Organizational Culture, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover Across Work Sites: A Moderated Mediation Model

Background and Purpose:High rates of job turnover undermine the human services and are linked to poor organizational performance and client outcomes. A variety of factors influence turnover including organizational culture and job satisfaction. Perceptions of the work environment vary by employee demographic characteristics, however, e.g., women and minorities report less supportive experiences. Considering this complexity, advanced statistical models are necessary to capture pathways to job turnover. Moderated mediation models are ideal in that they can test organizational factors across demographic characteristics. The following study used a moderated mediation model to test the hypothesis that job satisfaction mediates the relationship between perceived organizational culture and job turnover, but that demographic variables moderate this relationship.

Methods: The study used a cross-sectional online survey of employees at one area command of The Salvation Army (TSA) (N = 250, 66.8% female, 54.0% Caucasian, 12.8% officers, 46.8% working at the metro command [versus dispersed service centers]). Measures included: The Organizational Culture Survey (OC) (range 24-120, higher scores indicating more functional culture, M = 80.97, s.d. = 125.47, α = 0.96), The Job Satisfaction Scale (JS) (range 46-154, higher scores indicating greater JS, M =125.47, s.d. =19.53, α = 0.91), and Intention to Turnover (IT) (range 3-21, higher scores indicating greater IT, M = 7.96, s.d. = 5.38, α = 0.91). Bivariate analyses were tested followed by the mediation model using Baron and Kenny’s three step regression analyses (1986). Separate moderated mediation models were tested using the process analyses suggested by Preacher, Rucker, and Hayes (2007).

Results: Bivariate analyses showed significant differences in perceived OC, JS, and IT based on gender, rank, race, and office location. The three-step-regression analyses suggested that JS significantly partially mediated the effect of OC on IT (Z= -9.91, p<0.001), and lower perceived organizational culture was associated with lower job satisfaction, and thus, higher IT. According to the moderated mediation analysis, both the direct and the indirect (mediated) effects were significant using office location as a moderator. The direct effect of OC on IT was reduced from 0.144 to 0.103 when JS was controlled, but still remained significant (partial mediation). The association between perceived OC and JS was significantly moderated by location. Those working at the metro command reported lower overall JS, but a similar increase in perceived OC was associated with a greater increase in JS compared to those working at dispersed service centers.

Conclusions and Implications: Findings support a hypothesized moderated mediated relationship and suggest that OC may help reduce turnover by improving job satisfaction. However, among TSA employees, this relationship appears particularly important for those working at the metro command compared to those at service centers. TSA operates according to a military-like culture, which may be enforced more strongly at the metro command, and these employees may face greater workplace stressors. While the findings are idiosyncratic to TSA, they draw attention to variability in perceptions of the work environment. Consequently, interventions designed to reduce IT may need to be tailored to different groups even within the same organization.