Task Goal Attributes, n Achievement, and Supervisory Performance.
Abstract
The investigation analyzes the relationship between employees' task goals and supervisory performance as moderated by n Achievement among a sample of first-level supervisors working under a formalized goal-setting program. Before need strength levels were taken into account, little consistent relationship was found between the five task goal attributes and performance. After dividing the subjects into high and low n Ach groups, however, it was found that performance was significantly related to increases in feedback and in goal specificity for high n Ach subjects, and to participation in goal-setting for low n Ach subjects. Goal difficulty and peer competition were found to be unrelated to performance for both groups. These results are then compared to other studies on the topic and it is concluded that individual difference factors, like n Achievement, must be taken into account in any comprehensive theory of goal-setting in organizations.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 01, 1974
- Accession Number
- ADA005369
Entities
People
- Richard M. Steers
Organizations
- University of California, Irvine