A Moderated Mediation Model on the Relationship Among Public Service Motivation (PSM), Self-Efficacy, Job Satisfaction, and Readiness for Change

Despite the pivotal role of employees in relation to organizational change, few studies have proposed an integrated influence mechanism that accounts for employee change readiness. By combining public service motivation (PSM), person–organization (P–O) fit, and expectancy–disconfirmation theories (EDT), we developed a moderated mediation model to explore individual-level impacts on organizational change. Based on questionnaire data collected from 512 doctors working in public hospitals in China, we found that individual doctors’ PSM positively contributed to their readiness for change but was moderated by self-efficacy and job satisfaction. Specifically, doctors with decreased job satisfaction resulting from realizing their limited capacity to influence policies from higher-ups tend to show a lack of willingness to actively prepare for change. In sum, this study not only contributes to a micro-level understanding of employees’ readiness for change but also proposes feasible suggestions to enable smoother and more successful organizational changes in public sector organizations. The research findings illuminate the crucial role that individual-level dynamics play in organizational change for scholars and practitioners.