Understanding job involvement through person–environment fit: the roles of prosocial motivation, living a calling and salary satisfaction in long-term care

Purpose This study investigates the relationship between prosocial motivation and job involvement among long-term care (LTC) workers, and how this relationship varies with the interplay between psychological and material needs, framed within person–environment (PE) fit theory. Design/methodology/approach A survey was conducted among 328 Taiwanese care workers in LTC settings. Hypotheses were tested using Hayes' PROCESS macro (Model 3) to examine a moderated moderation model. Findings Results showed that prosocial motivation was positively associated with job involvement. However, living a calling was positively associated with job involvement only when salary satisfaction was high. A significant three-way interaction revealed that the relationship between prosocial motivation and job involvement was not significant when living a calling was high but salary satisfaction was low, but remained significant under all other combinations, highlighting the enabling role of material adequacy. Originality/value By integrating supplementary and complementary fit perspectives within a single interactive model, this study offers a context-based, integrative account of when psychological fulfillment translates into job involvement, highlighting that living a calling alone may not suffice to sustain job involvement without adequate material support.