Many in public administration hypothesize that public service motivation (PSM) has a direct positive impact on the attitudes and behaviors of public employees. However, there are inconsistencies in the PSM literature that challenge this hypothesis. This study sought to find out whether person-organization (P-O) fit can provide a reason for these inconsistencies. Specifically, this study explored whether the relationships among PSM, job satisfaction, and the turnover intentions of public employees were mediated by P-O fit. Using a sample of 205 employees drawn from three public organizations in the states of Oregon, Indiana, and Kentucky, this study found that PSM had no significant relationship to the job satisfaction and turnover intentions of public employees when P-O fit was considered. The implications of this study and areas of future research are discussed.

Public service motivation (PSM) is argued to be a meaningful predictor of the performance of employees in public organizations. Many scholars predict that as the level of PSM increases, the performance of public employees will also increase. Unfortunately, existing research has yet to fully support this hypothesis. Two published studies that tested this hypothesis have come to different conclusions. This study investigated whether Person—Organization Fit (P—O Fit) mediates the relationship between PSM and the self-reported performance of public employees, using structural equation modeling. Using a sample of 205 public employees randomly drawn from three public organizations, this study found that PSM had no significant direct impact on the performance of public employees, when P—O Fit was taken into account. The implications of this study and areas of future research are discussed.

More than a decade ago, Perry and Wise popularized the concept of public service motivation. Yet today, still little is known about public employees with high levels of public service motivation. This study sought to fill this gap in the literature by investigating the relationship that exists between public service motivation and the personal characteristics, management level, and monetary preferences of public employees. The findings reveal that public service motivation is significantly related to the gender, education level, management level, and monetary preferences of public employees. The implications of this study and areas of future research are discussed.

Public administration research has consistently demonstrated that public employees possess a higher desire for intrinsic nonmonetary opportunities than their private sector counterparts. Yet it is not entirely clear why. Researchers have largely assumed that public service motivation is the reason for these findings. However, no empirical research to date has directly tested this assumption while also taking into account alternate explanations. This study aims to fill that gap in the literature by empirically investigating the relationship that public service motivation has to the intrinsic nonmonetary preferences of public employees while controlling for several confounding explanations. This article closes with some summary findings, a discussion of contributions to the current literature on public service motivation, and the identification of a few issues that deserve further investigation. G aining a better understanding of the motivational tendencies of public employees is crucial. The United States faces new challenges that require public organizations to operate at the highest levels of productivity and effectiveness. Public employees must be motivated to meet these important goals.Accepted wisdom recognizes that work motivation is an energizing force that directs and sustains the efforts of employees in organizations. 1 One important task of public organization leaders is to find ways of releasing this energizing force within employees so that they achieve their critical missions. One strategy of releasing this energy is to provide employees with the kinds of opportunities they desire. 2 As employees are provided with opportunities that are desirable to them, the greater the likelihood is that they will be motivated toward accomplishing organizational goals.The public administration literature has contributed extensively to our understanding of the kinds of job opportunities that are desirable to public employees. This body of research has consistently demonstrated that public employees highly desire intrinsic nonmonetary opportunities. 3 Yet scholars have not undertaken any empirical work that directly explains why public employees desire these opportunities so highly. Scholars and practitioners have largely assumed that public service motivation (PSM) is the reason. Indeed, indirect support for this argument has been provided by studies that have shown that public employees with high levels of PSM

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Public opinion polls consistently suggest that government employment is not considered to be highly prestigious by most Americans. These negative images are likely to stifle the public sector’s recruitment and retention efforts. Scholars have suggested that individuals with high levels of public service motivation (PSM) are better equipped to work in these environments, yet no studies can be found that have directly explored the relationships between PSM and the perceptions that public employees hold regarding the images that citizens hold of their organizations. This article sought to fill this gap in the literature by exploring the extent to which perceptions of organizational prestige (POP) mediate the relationship between PSM and the job satisfaction and turnover intentions of public employees. Using a sample of federal employees working for the Transportation Security Administration in Oregon, this study found that POP fully mediated the relationship between PSM and turnover intentions and partially mediated the relationship between PSM and job satisfaction. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Public service motivation (PSM) is a multifaceted theory that explains, among other things, the career preferences of individuals. Some have suggested that PSM is not inherently government specific and thus is also a meaningful characteristic of individuals who are employed in the nonprofit sector. This study sought to add to this body of research by exploring the relationship that PSM has to nonprofit and government career preferences, while controlling for the influences of age, gender, minority status, and work experience. The findings of this study demonstrated that individuals with high levels of PSM preferred nonprofit careers over government careers. However, the gender of the respondents was found to be the most important predictor of career preferences when compared with PSM. The implications of these findings to the field of public administration and management are discussed.

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.