It's About the Mission: Leadership and Public Service Motivation in Nonprofit Organizations

Abstract

The nonprofit sector faces increasing demand for services at the same time as declines in funding and job satisfaction. During such difficult times it is important for nonprofit leaders to understand what motivates employees to join and stay in their organizations. However, extant research into motivation in the nonprofit sector has employed theory from the for-profit sector. Much of this research is focused on extrinsic rewards. The nonprofit sector is populated by employees high in altruistic attitudes who are likely to be demotivated by such motivation attempts. Public service motivation (PSM) is an intrinsic motivation theory that has focused primarily on organizations in the public sector. There is evidence that PSM may be applicable to the nonprofit sector as well, but there is a dearth of research exploring motivation in general, and PSM in particular, in the nonprofit context. At the same time, transformational leadership research in the nonprofit sector has been increasing. While transformational leadership has been shown to help foster an environment in which employees exhibit high organizational commitment, and job satisfaction, it has not explored its effect on mission attachment, an important employee outcome in nonprofits. Additionally, it is important to understand how these leadership behaviors can work through public service motivation in nonprofit organizations to bolster that mission attachment. This research established the applicability of public service motivation for nonprofits and the relationship between transformational leadership, public service motivation, and mission attachment in the nonprofit sector.