Job motivation, satisfaction and performance among bank employees

Job motivation, satisfaction and performance among bank employees

Job motivation, satisfaction and performance among bank employees: A correlational study

Springer, Gary Jon

ProQuest Dissertations and Theses; 2010; ProQuest Central

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Job Motivation, Satisfaction and Performance Among Bank Employees: A Correlational Study

- Dissertation Submitted to Northcentral University

Graduate Faculty of the School of Psychology

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

by

GARY JON SPRINGER Prescott Valley, Arizona August 2010

UMI Number: 3429116

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APPROVAL PAGE

Job Motivation, Satisfaction and Performance Among Bank Employees: A Correlational Study

by Gary Jon Springer

Ø ự 2 of 2

Chair: Dr Kristopher Lichtanski, Ph.D Date

Member: Dr Eva Mika, Ph.D

Member: Dr Geoffrey Hutchinson, Ph.D

School Dean: Heather Frederick, Ph.D Date

Abstract Past research has offered differing results as to the effects of job motivation and job satisfaction on job performance Using a correlational research design, this quantitative study examined the relationship among these variables in order to determine the effects

of job motivation and job satisfaction on job performance in bank employees A convenience sample of 70 bank employees participated in the study Participants completed the demographic questionnaire and three Likert-like questionnaires: the Ray- Lynn Motivation Instrument, the Job Satisfaction Instrument, and the BANKSERV Customer Service Instrument Collected data was analyzed using both Pearson r and multiple regression techniques The results of the study showed a positive correlation between job motivation and job performance in bank employees, r (68) = 43, p < 01, and a positive correlation between job satisfaction and job performance in bank employees, 7 (68) = 29, p < 05 Additionally, the combination of job motivation and job satisfaction was found to significantly predict job performance in bank employees, R=

18, F (2, 67) = 7.62, p < 01 Other factors tested did not have a significant relationship

to job performance, including gender r (68) = -.28, p > 05, age 7 (68) = -.01, p > 05, salary r (68) = 26, p > 05, and stress r (68) = -.03, p> 05 These results suggest that by applying managerial strategies to increase job motivation and job satisfaction, job

performance can be potentially improved in bank employees Future research is needed

to re-test whether such correlations can be found in other types of business in the interest

of finding industry specific variance

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my deep appreciation to my committee chair, Dr Kristopher Lichtanski, who stepped in towards the end of the dissertation process to help me to see this project to fruition

I would also like to thank committee member, Dr Eva Mika, who helped keep me on task with her continuing patience and understanding, even in the midst of enduring a significant loss Without her guidance and continued encouragement this dissertation would not have been possible

I am also very grateful for the hard work of Dr Geoffrey Hutchinson who supported me

in my efforts to achieve my goal

Additionally, I give a special thank you to Antonio Ramirez, with 20 years of banking experience, who helped to enlighten me to the plight of bank employees

Table of Contents

CHAPTER 1: Introduction ‹ << sàn nh ke 1 Background VỪV ee seb ROSS bean ES 2 Problem Statement . - HH HH nh nh ng kh nh hư 5 PUTPOS€ on HH HH HH HT nh Km ng ng Tn n g kg nh tin th 6 Theoretical FrameWOFTK .- - Ăn n n nnn nn nh nh tk nà 6 Research qU€S{IOTNS - 5 5 + 1k kHH TH nH HT g0 0118011181 1191 khe 9 Hypotheses Ăn HH HH» HT km Km nà nà net hà 9

"11100011 1) 217 11 Significance of the Study ch Hà HH hệt 12

SUmAFV SH» HH km TK Tà nh th nh nh hi th 13 CHAPTER 2: Literature ÑevI€wW con nn HH nh nh nh 14 Issues for 1 Ẵ>i19 0) /~- 1 PP 15 Job performanCe «- ¿<4 Ex 9 vn TT TH 11 1 T1 1 0010 1k1 14g 17 Gender and job performanCe .- - - <5 Hs th ng chen ng 18 Age and job perÍOrmarnce . + 5+ + +39 2 3 kh nh nh th 20 Salary and job perfOrnance . ¿- - ¿5+2 + + tt vn 214212 1g như 23 Stress and job perfOrmanCe - 5 Ăn HH ng 2i khe 24 Customer service as an aspect of ]ob performance - «+ se 26

Job Motivation and Job performance . ccsssehhehhnheeheieeeereeree 31 Job 5019:0007 32 Job satisfaction and job performance . + c<s sen ni 35 Summary OÝ ÏÏ(CrafUF€ T€VICW SH TH g9 H0 th ng ng tri 37

CHAPTER 3: Research Method - cọ nhe nh eH 40 05a 40 Research Methods and Design - «sàng» SH Hy net 42

1471016101 2520000277577 ÔôÔôÔ 43

\/E1i5s 170102: 72 44 Operational Definition of Variables - che 47 Data Collection, Processing, and AnaÌySIS - nà hen e 48 Methodological Assumptions, Limitations and Delimitations 531

ID in1s21f:nv is e 52 ŸUTAFY co n nn n nnn ng HH HH TH ng TH kh ph nh kh nh kg 56

CHAPTER 4: Findings - HH nh nh nh kh nh 57 9.5/13 57

Evaluation of findings - - 557cc OF SUIITAFV . .- ng HS HS HH nh HH nh mộc Ki Bột min nh nh nh 65

CHAPTER 5: Implications, Recommendations and Conclusions 67

List of Tables

Table 1 Correlations between Job Motivation, Job Performance and Job Satisfaction 58 Table 2 Hierarchical Linear Regression Analysis Predicting Job Performance .++ 61 Table 3 Correlations: Gender, Age, Salary, Stress, Job Motivation, Job Satisfaction to

dOb Pe€rƒOFIHQHCÔ «SH HT TH HT TH TH HH TH Tà ng tk 62

List of Figures

Figure 1 Scatter Plot showing correlation of Job Motivation, Job Satisfaction, and Job

PeFfOTI(HC nh HH tà HH th TH kh g0 40117101 1e

Chapter 1: Introduction Factors that affect workers’ productivity have long been a topic of interest to managers and employers Over the years, various theories have been considered, with the idea that through increasing job motivation or job satisfaction, output might also be increased The results of several previous studies have established a relationship between

job satisfaction and job performance (Judge, Thoresen, & Bono, 2001; Miller, Erikson & Yust, 2008; Moynihan & Pandey, 2007), while results of other studies have indicated a

correlation between motivation and job performance (Grant, 2008; Halbesleben &

Bowler, 2007; Van Knippenberg, 2000), also indicating a relationship between the

variables Additional factors that have been found to have some effect on performance include gender (Semadar, Robins & Ferris, 2006), age (Ng & Feldman, 2008), salary (Lemieux, MacLeod, & Parent, 2009) and stress (Hourani, Williams, & Kress, 2006) In reviewing these studies, however, a clear relationship among the three variables of job motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance has not been recognized in prior research

In fact, the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance has been somewhat controversial While Fisher (2003) and Judge et al (2001) indicate a direct relationship between job satisfaction, and job performance, Bassem (2003) found no statistically significant relationship between these variables Fisher (2003) believes the relationship to be only a modest one A new perspective on this relationship is offered in this study

In regard to job motivation and job performance, the relationship appears to be

more clearly established (Grant, 2008; Halbesleben et al., 2007; Latham & Pinder, 2005;

Van Knippenberg, 2000); however, agreement as to the exact magnitude of the relationship has not been reached

The numerous researchers that have worked on these issues over the years have come up with varied conclusions, likely due to using different definitions of job

motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance In addition, the many variables that can affect these constructs also play an important role The results of research conducted

in the past have shown that gender, age, salary, and stress as well as numerous other variables have been shown to have an effect on both job motivation and job satisfaction, and ultimately on job performance (Hourani et al., 2006; Lemieux et al., 2009; Ng & Feldman, 2008; Semadar et al., 2006)

The background of job motivation and job satisfaction research is examined in this chapter, along with demonstrating an understanding of the various aspects that may affect job performance Additionally, the research problem is described along with the associated theories Finally, the research questions are presented as well as the nature and significance of the study, and the definitions of key terms

Background

The field of industrial organizational psychology deals with applying psychological theories and principles to organizations From the outset, industrial organizational psychologists have had an interest in studying job motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance as well as the interplay of these variables The ability

to manipulate these variables for the purpose of increasing business-related goals and outcomes has been reflected in theories of motivation and job satisfaction as evidenced

by the historical work of Maslow (1987) and Pinder (1998)

Studying employee job performance and understanding how to increase efficiency has long been a priority for industrial organization psychologists Learning how to help employees operate more proficiently, from a scientific standpoint, became an important initial goal of industrial organizational psychologists Scientific management has helped

to study and test different work methods to identify the best, most efficient ways to complete a job (Mousa & Lemak, 2009) An early example of studying employee work habits scientifically and implementing better practices can be seen in the historical work

of Frank and Lillian Gilbreth on time and motion (Mousa & Lemak, 2009) In the early part of the twentieth century, this husband and wife pair observed workers’ movements to find out how long it would take the best worker to complete a job, while also watching the steps necessary to complete the job Bricklayers serve as a relevant example Frank Gilbreth noticed that bending down to retrieve each individual brick slowed down overall performance among these workers By devising a stand to keep bricks at waist level, the movement was eliminated and job efficiency was increased (Mousa & Lemak, 2009) Time and motion studies became one of the first methods of helping employees to operate more efficiently

Henry Gantt, an associate of the Gilbreths, noticed that workers who were trained and learned to cooperate better with their foreman, had better work habits, were more skilled, and more reliable (Doherty, 2009) According to Doherty, when workers were more interested in work that held their attention, they tired less than during work they were forced to do Additionally, when a reward followed the accomplishment of a task, the results included work of higher quality and more satisfied workers

The job characteristics model of job satisfaction was based on research about how job satisfaction relates to work productivity (James & Jones, 2006) According to the job characteristics model of job satisfaction and historical studies, workers tend to be more satisfied with their jobs under three conditions: a) when they experience their work as meaningful, b) when they experience responsibility for work outcomes and c) when they have knowledge of their work results “Meaningful” work means that the employee considers his or her efforts to be important Experiencing responsibility for the work outcomes relates to an employee feeling personally responsible for the work being done well The concept of a worker having “knowledge” of the results of their efforts means that employees are informed of how well they are performing their jobs (Hackman & Oldham, 1976) Many researchers have established a positive relationship between job satisfaction and performance, including Fisher (2003), Judge et al (2001), Moorman (1993), and Petty et al (1984)

Current research on the individual effects of job motivation and job satisfaction has largely shown that each of these variables has a positive relationship to job

performance, but the extent of that relationship has often come into question (Bassem, 2003; Fisher, 2003; Grant, 2008; Halbesleben et al., 2007; Judge et al., 2001; Latham & Pinder, 2005; Van Knippenberg, 2000) In the present study this relationship has been reevaluated with the focus on the combined relationship of both job satisfaction and job motivation on job performance, specifically in bank employees — a population that currently suffers from low wages (“Average Annual Wage,” 2009) and high turnover (Nelson, 2007)

Problem Statement

Presently, the relational strength and direction of job satisfaction, job motivation, and job performance remains unclear, although correlations between these variables have been established in the literature (Grant, 2008; Halbesleben et al., 2007; Judge et al., 2001; Miller et al., 2008; Moynihan & Pandey, 2007; Van Knippenberg, 2000) The present study provides a better understanding of how these specific variables predict job performance in a bank setting population The present study relies on well established psychological theories related to job motivation and job satisfaction with a specific goal

of exploring what the predictor variables of job motivation and job satisfaction reveal about job performance in bank employees

Historically, bank employees, as a group, demonstrated a substandard level of job motivation and job satisfaction (Durkin & Bennett, 1999; Kelley 1990) Current data shows that bank employees suffer from a high turnover rate (Nelson, 2007) and low salary compared to other professions (“Average Annual Wage,” 2009) How job motivation and job satisfaction individually influence job performance in employees has been a longstanding issue in research (Grant, 2008; Halbesleben et al., 2007; Judge et al., 2001; Miller et al., 2008; Moynihan & Pandey, 2007; Van Knippenberg, 2000) Job performance in any line of work is certainly influenced by numerous factors Issues such

as gender (Beck, Behr, & Giittler, 2009), age (Thomas & Feldman, 2008), salary (Ittner, Larcker, & Pizzini, 2007) and stress (Hourani et al., 2006) have been known to affect work habits Previous research has documented the individual effect of motivation on job performance (Van Knippenberg, 2000) as well as the effect of job satisfaction

(Judge, Thoresen, Bono, Patton, 2001) on job performance The current study explores the relationship among these variables specifically among bank employees

in this study based on their on-line presence and decision to take part in this survey Theoretical Framework

This research falls under the areas of industrial organizational psychology and managerial studies As an innate part of their job, industrial organizational psychologists attempt to determine what factors affect employees’ work habits and how to create an atmosphere of greater efficiency and productivity A better understanding of how job motivation and job satisfaction can affect job performance is part of that equation

Specific theories used in this research included Maslow’s (1987) motivation theory as well as the situational occurrences theory (Quarstein et al., 1992) and discrepancy theory (Locke, 1976) of job satisfaction Each of these theories is discussed in more detail in

further chapters The guiding theoretical framework for this research is that a new analysis of the relationship among job motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance will provide new insight which can be used to improve job performance in bank

employees

The needs satisfaction theory of motivation is tied directly to the historical work

of Abraham Maslow (1987) In his book Motivation and Personality, Maslow claims that human motivation develops in sequence according to five levels of needs These needs are: physiological (hunger, thirst), safety (protection), social (be accepted, belong to a certain group), self-esteem (self-confidence, achievements, respect, status, recognition), and self-actualization (realizing one’s potential for continued self-development)

According to Maslow, people begin at the bottom of the hierarchy, ensuring that physiological needs, such as hunger, are met first Subsequently they motivate themselves, incrementally, to reach the higher need levels: safety, social, self-esteem, and potentially self-actualization

Using this as a basis for motivation in the workplace, a manager might assume that his or her employees would be motivated to continue moving up through the need hierarchy until they reached their personal level of self-actualization By its very nature, once the self-actualization need is activated, it stimulates an even greater desire for satisfaction, creating a continuing source of motivation If this theory were correct, all employees would automatically continue to improve, succeed, and move up in their workplace hierarchy One of the limitations of this theory is, however, that each individual has his or her own level of self-actualization Some employees may be satisfied in a lower level position or not feel capable of being promoted any further

Muchinsky (2006) criticized Maslow’s theory and stated that it lacked empirical support because Maslow did not provide operational definitions of his variables

The situational occurrences theory focuses on the difference between fixed aspects of a working environment (situational characteristics), such as salary, office, and working conditions versus situational occurrences, which tend to be more temporary aspects of the working environment such as changing policies, rude coworkers, or broken office equipment (Quarstein et al., 1992) The balance between these variables and how they affect job satisfaction is the crux of the situational occurrences theory

Discrepancy theory (Locke, 1990) bases job satisfaction on an employee’s appraisal of how aspects of his or her job compare with one’s own personal goals and expectations; the closer one’s job meets his or her expectations, the higher the level of job satisfaction Finally, motivation-hygiene theory compares how well an employee's motivating factors such as salary, interpersonal relations, and working conditions match up with their actual job opportunities, called hygiene (Locke, 1990) The similar and sometimes overlapping concepts in the discrepancy theory and motivation-hygiene theory helped to show that the definitions are analogous

Historical controversy exists over the effect of job motivation and job satisfaction

on job performance Judge et al (2001) found the effect of job satisfaction on job performance to be minimal while other studies have shown a much greater effect Judge and Watanabe (1993) found a reciprocal effect between job satisfaction and job

performance, but also included life satisfaction as a variable Sisk (1994) concluded that there was no demonstrable relationship between job satisfaction and productivity Varied

and sometimes conflicting results have also been demonstrated when reviewing studies that examined the relationship between job motivation and job performance

The premise of the study is that if the combined effect of job satisfaction and job motivation on job performance is a positive one, as supported by the individual

relationships of job satisfaction to job performance and job motivation to job performance, that knowledge may be applied to enhance job performance in current bank employees

Q1 What is the relationship between job motivation and job performance in bank

Q2 What is the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance in

Q3 What can the predictor variables of job motivation and job satisfaction reveal

about job performance in bank employees?

H3, The null hypothesis is that job motivation and job satisfaction are not significant predictors of job performance in bank employees

H3, Job motivation and job satisfaction are significant predictors of job performance in bank employees

Q4 What is the relationship between gender and job performance in bank

employees?

H4, The null hypothesis is that gender has no effect on job performance

in bank employees

H4, Gender has an effect on job performance in bank employees

Q5 What is the relationship between age and job performance in bank

Q6 What is the relationship between salary and job performance in bank

Nature of the Study

This quantitative study was designed using a correlational framework and utilized

a survey to examine the relationship among the variables of job satisfaction, job motivation, and job performance The survey was created using the combined instruments of motivation by Ray (1980), job satisfaction by Spector (1994) and job performance (customer service) by Avkiran (1999) Each of the stated variables was evaluated using these instruments Analysis of the results of this study was determined through statistical calculations, making use of both the Pearson r technique and

regression methods for measuring correlations

Significance of the Study

The combined effect of both job motivation and job satisfaction on job performance in bank employees had not previously been investigated This study is important because by examining the relationship among job motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance, this research helped to evaluate the significance among these factors in bank employees Previous research has demonstrated the individual relationship between job motivation and job performance (Grant, 2008; Halbesleben et al., 2007; Van Knippenberg, 2000) as well as job satisfaction and job performance (Judge

et al., 2001; Miller et al., 2008; Moynihan & Pandey, 2007) This study sought not only

to reexamine those previously established relationships, but to assess how the combination of job motivation and job satisfaction might predict job performance

Determining the relationship among these variables in bank employees has several practical implications As a result of this study, a closer examination of job performance

by bank managers may help them to identify which issues related to job satisfaction and job performance might be important The scientific study of the workplace and use of the information obtained from such research is the primary goal of industrial organizational psychologists (““What is I-O psychology,” 2010) Additionally, this research can be added to the current knowledge of job motivation, job satisfaction, and performance The findings of this study might be applicable to workers in other service industries other than banking alone

Definitions

Job motivation Willingness to exert effort above and beyond duties (Beyth- Marom, Harpaz-Gorodeisky, Bar-Haim, & Godder, 2006)

Job satisfaction The extent to which people like (satisfaction) or dislike (dissatisfaction) their jobs (Spector, 1994)

Job performance Defined as behaviors that are under individual control and that affect the goals of the employing organization (Harrison et al., 2006)

Customer Service Perceived service quality is a global judgment, or attitude, relating to superiority of the service whereas satisfaction is related to a specific transaction (Avkiran, 1999)

Summary

Although controversy exists in the field as to the extent of the relationship among the variables of job motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance, existing research has provided evidence that a positive relationship exists between job satisfaction and job performance (Moynihan & Pandey, 2007) as well as between job motivation and job performance (Miller et al., 2008) The goal of this study was to strengthen and expand the previous findings by evaluating the interrelationship among all three variables of job motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance, and the combined effects of job motivation and job satisfaction on job performance in the banking industry

New evidence of a positive correlation found among the three variables in this study could have implications for managers and industrial organizational psychologists in terms of increasing job satisfaction and reviewing motivational incentives in order to make improvements in job performance in bank employees

Chapter 2: Literature Review The purpose of this study was to perform a quantitative assessment examining the relationships among job motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance in bank

employees and to determine to what extent, if any, the variables of job motivation and job satisfaction predict job performance In several existing studies the individual effect of job motivation and job satisfaction on job performance has been examined A review of these studies has shown varied and sometimes conflicting results A better understanding

of this relationship may be particularly beneficial to bank employees, who seem to suffer from deficiencies in motivation and job satisfaction This review begins with a

discussion of problem issues specific to bank employees, followed by issues of how gender, age, salary, and stress relate to job performance Next, job performance, operationalized for this study as customer service, is discussed Finally, previous studies examining the effect of job motivation and job satisfaction on job performance are evaluated

The strategy for performing the research for this review comprised searches on job motivation and job satisfaction in bank employees and how each variable related to job performance Although there were sparse resources available that were specific to bank employees, a good deal of information was available regarding the relationship between job motivation, job satisfaction, and job performance in general Some of the literature related to job satisfaction and job performance is from an historical perspective

as these theories have not changed significantly in recent years Literature reviewed in this section was derived primarily from empirical studies in peer-reviewed journals

Other sources included management and business-related texts as well as noted reputable internet sites

After describing the problems unique to bank employees, this review demonstrates how job motivation and job satisfaction have previously been tied to job performance in order to justify the importance of understanding this relationship The need to reexamine the relationship among these variables is explored specifically within the banking industry in order to ascertain methods of making improvements to job performance in bank employees

Issues for Bank Employees

Bank employees face a myriad of concerns specific to their field, including low pay, high turnover, and problems with job motivation and job satisfaction Kelley (1990) found that bank tellers, in particular, tended to be less satisfied and less motivated than employees in other lines of work that required direct customer contact Other researchers have reached similar conclusions, including Durkin & Bennet (1999) who found that bank employees demonstrate low levels of commitment to their work as well as an inability to embrace new change initiatives

Low salary is a contributing factor to the job satisfaction and motivation problems | found in bank employees The report Salary and Benefits (2009) from Payscale.com, a leading internet website that documents average salaries across careers, shows the median salary for bank tellers to be between $15,000 and $35,000 per year Personal bankers make somewhat more, with a median salary of $30,000 to $50,000 per year When compared to other industries, these wages are low In 2006, the average annual wage for all United States workers was $42,881 (“Average Annual Wage,” 2009)

The banking industry also suffers from high employee turnover rate In 2007, Bank of America, which boasts 188,000 employees, had a turnover rate of 48% (Nelson, 2007) Branham (2005) reports a 25% turnover rate among all bank employees, with turnover rates as high as 40% specifically among tellers Branham attributes this high turnover rate to low pay, heavy workloads, and job insecurity among bank employees Stress for bank employees is another contributor to high turnover Employees with higher levels of stress are much more likely to consider leaving their positions (Chen & Lien, 2008)

The recent global economic turndown in the world has brought new woes to bank employees Due to banks reacting to the financial crisis, bank employees have

experienced a decline in working conditions and a rise in layoffs (Gennard, 2009)

While examining the solvency of banks, a clear relationship emerged among bank employees in healthy banks versus those in distressed banks Employees in healthy banks were more satisfied in their jobs and experienced lower levels of anxiety than employees in distressed banks (Samuel, Osinowo & Chipunza, 2009) In addition to issues that have already added to low job motivation and job satisfaction in bank employees, the current economic conditions seems to have exacerbated these problems

Considering the issues of low wages, high turnover, and job insecurity among bank employees, it is not surprising to find that they suffer from low work motivation and low job satisfaction However, it appears that something more fundamental is

contributing to the overall problem Reviewing the root causes of job motivation and job satisfaction, and their relationship to job performance can provide some understanding of the problems with bank employees along with possible solutions

Job Performance

Job performance has been called one of the most important constructs in both organizational psychology and human resource management (Campbell, 1990) Jamal (2007) saw job performance as a function that an individual can successfully perform within the framework of the normal constraints and available resources What constitutes job performance obviously will differ from job to job A few researchers, including Campbell (1990), began to develop some broad dimensions of job performance that could

be generalizable across jobs Campbell came up with eight general factors of job performance which included a) job-specific proficiency, b) non-job-specific task proficiency, c) written and oral communication, d) demonstrating effort, e) maintaining personal discipline, f) maintaining peer and team performance, g) supervision/leadership, h) management/administration Campbell espoused that although each factor may not be relevant for all jobs, these eight factors could be used for describing job performance in every possible occupation Additionally, although the content of each of the eight factors may vary across jobs, underlying each of them is a motivational component More recent research has added social efficacy to these factors (Hochwarter, Kiewitz, Gundlach, & Stoner, 2004) These researchers proposed that job performance is a multidimensional concept that encompasses both task-related and contextual performance factors that includes the importance of social skills as a predictor of job performance

Extensive research has been done to provide greater understanding behind the significant variation in job performance among employees Factors such gender (Beck et al., 2009), age (Ng et al., 2008), salary (Ittner et al., 2007) and stress (Hourani et al.,

2006) have all been studied to determine the relationship of these variables to job performance

Prior researchers tended to carve up aspects of job motivation and job satisfaction into numerous detailed elements, which may have diluted the convergent effect of these factors on job performance Although these studies describe influences on job

performance, the combined influence of these variables demonstrates the overall effect of both job motivation and job satisfaction on job performance The specific relationship between job motivation and job performance has been investigated by researchers such as Van Knippenberg (2000), showing a positive correlation, while the connection between satisfaction and job performance has been evaluated and minimized by both Moorman (1993) and Fisher (2003) In the specific case of job satisfaction, conflicting evidence exists in the literature as to the magnitude of job satisfaction’s effect on job performance Gender and Job Performance

Although women constitute nearly half of the workforce (Department of Labor Women’s Bureau, 2005), they hold only one-third of the total management roles A substantial difference in career progression, based on gender, appears to be the norm Segal (1992) indicates that only 3% of women in the workforce hold senior management positions When career progression based on gender differences was examined, it demonstrated that men’s salaries increased faster, then women’s, even when both genders were matched on experience and education (Stroh, Bret & Reilly, 1992) Not only are women underrepresented in the highest ranks of business, but they also earn less than their male counterparts in similar occupations (Federal Glass Ceiling Commission, 1995)

A difference in representation and advancement has been shown to be the result of both

gender discrimination and gender-related job preferences (Green, Jegadeesh & Tang, 2007) The following studies in which the effect of gender on job performance was examined provide some evidence of the relationship between the two variables

Examining gender differences in loan officers, researchers noted that loans handled by female loan officers showed significantly lower default rates than those loan handled by male officers (Beck et al., 2009) In trying to determine what was causing this discrepancy, the researchers theorized that female loan officers might be more careful in screening their borrowers The researchers believed that this was due to women having fewer job opportunities and therefore a greater incentive to excel in the form of having low default rates After controlling for numerous borrower characteristics, the researchers found no difference between male and female loan officers in acceptance

of their applicants The researchers concluded that the performance of female loan officers was due to their more careful monitoring of borrowers versus their screening One explanation for the difference suggested by the authors was evidence from prior studies that women are more risk aversive than their male counterparts It was postulated that this risk aversion affected financial decisions However, since no significant

difference was found between male and female loan officers in approving loans, one interpretation is that women may perform better than men in managing default risk This study provides evidence that a gender difference exists in relation to this aspect of job performance

Green et al (2007) assessed the effects of gender and performance among brokerage firm employees Green et al studied 7900 bank security analysts and found that women’s representation in stock analyst positions had dropped from 16% to 13%, in

the ten years between 1995 and 2005 Another finding was that women were 3.3% more likely to leave their position within two years (Green et al., 2007) Despite their drop in representation and their higher leave rate, the researchers found that women were significantly more likely to be designated by Institutional Investor magazine as members

of the All American Research Team Green et al (2007) suggested that women outperform men at non-quantifiable aspects of job performance such as client-service

In another study, Lyness and Heilman (2006) used archival data to examine the relationship between gender and type of position to performance evaluations of upper level managers They concluded that women’s promotions were more closely related to their performance evaluation then men, suggesting that women were held to stricter standards for promotion

In summary, some gender differences do appear to exist in relation to job performance; however, these differences seem more likely to be related to job-gender preference and gender discrimination rather than differences in job performance that are due exclusively to an employee’s gender

Age and Job Performance

Having an understanding of the relationship between age and job performance is important to industrial organizational psychologists, due to the potential economic effect

it may have on the workplace When the wages of older workers exceed their productivity, this represents a loss to the organization (Skirbekk, 2004) Several aspects need to be considered when attempting to determine age-related declines in productivity, including physical abilities, mental abilities, education, and job experience which form an employee’s potential for job performance Previous studies have indicated that while

earnings tend to increase until late in a worker’s life, the performance initially increases, and then stabilizes, before it declines toward the end of one’s career (Skirbekk, 2004) In

a meta-analysis of the association between age and job performance Sturman (2003) hypothesized that inverted U-shaped relationship exists between the two variables Ng and Feldman’s (2008) meta-analysis of ten dimensions of job performance indicated that age was largely unrelated to core task performance

In order to study age-related performance, Skirbekk (2004) surveyed supervisors’ ratings of employees and employer-employer datasets to see how individual productivity varied with age Skirbekk’s study accepted the fact that there is a significant decline in cognitive abilities such as reasoning and memory after age 50, based on prior evidence including a study by Verhaegen and Salthouse (1997) However, although older workers’ productivity may decrease due to cognitive decline, their greater familiarity with

knowledge of the job and experience can overcome the mental turn down (Skirbekk, 2004) Overall, through his studies of supervisors’ ratings, Skirbekk found that there was

no clear relationship between an employee’s age and his or her productivity

Sturman (2003) completed a meta-analysis, hoping to uncover an inverted U- shaped relationship between time and performance An inverted U-shaped relationship would appear as performance that starts out low, increases with work experience, and then decreases again with age Sturman stressed that performance measurements are subjective, so he also looked at objective measures of human output Because prior meta- analyses had shown that the variable of age provided only small variance in relation to job performance, Sturman also studied other temporal variables including the effect of job experience and tenure on performance Sturman was unable to prove his hypothesis

that an inverted U-shaped relationship exists between time and performance for all temporal variables and all job contexts Sturman stated that his inability to support this relationship might be explained by the lack of older or highly experienced workers in the sample Since the negative effects of aging are more likely to occur in older employees, a lack of these employees in the samples would strongly influence the results Sturman concluded that the validity of temporal variables in performance prediction is dependent upon the characteristics of the participants, the job, and the performance measurement

system

Believing that prior studies on the relationship between age and job performance focused primarily on core task performance, Ng & Feldman (2008) decided to look more closely at other dimensions of job performance They assessed ten dimensions of job performance including core task performance, creativity, performance in training programs, organizational citizenship behaviors, safety performance, general counterproductive work behaviors, workplace aggression, on-the-job substance abuse, tardiness, and absenteeism The results of their meta-analyses showed that although age did not have a strong relationship to core task performance, creativity and performance in training programs, it did have a significant relationship to the other seven performance dimensions

Although these studies did indicate that normal age-related declines do affect job performance to some extent, the relationship does not appear to be clearly established in all circumstances Some of the factors that appear to influence the relationship include the type of work being performed, the amount of job experience and the age of the

workers

Salary and Job Performance

Recent studies related to salary and job performance show a relatively strong relationship between salary increases and the quality of job performance Research further indicates that providing financial incentives for job performance resulted in increased productivity, faster organizational growth, and enhanced employee job matching (Lazear, 2000; Lemieux et al., 2009; Muralidharan & Sundararaman, 2009)

A good example of how pay can influence performance is represented in a study

by Lazear (2000) When comparing performance pay and productivity, Lazear (2000) reviewed the labor practices at the Safelite Glass Corporation from 1994 to 1995, when new management changed the compensation method for its workforce Employee’s compensation method changed from hourly wages to piece-rate pay After following 3,000 workers for a period of 19 months, it was determined that there was greater output from workers when they were compensated per piece produced versus an hourly wage Lazear (2000) found that a switch to piece-rate pay effect on average levels of output per worker was in the range of a 44% gain It appears that when workers know that their productivity increase will result in higher reimbursement, they work harder

More recent data has shown that American companies have increased their practice of paying workers for performance using bonus pay, commission, or piece-rate contracts (Lemieux et al., 2009) In their study, Lemieux et al (2009) found that in performance-pay jobs, compensation is closely tied to both observed and non-observed productive characteristics of employees versus salaried jobs They concluded that performance pay also allows organizations to increase the quality of worker job matches, thereby making it easier to link workers with specific abilities to the right job One

negative consequence observed when using performance-pay jobs, however, was greater wage inequality based on the natural inclination of workers to work at different speeds and production levels (Lemieux et al., 2009)

In a paper on teacher performance pay, Muralidharan & Sundararaman (2009), examined how pay for performance would affect both teachers and learning outcomes

To test their hypothesis they performed a randomized evaluation program of a teacher incentive program that provided 3% salary bonuses to teachers based on the average improvement of their students After two years, students in incentive schools were shown to perform better than those in control schools in math, language, conceptual skills and mechanical skills Although other, non-incentive schools were effective at raising test scores, the teacher incentive programs were three times as cost effective in doing so (Muralidharan & Sundararaman, 2009) They also found no adverse consequences of the performance-pay incentive program A positive relationship emerged between the

education/training of the teachers and their response to incentives

Based on these examples, whether producing glass products, engaging in physical labor or teaching, pay incentives appears to increase productivity and performance Stress and Job Performance

Hypothetically, increased levels of stress would be expected to cause decreased job performance (Hunter, 2007) Most of the studies reviewed on this topic indicated an inverse linear relationship between stress and job performance (Chen & Hung, 2006;

Gilboa et al., 2008; Jamal, 2007) Throughout these studies, different types of stress were

examined including work-related stress, family stress, and environmental stress

Jamal (2007) defined job stress as an individual’s reaction to characteristics of the work environment that are found to be threatening

A meta-analysis that comprised 35,265 employees from integrated studies tested the relationship of the following work related stressors with job performance: role ambiguity, role conflict, role overload, job insecurity, work-family conflict, environmental uncertainty and situational constraints (Gilboa et al., 2008) The results of this analysis were a negative mean correlation between each job performance measure and each stressor The researchers surmised that when an employee feels that a work demand is threatening, valuable time and energy is spent trying to cope with the stressor, causing discomfort Diverting time and energy away from their primary work duties lowers their performance In summary, the researchers found that all stressor- performance relationships were consistently negative (Gilboa et al., 2008)

Using a large North American-based multinational corporation for his study base, Jamal (2007) examined the relationship between stress and job performance This study served to replicate several previous studies in which the stress/job performance

relationship was examined among nurses, managers, and blue-collar employees As reported by Jamal, the results of prior studies had established that the higher the imbalance between job demands and an individual’s abilities, the higher level of stress experienced by the worker Historical studies had also indicated that the negative relationship previously found between job stress and job performance proved to be dysfunctional to the organization and its employees (Jamal, 2007) This study relied on data collected using a questionnaire surveying the employees with constructs related to job stress and turnover intention

Job performance and absenteeism data was also obtained through employee records Once completed, an analysis of the data showed that 90% of comparisons supported a negative linear relationship between stress and performance

Other researchers found contrasting results Looking at employees in the accounting field in US and Taiwan, Chen & Hung (2006), examined the relationship between stress and job performance, but also included the variables of organizational commitment and organizational communication Questionnaires testing all four constructs were collected from both Taiwanese and American accounting employees Although no country level differences were found between stress and communication, organizational commitment levels were higher in the United States The most surprising finding was that stress levels were not found to be related to organizational commitment

or job performance The researchers conjectured that this result may be related to the occupation of the sample — accountants, who may work better under stress than those in other professions

Customer Service Aspect of Job Performance

Customer service was the primary aspect of job performance examined in the current study Akviran (1999) defines good customer service as superior quality interactions with a consumer in which the consumer feels satisfied in relation to a specific transaction Studies by Schneider et al (1980), Julian & Ramaseshan (1994), and Kelley (1990) have formerly identified important attributes of customer service in bank

employees and service workers

Schneider et al (1980) conducted research examining the relationship between customer perceptions of banks’ services compared.to employees’ view Schneider et al

hypothesized that the customer perception of customer service and the employee perception of customer service would be closely related Schneider et al conducted interviews with both bank employees and bank customers in order to gather data on the effectiveness of customer service in 25 bank branches Additionally, Schneider et al surveyed 1,657 bank customers Ten specific issues which were identified as related to customer service included: teller courtesy, officer courtesy, teller competence, adequate staff, branch administration, handling services, convenience, employee, selling and employee attitudes The results of this study demonstrated a strong relationship between the employee view of the general level of quality of service offered and customer views

of service received (r = 67, p < 01) Finding that employees’ perception of customer service is similar to that of the customers is important because in the current study only employees were surveyed to measure their perceived quality of customer service that they provided

Julian & Ramaseshan (1994) examined the importance of customer service in retail banking in terms of how it affected the banks financial services The researchers developed a questionnaire containing statements related to customer purchase

perceptions, customer purchase behavior, personal selling of services, and importance of customer contact personnel to the organization The self-reporting questionnaire was administered to 250 customer service bank employees The results of this research demonstrated that 94.3% of the respondents believed that customers often viewed the salesperson as the service itself, with 83.3% believing that a customer’s impression of the salesperson was as important as the selling of the services The role of the salesperson was found to play a large part in the level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction a customer

receives when purchasing a service Eighty-one percent believed that customers put a large amount of consideration into the salesperson of a particular service This study emphasized the importance of extensive training of customer service employees in terms

of adapting themselves to the personalized skills necessary in selling specific financial products Another outcome of this study was that customer service personnel felt that they were not well rewarded for their efforts and did not receive significant training, resulting in low self-esteem Julian & Ramaseshan also noted that suffering from low self-esteem could further lead to poor customer service Other researchers, including Kelley (1990), suggested that bank tellers in particular tended to be less satisfied and motivated than other customer service personnel Continued findings of low job satisfaction and motivation in bank employees were important reasons for conducting the present study

In his study of bank employees, Avkiran (1999) discusses the importance of human contact in customer service in a world that has been turning frequently to technology-based service Avkiran concludes that those who advocate technological solutions to service are ignoring the essence of high quality customer service, which he believes requires human contact BANKSERV was originally developed by Avkiran in

1994 to measure customer service quality Surveying the customers of 20 randomly selected bank branches, 791 completed, usable questionnaires were analyzed The main conclusion demonstrated that staff conduct was a key variable in successful customer service “Those arguing in favor of replacing staff by various ‘cost effective’

technologies may well be undermining the essence of successful customer service, which invariably involves human contact” (Avkiran, 1999, p 66) Avkiran’s instrument was

designed with a total of 17 indicators based around the following four factors: staff conduct, credibility, communication, and access to teller services

Job Motivation

Several theories have offered an explanation of factors that may motivate employees, including Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory, job characteristics theory, and equity theory Maslow’s (1987) theory bases motivation on five levels of needs including physiological, safety, social, ego, and self-actualization Maslow proposed that lower order needs must be satisfied before the next higher level needs in order to motivate employees The job characteristics theory, in turn, is based on the historical work of Hackman & Oldham (1976) These researchers found that high motivation is based on experiencing three psychological states while working — meaningfulness of work, responsibility and knowledge of job outcomes Lastly, equity theory is based on the principle of social comparison This theory suggests that an individual is motivated based on their perception of how well their work is compensated in comparison to others (Muchinsky, 2006)

A more recent analysis of motivation theories by Latham & Pinder (2005), determined that three theories dominate current motivation literature; they are: goal- setting theory, social cognitive theory, and organizational justice theory Goal setting theory is based on the idea that in order for a goal to increase performance, the goal must

be defined as difficult to achieve and be very specific Vague or unclear goals do not seem to be as motivating as those that are specific (Latham & Pinder, 2005)

The social cognitive view of motivation is based on a reciprocal relationship between one’s goals and one’s environment and how these affect each other One social

cognitive perspective, attribution theory, seeks to explain how an individual’s perceived reasons for past success and failure contribute to their current and future motivation and success (Weiner, 2000) This theory is based upon four causal attributions: ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck Each element is characterized as stable or unstable, internal or external, and controllable or uncontrollable (Weiner, 2000) When an individual has a self-enhancing attribution style, in other words attributing success to hard work and failure to lack of effort, that individual tends to be more motivated and succeed

The concept of organizational justice relates to more than one theory, but is based

on the idea that when people feel that they are being treated fairly and that treatment is valued, the expectancy that constructive work behaviors will be associated with desirable work outcomes increases (Latham & Pinder, 2005)

Other researchers have offered novel definitions of motivation including the will

to achieve (Buford, Bedeian, Lindner, 1995); a predisposition to behave in a purposive manner to achieve specific, unmet needs (Buford, Bedeian, Lindner, 1995); and the psychological process that gives behavior purpose and direction (Kreitner, 1995) Ray (1980) defined job motivation as the desire to reach job-related goals that are considered

to be difficult and socially approved

While devising his motivation inventory scale, Ray (1980) looked at specific factors to construct his questions Ray provided eight specific achievement-related attributes to motivation; these attributes included: task-orientation, lackadaisical, high need for achievement, achievement-oriented, competitive, hard worker, leisure oriented and success-oriented Comparisons of motivation to the other factors of job satisfaction and job performance, the focus of the current study, are based on Ray’s attributes