The Role of Public Service Motivation in Employee Work Engagement: A Test of the Job Demands-Resources Model

ABSTRACT

The study investigates the nature of public service motivation’s (PSM) relationship to employee work engagement. Using the Job Demands-Resource Model, the authors compare whether PSM as a resource is an antecedent to employee work engagement or has a buffering effect on job hindrances of perceived red tape in explaining employee work engagement. They surveyed 388 supervisors and managers in a public-sector organization in the United States. The findings support PSM as an antecedent along with perceived job influence and perceived procurement red tape to employee work engagement.

KEYWORDS:

• Public service motivation (PSM)
• Job Demands-Resources Model (JD-R)
• work engagement
• red tape