Uncovering curvilinearity in the organizational tenure-job performance relationship. A moderated mediation model of continuance commitment and motivational job characteristics

Date06 November 2017
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1108/PR-11-2015-0302
Published date06 November 2017
Pages1552-1570
AuthorNishant Uppal
Subject MatterHR & organizational behaviour,Global HRM
Uncovering curvilinearity in the
organizational tenure-job
performance relationship
A moderated mediation model of
continuance commitment and motivational
job characteristics
Nishant Uppal
Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow, India
Abstract
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to posit a curvilinear relationship between organizational tenure and
various facets of job performance. So far, theoretical explanations of such curvilinearity have been
inconclusive and ambiguous. The current study draws from literature on organizational commitment to
present an additional psychoeconomic explanation for curvilinearity. Further, it brings together job design,
job stage, and conservation resource models to investigate moderation effects of motivational job
characteristics on the organizational tenure-job performance relationship.
Design/methodology/approach It is a longitudinal field study at two time periods using a sample of
employees (n¼679) in 19 job profiles from 13 different public sector organizations.
Findings The current study found a mediated curvilinear relationship between organizational tenure and
job performance from continuance commitment. The data show moderation effects of motivational job
characteristics on the mediated curvilinear organizational tenure-job performance relationship.
Originality/value Prior research based on industrial and business organizations provides substantial
evidence to expect a curvilinear relationship between organizational tenure and job performance. That is,
after an employee has spent a considerable amount of time in an organization and learned virtually all aspects
of the job, further organizational tenure may cease to produce additional job performance improvements.
However, scholars predicting curvilinear relationship have focused predominately on empirical verification
with inconclusive and ambiguous theoretical explications. Therefore, the aim of the present study is twofold.
First, it attempts to describe the ambiguous relationship between organizational tenure and job performance
by examining the mechanism behind curvilinearity. Second, it examines motivational job characteristics as
possible moderators that may affect the relationship.
Keywords Quantitative, Advanced statistical, Job performance, Organizational tenure,
Continuance commitme nt, Motivational job characteristics
Paper type Research paper
Prior research based on industrial and business organizations provides substantial evidence
to expect an inverted U-shaped relationship between organizational tenure and job
performance (Ng and Feldman, 2010; Sturman, 2003). That is, after an employee has spent a
considerable amount of time in an organization and learned virtually all aspects of the job,
further organizational tenuremay cease to produce additional job performanceimprovements.
Although prior research has generated a wealth of insights about the relationship
between organizational tenure and job performance, scholars predicting an inverted
U-shaped relationship have focusedpredominately on empiricalverification with inconclusive
and ambiguous theoretical explications. For example, Ng and Feldman (2010), following
The Peter Principle(Peter and Hull, 1969),argued that with increased organizational tenure,
employees are promoted up organizational hierarchies eventually reaching a position for
which they are incompetent. As a result, their performance starts to deteriorate. However,
the inherent assumption of a positive relationship between organizational tenure and
promotions may not always be true. And, in fact, the literature provides evidence that the
Personnel Review
Vol. 46 No. 8, 2017
pp. 1552-1570
© Emerald PublishingLimited
0048-3486
DOI 10.1108/PR-11-2015-0302
Received 27 November 2015
Revised 14 July 2016
25 January 2017
Accepted 12 March 2017
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0048-3486.htm
1552
PR
46,8
relationship between higher organizational tenure and promotions within the organization
may be negative (Baker et al., 1994; Gibbons and Waldman, 1999).
Similarly, in a meta-analysis, Sturman (2003) hypothesized and found a curvilinear
relationship between organizational tenure and job performance, which was, however,
based mostly on theories pertaining to overall job experience rather than organizational
tenure per se. Researchers investigating experience-performance relationships have clearly
highlighted that the organizational tenure shows the distinct and unique variance in job
performance over and above all other facets of experience, such as prior occupational and
industrial experience (Dokko et al., 2009; Quinones et al., 1995; Uppal et al., 2014; Uppal and
Mishra, 2014). For example, Dokko et al. (2009) in a study of call center executives found that
the length of organizational tenure determines the extent to which cognitive or behavioral
learning from previous job experiences will influence job performance. According to their
study, as an employee responds to situations and problems and spends time within the
current organization, feedback and learning become more contextual, avoiding the need to
transfer cognitive or behavioral learning with its inherent inefficiencies and potential
inaccuracies from previous job experiences. Hence, with the increase in organizational
tenure, the behavioral and cognitive rigidities acquired from previous job experiences
gradually become obsolete. Therefore, it is important to further investigate the research
examining the organizational tenure-job performance relationship.
In addition to inconclusive arguments, the theories of curvilinearity between
organizational tenure and job performance present ambiguous results about
organizational tenure, as after extended tenure, the relationship becomes negative.
Researchers have found an inflection point after organizational tenure of three months
(Castilla, 2005), six years (Ng and Feldman, 2010), and 14 years (Sturman, 2003). These
inconsistencies indicate the role of contextual factors in the organizational tenure-job
performance relationship.
There can be following explanations for these inconsistent results. Temporal variables,
such as organizational tenure, are only indirect predictors of job performance through
job-relevant and organization-specific knowledge (Dokko et al., 2009; Schmidt et al., 1986),
they provide work opportunities and a platform for knowledge and skill acquisition.
Therefore, occurrence of inflection point in the relationship between organizational tenure
and job performance should depend upon the nature and application of job-relevant
and organization-specific knowledge gained from organizational tenure. For example,
an employee after two daysemployment may not have knowledge about work area
layouts or location of needed office support; however, such knowledge is so elementary
and easily attainable that it would typically have little exclusive effect on job performance
over that period of time and may only contribute to the employees initial adjustment.
It is likely that once an employee has acquired substantial knowledge about
current job and organization, it may become elementary and cease to produce further
job improvements.
Organizational commitment literature (Cohen, 1993; Meyer et al., 2002) defines such
elementary or redundant job-relevant and organization-specific knowledge as investments
or side betsacquired by employees by spending time in the organization. These
investments develop continuance commitment in employees which subsequently effects job
performance. Therefore, it may be that the point of inflection in the relationship between
organizational tenure and job performance is a function of continuance commitment.
The current study examines continuance commitment as a possible mediator in the
organizational tenure-job performance relationship.
Job stage theory (Murphy, 1989) provides another possible explanation for ambiguous
empirical results regarding point of inflection after which the relationship between
organizational tenure and job performance becomes curvilinear. According to job stage
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Uncovering
curvilinearity

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