Research Findings

Bret L. Simmons, Ph.D.University of Nevada, Reno

www.bretlsimmons.com

Research question

• What affects employee performance in this organization?–Supervisors rated employee

performance–Employees answered questions about

their work attitudes and personality–75 matched pairs of

employee/supervisor responses

Respondents

• State employees• All office/clerical workers• Mean age 44• 77% female• All had experienced a cut in pay (furlough) due

to state budget cuts one month before the surveys were administered

Hypotheses

• We thought some of the following might influence employee performance:– Job satisfaction (pay, promotion, work itself,

supervisor, co-workers, overall)–Organizational affective commitment–Trust in the supervisor– Interpersonal citizenship behavior–Organizational climate–Employee personalities

Findings: Only These Things Mattered

EmployeePerformance

Interpersonal CitizenshipBehavior

Satisfaction•Supervisor•Co-workers

Findings: Interpretation

• Interpersonal citizenship behavior was the only thing that affected employee performance in this study

• Employees were more likely to exhibit good interpersonal citizenship behavior to the extent they were satisfied with their supervisor and co-workers

Measure: Employee Performance

• Quality• Quantity• Following procedures• Ability to help others• Ability to get along with others• Productivity under pressure• Acceptance of responsibility• Adaptation to different situations• Overall performance

Measure: Interpersonal Citizenship

• Takes a personal interest in coworkers• Shows concern and courtesy towards coworkers, even under

the most trying situations• Takes on extra responsibilities in order to help coworkers when

things get demanding at work• Takes time to explain regulations or procedures to coworkers

when things get demanding at work• Goes out of the way to help coworkers with work-related

problems• Compliments coworkers when they succeed• Always goes out of the way to help newer employees feel

welcome in the work group

Measure: Satisfaction with Supervisor

• My supervisor is quite competent in doing his/her job

• My supervisor is fair to me• My supervisor shows interest in the feelings of

subordinates• I like my supervisor

Measure: Satisfaction with Co-workers

• I like the people I work with• There is too much bickering and fighting at

work (reverse scored)• I find I have to work harder at my job than I

should because of the incompetence of people I work with (reverse scored)

• I enjoy my co-workers

Things that did not matter

• Organizational commitment• Satisfaction with:– Pay– Promotion– The work itself

• Organizational Climate• Employee personalities

Recommendations

• Encourage employees to help each other and recognize/reward them when they do

• Provide supervisors the training to become excellent leaders. Recognize and reward them for their treatment of employees.

• Focus on selection and promotion systems. Hire employees with a history of helping others at work and ONLY promote to management employees that are good citizens.

• Include interpersonal citizenship in your formal performance appraisal process