Needs-supplies Fit Research Articles

From thriving to task focus: the role of needs-supplies fit and task complexity

Can thriving at work be a self-sustaining phenomenon? In our study we incorporated the person-environment fit perspective into socially embedded model of thriving by Spreitzer’s et al. (Organization Science, 16(5), 537–549, 2005) to explore how and when thriving affects individuals’ task focus, an agentic behavior often considered an antecedent of thriving. We proposed that individuals who thrive at work tend to perceive that the rewards supplied by the job meet their needs of growth and development, which leads to more focus on their tasks. We also proposed that task complexity interacts with thriving to influence the mechanism of needs-supplies (N-S) fit. Based on two-wave data from 170 product engineers, the results of our study showed that thriving indirectly affects task focus through perceived N-S fit. When faced with high-complexity tasks, high-thriving employees generated higher N-S fit perceptions. When thriving was low, N-S fit was highest in in the low-complexity task context, suggesting that matching thriving to task complexity could be an important strategy by which managers might maintain higher levels of task focus, which we speculate could in turn promote thriving. Our study advances research on thriving, fit perceptions and work behavior by revealing these relationships.

How Needs-Supplies Fit Processes With Teachers, Peers, and Parents Relate to Youth Outcomes: A Theoretical and Methodological Extension of Self-Determination Theory.

According to self-determination theory (SDT), relationships that support the needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness are essential to youth development. It is yet unknown whether adolescents differ in what constitutes "optimal" supplies of support. This research proposes methodological extensions to analyze how the degree of fit or misfit between needs versus supplies in support (i.e., from teachers, parents, and peers) relates to engagement in class, academic achievement, and well-being. Data were collected on 389 adolescents (M(age) = 14.3, SD(age) = 2.1, 58% female, low to high SES). Extending SDT's contention that "the more supplies the better", results suggest that the impact of supplies actually depends on the level of needs, and that commensurate (for parents) or surplus supplies (for teachers, peers) are most optimal. Therefore, while some youth require strongly supportive relationships to experience optimal development, others require much lower support, and may even suffer from higher support.

Employees’ Individual Needs and their Relationship to Idiosyncratic Deals: A Latent Profile Analysis

Idiosyncratic deals (i-deals) are personalized arrangements negotiated between individual employees and their employers. Whereas research has shown that i-deals positively relate to a wide array of employee attitudes and behaviors, comparatively little is known about the individual-level antecedents of i-deals. Building on the concept of needs-supplies fit, this study addresses this research gap by investigating the role of individual needs, as conceptualized by McClelland (1987), in the negotiation of i-deals. We adopt a person-centered approach that considers the interplay of the individual needs for achievement, power, affiliation, and autonomy. Using latent profile analysis in a sample of 164 employees (study 1), we explore qualitatively and quantitatively distinct profiles of individual needs. In another sample of 553 employees from various organizations (study 2), we test the replicability of the profiles and analyze differences in successful i-deal negotiation among the profiles. Our results show that four of the profiles from study 1 could be replicated in study 2. While in study 1, one profile is identified that is characterized by an extremely high need for autonomy, study 2 identifies two profiles that are characterized by a high need for autonomy. The results also reveal that employees’ membership in profiles of individual needs predicts the successful negotiation of various types of i-deals. This study provides a nuanced understanding of the relationship between individual needs and i-deals.

Your employees are calling: How organizations help or hinder living a calling at work

When employees are living a calling at work, they tend to experience greater well-being and the organization also benefits. Despite the integral role of the organization, research has not sufficiently explored what organizational factors might help employees live a calling. Drawing on a tripartite theoretical framework of living a calling— characterized by destiny, personal significance, and social significance— and Work as a Calling Theory, we hypothesize that needs-supplies fit, empowerment, and servant leadership are positively related to living a calling. Further, we hypothesize that the benefits of living a calling extend to the organization via a negative association with deviant behaviors, a positive association with LMX relationships, and that consistency of interests (a facet of grit) is a boundary condition of the proposed relationships. Through testing our hypotheses in a multi-wave, multi-source field study of employees and supervisors in a park district, we find that needs-supplies fit and empowerment facilitate living a calling in an organization. Further, consistency of interests moderates the relationship between living a calling and deviant behaviors and LMX. Our findings indicate how employers might help employees live their callings, and, in turn, mitigate negative and attain positive outcomes.

Assessing the Impact of Person-Environment fit on Turnover Intention Through Multiple Linear Regression

Focusing on key antecedents of intended turnover may enable organizations to intervene before reaching scenarios where employee turnover is inevitable. The current study aimed to establish which type of fit plays the most prominent role in employees’ turnover intention. To achieve this aim, multiple linear regression was used. By establishing which type of fit influences employees’ thoughts of quitting the most, organizations can adopt better retention strategies as opposed to casting a net and hoping for the best. This cross-sectional study used secondary data from 384 retail employees. Three distinct fit scales and a turnover intention scale were administered. The study’s hypothesis was assessed through multiple linear regression, relative weight analysis, and commonality analysis. Needs-supplies fit was the only variable that had a statistically significant negative association with turnover intention. Needs-supplies fit had the biggest contribution (23.64%) to the multiple R 2 value (34.25%) of the multiple linear regression model. Commonality analysis showed that needs-supplies fit accounted for the highest percentage (16.85%) of unique variance in explaining turnover intention. To enhance the probability of retaining employees, organizations may want to fine-tune their retention strategies based on establishing congruence between what employees need and what can be done to meet these desired needs. The current study stresses the importance of distinguishing between different types of person-environment fit as they may not similarly relate to outcomes.

Detecting Change in Needs-Supplies Fit Through Reliable Change Methodology.

Studying change is a critical part of psychology and science in general. Studies often treat fit as static and use between-person designs to assess change. Accordingly, potentially insightful within-person information is frequently overlooked. The current study aimed to establish the utility of reliable change methodology within the domain of organizational psychology, using needs-supplies fit as a guiding framework. When employee needs can be tracked with a fair degree of clarity, organizations can devise better strategies to routinely address discrepancies between desired employee needs and organizational offerings. This longitudinal study used secondary data from 258 secondary school teachers. The Needs-Supplies Fit Scale was administered. The study's hypothesis was assessed through reliable change methodology. When considering all the participants that experienced at least some change across time intervals (n = 148), 23.65% (n = 35) of this change was meaningful. This declined to 17.33% meaningful change when factoring in the entire sample, including those who did not experience any change. When organizations are aware of the ever-evolving needs of employees, quicker action can be taken to avoid impending person-environment misfit. This study contributes to existing within-person studies that showcased the malleability of needs-supplies fit and emphasize the value of placing a more prominent focus on the individual.

Retaining retirement-eligible older workers through training participation: The joint implications of individual growth need and organizational climates.

As the workforce ages, organizations are increasing their efforts to retain retirement-eligible workers to avoid human capital shortages and preserve knowledge reservoirs. Nevertheless, the potential factors and underlying mechanisms relating to the retention of retirement-eligible workers have rarely been examined. The current research investigates how retirement-eligible workers may be retained by the organization through human capital development activities. Specifically, we draw upon the motivated choice framework to investigate the joint implications of individual (i.e., individual growth need) and organizational factors (i.e., climate for developing older workers and age-inclusive climate) for retirement-eligible workers' training participation and thereby retention. We tested our hypotheses with two samples in the Netherlands. Study 1 utilized the two-wave, multilevel survey data (2015-2018) from the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute Pension Panel Study (N = 3,200 older workers from 409 organizations). We found that individual growth need and climate for developing older workers had positive associations with training participation, which in turn was positively related to older workers' decision to stay (vs. retire) despite retirement eligibility. In addition, age-inclusive climate amplified the positive relationship between individual growth need and training participation. Study 2 utilized the two-wave Longitudinal Internet studies for the Social Sciences panel data (N = 301 older workers). We replicated result patterns from Study 1 and found that person-organization fit and needs-supplies fit mediated the relationship between training participation and retirement-eligible workers' intention to stay. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

How does the needs-supplies fit of developmental job experience affect employees’ proactive behavior?

How does the needs-supplies fit of developmental job experience affect employees’ proactive behavior?

A fit perspective to family supportive supervisor behaviors: Exploring the role of protean career orientation on employee outcomes

In a context where employees find it increasingly difficult to juggle work and family demands, increasing attention has been paid to family supportive supervisor behaviors (FSSB). Drawing on key tenets of the Conservation of Resources (COR) Theory, we hypothesize that FSSB is positively related to needs-supplies fit, which in turn, predicts both work and nonwork outcomes i.e., proactive skill development and sleep quality. We also hypothesize that for employees high on protean career orientation (PCO), the consequences of FSSB are more significant and positive on both a) employees' perceived needs-supplies fits and b) proactive skill development. We conducted a three-wave study with a month time interval in Chile, Colombia, and Spain with matched data of subordinates and their managers (N = 454). Most of our hypotheses were supported. We expand and contribute to the literature by providing a fit perspective to research on FSSB, arguing that such behaviors improve employees’ perceptions of their jobs, with a consequential positive impact on their work and nonwork outcomes. The results demonstrate the key role of FSSB in enabling employees to perceive a better fit with their jobs. For HR managers and practitioners, results show that keeping protean-oriented employees is a promising strategy.

Perceived job quality among persons with spinal cord injury: The contribution of sociodemographic characteristics, health-related factors, and person-job match

Context/Objective Perceived job quality is a key indicator of sustainable work among persons with spinal cord injuries (PwSCI). This study aimed at (a) describing three indicators of perceived job quality (i.e. job satisfaction, job performance, and work stress) among working PwSCI, and (b) identifying whether and how different person-job match dimensions (i.e. interest congruence, demands-abilities fit, needs-supplies fit, and effort-reward imbalance) as well as sociodemographic and health-related factors (e.g. age, sex, SCI-related characteristics, pain problems, and depressive symptoms) are associated with perceived job quality. Design Cross-sectional, self-report survey. Setting Community. Participants 549 working-age PwSCI who participated in the 2017 community survey of the Swiss Spinal Cord Injury Cohort study and reported being engaged in paid work. Outcome measures Job satisfaction, job performance, and work stress. Results Higher interest congruence, better needs-supplies fit and lower effort-reward imbalance, as well as female sex, were associated with higher job satisfaction, while higher effort-reward imbalance, poorer demands-abilities fit (underqualification), and – surprisingly – better needs-supplies fit were associated with higher work stress. Moreover, underqualification, worse needs-supplies fit as well as pain, depressive symptoms, and language region were associated with lower job performance. Conclusion Integrating individuals in jobs that match their abilities, interests and needs, and which adequately reward their efforts may contribute to better job quality among PwSCI. Beyond that, common secondary health conditions and comorbidities such as pain and depressive symptoms should receive particular attention in interventions that aim to promote job quality and ultimately sustainable work in the SCI population.

Giving what they want: How congruence between expected feedback quality and delivered feedback quality influences leader-member exchange and job performance.

As an attempt to solve the mixed results between leader feedback quality and employee job performance, this study proposes that employees' expected feedback quality plays a key role in how employees react to leader feedback. Specifically, drawing on needs-supplies fit and social exchange theory, we posit that congruence between expected feedback quality and delivered feedback quality positively relates to employee task performance and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) through leader-member exchange (LMX). Further, we posit that learning goal orientation may strengthen the positive effect of congruence between expected feedback quality and delivered feedback quality on LMX. Multi-wave data collected from 226 employees from China showed that congruence between expected feedback quality and delivered feedback quality improves LMX and in turn benefits task performance and OCB. Moreover, learning goal orientation intensifies the indirect effect of congruence between expected feedback quality and delivered feedback quality on task performance and OCB through LMX. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Ethical leadership and followers' career satisfaction, mobility, and promotability: A P-E fit perspective.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of ethical leadership on followers' subjective and objective career success from a P-E fit perspective. Specifically, the mediating effects of demands-abilities fit, needs-supplies fit, and person-organization fit in the relationship between ethical leadership and employee subjective (i.e., career satisfaction) and objective career success (i.e., mobility and promotability) were investigated. We collected two-wave data from 160 employees and used hierarchical regressions to test the hypotheses. The findings revealed that ethical leadership had a positive effect on employee career satisfaction, mobility, and promotability. Moreover, employee demands-abilities fit mediated the relationship between ethical leadership and career mobility and promotability; needs-supplies fit and person-organization fit mediated the relationship between ethical leadership and employee career satisfaction. Theoretical and empirical implications were discussed.

Regulatory-focused job crafting, person-job fit and internal employability–examining interrelationship and underlying mechanism

PurposeThis paper examines the relationships between regulatory-focused job crafting, i.e. promotion- and prevention-focused job crafting, person-job fit and internal employability and explores the direct and underlying mediation process using conservation of resources and job demands-resources theories.Design/methodology/approachSurvey data collected from 425 executives of India based public sector enterprises were used to test hypotheses.FindingsPromotion- and prevention-focused job crafting respectively had a contrasting relationship with needs-supplies fit. The relationship with demands-abilities fit was statistically significant only in the case of prevention-focused job crafting. These two job crafting forms respectively had a positive and a negative effect on internal employability, both directly as well as indirectly through person-job fit.Practical implicationsEmployees can pursue promotion-focused job crafting and avoid prevention-focused job crafting to improve their person-job fit as well as internal employability which subsequently may have multiple favourable outcomes at an organizational and individual level.Originality/valueThe study, for the first time, empirically investigates the differential role of individuals' efforts in the form of promotion- and prevention-focused job crafting, in influencing internal employability and explains its underlying mechanism through person-job fit. These interrelationships may have important implications for employees' job demand management process and job choices.

Internship Experience and Organizational Attractiveness: A Realistic Job Fit Perspective

Although job seekers often rely on indirect or inaccurate information to assess the attractiveness of potential employers, internship experience provides more realistic and accurate information, which may influence organizational attractiveness. Through the ex-ante and ex-post (i.e., pre-internship and post-internship) research design with a sample of Japanese undergraduate students in a university-sponsored internship program, we found that, although organizational attractiveness on average declined after the internship, skill variety and feedback from employees in the internship job were positively related to perceived needs-supplies (NS) fit beyond the effect of its pre-internship level. The NS fit, in turn, was related to organizational attractiveness beyond the effect of its pre-internship level. Moreover, some of the above mediating effects were stronger for interns with high social skill and/or high self-esteem. Our findings highlight the importance of the effect of internships on college students’ school-to-work transition.

Perceived overqualification and experiences of incivility: Can task i-deals help or hurt?

We examined why overqualified employees may report heightened levels of experienced incivility, particularly when they have successfully negotiated task i-deals from their employers. Adopting a person-job fit perspective, we examined our proposed model in two studies with employees in the higher education industry (Study 1) and workers from a range of industries and occupations (Study 2). In Study 1 (N = 229), the moderated mediation model showed that task i-deals attenuated the positive relationship between perceived overqualification and boredom sensations, which was associated with reduced experienced incivility. In Study 2 (N = 222), using a time-lagged design, we expanded on Study 1 findings by examining dimensions of person-job fit, namely, demands-abilities fit and needs-supplies fit, as well as perceptions of being envied by coworkers as mechanisms. Supporting our theorizing, we showed that task i-deals buffered the negative relationship between perceived overqualification and demands-abilities fit. Ironically, the provision of i-deals intensified overqualified employees' perceptions of being envied by coworkers, which in turn explained their reported experiences of incivility. These results highlighted the complexity of reducing interpersonal stressors, wherein the provision of task i-deals minimized the misfit and associated boredom sensations of overqualified employees. Yet, such customized working arrangements intensified overqualified employees' feelings of being envied and their reports of experienced incivility. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Does a Person-Environment-Fit Promote the Academic Achievement of Hearing-Impaired Students in Malaysian Polytechnics? The Mediating Effects of Satisfaction and Adjustment.

(1) This study investigates the influence of a person-environment-fit on academic achievement and examines mediating effects of adjustment and satisfaction on this relationship; (2) Methods: Data were collected from a sample of 195 hearing-impaired students from five polytechnics in Malaysia that offered the Special Skills Certificate program; (3) Results: Results revealed that the two constructs of the person-environment approach: personality-major fit and needs-supplies fit were positively associated with academic achievement. The adjustment was found to mediate this relationship. Taken together, these results signal that the person-environment constructs contribute to the academic achievement of hearing-impaired students and that adjustment is instrumental in elucidating this relationship; (4) Conclusions: The finding adds to the data, indicating that the person-environment-fit is a possible model of inclusion for hearing-impaired students and also provides initial data about the functioning of hearing-impaired students in Malaysian polytechnics.

The Role of Customer-task Fit between Service Interaction and Value Co-Creation：Evidence from China

As a new value creation phenomenon, value co-creation has been widely concerned by academia and industry. Companies begin to invest significant resources and build information exchange platform to interact with customers in order to gain competitive advantage. However, prior research has ignored the underlying mechanism by which service interaction might improve value co-creation. Based on the person-environment fit theory, an attempt is made to investigate the intervening role of customer-task fit, which include demand-ability fit and needs-supply fit to explain the above linkage. With 509 customer questionnaires collected from China, the results showed that service interaction has both direct and indirect effect on value co-creation, and needs-supply fit partially mediate the relationship of service interaction and value co-creation. In addition, results supported the serial mediation model where service interaction was found to exercise its influence on value co-creation via demand-ability fit and needs-supply fit in a sequential manner.

The Role of Customer-Task Fit Between Service Interaction and Value Co-Creation

As a new value creation phenomenon, value co-creation has been widely concerned by academia and industry. Companies begin to invest significant resources and build information exchange platform to interact with customers in order to gain competitive advantage. However, prior research has ignored the underlying mechanism by which service interaction might improve value co-creation. Based on the person-environment fit theory, an attempt is made to investigate the intervening role of customer-task fit, which include demand-ability fit and needs-supply fit to explain the above linkage. With 509 customer questionnaires collected from China, the results showed that service interaction has both direct and indirect effect on value co-creation, and needs-supply fit partially mediate the relationship of service interaction and value co-creation. In addition, results supported the serial mediation model where service interaction was found to exercise its influence on value co-creation via demand-ability fit and needs-supply fit in a sequential manner.

Does humane orientation matter? A cross-cultural study of job characteristics needs-supplies fit/misfit and affective organizational commitment

PurposeDrawing from job characteristic theory and person-environment fit theory, the authors examine the relationship between job characteristics needs-supplies fit/misfit and affective organizational commitment across countries and how humane orientation moderates this relationship.Design/methodology/approachTo test the authors’ hypotheses, the authors conducted a number of multilevel polynomial regressions with three-dimensional surface analyses on a sample of 19,049 employees from 24 countries drawn from the International Social Survey Program (ISSP) 2005.FindingsResults indicate that job characteristics needs-supplies fit is positively related to affective organizational commitment, while job characteristics needs-supplies misfit is negatively related to affective organizational commitment. In addition, results reveal that humane orientation is relevant to increasing affective organizational commitment when external rewards job characteristics needs are higher than external rewards job characteristics supplies.Originality/valueThese results weaken the universality of job characteristics and call for a departure from a one-size-fits-all approach to human resources.

Challenging the Multidimensional Conception of Perceived Person-Environment Fit

Abstract. In the current study, we examined the viability of a multidimensional conception of perceived person-environment (P-E) fit in higher education. We introduce an optimized 12-item measure that distinguishes between four content dimensions of perceived P-E fit: interest-contents (I-C) fit, needs-supplies (N-S) fit, demands-abilities (D-A) fit, and values-culture (V-C) fit. The central aim of our study was to examine whether the relationships between different P-E fit dimensions and educational outcomes can be accounted for by a higher-order factor that captures the shared features of the four fit dimensions. Relying on a large sample of university students in Germany, we found that students distinguish between the proposed fit dimensions. The respective first-order factors shared a substantial proportion of variance and conformed to a higher-order factor model. Using a newly developed factor extension procedure, we found that the relationships between the first-order factors and most outcomes were not fully accounted for by the higher-order factor. Rather, with the exception of V-C fit, all specific P-E fit factors that represent the first-order factors’ unique variance showed reliable and theoretically plausible relationships with different outcomes. These findings support the viability of a multidimensional conceptualization of P-E fit and the validity of our adapted instrument.