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Moderators of the personality-performance relationship: An investigation of job meaning and autonomy

Jeffrey Muldoon, Jennifer L. Kisamore, Eric W. Liguori, I.M. Jawahar, Joshua Bendickson

Personnel Review

ISSN: 0048-3486

Article publication date: 3 April 2017

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether job meaning and job autonomy moderate the relationship between emotional stability and organizational citizenship behavior.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 190 supervisor-subordinate dyads completed three surveys. Linear and curvilinear analyses were used to assess the data.

Findings

Results indicate emotionally stable individuals are more likely to perform OCBOs in low autonomy and/or low job meaning situations than are employees low in emotional stability. Conversely, individuals who have high autonomy and/or high meaning jobs are likely to engage in OCBOs regardless of personality.

Research limitations/implications

As a survey-based research study, causal conclusions cannot be drawn from this study. Results suggest future research on the personality-performance relationship needs to more closely consider context and the potential for curvilinear relationships.

Practical implications

Managers should note that personality may significantly affect job performance and consider placing individuals in jobs that best align with their personality strengths.

Originality/value

This study sheds light on factors which may have led to erroneous conclusions in the extant literature that the relationship between personality and performance is weak.

Keywords

Citation

Muldoon, J., Kisamore, J.L., Liguori, E.W., Jawahar, I.M. and Bendickson, J. (2017), "Moderators of the personality-performance relationship: An investigation of job meaning and autonomy", Personnel Review, Vol. 46 No. 3, pp. 474-489. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-02-2016-0040

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited

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