Profiles of fit and misfit: a repeated weekly measures study of perceived value congruence

Abstract

Value congruence is generally studied as a stable experience instead of a dynamic phenomenon. This static approach largely ignores the emerging evidence that the fit experiences of individuals vary over time, and that different individuals may develop distinct experience profiles as time unfolds. We hypothesize that these temporal profiles of value congruence provide relevant insights into the relationship between perceived value congruence and employee functioning. We conducted a repeated weekly measures study with 125 white-collar Belgian employees to assess perceptions of value congruence and work role behaviours during 12 consecutive weeks. Through cluster analysis we were able to group employees with similar experience profiles based on average, variance, and frequency of changes into five distinct fit and misfit types. These were differentially related to two types of work role behaviours, i.e., work role proficiency (task performance and organizational citizenship behaviour) and work role proactivity (change-oriented behaviour and innovative work behaviour). Overall, our findings challenge the idea that fit-misfit is a dichotomous category, and underscore the need for more temporal research on perceptions of organizational fit in order to get a better understanding of how different types of fit and misfit behave in work settings.

Epilogue: Frontiers in person–environment fit research

“…This distinction between low fit and misfit is important because many of the definitions of misfit (see, for example, Kristof-Brown & Billsberry, 2013;Schneider, 1987;Vleugels et al, 2019) involve a sense of antagonism, conflict, or negativity. Misfit seems to be more than just a difference; it is an unpleasant or uncomfortable difference that matters to the individual.…”

“…One way to proceed would be to develop and validate a similar (three-item) measure of perceived misfit based on Cable and DeRue (2002) (e.g., "The things that I value in life are very dissimilar to the things that my organization values," "My personal values mismatch those of my organization's values and culture," and "My organization's values and culture misfit with the things that I value in life."). However, recent research suggests that misfit is hugely more complex than simple value incongruence (e.g., Bermiss & McDonald, 2018;Hollyoak, Talbot, Pyper, & Billsberry, 2017;Vleugels et al, 2019). For example, the first question that needs to be addressed is, what sort of values matter for misfit?…”

“…Some studies of misfit have surfaced forms of misfit that are merely uncomfortable and can be easily ameliorated (e.g., Follmer et al, 2018;Vogel et al, 2015), whereas others have surfaced much more painful forms that are not easily lived with (e.g., Follmer et al, 2018;Hollyoak et al, 2017). Vleugels et al (2019) have differentiated between a positive form of misfit labelled maverickism (Gardiner & Jackson, 2015) and the aforementioned more negative forms of misfit.…”

Exploring the consequences of person–environment misfit in the workplace: A qualitative study

“…440-441) define misfit as 'the negative end of the fit continuum, and is associated with discomfort or incompatibility'. According to Vleugels, Tierens, Billsberry, Verbruggen and De Cooman (2019), misfit is a negative, unwanted, unpleasant and undesirable condition, which is extremely incapacitating and damaging. Misfit has also been likened to an 'organisational psychopathology' -an enduring and negative state of mind (Billsberry, 2008, p. 2).…”

“…There is a considered argument that refutes the equivalence of low levels of fit, absence of fit and misfit. It has been asserted that misfit is a much more composite construct and that the experience is markedly worse and debilitating (Hollyoak, Talbot, Pyper, & Billsberry, 2017;Vleugels et al, 2019). Thus, misfit may not be triggered by the same factors or elicit the same consequences as that of low fit or the absence of fit (De Cooman, Mol, Billsberry, Boon, & Den Hartog, 2019).…”