A review and meta-analysis of research on the relationship between behavioral intentions and employee turnover.

Behavioral intentions have an expanding role in the field of turnover research They are becoming increasingly indispensable to empirical and theoretical work linking turnover behavior to psychological antecedents A literature review of published and unpublished works was undertaken to examine the magnitude and consistency of intent-turnov er relationships . Meta-analysis was used to cumulate and average results over studies A weighted average correlation of 50 was calculated between behavioral intentions and employee turnover Intentions were more predictive of attrition than overall job satisfaction, satisfaction with the work itself, or organizationa l commitment Furthermore, an analysis of potential moderator variables indicated that the length of time between procurement of predictor and criterion data influences the magnitude of intent-turnover relationships Behavioral intentions have rapidly come into vogue in the field of turnover research Prior to 1974, few published references to behavioral intentions existed in industrial and organizational psychology research domains (Locke, 1968; Lyons, 1971). However, since that date a veritable explosion of intentturnover research has taken place (Horn, Katerberg, & Hulin, 1979; Kraut, 1975; Mobley, Griffeth, Hand, & Meglino, 1979; Price & Mueller, 1981). Added impetus for the study of behavioral intentions stems m part from theoretical arguments that have singled them out as the most direct and immediate cognitive antecedents of overt behavior (Fishbem & Ajzen, 1975; Tnandis, 1977). The present investigation reviews the published literature linking behavioral intentions and employee turnover to determine the average magnitude of these correlations and to identify potential moderators of this relationship. Average va

[1]  T. N. Martin.  MODELLING THE TURNOVER PROCESS , 1980 .

[2]  L. Cronbach.  Essentials of psychological testing , 1960 .

[3]  C. Hulin.  Job satisfaction and turnover in a female clerical population. , 1966, The Journal of applied psychology.

[4]  R. Gitelson,et al.  A Meta-Analysis of the Correlates of Role Conflict and Ambiguity , 1983 .

[5]  N Gupta,et al.  A note on the structure of employee withdrawal. , 1978, Organizational behavior and human performance.

[6]  M. Katzell,et al.  Expectations and dropouts in schools of nursing. , 1968, The Journal of applied psychology.

[7]  I. Ajzen,et al.  Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research , 1977 .

[8]  Wayne F. Cascio,et al.  Applied psychology in personnel management , 1978 .

[9]  C. Hulin.  Effects of changes in job-satisfaction levels on employee turnover. , 1968 .

[10]  C. Hulin,et al.  Evaluation of the Mobley, Horner, and Hollingsworth model of employee turnover. , 1979 .

[11]  James L. Koch,et al.  Job attachment, satisfaction, and turnover among public sector employees , 1978 .

[12]  T. Lyons.  Role clarity, need for clarity, satisfaction, tension, and withdrawal , 1971 .

[13]  Paul E. Spector,et al.  Causes of employee turnover: A test of the Mobley, Griffeth, Hand, and Meglino model. , 1982 .

[14]  Allen I. Kraut,et al.  Predicting turnover of employees from measured job attitudes , 1975 .

[15]  N. Aranya,et al.  A Comparison of Two Organizational Commitment Scales. , 1983 .

[16]  J. P. Guilford,et al.  Fundamental statistics in psychology and education, 3rd ed. , 1956 .

[17]  Thomas W. Dougherty,et al.  Turnover and Competition for Expected Job Openings: An Exploratory Analysis , 1980 .

[18]  Thomas N. Martin,et al.  A Contextual Model of Employee Turnover Intentions , 1979 .

[19]  H. J. Arnold,et al.  A multivariate analysis of the determinants of job turnover. , 1982 .

[20]  Terence R. Mitchell,et al.  Expectancy models of job satisfaction, occupational preference and effort: A theoretical, methodological, and empirical appraisal. , 1974 .

[21]  Charles L. Hulin,et al.  Comparative examination of three approaches to the prediction of turnover. , 1979 .

[22]  Harris Cooper,et al.  Statistically Combining Independent Studies: A Meta-Analysis of Sex Differences in Conformity Research , 1979 .

[23]  Stephen G. West,et al.  Validity of self-evaluation of ability: A review and meta-analysis , 1982 .

[24]  James O. Mitchel.  The Effect of Intentions, Tenure, Personal, and Organizational Variables on Managerial Turnover , 1981 .

[25]  J. Guilford.  Fundamental statistics in psychology and education , 1943 .

[26]  Allan P. Jones,et al.  Organizational Conditions Affecting Withdrawal Intentions and Decisions as Moderated by Work Experience , 1980 .

[27]  Chris W. Clegg,et al.  Psychology of employee lateness, absence, and turnover: A methodological critique and an empirical study. , 1983 .

[28]  Seymour Epstein,et al.  The stability of behavior: I. On predicting most of the people much of the time. , 1979 .

[29]  Ricky W. Griffin,et al.  Perceived Task Characteristics and Employee Performance: A Literature Review , 1981 .

[30]  Claude F Bridges,et al.  Prediction of officer retention prior to commissioning. , 1978 .

[31]  J. M. Larocco.  Job Attitudes, Intentions, and Turnover: An Analysis of Effects Using Latent Variables , 1983 .

[32]  E. F. Jackofsky,et al.  Job turnover versus company turnover: Reassessment of the March and Simon participation hypothesis. , 1983 .