Investigating the impact of climate perceptions and employee self-efficacy on customer service behaviors and turnover intentions: A social exchange perspectiv

It has been argued that the services industry accounts for approximately 75% of the U.S. gross domestic product and more than 71% of its employment (see Schneider & White, 2004; Vaughan & Renn, 1999). Empirical research has shown that employee perceptions of their work environment, i.e., climate perceptions, can impact important attitudes and behaviors. As a result, the primary purpose of this study was to determine the impact of employee perceptions of support mechanisms on customer-centered behaviors (CCB) and turnover intentions. The secondary purpose was to develop a new measure of customer service behaviors. It was hypothesized that supportive service climate perceptions would impact CCBs and turnover intentions both directly and indirectly via self-efficacy beliefs.;The objective of the customer-centered behavior measure development study was to determine the content adequacy of a new customer service behavior measure. I utilized the ANOVA-based framework developed by Hinkin and Tracey (1999) to determine the content validity of the CCB measure. Further evidence for the dimensionality and construct validity of the CCB measure was determined using exploratory and confirmatory factor analytic methods. Results from these analyses suggested that CCBs are best represented by a single higher-order construct composed three second-order factors.;The purpose of the organizational study was to determine if supportive service climate perceptions positively impact the extent to which employees exhibit CCBs and negatively impact their turnover intentions. I proposed that supportive service climate perceptions would influence CCBs and turnover intentions both directly and indirectly through increased self-efficacy beliefs.;I found that all three types of support, i.e., organizational, managerial, and job, were significantly related to turnover intentions; however, only organizational and managerial support were significantly related to CCBs. Furthermore, CCBs were significantly related to turnover intentions. While these data provided some support for the assertion that self-efficacy partially mediates the relationship between the supportive service climate perceptions and turnover intentions, no support was found for the partially mediated effect of self-efficacy on the relationship between supportive service climate perceptions and CCBs. In all, eight of the thirteen hypotheses were supported. Managerial implications, limitations, and opportunities for future research are further discussed.