Applying the Relational Job Design Theory to the Retail Industry: The Association between Perceived Social Impact and Job Satisfaction, Turnover Intention, and Persistence

Retail workers contribute to the daily wellbeing of customers, including those living with disabilities or diseases. The relational job design theory suggests that one’s perceived social impact (PSI) of their job contributes to improvements in job satisfaction, turnover intention, and persistence. Confirming such an association could encourage organization managers to commit more to community care for the purpose of improving the work outcomes of their employees. However, how convenience store workers perceive the social contributions of their work and the perception’s impact on their work outcomes remains unclear. Thus, the first objective of this study was to examine the association between retail workers’ PSI and work outcomes (job satisfaction, turnover intention, and hours worked). The second objective was to evaluate the effect of an intervention aimed at increasing the PSI on work outcomes. This study was part of a project to evaluate a dementia-friendly program for convenience store workers. All participants completed a baseline survey after randomization. The intervention group was then required to complete a multicomponent e-learning intervention program within one month. One month later, both groups completed a postintervention survey. The e-learning program included lectures on dementia, virtual contact with people living with dementia, and information on the positive impact of retail store jobs on customers living with dementia. A total of 161 and 145 participants were analyzed in the baseline study and the postintervention survey, respectively. Cross-sectional analysis of baseline data showed that the workers’ PSI was significantly correlated with job satisfaction (β = 0.203, p < 0.001) and turnover intentions (β = −0.305, p = 0.006). However, the e-learning intervention did not change PSI and work outcomes. Interventions that highlight workers’ prosocial contributions more effectively and are successful in changing their PSI may improve their engagement and work outcomes. For retail workers, intervention based on a relational job design framework may be effective; however, designing such interventions remains challenging. This trial is registered with UMIN000043623.