A Link between public service motivation, employee outcomes, and person–organization fit: evidence from Vietnam

Abstract

This study is innovative in terms of theory and results as it gives a new perspective on public service motivation (PSM) consistent with the context of Vietnamese public universities. We construct a research model with adjusted scales to examines the mediating role of person–organization fit, through which four dimensions of PSM (the attraction to policy-making, commitment to the public interest, self-sacrifice, and compassion) affect both positive and negative aspects of employee outcomes (work effort, organizational citizenship behaviors, turnover intention, and work-related stress) in public higher education institutions in Vietnam. The results from 313 faculty and staff are randomly drawn from 45 Vietnamese public universities, demonstrated that PSM and person–organization fit have mixed effects on employee outcomes. Employees in public universities who commit to the public interest and are attracted to public policy-making will exert more effort in their work, but self-sacrifice and compassion do not directly affect their work effort. Additional, faculty and staff who have high PSM are more likely to be associated with the performance of organizational citizenship behaviors than individuals with low PSM. Furthermore, except for compassion, only three dimensions of PSM (self-sacrifice, commitment to the public interest, and attraction to policy-making) have a significant direct negative effect on public employees’ turnover intention. Besides, using structural equation modeling (SEM) point out that four dimensions of PSM purposely guidance on the manipulation of employee outcomes. In other words, four dimensions of PSM have significant positive relationships with person–organization fit, which in turn positively impacts work effort and organizational citizenship behaviors, also negatively impacts public employees’ work-related stress and their turnover intention. This research supplements very limited current literature and supposes several implications concerning higher education policies for public-sector managers in Vietnam.