From Inner Drive to Outer Deeds: Dual Pathways to Contextual Performance

Despite growing research interest in grit as a personal characteristic, its impact on the performance of civil servants in public sector organizations remains underexplored. This study addresses this gap by examining how grit influences civil servants’ contextual performance and by investigating the mediating roles of affective commitment and work engagement. Adopting a quantitative approach, this study surveyed 237 civil servants in Indonesia and analyzed the data using Partial Least Squares–Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) with SmartPLS 4.1. The results reveal that grit alone does not directly enhance contextual performance; instead, it must be channeled through affective commitment and work engagement. These findings underscore the pivotal role of both mediators in translating personal attributes into workplace outcomes. Theoretically, this study expands our understanding of how grit fosters beneficial employee attitudes and behaviors, while practically, it offers valuable insights for public sector organizations in formulating human resource management policies aimed at improving public service quality.