Employee attitudes toward job changes: An application and extension of Rusbult and Farrell's investment model

Abstract

The present study applied and extended investment model to investigate employees' attitudes toward different job changes, that is, changing job content, changing department, relocation, and voluntary turnover. Employees of three hospitals filled out a questionnaire ( N =953; response rate 55%). The data generally supported the model. Employees who perceived a more favourable job rewards‐costs ratio reported greater satisfaction and affective commitment, and were less positive toward changing their present working situation. The same was true for employees who reported less job alternatives, more investments, and a larger continuance commitment. In addition, employees' expectations of the benefits and costs associated with job changes, weighed by their valence, were related to job change attitudes. Although the predictors' impact varied with job change, the results suggested that attitudes toward different, internal and external, job changes may have similar determinants. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.