Why individuals voluntarily leave: Perceptions of human resource managers versus employees

Abstract

This research compared the causal ascriptions of 273 HR managers and professionals regarding 12 potential causes of turnover to the ascriptions of II48 employees from twenty different organizations. We hypothesized that a self-serving bias would influence the importance ratings of HR managers, such that they would overrate the importance of turnover causes generally beyond their control, and underrate causes potentially within their control. The overall pattern of results supported the hypothesis. HR managers and professionals saw the perceived attractions of a new job (e.g., better pay and more interesting work) as significantly more important than the possible shortcomings of the current job in creating a desire to quit. In contrast, employees saw shortcomings in the current job (e.g., dissatisfaction with company policies) as significantly more important in generating quit intentions than potential attractions associated with a new job. Discussion centred on the implications of these findings, particularly as they relate to the development of turnover-reducing strategies for organizations.