Role Perception-Outcome Relationships: Moderating Effects of Situational Variables

Abstract

Supervisory interaction, peer-group interaction, and organizational work facilitation were examined as moderators of relationships among facets of role ambiguity and role conflict and the outcomes, job performance, job satisfaction, and propensity to leave for 193 respondents at 5 levels in the nursing service of a large medical center. Supervisory interaction was found to moderate the relationships between (i) intersender-role conflict and job performance, (ii) person-role conflict and job satisfaction, and (iii) ambiguity concerning behavioral outcomes and propensity to leave. Moderator effects for peer-group interaction involved the relationships of (i) intersender-role conflict with job performance and (ii) ambiguity regarding behavioral consequences with propensity to leave. Finally, organizational work facilitation was found to moderate the relationships among intersender-role conflict and the outcome variables, job performance, and propensity to leave, as well as the relationships between person-role conflict and job satisfaction and between predictability of behavioral outcomes and propensity to leave. The direction of the above interactive effects was examined using subgroup analyses. Based on these results, other situational variables deserving investigation are identified, and it is suggested that future researchers would be wise to consider situationally relevant contextual factors that may influence the effects of role stress.