The Growth of Public Service Motivation Research

Research on public service motivation, that is, motives and actions in the public domain that are intended to do good for others and shape the well-being of society, has grown significantly in the last twenty years. Over 100 studies have been conducted in more than 20 countries, most during the last decade. Among the findings of the research is that public service motivation is an important influence on a person’s willingness to join and remain in a public organization. Findings related to public service motivation and individual performance are less clear cut and are likely mediated by various facets of person-organization fit. Public service motivation affects ethical behavior in both social and organizational contexts, as manifest in such behaviors as blowing the whistle and applying principled reasoning to ethical dilemmas. Despite the significant progress in the study of public service motivation, many important questions remain for future research. The joint effect of public service motivation and job security on employee behavior deserves priority attention, as does the mediating effects of person-organization fit. Public service motivation research would benefit methodologically from the use of experiments and improved measurement instruments.