The growth in international research on public service motivation (PSM) raises a number of important questions about the degree to which the theory and research developed in one country can contribute to our understanding of PSM in other counties. To help address this issue, this study revisits the conceptual and operational definitions of PSM to address weaknesses previously noted in the literature. Although some important steps have been taken to both improve and internationalize the PSM scale, this work has been done incrementally. In contrast, this study takes a more systematic and comprehensive approach by combining the efforts of international PSM scholars to develop and then test a revised measurement instrument for PSM in 12 countries. Although the resulting four dimensional 16-item measure of PSM reported here provides a better theoretical and empirical foundation for the measurement of PSM, our results suggest that the exact meaning and scaling of PSM dimensions are likely to differ across cultures and languages. These results raise serious concerns regarding the ability to develop a single universal scale of PSM, or making direct comparisons of PSM across countries.Its earlier versions were delivered at the Annual Conference
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JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org..
To what extent can PSM be considered a characteristic that evolves in the course of the individual's working life? After offering this question as a contribution to a research agenda on PSM, the article examines in what way the different dimensions of PSM, held by a group of employees in the Italian Revenue Agency, relate to their perceptions of recent changes in working conditions. It also explores the relationship between perception of change, PSM dimensions and job satisfaction, work motivation and organizational commitment. Out of the web of interactions that tie together these variables some support is found for the argument that there is a relationship between some PSM dimensions and changes in the work environment. It is suggested, however, that the question raised, besides needing further studies, could be much better researched with a longitudinal study of a cohort of individuals.
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