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Voluntary Turnover: An Empirical Test of the Met Expectations Hypothesis *
Author(s) -
Bottger Preston C.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
asia pacific journal of human resources
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.825
H-Index - 33
eISSN - 1744-7941
pISSN - 1038-4111
DOI - 10.1177/103841119002800302
Subject(s) - turnover , test (biology) , empirical research , psychology , sample (material) , empirical evidence , social psychology , economics , management , paleontology , philosophy , chemistry , epistemology , chromatography , biology
The met expectations, or met preferences, hypothesis about turnover suggests that people tend to leave their jobs when their expectations are not fulfilled. Empirical tests of this hypothesis have been inconclusive. Here, we test the hypothesis in a very practical way. We examine the effects of turnover of met versus unmet preferences of two important job characteristics, instrumental communication and decision influence. Employees with strong preferences for such characteristics are arguably key organisational members, the loss of whom could be expensive. Our empirical findings have both research and practical implications. Researchers might note that met expectation effects are more likely to be found when multiple expectations are examined. Human resource practitioners might note that organisations are particularly vulnerable to the loss of employees whose expectations of professional involvement are not met. The sample comprises 1,024 female non‐supervisory registered nurses.