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DO FEELINGS OF SUCCESS MEDIATE SALES P E R F O R M A N C E - W O R K ATTITUDE RELATIONSHIPS? Steven P. Brown University of Georgia

William L. Cron Southern Methodist University

Thomas W. Leigh University of Georgia

also been extensively investigated (e.g., Johnston, Futrell, Parasuraman, and Sager 1988). Both the practical and theoretical importance of these constructs has continued to foster substantial ongoing research (laffaldano and Muchinsky 1985; Brown and Peterson 1993). As empirical evidence on these relationships has accumulated, discrepancies with respect to conceptual models of the relationships have become increasingly apparent. Theoretical models of the relationships between sales performance and job attitudes (e.g., Walker, Churchill, and Ford 1977) posit a strong positive relationship between sales performance and job satisfaction and hold that performance mediates the effects of antecedent variables (e.g., motivation, role perceptions) on job satisfaction and other work attitudes. The accumulated empirical findings, however, reveal that sales performance is only weakly related to job satisfaction and other work attitudes. A recent metaanalysis (Brown and Peterson 1993) reported a mean correlation of only .13 between sales performance and job satisfaction over 29 studies with a cumulative sample size of 7,621 and also found that performance did not have significant causal effects on satisfaction or other job attitudes. Another meta-analysis of the performance-satisfaction relationship in primarily non-sales contexts reached a similar conclusion and observed that "few other empirical relations have embraced the null hypothesis so often yet continued to foster additional research" (laffaldano and Muchinsky 1985, p. 269). These null findings are contrary to the predictions of current conceptual models and have yet to be accounted for theoretically. Good general reviews of conceptual models of relationships between salesperson motivation, performance, and job attitudes can be found in Walker, Churchill, and Ford

A psychological success model of the relationships between sales performance and job attitudes is developed and tested. The model posits that feelings of success mediate the relationship between work performance and job satisfaction. Previous research based on purely cognitive theoretical models has posited a direct relationship between performance and satisfaction, but typically has found no empirical relationship. The psychological success model posits that the relationships between performance and job attitudes are indirect and mediated by feelings of success. The results generally validate the model. Implications for theo~ and managerial practice are drawn and directions for future research incorporating affect into models of work behavior are suggested.

INTRODUCTION The link between work performance and job satisfaction has been one of the most frequently studied relationships in salesforce and organizational behavior research (cf. Vroom 1964; Lawler and Porter 1967; Iaffaldano and Muchinsky 1985; Bagozzi 1980). The relationships between work performance and other job attitudes (e.g., job involvement, organizational commitment, absenteeism, turnover) have Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science Volume 21, Number 2, pages 91-100. Copyright 9 1993 by Academy of Marketing Science. All rights of reproduction in any form reserved. ISSN 0092-0703.

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(1979) and Evans, Margheim, and Schlacter (1982). The focus of the present study is limited to one aspect of such models: the relationship between sales performance and job attitudes. It seeks to add explanatory power by investigating the effects of an intervening variable, feelings of success, that may mediate the relationship between sales performance and job attitudes and thus help account conceptually for the accumulated research findings. The dominant view regarding the performance-satisfaction relationship has been that performance is causally antecedent to satisfaction (e.g., Wanous 1974; Sheridan and Slocum 1975; Bagozzi 1980). However, the accumulated evidence provides only very tenuous support for this assertion. Moreover, Behrman and Perreault (1984) have suggested that the association between performance and satisfaction may be spurious and attributable to relationships with common antecedent variables. A third possibility is that the performance-satisfaction relationship is indirect and mediated by intervening variables. The present study investigates this possibility and posits that the relationship between performance and satisfaction is indirect and mediated by feelings of success. The study also suggests more generally that explicit consideration of mediational influences such as affect in work contexts is likely to add explanatory power to models of job attitudes (Brown and Farber 1951; Isen and Baron 1991). An accurate understanding of the relationship between performance and job attitudes is important for several reasons. First, the relationships in question have been of considerable theoretical interest, and revised conceptual models to account for the weak relationships between performance and job attitudes are clearly needed. Second, many managers consider the well-being, satisfaction, and positive mental attitude of workers to be of inherent interest (Locke 1976; Isen and Baron 1991), and they should be aware of the extent to which job performance contributes to these positive outcomes. Third, job attitudes have consistently been strongly and inversely related to negative work outcomes such as absenteeism (e.g., Spector and Jex 1991) and turnover (e.g., Johnston, Futrell, Parasuraman, and Sager 1988; Sager, Varadarajan, and Futrell 1988; Sager 1991). Inverse relationships between job satisfaction and negative work outcomes make understanding the antecedents of job satisfaction a matter of considerable practical importance. It is particularly important to understand whether performance directly impacts satisfaction and other job attitudes or whether other, potentially actionable intervening variables mediate the relationship. In the former case, performance per se would contribute to positive job attitudes and presumably lower absenteeism and turnover. In the latter case, performance alone would not be sufficient to affect job attitudes positively, and managerial actions to enhance job attitudes would be suggested. If performance is positively and directly related to job attitudes, then it is likely that turnover would be higher among lower performers than among higher performers. Some degree of turnover functionality (i.e., lower performers leaving the organization while higher performers remain [Hollenbeck and Williams 1986]) would occur naturally. If performance is not directly linked to job attitudes, on the other hand, then managers need to take

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steps to assure that the job attitudes of higher performers are positive. In the following, we first define feelings of success and develop the psychological success model, which posits feelings of success as an intervening variable between sales performance and job attitudes. After reviewing the relevant literature, we then test the model on a large, multicompany sample of industrial salespeople. Then we compare alternative causal structures to the hypothesized model and assess the robustness of the model by examining its relationships across career stages. We conclude with a discussion of practical and theoretical implications and directions for future research.

Feelings of Success Hall (1971, 1976) was among the first to investigate the

phenomenology of success (i.e., feelings of success, as opposed to the objective achievement of high performance). Consistent with cognitively based theoretical perspectives on emotions (e.g., Ortony, Clore, and Collins 1988; Lazarus 1991), Hall proposed that an individual's appraisal of work performance (i.e., that he/she is more/less successful) leads to an affective response (i.e., feelings of success). He referred to the combination of cognitive appraisal of performance and resulting affect as psychological success (Hall 1971, 1976). 2 The concept of feelings of success draws on Lewin's (1936) assertions that people develop feelings of success and self-esteem when they achieve goals that (a) are central to their self-concept, (b) they had set for themselves, (c) they worked toward independently, and (d) represented a challenging but attainable level of aspiration. The feelings of success construct is defined as a global self assessment of the extent to which one feels successful in performing one's job (cf. Hall 1971, 1976; Stumpf 1981). Feelings of success are considered impermanent but relatively enduring positive feelings that are relatively low in arousal. In contrast to the feelings associated with success in a specific event or occurrence, Hall's construal of psychological success is based on self-appraisals of work performance over a period of time. Repeated successes are needed to elicit a relatively enduring sense and feeling of being successful. Feelings of success are distinct from Bandura's (1986) concept of self-efficacy. According to Bandura, selfefficacy is strictly an instrumental estimation that one has the capability of accomplishing a particular goal. People are much more likely to undertake challenges when they possess self-efficacy beliefs that they can succeed. Self-efficacy theory does not consider the psychological rewards of success. In regard to Bandura's theory, Deci and Ryan (1985, p. 224) observe: [Bandura] asserted that efficacy expectations are important, not because there are any intrinsic rewards associated with efficacy, but because efficacy is instrumental for the attainment of reinforcements. In our view, not recognizing the intrinsic satisfaction of efficacy is a major problem for Bandura's theory and makes his position very different from ours.

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tive effect on expectations of future success. Likewise, feelings of competence had a positive effect on task-specific self-esteem following both successful and unsuccessful outcomes. Considerable previous research has indicated that job satisfaction is causally related to other job attitudes (e.g., job involvement, organizational commitment [Behrman and Perreault 1984; Dubinsky and Hartley 1986]). These findings are consistent with the psychological success model, which, in addition to positing that feelings of success mediate the sales performance-satisfaction relationship, also posits that job satisfaction directly impacts job involvement and organizational commitment. Job involvement has been of interest to organizational researchers because of its relationship to satisfaction and a number of behavioral outcomes such as effort, motivation, absenteeism, and turnover (Rabinowitz and Hall 1977). Research has demonstrated a significant and positive relationship between job satisfaction and job involvement (e.g., Dubinsky and Hartley 1986; Dubinsky, Howell, Ingram, and Bellenger 1986; Hollenbeck and Williams 1986). Job involvement has also been found to be positively associated with behavioral outcomes such as effort (Ingram, Lee, and Lucas 1991) and motivation (Dubinsky and Hartley 1986), while being negatively associated with behaviors such as absenteeism and turnover (Rabinowitz and Hall 1977). Though not conclusive, studies in a variety of settings have generally found no direct relationship between job involvement and performance (e.g., Lawler and Hall 1970). In a salesforce context, neither Dubinsky and Hartley (I 986) nor Cron and Slocum (1986) observed a direct relationship between sales performance and job involvement.

The following section develops the psychological success model and reviews relevant findings of previous research in both sales and non-sales contexts. The section concludes with specific research hypotheses.

The Psychological Success Model Hall's (1971, 1976) psychological success model of career development presents a parsimonious, yet potentially powerful conceptual structure relating work performance to job attitudes through the mediation of feelings of success. The model specifies the causal linkages among salesperson performance, feelings of success, and job attitudes such as job satisfaction, job involvement, and organizational commitment. A key tenet of the psychological success model is that "one's work plays a major role in providing life's satisfactions" (Hall 1971, p. 56). Often, work is central to a person's self-concept. Given freedom to choose, people seemingly prefer work that provides feelings of success, self-esteem, and personal satisfaction. Hall (1971) posited a causal cycle in which effort leads to goal attainment (or job performance), which in turn triggers a series of psychological outcomes (feelings of success work identity growth ~ increased self-esteem ~ career commitment ~ motivation). Acceptance of work-related goals initiates this developmental process. Effective performance, in turn, reinforces job attitudes and career commitment and engenders acceptance of greater goals, leading to higher subsequent performance, and so forth. After repeated successes on the job, an individual will develop generally enduring positive feelings about his/her success that lead to an overall positive attitude about the company and the job as sources of future success opportunities. Because of the cumulative effects and enduring nature of these feelings of success, Hall suggested that this model provides a useful theoretical perspective for explaining the career development process of new employees as well as the extant career status of longer-term employees. In a non-salesforce context, Stumpf (1981) investigated the model: role performance ~ psychological success work satisfaction ~ job involvement. His study investigated the performance of university faculty in three roles: research, teaching, and administration. The results generally supported the psychological success model. Peer performance ratings strongly affected feelings of success for research and administrative roles, but not for teaching. Likewise, feelings of success affected work satisfaction for the research and administrative roles, but not for teaching. Work satisfaction significantly affected job involvement for all three roles, and feelings of success affected satisfaction with promotional opportunities for all three roles. In sum, the results supported each linkage of the psychological success model for at least two of the three faculty roles studied. The psychological success model has not been evaluated in salesforce research, although studies have considered central constructs in the model. Badovick and his colleagues (Badovick 1990; Badovick, Hadaway, and Kaminski 1992) have investigated emotions related to performance outcomes. They found that after unsuccessful performance outcomes feelings of competence had a posi-

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HYPOTHESES The basic model guiding our investigation is presented in Figure 1. Feelings of success arise from successful accomplishment of work duties and therefore relate most directly to satisfaction with the work itself (cf. Arkes 1978; Reeve, Olson, and Cole 1985). Therefore, we consider work satisfaction as the facet of job satisfaction most relevant to this model. Because feelings of success may also have an important effect on salespeople's overall job satisfaction and satisfaction with promotion opportunities, these effects are assessed in the present study as well. Stumpf (1981) found that psychological success influenced both promotion and work satisfaction. The model posits a crucial role for feelings of success in mediating the job performance/work satisfaction linkage. Consistent with the meta-analytic findings noted above, we expect no direct effect of performance on work satisfaction. However, we do expect a significant positive effect of performance on feelings of success; in turn, we expect a significant positive effect of feelings of success on work satisfaction. Hence, we predict an indirect effect of performance on work satisfaction that is mediated by feelings of Success.

The effects of feelings of success on job involvement and organizational commitment are posited to be mediated by

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FIGURE 1 Hypothesized Psychological Success Model

ment and organizational commitment are mediated by work satisfaction.

work satisfaction. A saleperson's feelings of success are likely to increase his/her appraisal of the work itself (cf. Arkes 1978; Reeve, Olson, and Cole 1985), and this increased work satisfaction, in turn, is likely to lead to increased job involvement and organizational commitment. Hence, no direct effect of feelings of success on either job involvement or organizational commitment is predicted by the model. Work satisfaction is expected to have simultaneous positive direct effects on both job involvement and organizational commitment. Although job involvement and organizational commitment have been positively correlated in several studies in sales and non-sales contexts (e.g., Parasuraman and Alutto 1984; Hollenbeck and Williams 1986), little conceptual basis exists to predict the direction of the relationship. Dubinsky and Hartley (1986) failed to find the hypothesized effect of job involvement on organizational commitment. Their reasoning was that job involvement simply would be related inversely to turnover; organizational commitment was regarded as an inversely scaled proxy for turnover. Although previous findings are somewhat inconsistent with respect to the job involvement-organizational commitment relationship, it appears reasonable to posit that the greater one's job involvement, the more committed to the organization one becomes (Parasuraman and Alutto 1984; Dubinsky and Hartley 1986). Thus, our basic model posits a direct effect of involvement on commitment. Consistent with the foregoing review, the first six hypotheses guiding our study are as follows:

Career Stages Hall's (1971) initial discussion of the effects of feelings of success on attitudes and behavior was based on an analysis of careers and self-identity. He suggested that the most important feature of the model is that it examines influences on job attitudes and behavior following an occupational choice (Hall 1971, p. 72). Although a tendency toward an upward or downward spiral was expected, it was assumed that the strength of the relationships represented in the model would remain constant over time, although early career success was considered particularly important. To determine whether feelings of success continue to influence work satisfaction and other job attitudes and to be influenced by performance, we examine the stability of the model's paths across four career stages. The career stages perspective (Super 1957) suggests that what a person wants and needs from career challenges is likely to change fundamentally over time. These changes have been summarized into four career stages: exploration, establishment, maintenance, and disengagement (cf. Cron 1984). Given these fundamental changes in the role of work in one's life, it is possible that the strength of the relationships predicted in the psychological success model may differ across career stages. However, no strong basis exists in theory or prior research for predicting specific differences in the strengths of the hypothesized relationships. Hence, in order to establish the stability of the relationships in the psychological success model, the following hypothesis will be evaluated:

HI:

Job performance is positively and directly related to feelings of success. 1-12: Feelings of success are positively and directly related to work satisfaction. H3: No direct relationship exists between job performance and work satisfaction when the mediating effect of feelings of success is removed. H4: Work satisfaction is positively and directly related to job involvement and organizational commitment. HS: Job involvement is positively and directly related to organizational commitment. H6: The effects of feelings of success on job involve-

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H7:

The relationships represented in the psychological success model will be robust across career stages.

METHOD Sample Six industrial equipment and supply manufacturers participated in the study. Each of the six companies has a

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national salesforce with geographical territory assignments and multiple product lines. Sales is an entry level position for each company. A variety of compensation plans was represented, although none was a straight commission plan. The sampling frame included only field sales personnel. National account, technical specialists, and service personnel were excluded. The realized sample included 466 salespeople, for a 54.5 percent response rate. 3 The sample profile closely matched the sampling frame in demographic terms. The typical respondent was 39 years of age and had 8.7 years job tenure. Ninety-six percent were male; 72 percent were married; 51 percent had attended college.

four-item Likert scale developed by Hall et al. (1978). The Cronbach alpha for the summed scale was .88. Organizational commitment. Organizational commitment was measured by 15 seven-point bipolar items developed by Porter, Steers, Mowday, and Boulian (1974). Cronbach's alpha for the scale was .84. Career Stages. Career stages were measured using the Career Concerns Inventory (CCI) Adult Form (Super, Zelhowitz, and Thompson 1981). Each of the career stages (i.e., exploration, establishment, maintenance, and disengagement) was measured using 14 items about career concerns with response formats anchored from 1 (have not yet had to think seriously about it) to 3 (a strong concern at the present time) to 5 (no longer a serious concern). Prior validation and reliability results are reported in Super and Zelhowitz (1973), Zelhowitz (1974), and Cron and S locum (1986). The internal consistencies for the respective stages as measured by Cronbach's alpha were .90 for exploration, .83 for establishment, .86 for maintenance, and .84 for disengagement. Salespeople were categorized into a career stage on the basis of the career stage score closest to a value of three (where three equals the midpoint score in the career-concems scale), followed by verification that the pattern of salesperson responses was consistent with the careerstage framework. 4 The final sample consisted of 65 (14%) exploration stage salespeople, 158 (34%) establishment stage salespeople, 186 (40%) maintenance stage salespeople, and 57 (12%) disengagement stage salespeople. 5 All measures used in the study have been extensively validated in previous research and all had excellent intemal consistency. A single index measure was developed for each construct equal to the arithmetic mean of the constituent items. The path connecting each latent construct to its composite measure was set equal to the value of the square root of its Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient (Loehlin 1987, p. 105).

Measures Job performance. An original list of 11 items was developed based on discussions with sales managers from each of the six companies. This list was reduced to seven items based on possible redundancy, common relevance, and importance to the sales position in all six companies. In a final iteration, sales managers from all six firms agreed that the seven items fairly represented the dimensions commonly considered to evaluate the overall performance of their salespeople. Performance was measured by managers' ratings of the salespeople on seven sales dimensions, including: total sales volume, new account development, full-line selling results, leadership ability, planning, initiative, and resourcefulness. Likert scales were used. The summated performance index for the sample had a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of .90. Feelings of Success. Feelings of success were measured using a seven-item self-report scale developed by Hall et al. (1978). The scale items are listed in Table 1. Cronbach's alpha for the summated scale was 0.84. Job satisfaction. Job satisfaction was measured using the Job Descriptive Index (Smith, Kendall, and Hulin 1969). The JDI measures satisfaction with five areas of the job: work, pay, opportunities for promotion, supervision, and co-workers. Overall satisfaction is the sum score across all five of these multi-item facet measures. The reliability of the JDI in this study compares favorably to prior research: work (et = .76), pay (a = .84), promotion (et = .71), supervision (et = .86), co-workers (c~ = .84). Cronbach's alpha for overall satisfaction was .91. Job involvement. Job involvement was measured with the

RESULTS Hypothesis tests were conducted by estimating the hypothesized model represented in Figure 1 using LISREL. Intercorrelations among the constructs are reported in Table 2. Fitting the basic model to the data resulted in a fit of chi square (6 degrees of freedom) = 136.27, p < .001, GFI = .917, RMSR = . 106. These indices suggest a poor fit of the model to the data and suggest misspecification or the presence of relationships among the constructs additional to those hypothesized. Given the poor model fit, modifications were made to achieve a more accurate representation of the data. Following McCallum (1986), the dual criteria of expected gain in fit and substantive interpretability of structual paths guided the modification procedure. LISREL modification indices (indicating the relative expected gains in fit from adding particular paths) suggested that the effect of feelings of success on job involvement was not completely mediated by work satisfaction as hypothesized (H6). Hence, a direct path from feelings of success to job involvement was added. Addition of this one path resulted in a dramatic improve-

TABLE 1 Items Included in the Feelings of Success Scale I have not been especially proud of my performance in my job lately. Generally I feel 1am achieving my most importantpersonalgoals at work. On the basis of my own standards, I feel I have been successful in my work. I get a great sense of accomplishment in my job. My "track record" in my career has been pretty good. I often feel really good about the quality of my work performance. Compared to my peers, l feel quite successful in my career.

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tion), the model presented in Figure 2 (with feelings of success removed) was estimated. This model posits a direct positive relationship between job performance and work satisfaction that is not mediated by feelings of success. Estimation of the model resulted in a nonsignificant direct effect of job performance on work satisfaction. This result supported H3, which predicted no significant effect of job performance on work satisfaction when the mediating effects of feelings of success were removed. Table 3 also reports the standardized path coefficients and t-values resulting from estimation of the revised model using overall job satisfaction and satisfaction with promotion opportunities in place of work satisfaction. These resuits are very similar to those obtained using work satisfaction. The only difference between the work satisfaction model and those using overall satisfaction and satisfaction with promotion opportunities was that the direct path between job performance and satisfaction remained marginally significant after feelings of success were removed from the latter two models. Given the large sample size, however, the importance of the statistical significance of this path should not be overemphasized. In both models, the path explained less than one percent of the variance in satisfaction and hence is lacking in substantive significance (Sawyer and Peter 1983). The much larger path coefficients connecting job performance to feelings of success and feelings of success to the satisfaction constructs clearly indicate the mediating effect of feelings of success.

TABLE 2 Intercorrelations among Constructs in the Model

Variable

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5)

Performance Feelings of Success Work Satisfaction Job Involvement Org. Commitment

.90 .38 h .05 .13 h .08

.84 .28 h .45 h .36 h

.76 .30 a .50 b

,88 .50 h

.84

Overall Satisfaction Promotion Satisfaction

.13 h .11 ~

.28 h .25 ~

.29 h .19 h

.60 h .42 h

ulndicates significance at p = .05 J'Indicates significance at p = .01 Reliability coefficients are in the diagonal.

ment in fit to the data (chi square = 8.08, 6 degrees of freedom, p = .152, GFI = .993, RMSR = .032). The nonsignificant chi square statistic indicates that the revised model cannot be rejected as an accurate representation of the data. Standardized path coefficients and corresponding t-values for the revised model are presented in Table 3. The path coefficients and t-values support H I (that performance is positively and directly related to feelings of success), H2 (that feelings of success are positively and directly related to work satisfaction), H4 (that work satisfaction is positively and directly related to both job involvement and organizational commitment), and H5 (that job involvement is positively and directly related to organizational commitment). Support for H5 (that work satisfaction mediates the relationship between feelings of success and job involvement and organizational commitment) is mixed. The significant direct path between feelings of success and job involvement indicated that work satisfaction does not completely mediate the relationship as hypothesized. The lack of a significant direct relationship between feelings of success and organizational commitment, however, is consistent with the hypothesis that work satisfaction totally mediates that relationship. To test H3 (that feelings of success totally mediate the relationship between job performance and work satisfac-

Robustness Across Career Stages To test for the possibility of moderating effects of career stages, a 4-group LISREL model was estimated. All structural paths in the model were constrained to be invariant across all four groups. Estimating the model with these constraints resulted in a fit of chi square (50 d.f.) = 45.44, p = .657, GFI = .962, RMSR = .075. These indices suggest that a single set of parameters fits the data well for all four career stages. Thus, the prediction that the relationships in the model will be robust across career stages (HT) is supported.

TABLE 3 Standardized Path Coefficients and t-values for Revised Models

Work Satisfaction Model Path Perf---~Success Success---*Satis Success----* Involve Satis----~Involve Satis----~O.C. Involve--~O.C.

Overall Satisfaction Model

Promotion Satisfaction Model

Standardized Coefficient

t-value


t-value


t-value

.43 .35 .45 ' .21 .48 .41

8.63 6.38 8.58 3.84 9.37 8.66

.43 .36 .45 .20 .62 .36

8.69 6.50 8.57 3.57 13.02 8.24

.43 .32 .50 .07 .41 .49

8.69 5.73 9.56 1.35" 8.51 10.81

• = 8.08 p = .152 G.F.I. = .993 RMSR = .032

• = 7.34 p = .165 G.F.I. = .993 RMSR = .026

• = 7.09 p = .214 G.F.I. = .994 RMSR = .026

"Indicates not statistically significant at p = .05; paths with t-values exceeding 12.01 are statistically significant (Joreskog and Sorbom 1986).

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FIGURE 2 Model without the Mediation of Feelings of Success

DISCUSSION The psychological success model appears to provide an accurate and parsimonious representation of the relationships among job performance, feelings of success, and important job-related attitudes. The model's explicit consideration of the effects of feelings of success provides additional explanatory power regarding how sales performance influences job attitudes. The results provide clear evidence that feelings of success have a mediating effect on the relationship between work performance and job satisfaction. The performance --~ work satisfaction path was not statistically significant in the model in which feelings of success were not considered. Although the relationships between performance and overall satisfaction and satisfaction with promotion opportunities remained statistically significant when the effects of feelings of success were removed from the model, performance explained less than one percent of the variance in satisfaction, and the strength of the relationships was insufficient to be of substantive significance (Sawyer and Peter 1983). In both cases, feelings of success had a much stronger effect on satisfaction than job performance did. Thus, the psychological success model helps to explain, at least in part, the frequently observed lack of an empirical relationship between job performance and job satisfaction (Brown and Peterson 1993; laffaldano and Muchinsky 1985). These findings are consistent with Badovick (1990) and Badovick, Hadaway, and Kaminski (1992) in suggesting the importance of feelings of competence and success in

TABLE 4 Standardized Path Coefficients and t-Values of Performance--> Satisfaction Path

Model Work Satisfaction Overall Satisfaction Promotion Satisfaction

Standardized Perform ~ Satis Path Coefficient

t-Value

.08 .13 .13

1.37 2.36 2.66

"Indicates not statistically significant at p = .05

relation to salesperson motivation, expectancies, and job attitudes. They are also consistent with recent research in psychology (e.g., Breckler and Wiggins 1991; Zanna and Rempel 1988) and consumer behavior (e.g., Peterson, Hoyer, and Wilson 1986; Edell and Burke 1987) in suggesting that feelings are important determinants of attitudes. In addition to mediating the relationship between sales performance and job satisfaction, feelings of success had a strong direct effect on job involvement. This suggests that feelings of success contribute importantly to the salesperson's investing the best of himself/herself into the job (Arkes 1978; Reeve, Olson, and Cole 1985; Csikszentmihalyi 1990). Given these results, it appears that feelings of success provide an incentive to exert additional effort toward future performance. Interestingly, feelings of success did not have a concomitant direct effect on organizational commitment. Although feelings of success and satisfaction exerted strong positive effects on job involvement, they did not affect organizational commitment. This suggests that feeling successful, in and of itself, did little to increase the salesperson's attachment to and identification with the company he/she represented. The finding may also reflect the feeling among salespeople that job performance is a result of individual efforts rather than superior organizational support. High performance is also likely to increase one's alternative employment opportunities and marketability to other organizations, which might weaken one's organizational commitment. Feelings of success did have considerable indirect effects on organizational commitment through its positive relationships with job satisfaction and involvement. As in a number of other studies, job satisfaction had a strong positive effect on job involvement and organizational commitment (e.g., Dubinsky and Hartley 1986; Dubinsky et al. 1986; Johnston et al. 1990). Likewise, job involvement had a strong direct effect on organizational commitment. Thus, both job satisfaction and involvement mediated indirect effects of feelings of success on organizational commitment. The finding of a strong direct relationship between job involvement and organizational commitment in this study contrasts with the nonsignificant relationship obtained by Dubinsky and Hartley (1986). In our sample of industrial salespeople from six companies, as hypothesized, higher



this study. Longitudinal study of trends and fluctuations in feelings of success given different outcomes and events would provide further insights into their nature, dynamics, and causes. It would also be useful from both a managerial and a theoretical perspective to understand the conditions in which intense emotions arise, how these emotions are evinced on the job, and how they affect salesforce work attitudes and behavior. What are the effects of fear associated with demands to prospect larger customers, for example, or of anger resulting from appraisals of inequalities in workload or territory potential? How does the interpersonal affect between the salesperson and sales manager and between the salesperson and customers and prospects affect work performance and job attitudes? What are the selfpresentational behaviors associated with emotions, and what is the role of management in fostering effective coping strategies? The practical impact of such studies could be substantial.

levels of involvement in the job were strongly and positively associated with higher levels of commitment to the organization. These results are intuitively logical because greater levels of job involvement are likely to result in greater investments of self in the organization. The strengths of the causal linkages in the psychological success model were invariant across the four career stages. The effects of feelings of success do not appear either to increase or decrease in importance for salespeople in different career stages. This suggests that the observed effects are robust and generalizable to salespeople regardless of career stage. .

Implications and Directions for Future Research The findings of this study, consistent with those of previous research, suggest that performance does not directly influence job attitudes. Inasmuch as positive job attitudes are stongly inversely related to negative job outcomes such as absenteeism and turnover, managers should appreciate the importance of feelings of success in creating positive job attitudes. Thus, managerial behaviors oriented toward fostering and enhancing feelings of success are likely to have beneficial effects not only in terms of enhancing job attitudes but also in reducing absenteeism and managing turnover (Hollenbeck and Williams 1986). According to Hall (1971, 1976), feelings of success are enhanced when salespeople achieve goals that are selfrelevant, that they participated in setting, that they worked toward independently, and that represented a challenging but realizable level of attainment. These guidelines can help direct the efforts of sales managers to enhance the feelings of success of their salespeople. They suggest the value of allowing salespeople to participate in goal setting and employing management by objectives procedures that clarify and consensualize goals and expected levels of goal attainment. Contingent rewarding of salespeople upon goal attainment is also likely to be important in enhancing the feelings of success of those who have achieved their objectives. The effects of feelings of success observed in this study suggest the importance of studying affective mediational processes in sales contexts. To varying degrees, people invest emotional energy in their work. Salespeople in particular work in emotionally charged environments where the disappointment and frustration of rejection alternate with the excitement and joy of success. The intensity of these emotions may affect job attitudes in ways purely cognitive models are not able to capture. Research in social psychology and consumer behavior has provided theoretical insights and operational methods that may prove useful in increasing knowledge of the psychology of sales work (e.g., Peterson, Hoyer, and Wilson 1986; Moore and Isen 1990; Lazarus 1991). Although the present study has established feelings of success as an important link between work performance and job satisfaction, systematic research more specifically and comprehensively investigating the generation of feelings of success would be useful. Less than 10 percent of the variance in feelings of success was explained by the most recent performance assessment for the salespeople investigated in

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CONCLUSION The present study has shown that feelings of success play an important role in mediating the effects of job performance on work-related attitudes such as job satisfaction, job involvement, and organizational commitment in an industrial sales context. In a more general sense, it has also suggested the power of affective mediation processes in determining work-related attitudes. In this respect, the study has been merely exploratory, but it suggests that further investigation of such processes in salesforce research may help answer long-standing questions, explain greater proportions of variance in job attitudes, and develop more powerful and realistic theories of work-related behavior. The results of such investigations can both increase understanding of work attitudes and behavior and help humanize the workplace.

NOTES I.

2.

3.

4.

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Some methodological considerations related to the issue of a weak performance/job satisfaction relationship are discussed in Fisher (1980). The term "mediation" as used here denotes that the mediator is a function of an independent variable and the dependent variable is a function of the mediator, as in the causal chain x --* m ~ y (James and Brett 1984; Rozeboom 1956). Although cognitive appraisal is theoretically regarded as antecedent to affective response, the two are so closely intertwined as to be practically inseparable (Ortony, Clore, and Collins 1988; Lazarus 1991). For example, in Lazarus's view, one's feelings of success are inextricably linked to the appraisal of one's performance and do not exist in the absence of the appraisal. The nature of the cognitive appraisal and its implications for one's state of well-being give the resulting affective response its distinctive quality as a differentiated feeling (Lazarus 1991; Ortony, Clore, and Collins 1988). The number of respondents and response rates for participating companies were 167 (49.3%), 155 (47.8%), 48 (77.4%), 37 (77.1%), 37 (72.5%), and 22 (71.0%). The pattern of responses for a salesperson classified in the maintenance stage, for example, should exhibit a pattern such that the exploration score deviates positively and substantially from three, the establishment score deviates positively but less substantially from three, and the disengagement score deviates negatively, indi-

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catmg that they have not yet thought seriously about these issues. A total of 54 salespeople were eliminated at this point due to inconsistent patterns, resulting in the final sample size of 466. For the six firms, the percentage of people in the exploration stage ranged from 10 to 18 percent. The range for the establishment and maintenance stages was 32 to 42 percent; for the disengagement stage it was 8 to 19 percent.

Hollenbeck, John R. and Charles R. Williams. 1986. "'Turnover Functionality Versus Turnover Frequency: A Note on Work Attitudes and Organizational Effectiveness." Journal of Applied Psychology 71 (August): 606-611. laffaldano, Michelle T. and Paul M. Muchinsky. 1985. "Job Satisfaction and Performance: A Meta-Analysis." Psychological Bulletin 97 (March): 251-73. Ingrain, Thomas N., Keun S. Lee, and George H. Lucas, Jr. 1991. "Commitment and Involvement: Assessing a Sales Force Typology." Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 19 (Summer): 187-198. Isen, Alice M. and Robert A. Baron. 1991. "Positive Affect as a Factor in Organizational Behavior." In Research in Organizational Behavior, Vol. 14. Eds. L. L. Cummings and Barry M. Staw. Greenwich, CT: JAI, 153. James, Lawrence R. and Jeanne M. Brett. 1984. "Mediators, Moderators, and Tests for Mediation." Journal of Applied Psychology 69 (April): 307-321. Johnston, Mark W., Charles M. Futrell, A. Parasuraman, and Jeffrey Sager. 1988. "Performance and Job Satisfaction Effects on Salesperson Turnover: A Replication and Extension." Journal of Business Research 16 (March): 67-83. Johnston, Mark W., A. Parasuraman, Charles M. Futrell, and William C. Black. 1990. "A Longitudinal Assessment of the Impact of Selected Organizational Influences on Salespeople's Organizational Commitment During Early Employment.'" Journal of Marketing Research 27 (August): 333-344. Joreskog, Karl G. and Dag Sorbom. 1986. LISREL: Analysis of Linear Structural Relationships by the Method of Maximum Likelihood. Mooresville, IN: Scientific Software, Inc. Lawler, Edward E., III and Douglas T. Hall. 1970. "Relationship of Job Characteristics to Job Involvement, Satisfaction, and Intrinsic Motivation." Journal of Applied Psychology 54 (August): 305-312. Lawler, Edward E., III and Lyman W. Porter. 1967. "The Effect of Performance on Job Satisfaction." Industrial Relations 7 (October): 20-28. Lazarus, Richard S. 1991. Emotion and Adaptation. New York: Oxford University Press. Lewin, Kurt. 1936. "The Psychology of Success and Failure." Occupations 14: 926-930. Locke, Edwin A. 1976. "The Nature and Causes of Job Satisfaction." In Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology. Ed. Marvin D. Dunnette. Chicago: Rand McNally, 1299-1349. Loehlin, John C. 1987. Latent Variable Models. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. McCallum, Robert C. 1986. "Specification Searches in Covariance Structure Modeling." Psychological Bulletin 100 (January): 107-120. Moore, Bert S. and Alice M. Isen. 1990. Affect and Social Behavior. New York: Cambridge University Press. Ortony, Andrew, Gerald L. Clore, and Allan Collins. 1988. The Cognitive Structure of Emotion. New York: Cambridge University Press. Parasuraman, Saroj and Joseph A. Alutto. 1984. "Sources and Outcomes of Stress in Organizational Settings: Toward the Development of A Structural Model." Academy of Management Journal 27 (June): 330350. Peterson, Robert A., Wayne D. Hoyer, and William R. Wilson. 1986. The

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JAMS

Role of Affect in Consumer Behavior: Emerging Theories and Applications. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books. Porter, Lyman W., Richard M. Steers, Richard T. Mowday, and Paul V. Boulian. 1974. "Organizational Commitment, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover Among Psychiatric Technicians." Journal of Applied Psychology 59 (October): 603-609. Rabinowitz, Samuel and Douglas T. Hall. 1977. "Organizational Research on Job Involvement." Psychological Bulletin 84 (March): 265-288. Reeve, Johnmarshall, Bradley C. Olson, and Steven G. Cole. 1985. "Motivation and Performance: Two Consequences of Winning and Losing in Competition." Motivation and Emotion 9 (September): 291-298. Rozeboom, William W. 1956. "Mediation Variables in Scientific Theory.'" Psychological Review 63 (December): 249-264. Sager, Jeffrey K. 1991. "A Longitudinal Assessment of Change in Sales Force Turnover." Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 19 (Winter): 25-36. Sager, Jeffrey K., P. Rajan Varadarajan, and Charles M. Futrell. 1988. "Understanding Salesperson Turnover: A Partial Evaluation of Mobley's Turnover Process Model." Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management 8 (May): 20-35. Sawyer, Alan G. and J. Paul Peter. 1983. "The Significance of Statistical

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BROWN, CRON. AND LEIGH

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Significance Tests in Marketing Research." Journal of Marketing Research 20 (May): 122-133. Sheridan, John E. and John W. Slocum, Jr. 1975. "The Direction of the Causal Relationship between Job Satisfaction and Work Performance." Organizational Behavior and Human Performance 14 (April): 159-172. Smith, Patricia C., Lome M. Kendall, and Charles L. Hulin. 1969. The Measurement of Satisfaction in Work and Retirement. Chicago: RandMcNally. Spector, Paul E. and Steve M. Jex. 1991. "Relations of Job Characteristics from Multiple Data Sources with Employee Affect, Absence, Turnover Intentions, and Health." Journal of Applied Psychology 76 (February): 46-53. Stumpf, Stephen. 1981. "Career Roles, Psychological Success and Job Attitudes." Journal of Vocational Behavior 19 (August): 98-112. Super, Donald. 1957. The Psychology of Careers. New York: Harper and Row. Super, Donald and Robin S. Zelkowitz. 1973. "Vocational Maturity in the Thirties: The Definition and Measurement of Coping with Career Development Tasks in Mid-Career.'" Paper presented at Mid-Career Development and Change. American Psychological Association Convention. Super, Donald, Robin S. Zelkowitz, and Albert S. Thompson. 1981. Career Development Inventory: Adult Form 1. New York: Teachers College, Columbia University. Vroom, Victor. 1964. Work and Motivation. New York: Wiley. Walker, Orville C., Jr., Gilbert A. Churchill, Jr., and Neil M. Ford. 1977. "Motivation and Performance in Industrial Selling: Present Knowledge and Needed Research." Journal of Marketing Research 14 (May): 156168. - - . 1979, Where Do We Go from Here? Selected Conceptual and Empirical Issues Concerning the Motivation and Performance of the Industrial Sales Force. Eugene, OR: University of Oregon. Wanous, John P. 1974. "A Causal-Correlational Analysis of the Job Satisfaction and Performance Relationship." Journal of Applied Psychology 59 (February): 139-144. Zanna, Mark P. and John K. Rempel. 1988. "Attitudes: A New Look at an Old Concept." In The Social Psychology of Knowledge. Eds. D. Bar Tal and Arie Kruglanski. New York: Cambridge University Press, 315-334. Zelkowitz, Robin S. 1974. The Construction and Validation of a Measure of Vocational Maturity for Adult Males. Ph.D. dissertation. Teachers' College, Columbia University. Ann Arbor, MI: University Microfilms.

JAMS

Steven P. Brown received a Ph.D. at the University of Texas at Austin and is Assistant Professor of Marketing at the Terry College of Business, University of Georgia. His research has appeared in the Journal of Marketing Re-

search, Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, Journal of Advertising Research, and other publications. William L. Cron received a D.B.A. from Indiana University and is Professor of Marketing at the Edwin L. Cox School of Business, Southern Methodist University. His research has appeared in the Journal of Marketing Re-

search, Journal of Marketing, Academy of Management Journal, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, and other publications. He is coauthor (with Douglas J. Dalrymple) of Sales Management: Concepts and Cases, 4th ed., published by John Wiley & Sons. He is actively involved as a consultant to the health care industry. Thomas W. Leigh received his D.B.A. from Indiana University and is Associate Professor of Marketing at the Terry College of Business, University of Georgia. His research has appeared in the Journal of Marketing Research, Journal

of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, Journal of Advertising Research, and other publications. He is active in executive education and serves as chapter chairman of the East Georgia Chapter, American Red Cross.

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