, Ping Wei, Fabian Homberg and Vurain Tabvuma

The purpose of this paper is to statistically test if the public service motivation (PSM) measure operates in the same way across the public and private sectors of a municipal…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to statistically test if the public service motivation (PSM) measure operates in the same way across the public and private sectors of a municipal district in China. It also contrasts the relationship between PSM and workplace outcomes across sectors and employee age groups.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data from independent samples of public (n=220) and private (n=230) sector employees in the Changsha Municipal District of China is used. The analysis tests for invariance across groups, before comparing mean values and regression weights.

Findings

Only in respect of one PSM dimension do findings show a significant higher mean in the public sector. No significant difference is found on the impact of PSM on employee performance across sectors, while it is in the private sector that PSM has the greater impact on intention to leave. Findings also show no marked impact of age upon outcomes.

Research limitations/implications

This study provides an initial set of results and further research will need to be undertaken to verify them. The limited sample size and narrow geographical focus, although in line with similar studies on China, means the ability to draw generalisations is limited. The reliance on self-reported measures means issues with common method bias cannot be ignored. Measures were taken during data collection to minimise issues of bias and a set of post-hoc test results are provided.

Practical implications

The recruitment of employees with higher levels of PSM can be expected to play a role in achieving better outcomes, regardless of sector and age profile.

Originality/value

The PSM measure has been applied by researchers across various economic sectors. This paper is one of the first to statistically test if the concept and its measure operates in the same way across sectors. The paper contributes to the on-going debate on PSM in the context of China and its relationship with a number of key output variables. Finally, the paper contributes to the emerging debate on changing workforce demographics and their role in shaping outcomes.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 9 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Article
Publication date: 13 May 2014

Donald Nordberg

The purpose of this “viewpoint” is to consider developments in the governance practices in UK public organizations, showing how ideas from the governance of listed companies have…

665

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this “viewpoint” is to consider developments in the governance practices in UK public organizations, showing how ideas from the governance of listed companies have translated into public bodies.

Design/methodology/approach

It discusses the literature of corporate governance and public service motivation and reflects it against practice evidenced in documentation for the UK Corporate Governance Code, codes for boards of different levels of public organizations, and both formal and informal evaluations of practice.

Findings

The use of independent, non-executives directors in public bodies encapsulates the tension in the private sector between the service role of directors and how they control managers. The paper gives a preliminary investigation of three public bodies, comparing how reform of their governance has affected tensions in accountability and director motivation. The changes involve greater emphasis on extrinsic goals, potentially at the cost of the intrinsic ones.

Research limitations/implications

The paper suggests avenues for future research, linking notions of the tensions between the service and control functions in corporate governance with the balance between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation.

Practical implications

Directors in both public and private bodies face a need to hold at bay forces that push in opposing directions to accommodate demands for greater accountability while sustaining the altruism social mindedness.

Originality/value

The area of public sector boards is undergoing considerable change in the UK and this paper, although preliminary, is one of the few to examine the links to motivation.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 May 2014

Margit Osterloh

– The purpose of this “viewpoint” is to consider the unintended consequences of variable pay and incentive schemes in healthcare environments.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this “viewpoint” is to consider the unintended consequences of variable pay and incentive schemes in healthcare environments.

Design/methodology/approach

Reviews a series of side effects of incentives.

Findings

The paper suggests that pay-for-performance schemes should be avoided.

Originality/value

The area of public sector boards is undergoing considerable change in the UK and this paper, although preliminary, is one of the few to examine the links to motivation.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 May 2014

C. Schott and J.L.J. Pronk

First, the purpose of this paper is to contribute to the public service motivation (PSM) literature by increasing the limited knowledge of organizational antecedents of PSM…

Abstract

Purpose

First, the purpose of this paper is to contribute to the public service motivation (PSM) literature by increasing the limited knowledge of organizational antecedents of PSM. Second, by combining PSM with insights from self-determination theory (SDT), the paper aims to elucidate the link through which high-performance work systems (HPWS) relate to PSM.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a survey, the authors investigated nurses’ perceptions of HPWS, PSM, and the satisfaction of basic psychological needs in four different German hospitals.

Findings

The results of this study provide empirical evidence that PSM is influenced by several HR practices and the three basic psychological needs autonomy, relatedness, and competence, which in turn are influenced by certain HR practices as well. Basic psychological needs do not fully mediate the relationship between HPWS and PSM.

Research limitations/implications

Four dimensions of HPWS are measured by a single item and the results are based on a German sample. They therefore might not apply to other countries. Future research will benefit from using a more corroborated measurement instrument of HPWS in different countries.

Practical implications

This study offers useful insights for HR managers in the nursing sector on the question how PSM can be fostered effectively.

Originality/value

This study adds to the limited knowledge of organizational antecedents of PSM by including ideas from HRM into the study of PSM. Second, by combining PSM with insights from psychology (SDT), this study sheds light on the mediating mechanisms which help to explain how HPWS relate to PSM; a conceptual model explaining the HPWS-PSM relationship is developed and tested.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 May 2014

Emil Inauen

With their specific characteristics, religious orders provide an interesting environment that can be used to deepen the understanding and dynamics of work motivation in the public…

Abstract

Purpose

With their specific characteristics, religious orders provide an interesting environment that can be used to deepen the understanding and dynamics of work motivation in the public sector. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper empirically investigates the levels and kinds of motivation (from extrinsic to intrinsic) in different religious orders, and analyze some major factors of influence. A broad survey of monastic leaders offers a unique data set to analyze the influence of constitutions and traditions on motivation in a quantitative and comparative way. The theoretical foundations are based upon self-determination theory (SDT), formalization and public service motivation.

Findings

The paper shows that even the most constrained and hierarchically structured communities succeed in preventing a crowding out of self-determined motivation. On the one hand, this can be ascribed to the influence of faith and religion. On the other hand, and this is the focus of the paper, the analysis suggests that if norms and structures are approved and considered essential, a crowding-out effect is absent, and motivation levels can be maintained.

Research limitations/implications

This study has an explorative character; it is intended to provide interest for further research. Because of the particular position of religious orders, and equally because of the relatively small sample and few variables concerning the approval of rules and traditions, further investigations in other settings are needed.

Practical implications

An alternative path to increase public service motivation comes into play. The negative effects of little or no autonomy and strict regulation in an organization's daily routines can be tempered by a conscious composition and awareness of governance, i.e. an understanding of and agreement upon constitutions, rules and traditions.

Originality/value

The approval of constitutions and traditions has received little study, yet offers new insights into public service motivation, SDT and formalization.

Article
Publication date: 13 May 2014

Nicolai Petrovsky and Adrian Ritz

A growing body of literature points to the importance of public service motivation (PSM) for the performance of public organizations. The purpose of this paper is to assess the…

2700

Abstract

Purpose

A growing body of literature points to the importance of public service motivation (PSM) for the performance of public organizations. The purpose of this paper is to assess the method predominantly used for studying this linkage by comparing the findings it yields without and with a correction suggested by Brewer (2006), which removes the common-method bias arising from employee-specific response tendencies.

Design/methodology/approach

First, the authors conduct a systematic review of published empirical research on the effects of PSM on performance and show that all studies found have been conducted at the individual level. Performance indicators in all but three studies were obtained by surveying the same employees who were also asked about their PSM. Second, the authors conduct an empirical analysis. Using survey data from 240 organizational units within the Swiss federal government, the paper compares results from an individual-level analysis (comparable to existing research) to two analyses where the data are aggregated to the organizational level, one without and one with the correction for common-method bias suggested by Brewer (2006).

Findings

Looking at the Attraction to Policy-Making dimension of PSM, there is an interesting contrast: While this variable is positively correlated with performance in both the individual-level analysis and the aggregated data analysis without the correction for common-method bias, it is not statistically associated with performance in the aggregated data analysis with the correction.

Originality/value

The analysis is the first to assess the robustness of the performance-PSM linkage to a correction for common-method bias. The findings place the validity of at least one part of the individual-level linkage between PSM and performance into question.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 May 2014

Heather Getha-Taylor and Alexa Haddock-Bigwarfe

The purpose of this paper is to examine public service motivation (PSM) and the connection with collaborative attitudes among a sample of homeland security actors representing the…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine public service motivation (PSM) and the connection with collaborative attitudes among a sample of homeland security actors representing the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.

Design/methodology/approach

This study examines relationships between measures of PSM and collaboration using original survey data and hierarchical multiple regression.

Findings

Findings reveal strong positive relationships between PSM measures and attitudes toward collaboration at the individual and organizational level.

Research limitations/implications

Survey results are cross-sectional and are from respondents participating in a single state's homeland security summit.

Practical implications

It is expected that results can be used to enhance collaboration at the individual and organizational levels. At the organizational level, results can be used for matching individuals with collaborative opportunities. At the individual level, results can be used for enhanced self-reflection and effectiveness purposes.

Originality/value

This study provides insights on the relationship between PSM measures and collaborative attitudes. The research contributes to the body of scholarly work connecting PSM and correlates of interest.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 May 2014

Uwe Wilkesmann and Christian J. Schmid

The introduction of New Public Management in the German system of higher education raises issues of the academics’ motivation to do research and to teach. The purpose of this…

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Abstract

Purpose

The introduction of New Public Management in the German system of higher education raises issues of the academics’ motivation to do research and to teach. The purpose of this paper is to present evidence-based findings about contextual factors which influence intrinsic and related modes of internalized teaching motivation in German higher education institutions. The paper discusses parallels between internalized forms of motivation and public service motivation (PSM). In accordance with self-determination theory (SDT), the paper empirically tests factors which correlate with autonomous motivation to teach. The paper also addresses the issue of the crowding effect of intrinsic motivation by selective incentives.

Design/methodology/approach

The analyses are based on the data of two online surveys among German professors (n=2,061) representative for the population of state-governed universities. To test the theory-driven hypotheses the paper used multivariate regression analysis.

Findings

The results support the basic claims of the SDT that intrinsic teaching motivation is facilitated by social relatedness, competence, and partly by autonomy for German professors, too. If teaching is managed by objective agreements intrinsic motivation is significantly decreased.

Originality/value

The authors translated, reformulated, and applied the SDT framework to academic teaching. The analysis presents evidence that the management of autonomy-supportive work environmental factors is also superior to selective incentives in higher education institutions. The study on academic teaching motivation is a specific contribution to PSM research. Academic teaching in public higher education institutions is a service to the public.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

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