Public Service Motivation and Attrition: Studying Individual-Level Turnover Behavior in the Public Sector Using Panel Data

One of the foundational claims of public service motivation (PSM) is that it should influence an individual's willingness to join and remain in public organizations. However, the evidence in support of the “attrition hypothesis” is nuanced, and there is a lack of research examining actual turn...

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Main Author: Michael Bednarczuk
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Midwest Public Affairs Conference 2024-12-01
Series:Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs
Subjects:
Online Access:https://jpna.org/index.php/jpna/article/view/908
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author Michael Bednarczuk
author_facet Michael Bednarczuk
author_sort Michael Bednarczuk
collection DOAJ
description One of the foundational claims of public service motivation (PSM) is that it should influence an individual's willingness to join and remain in public organizations. However, the evidence in support of the “attrition hypothesis” is nuanced, and there is a lack of research examining actual turnover behavior. This study addresses this gap by using longitudinal data from the Youth-Parent Socialization Study to examine the relationship between pre-employment PSM-related values and long-term turnover behavior in the public sector. A multinomial logit model finds that those with higher PSM-related values in childhood are more likely to remain employed in the public sector over time. These results have practical implications for public sector retention strategies, as fostering the development of PSM-related values could lead to reduced employee churn and their related costs.
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spelling doaj-art-d2c263fd913346d9963a1f7cc51fdbdd2025-08-20T01:58:15ZengMidwest Public Affairs ConferenceJournal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs2381-37172024-12-0110.20899/jpna.e02zav47Public Service Motivation and Attrition: Studying Individual-Level Turnover Behavior in the Public Sector Using Panel DataMichael Bednarczuk0Austin Peay State University One of the foundational claims of public service motivation (PSM) is that it should influence an individual's willingness to join and remain in public organizations. However, the evidence in support of the “attrition hypothesis” is nuanced, and there is a lack of research examining actual turnover behavior. This study addresses this gap by using longitudinal data from the Youth-Parent Socialization Study to examine the relationship between pre-employment PSM-related values and long-term turnover behavior in the public sector. A multinomial logit model finds that those with higher PSM-related values in childhood are more likely to remain employed in the public sector over time. These results have practical implications for public sector retention strategies, as fostering the development of PSM-related values could lead to reduced employee churn and their related costs. https://jpna.org/index.php/jpna/article/view/908turnoverattritionpublic sector motivation
spellingShingle Michael Bednarczuk
Public Service Motivation and Attrition: Studying Individual-Level Turnover Behavior in the Public Sector Using Panel Data
Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs
turnover
attrition
public sector motivation
title Public Service Motivation and Attrition: Studying Individual-Level Turnover Behavior in the Public Sector Using Panel Data
title_full Public Service Motivation and Attrition: Studying Individual-Level Turnover Behavior in the Public Sector Using Panel Data
title_fullStr Public Service Motivation and Attrition: Studying Individual-Level Turnover Behavior in the Public Sector Using Panel Data
title_full_unstemmed Public Service Motivation and Attrition: Studying Individual-Level Turnover Behavior in the Public Sector Using Panel Data
title_short Public Service Motivation and Attrition: Studying Individual-Level Turnover Behavior in the Public Sector Using Panel Data
title_sort public service motivation and attrition studying individual level turnover behavior in the public sector using panel data
topic turnover
attrition
public sector motivation
url https://jpna.org/index.php/jpna/article/view/908
work_keys_str_mv AT michaelbednarczuk publicservicemotivationandattritionstudyingindividuallevelturnoverbehaviorinthepublicsectorusingpaneldata