Job characteristics, public service motivation, and work performance in Korea

This study aims to analyze the effects of job characteristics on PSM in the context of Korean government organizations and to compare the influence of PSM on work performance with that of the main extrinsic incentives such as economic compensation and job security. It uses data (n = 1,500) from the 2011 Public Service Panel Survey conducted by the Korea Institute of Public Administration. The test results show that only three out of five core job characteristics—skill variety, task significance, and feedback—are positively associated with PSM and that PSM and economic compensation, except job security, are related to work performance in Korean government organizations. The practical implications are discussed.