Doctoral Dissertations

Date of Award

12-1994

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Industrial and Organizational Psychology

Major Professor

Joyce E. A. Russell

Committee Members

Michael C. Rush

Abstract

The present study examined some factors believed to be related to employee customer service orientation. Customer service orientation was defined as the degree to which employees are oriented toward solving customer problems and meeting their needs. Agreeableness, conscientiousness, self-efficacy for providing customer service, perceived organizational climate for service, and perceived supervisory commitment to customer service were hypothesized to be positively related to employee customer service orientation. Organizational commitment, perceived organizational support, role conflict, and role ambiguity were hypothesized to moderate the relationship between climate for service and customer service orientation. Participants were 199 nurses and 25 supervisors at two midwestern hospitals. Ninety-eight percent of the participants were female and the average participant age was 37 years. Participants had an average of 22 years experience in the health care industry. Survey questionnaires were used to collect data from nurses and their supervisors. The nurse questionnaire included items assessing individual personality characteristics (agreeableness and conscientiousness), efficacy for providing customer service, individuals' perceptions of organizational climate for service, organizational commitment, perceived organizational support, role conflict, role ambiguity, and perceived supervisory commitment to customer service. The supervisor survey collected supervisors' assessments of the customer service orientation of their direct reports (care givers). Results indicated that nurses' agreeableness, perceived climate for service, organizational commitment, perceived organizational support, and their supervisor's emphasis on customer service were significantly positively related to care givers' customer service orientation. Role conflict and role ambiguity were significantly negatively related to care givers' customer service orientation. Conscientiousness and self-efficacy for providing customer service were not related to customer service orientation. In addition, organizational commitment, perceived organizational support, role conflict, and role ambiguity did not serve as moderators of the relationship between perceived climate for service and customer service orientation. Additional analyses indicated that the measure of nurse customer service orientation was significantly positively related to measures of job performance and extrarole behaviors. The limitations of the study are discussed as are the theoretical and practical implications. Areas for future research are elaborated on throughout the discussion section.

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