Job characteristics and public service motivation among highly-qualified public employees

ABSTRACT Employees’ complaints about the routinisation of jobs and a decrease in their autonomy have been cited as major reasons for employee turnover in government organisations. This study analyzes the relationship between job characteristics and public service motivation (PSM) to shed light on this issue. Employing an online survey completed by employees from Turkish Regional Development Agencies, we examined the effect of job characteristics on the PSM of highly-skilled employees. The results show that employees’ PSM is fostered when they use high-quality skills in implementing their duties. Autonomy, an employee’s self-direction to decide the methods and timing of work, is another important factor affecting PSM. We found that job redesign would foster PSM of highly-qualified employees.