Available via license: CC BY-NC 4.0
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Management & Economics Research Journal
ISSN 2710-8856 (Online)
ISSN 2676-184X (Print)
Vol. 4 No. 1 (2022): March, pp. 54-80
https://doi.org/10.48100/merj.2022.174
Faculty of Economics, Commercial & Management
Sciences, Ziane Achour University of Djelfa, BP
3117, Djelfa - Algeria
54 www.mer-j.com
Performance Management Practices and Motivation
in Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the
Public Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Juliana Abagsonema Abane♦1, Boon-Anan Phinaitrup2
1PhD degree, Lecturer, Department of History and Political Studies, Kwame Nkrumah
University of Science and Technology (Ghana)
abanejulie@gmail.com
2PhD degree, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Public Administration (GSPA),
NIDA (Thailand)
boon@nida.ac.th
Published online: 26
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01
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2022 Accepted: 24
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01
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2022 Received: 15
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12
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2021
How to Cite:
Abane, J. A., & Phinaitrup, B. (2022). Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public Service Motivation Construct in Ghana.
Management & Economics Research Journal, 4(1), 54-80. https://doi.org/10.48100/merj.122.174
Abstract:
This study aims to test if the local government's performance
management practices are predicted by their employee's public service
motivation levels. Local government's performance management practices
are effective when their employees are committed and motivated. Employees
whose motivations are unique to public institutions will be committed to both
their key performance indicators and the general strategic goals of the local
government's core mission. The lack of such motivations may be detrimental
to the practice of management at the local level. The study used a cross-
sectional survey of 850 local government employees in the Greater Accra of
Ghana. The method of analysis of the data was multiple regression
♦Corresponding author: Department of History and Political Studies, KNUST (Ghana).
[ abanejulie@gmail.com]
©2022 the Author(s). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of (CC BY-NC 4.0)
which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly
cited and is not used for commercial purposes.
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
55
techniques. The findings suggest that employees' scores on attraction to
policymaking, civic duty, and commitment to the public interest are strongly
positively associated with performance management practices. The
regression analysis demonstrated that public service motivation subscales
combined to predict the variance in the dependent variable. Several
performance management studies examine federal government utilization and
rational decision-making processes. However, this study is one of the few to
examine performance management practices of local governments and public
service motivation theory by showing that employees' public service
motivation levels can significantly predict the changes in performance
management practices.
Keywords: Developing Countries, Ghana, Motivation, Performance
Management Practices, Public Service Motivation Construct.
JEL Codes: M1, M12, M19.
1. Introduction
Performance management (PM) is a vital tool for organizations and
their employees to achieve their goals, increase value to citizens, and deliver
quality public services. Although PM has been an old organizational
performance tool in the private sector, recent developments suggest a
widespread adoption by local governments in the public management
literature (Abane & Phinaitrup, 2017; Ammons & Roenigk, 2015). Similarly,
research on PM over the years has concentrated on the measurement system
(Ammons & Rivenbark, 2008; Hoontis & Kim, 2012), metric difficulty
(Cavalluzzo & Ittner, 2004), goal clarity (Hoontis & Kim, 2012; Moynihan et
al., 2012), and political support (Moynihan et al., 2012; Yang & Hsieh, 2007).
While these studies are essential for the effective implementation of PM
policies, little information is available to explain how employees' motivations
can help implement PM.
Motivation has been one of the subjects of contention in public sector
discourse, and the disagreement bothers on whether or not all types of
motivations are suitable for reinforcing desirable behaviour in public
organizations. The public management literature notes that not all types of
motivations can be used to increase performance among public employees
(Houston, 2000; Perry & Wise, 1990; Perry & Hondeghem, 2008). Scholarly
literature demonstrates that some motivational types are better at achieving
results than others, and one such motivational tool used in the public sector is
public service motivation (PSM) (Andersen et al., 2014; Homberg &
McCarthy, 2015; Perry, 1996).
Further, the evidence suggests that PM can motivate employees to
pp. 54-80 Vol. 4 No. 1 (2022) Management & Economics Research Journal
56
perform their best. This is so with the current ideas on performance-based
funding or performance-based grant in the public sector. To the extent that
PM can motivate employees, it is important to understand how this link can
be tested using one of the employee motivational types specific to public
sector organizations. According to Pandey (2015, p.1), PM research
''promises to be a long one,'' and the topic has surged in the last two decades,
which will continue to increase in the next decade. This is because evidence
of its effectiveness is mixed, and many developing countries are beginning to
use the elements of PM in the management of public policies and programs
at the local level (Abane & Phinaitrup, 2017; Mmieh et al., 2011; Ohemeng,
2011; Public Services Commission, 2012).
Despite the extensive research on the subject, there is inconclusive
evidence on whether or not motivation can influence its effectiveness in LGs.
For example, few studies have explored the relationship between PSM and
PM (Christensen et al., 2013; Lynggaard et al., 2018). These studies have
contributed to our understanding of the significance of PSM and its link with
the PM system. However, the findings provide little understanding of how
PSM contributes to PM best practices of local government authorities
especially relating to their strategic planning, performance monitoring &
evaluation, review, and improvement. These four best practices are
considered the complete phase of an effective PM cycle in organizations
(Armstrong & Baron, 2007). In this study, we examine the extent to which
individual PSM levels (measured by five subscales: attraction to
policymaking, commitment to the public interest, civic duty, compassion, and
self-sacrifice) influence the effectiveness of LGs PM best practices. The
results showed that employees' PSM scores significantly correlate with LGs
PM best practices. However, the subscales have different effect sizes.
This study adds to the current body of research on PM and PSM
(Christensen et al., 2013; Kroll & Vogel, 2013; Moynihan & Pandey, 2010).
Though there is significant research on PM in LGs (Ammons & Roenigk,
2015; Baird, Kevin & Schoch, Herbert & Chen, 2012; Boyne, 2002;
Moynihan & Pandey, 2010; Nurkholis et al., 2014), this has generally been
studied at the executive agencies and the councils' levels. Consequently, few
studies directly study local government (LG) employees' PSM levels and their
impact on PM, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, the study aims to
test the effect of the 1996 PSM construct (Perry, 1996) on PM best practices
of LGs in Ghana and to explain how PSM contributes to the effectiveness of
LG PM policies. Testing Perry's (1996) PSM construct on LGs PM best
practices from a developing country's perspective will help to shape the PSM
theory and add knowledge from the Ghanaian experience. This since South
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
57
Africa is the only known country that was part of the 150 samples used to test
the PSM's 1996 construct (Perry & Hondeghem, 2008).
2. Literature review
2.1. Performance management practices (PMPs)
PM is a multidimensional concept that focuses on how organizations
combine operational bundles to achieve their key performance indicators
(KPIs) by following a set of steps to implement their goals and measure their
performance (Biron et al., 2011; Lee, 2005). Some scholars see PM as a
strategic and tactical process that helps improve employees' performance
(Abane & Phinaitrup, 2017; Biron et al., 2011). Others view PM as a
systematic approach to people management where organizational and
individual activities are geared toward goal attainment (Maley, 2014; Waal &
Counet, 2009). Subsequently, PMPs may be viewed as a systematically
structured bundle of activities for setting goals, measuring, evaluating,
reviewing, and influencing employees' performance, and at the same time, a
tactical tool that top management uses to achieve their goals (Biron et al.,
2011).
In the literature, PMPs have four important bundles: strategic
planning, performance monitoring & evaluation, performance review, and
performance improvement (Ammons & Roenigk, 2015). Strategic planning
involves a formal setting of objectives and goals which cascade the
organizational goals to individual goals (Dewettinck & van Dijk, 2013).
Performance monitoring and evaluation is a careful plan of action to supervise
and assess employees' KPIs for effective implementation (Amirkhanyan et
al., 2014), while performance review assesses the achievement or otherwise
of the individual KPIs. While performance reviews can take the form of a
quarterly, mid-year, annual review, or a combination of any of these in a given
year. (Biron et al., 2011; Dahling & O'Malley, 2011; Favero et al., 2016; Gill
& Carter, 2016; Nielsen, 2014).
Performance improvement constitutes the developmental approach to
managing performance (Abane & Phinaitrup, 2017; Maley, 2014; Sanderson,
2001). It can be viewed as a corrective measure of employee performance by
modifying their skill set to enhance future performance through training and
capacity building. The primary function of performance improvement is to
ensure that employees enhance their previous scores on their KPIs and
acquire skills and knowledge that may be relevant to their job descriptions.
Further, at this stage, employees can be incentivized through different
motivational strategies with the view that such incentives will push them to
pp. 54-80 Vol. 4 No. 1 (2022) Management & Economics Research Journal
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improve their performance. Unfortunately, this component of PMBP has not
received attention in public organizations (Andersen et al., 2014; Halachmi,
2002; Hawke, 2012; Koike, 2013; Sanderson, 2001). Therefore, this paper
aims to investigate the relationship between PSM and its effect on PMPs, and
LGs can use their employees' PSM to support performance at the local level.
2.2. Public service motivation (PSM)
PSM has been variously linked to prosocial behaviour in
organizations (Brief and Motowidlo, 1986; Campbell et al., 2016; Francois,
2000; Grant, 2008a; Moynihan et al., 2012), altruistic (Campbell et al., 2016;
Piliavin & Charng, 1990). In contrast, Perry & Hondeghem (2008) maintain
that prosocial behaviour is mostly viewed as voluntary action towards others
without expecting a return (Brief & Motowidlo, 1986), while altruism refers
to deliberate individual action directed toward individuals or groups to
promote their welfare (Kim, 2006). However, Perry and Hondeghem (2008)
view altruism and PSM as complementary constructs. Subsequently, they
refer to it as a specific expression of prosocial, other-oriented motives, goals,
and values (Perry & Hondeghem, 2008; Vandenabeele, 2007).
According to Vandenabeele (2007: 549), PSM refers to beliefs and
values that transcend the self and organizational interests in favour of social
and political domains. Similarly, Brewer and Selden (1998: 417) view PSM
as a motivational force that induces meaningful performance from employees
in public organizations. The common denominator in the PSM definition is
that it is a type of motivation vested in public institutions. This compelling
force can elicit an excellent and meaningful performance from public
employees. This study defines PSM as a compelling motivational instrument
found in public organizations to benefit from the outside and inside of an
organization regardless of the type of setting, therefore, public or private.
Following Perry & Wise (1990) and (Perry, 1996), this study conceives PSM
to be measured by three motives: rational, norm-based, and affective motives
(Perry, 1996).
The literature on PSM is vast. The subject continues to receive much
attention, which will continue for a while. The reason behind the continuous
focus on the idea is that motivated employees will increase their task
performance. Although PSM research has increased over the past 20 years
(Christensen et al., 2017; Ritz et al., 2016), there have been uncertainties and
ambiguities in understanding the concept with other concepts like altruism
and the publicness of the construct (Bozeman & Su, 2015; Bullock et al.,
2015).
Consequently, Perry and Hondeghem (2008) and Christensen et al.
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
59
(2017) trace two research tracks. The first track incorporates other-regarding
orientations in disciplines outside public management, and they focus on
employee motivation in organizations (Christensen et al., 2013; Gould-
Williams et al., 2015; Wright & Christensen, 2010), the link between
prosocial behaviour (Finkelstein et al., 2005; George & Bettenhausen, 1990;
Grant, 2008b, 2012), and altruism (Penner et al., 2005; Perry & Hondeghem,
2008). The second track is interested in linking PSM to public management
and administration research. Subsequently, studies in this area emphasize the
testing and strengthening the PSM construct and its measurement,
institutional assumptions, and the relationship between PSM and performance
(Christensen et al., 2017). Other themes that are prominent in this track also
include organizational context/setting (Cun, 2012; Steijn, 2008) and studies
that purely focus on improving the practice of public management systems
(Christensen et al., 2013; Kroll & Vogel, 2013; Moynihan et al., 2012;
Moynihan & Pandey, 2010; Wright et al., 2012).
In line with improving public management systems, this study
contributes to the second track of research on PSM by testing five of the
subscales of the PSM construct on PMBPs of LGs in a developing country
context. This is important because the literature on PSM is predominantly
Western (Ritz et al., 2016), with only eleven (11) studies from Africa and ten
(10) from South Africa, while 43.4% is concentrated in Europe, and 27.5%
from the USA (Ritz et al., 2016). Hence, testing the PSM scale in Ghana,
which is in the Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) region, will help strengthen the
PSM theory and to validate the construct further.
The evidence on PSM suggests mixed findings. For example, previous
research such as (Christensen et al., 2013; Cun, 2012; Kim & Kang, 2016;
Kim, 2006; Lee & Choi, 2013; Steijn, 2008; Vandenabeele, 2014) found that
there were significant differences in the effect size of the PSM scale on
Korean public sector employees. These mixed findings are also evident in the
150 countries where the PSM scale was administered in the study conducted
by (Christensen et al., 2013; Perry et al., 2010; Perry & Hondeghem, 2008).
As a result, the evidence reveals that contextual factors and the national
culture of a country can influence the effect of employee PSM.
2.3. Empirical research on the PSM construct
The PSM construct is anchored on six main psychological motives
(Perry, 1996; Vandenabeele, 2007) of public service employees: 1) the desire
to take part in public policymaking by employees; 2) commitment to the
public interest that is the perceived public value of work which seeks to
benefit others; 3) civic duty, relates to the non-elected nature of public office
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holders; 4) social justice, demands that employees become equity sensitive in
decision making especially towards minorities outside the organization; 5)
compassion which requires public service post holders to be responsive to the
needs of the groups who do not will political influence and 6) self-sacrifice
demands that employees substitute personal gain or material reward for
intangible rewards in the form of selfless service to the nation (Perry, 1996).
The evidence suggests that PSM influences employee task
performance and affects the perception of the value of their work to the larger
society (Moynihan et al., 2012; Wright et al., 2012). The literature indicates
that PSM is positively related to employee performance (Christensen et al.,
2013; Moynihan & Pandey, 2010; Ritz, 2009), culture (Cun, 2012; Gould-
Williams et al., 2015; Kim et al., 2012; Wright, Christensen & Pandey, 2013),
and commitment and job satisfaction (Cun, 2012; Homberg & McCarthy,
2015; Vandenabeele, 2009). These findings suggest that employees with
higher levels of PSM perform better than those with lower levels of PSM.
Also, other studies find that higher levels of PSM are exclusively associated
with only public employees (Bullock et al., 2015; Houston, 2000; Steijn,
2008; Vandenabeele, 2008). This evidence suggests that employees in public
organizations tend to have higher scores on the PSM scale than employees in
the private sector (Houston, 2000).
While there is substantial information on how PSM relate to
organizational and individual performance (Andersen et al., 2014;
Christensen et al., 2013; Schott et al., 2015; Vandenabeele, 2009), there is
little empirical evidence that explains how PSM impacts the tools and the
processes that lead to organizational performance (Christensen et al., 2013;
Kroll & Vogel, 2013; Moynihan & Pandey, 2010). Also, most of these studies
only focus on the developed world, with a paucity of research on developing
countries, where contextual factors are extremely different from that of the
developed world.
2.4. PSM and performance management practices (PMPs)
PSM research is multidisciplinary and cuts across all organizational
forms that seek to manage employee and organizational performance (Gabris
& Simo, 1995; Houston, 2000; Moynihan & Pandey, 2007; Perry, 1996;
Steijn, 2008). Current trends in the literature on organizational systems
suggest that PSM influences the management practices of organizations (Ritz
et al., 2016). The main assumption of PSM is that individual employees are
predisposed to motives that focus on public service values, and employees are
driven to work extra hard because they perceive that their work will have a
social impact on the larger society (Bullock et al., 2015; Moynihan et al.,
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
61
2012). One fundamental gap in PSM research is whether or not the concept
has a relationship with the internal business practices of organizations. While
there have been few studies to this effect, the findings have been inconclusive
and contextual (Moynihan et al., 2012). For instance, some Scholars have
found links between PSM and public managers' use of PM in a sample of
executive agencies of the US and the German local governments, respectively
(Moynihan & Pandey, 2010; Moynihan et al., 2012; Kroll & Vogel, 2013).
Moynihan and Pandey's (2010) study indicates that PSM is an
individual driver of managers' use of performance data for organizational
decision-making. The study used a multi-method survey of 1538 senior
managers in the US local government system and found that PSM is
positively associated with performance information use which is one of the
best PM practices. The findings support the notion that PSM is significantly
related to behaviours that contribute to high individual and organizational
performance (Belle, 2013; Christensen et al., 2013; Kroll & Vogel, 2013).
In another study, Moynihan et al. (2012) find that the perceived social
impact of employees' work on the public is related to their use of performance
information, especially with purposeful and political uses of the PM cycle.
The implication is that public managers with high PSM levels tend to use
performance data for decision-making, such as promotion, program funding,
etc. The study further observed that a unit increase in the perceived social
impact of work corresponds with a unit increase of 0.42 on the type of
performance data used: purposeful and political (Moynihan et al., 2012, p.
470). Similarly, several studies have found evidence to support the PSM-
performance link. Other studies have also found that public sector employees
with higher levels of PSM correlated with employee performance, meaningful
work, person-job fit, and the desire to serve the public cause (Houston, 2000;
Perry, 1996; Steijn, 2008).
The evidence supporting PSM and PMPs is inconclusive. For
example, studies that attempt to link PSM with PMPs find that employees'
perception of the social impact of their work may lead to their extra-role
behaviour to use performance information for decision-making (Moynihan &
Pandey, 2010). These studies merely look at only information use, which is
part of the performance review process, thereby offering little understanding
of how PSM affects PMPs, a set of bundles implemented by top management
to enhance individual and organizational performance.
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2.5. The context of public service motivation in local government in
Ghana
This study examines four (4) PM dimensions: strategic planning (SP),
performance monitoring & evaluation (PME), performance review
(PEREVIEW), and performance improvement (PERIMP) of metropolitan
and municipal assemblies, and the links between these dimensions and
employees' PSM levels in LGs. Perry and Hondegehem (2008) argue that
testing the effect of PSM across different cultures is important in contributing
to the reliability and theory-building of the PSM construct globally. At the
same time, it will help public organizations explore its benefits to increase
performance outcomes and productivity.
The test of the PSM construct in Ghana is less known. Hence, its
evidence among local-level public managers is equally unknown. However,
few studies have found evidence to support that PSM exists in the civil service
in Ghana. However, there is no relationship between PSM levels and civil
service employees' performance or output (Brenya, Adu-Gamfi, Kyei, Tariah,
Nmerukini, Boateng & Angmor, 2017). The study found that employees
profess to have a sense of social justice, compassion, commitment to the
public interest, self-sacrifice, and civic duty. However, they were unwilling
to commit to the course of public service because of the poor conditions of
services.
However, several studies on public sector motivation in the Ghanaian
experience exist. Recent studies suggest that motivation in public sector
organizations has largely been ineffective, and this accounts for the low
productivity levels in the public service (Annan-Prah, & Ohemeng, 2015).
This is because the government has been unable to develop a strong
motivational system for LG workers (Ayee, 2001; Antwi, 2009). The result
of this failure has led to several industrial actions, thereby affecting
productivity at the local level (Akudugu, 2013; Dodoo, 1997). The low
morale among LG employees may be due to the poor compensation and
reward systems found in the public service. The consequential effect is that
many public programs have failed at the implementation stage, constraining
local-level development (Ahenkan, Tenakwah & Bawole, 2018; Ohemeng,
2009).
Many of the problems associated with PM practices in Ghana are the
lack of technical competencies and an understanding of the PM system
(Bawole et al., 2013; Biron et al., 2011). However, the mechanical aspects of
the PM systems are too technical, and the information is often too detailed
and not user-friendly (Biron et al., 2011).
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
63
Also, research reveals that financial or external rewards have often
failed to meet the demands of workers (Jacobsen et al., 2014; Koike, 2013),
and relying heavily on extrinsic rewards systems may not be enough to bring
about changes in employee and organizational performance (Jacobsen et al.,
2014). Consequently, PSM is the framework that predicts a higher level of
employee motivation and performance outcomes in the rapidly changing
environment of public organizations in managing results at the local level
(Moynihan & Pandey, 2005). Suppose local government employees with
higher levels of PSM adapt to these kinds of rational, norm-based and
affective motives in their task performance. In that case, greater attention will
be given to individual and organizational KPIs.
For this study, examining how individual PSM levels are measured by
the five sub-scales: attraction to policymaking, commitment to the public
interest, civic duty, compassion and self-sacrifice may influence PMBPs: SP,
PME, PEREVIEW, and PERIMP. The study recognizes that PSM is rational,
normative, and affective based (Perry, 1996) and investigates the combined
connection between these three motives and the four dimensions of
metropolitan and municipal assemblies' PMPs. From the above discussions,
the study proposes the following hypotheses:
H1: Employees with higher PSM levels will positively influence their
LGs' PMPs.
H2: The combined PSM construct will be significantly associated with
total PMP.
3. Methodology
3.1. Sample and study setting
A total of 850 LG Employees in the Greater Accra Region (GAR)1
were part of this study. Out of the 850 questionnaires administered, only 725
responses were received, representing an 85.29% response rate. However,
after screening and cleaning the data for missing values, only 441 responses
were usable. Participation in the survey was voluntary, and respondents'
confidentiality was protected. Respondents for the survey were current
employees of Local Government Service (LGS) who were either full-time or
part-time employees located in the GAR. The sample consisted of 178
females (40.4 per cent) and 263 (59.6 per cent).
1 Greater Accra Region is the National Capital of Ghana located in the coastal zone.
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3.2. Data collection procedure
This study is a cross-sectional survey in which the data was collected
at one time. The survey questionnaire was self-administered between July and
August 2017. Participants were contacted for this study through the Office of
the Head of Local Government Service (OHLGS)2. An introductory letter
was sent to the 11 metropolitans and municipal assemblies (MMAs) in the
National Capital of Ghana. The respondents were personally contacted in
their respective offices. The respondents consisted of senior local government
officers who have served between 1 and 20 years and above. Eight hundred
fifty (850) survey questionnaires were randomly distributed to officers with
the salary Grade Level 15 - Level 213 in the 11 MMAs. The Established
Warrant Levels4 in the Controller and Accountant General's Integrated
Personnel Payroll unit of the OHLGS were used to ensure that each element
in the sample had an equal chance of being included in the study. A list of the
850 officers and their workplaces was written and further contacted directly
to respond to the survey. All data were collected with the guidelines of the
Local Government Service ethics and protocol5.
The study recognizes that PSM comprises rational, normative, and
affective motives, using Perry's (1996) classification to test the connection
between these three motives and the four bundles of metropolitan and
municipal assemblies (MMAs) PMB practices. The study measured
individual PSM levels using the five sub-scales for the motives above:
attraction to policymaking, commitment to the public interest, civic duty,
compassion, and self-sacrifice, while PMBPs bundles included SP, PME,
PEREVIEW, and PERIMP.
The dependent variable, PMBP, was measured by four bundles:
strategic planning, performance monitoring & evaluation, performance
review, and performance improvement. First, SP was measured using nine (9)
items that were developed to capture the processes and activities of the PM
process using previous studies (Ammons & Roenigk, 2015). Respondents
were asked to indicate whether their organizations engaged in the SP process
before designing their performance indicators. A sample item on the SP scale
2 The Office of the Head of Local Government Service can be located along the Gamel Abdul Nasser
Road adjacent Efua Sutherland Children's Park in Accra.
3 Levels 15-21 are senior entry grades for professional and non-professional classes in the Local
Government Service in Ghana. These levels are considered as middle and managerial levels in practice.
4 The established warrant level is the pay roll grades and structure used in the public service to pay
employees with different qualifications and experience.
5 The local Government Service ethics and protocol can be found on www.lgs.gov.gh under Service
Protocol Menu.
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
65
is (my assembly conducts strategic planning). Items for the PME scale
included four (4) items (My assembly has a routine monitoring plan). The
PEREVIEW scale had three (3) items, which included (during performance
reviews, my supervisor focuses on the results I should obtain). Eight (8) items
were measured on the PERIMP scale, and a sample item is (my assembly has
a routine performance improvement program for staff).
All four scales were measured using a 7-point Likert scale (1 strongly
disagree to 7 strongly agree). For PMBP measurement, the four bundles were
combined for this purpose, making a total of twenty-four (24) items. The
Cronbach alpha reliability result for PMBP for the 24 items was 0.94, which
suggested high reliability for all the items (see Table 1).
The PSM construct was measured using Perry's (1996) three-based
motives: rational, norm-based, and affective. These three motives were
further divided into sub-indicators, namely: attraction to policymaking
(ATTRACT), commitment to the public interest (COMM), (rational
motives), civic duty (CID) (norm-based motive), and compassion (COMP)
and self-sacrifice (SS) (affective motives). All five items from the original
scale were used for the ATTRACT scale, and a sample item included PSM11
(politics is a good word). The COMM scale was measured using four (4)
items, including PSM30 (meaningful public service is essential to me). Also,
the CID scale was measured by five items, and a sample item included PSM21
(I am willing to go to great lengths to fulfil my obligations to my country).
In contrast, COMP was measured using all eight items from the
original scale, and a sample item included PSM2 (the plight of the
underprivileged often moves me). The SS scale was measured with five items,
including PSM1 (making a difference in society means more to me than
personal achievements). For total PSM, a combined 27 items from the five
scales were used to observe the total effect of PSM on the dependent variable.
All five scales were measured on a 7-point Likert-type scale ranging
from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). Except for the (attraction to
policymaking) scale, which had a Cronbach alpha of 0.68, the rest had a
reliability test above 0.7. The Cronbach alpha for the PSM scale in this sample
was 0.94, which is robust compared with previous studies (Moynihan &
Pandey, 2010). Table 1 depicts the individual reliability test for all the scales
in this study.
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Table 1. Results of individual scales reliability test
Variable
Cronbach alpha (α)
No. of items
N
PMBP sub-scales
SP
PME
PEREVIEW
PERIMP
PMPs
PSM sub-scales
ATTRACT
COMM
CID
COMP
SS
PSM
0.90
0.82
0.83
0.93
0.94
0.68
0.89
0.85
0.89
0.88
0.94
9
4
3
8
24
5
4
5
8
5
27
425
437
438
429
407
427
440
440
428
435
411
4. Results and discussions
The results of the descriptive statistics include means, standard
deviations, and bivariate correlations for all the variables provided in Table
2.
4.1. Bivariate correlations
The first hypothesized relationship was between the four bundles of
PMBPs of LGs: SP, PME, PEREVIEW, and PERIMP, and their employees'
PSM levels. As predicted, there were significant correlations between SP and
employees' PSM levels, r = 0.51 (p < 0.01), PME, r = 0.43 (p < 0.01),
PEREVIEW, r = 0.21 (p < 0.01), and PERIMP, r = 0.32 (p < 0.01). Employees
with high PSM scores were significantly more likely to report that their
organizations engaged in SP, PME, PEREVIEW, and PERIMP. Except for
SP, which correlated at 0.3, the other three had moderate correlations.
While these results seem to support the bivariate relationships
between these variables, further analysis through collinearity diagnoses using
SPSS revealed that the degree of collinearity evident in the data was not
detrimental to the findings (Hair et al., 1998; Pallant, 2011). The largest
variance inflation factor (VIF) was not greater than ten, and the tolerance
statistics were greater than 0.2, suggesting that no strong linear relationship
exists between the variables and, accordingly, no major violations of the
assumptions of the inferential statistics used.
For the multicollinearity test in this study, the variables were not
affected because most of the variables correlated lower than 0.70 (Tabachink
& Fidell, 2014). Also, the PSM scales are highly correlated with total PSM,
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
67
which further validates Perry's (1996) construct reliability since all the five
indicators measure the same thing, thus, employees' PSM levels. Nonetheless,
except for CID & COMP; and COMP & SS, which had correlations above
0.7 (0.77 and 0.79, respectively), no major multicollinearity was present in
the data. Additionally, the results showed that the correlations between the
four bundles of PMBPs suggest no significant collinearity. Hence, hypothesis
1 is supported.
Table 2. Descriptive and bivariate analysis
Variable
Mean
SD
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
SP
47.23
7.62
1
PME
18.10
3.47
0.69**
1
.
PERVIEW
11.70
3.27
0.37**
0.54**
1
PERIMP
37.59
9.76
0.46**
0.51**
0.64**
1
PSM
112.35
16.63
0.51**
0.43**
0.21**
0.32**
1
ATTRACT
22.33
4.08
0.34**
0.32**
0.14**
0.14**
0.67**
1
COMM
19.37
3.33
0.49**
0.36**
0.11*
0.26**
0.78**
0.59**
1
CID
24.57
4.43
0.47**
0.39**
0.18**
.294**
0.88**
0.44**
0.64**
1
COMP
41.24
7.37
0.41**
0.35**
0.23**
.305**
0.89**
0.37**
0.54**
0.77**
1
SS
24.21
4.84
0.41**
0.36**
0.17**
0.29**
0.81**
0.404**
0.59**
0.71**
0.79**
1
Total
PMBP
86.42
13.81
0.89**
0.86**
0.69**
0.71**
0.51**
0.32**
0.43**
0.45**
0.42**
0.41**
1
** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed); *. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-
tailed), N
= 381 (Listwise), SP = Strategic planning; PME = Performance monitoring & evaluation;
PEREVIEW
= Performance Review; PERIMP = Performance improvement; PSM
= Public Service
Motivation; ATTRACT
= attraction to policymaking; COMM = commitment to the public interest, CID =
Civic duty, COMP = compassion, SS = self-sacrifice, PMBP = performance management best practice.
The second hypothesized relationship in the model was between the
total PSM and PMBP of LGs. However, as Table 2 indicates, there are
significant variations in each of the effects of the five scales of PSM on the
PMBP of LGs and their employees' PSM levels. There were significant
relationships between employees' scores on ATTRACT and total PM best
practices of LGs, r = 0.32 (p < 0.01), COMM, r = 0.43 (p < 0.01), CID, r =
0.45 (p < 0.01), COMP, r = 0.42 (p < 0.01), and SS, r = 0.41 (p < 0.01). This
implies that employees rating themselves higher on the five subscales of PSM
were more likely to report that their organization's performance management
practices were effective, providing significant support for hypothesis 2.
pp. 54-80 Vol. 4 No. 1 (2022) Management & Economics Research Journal
68
4.2. Regression analyses
Based on the significant bivariate relationships indicated in Table 2
above, multiple regression analysis was performed to examine the combined
effect of the univariate effect of the five scales of the PSM construct as
independent variables on the outcome variable PMP (Tabachnick & Fidell,
2014) as the first model, and to test the combined effect of the total PSM on
the four individual bundles of the PMP scales as the second model. Multiple
regression analysis also accounts for the inter-correlations between the five
PSM scales in Table 2 above (Tabachnick & Fidell, 2014).
The results showed that the hypothesized relationships in the first
model indicate that employees' scores on ATTRACT, COMM, CID, COMP,
and SS should all predict PMP. All five PSM scales were entered into the
regression equation as independent variables in the first model. Combined
PMBP was included in the model as a dependent variable. In Table 3, the
combined relationship between the five indicators of PSM on PMP was
statistically significant F (5,375) = 25.607, p < 0.0005, and contributed 25.5
per cent of the variation in the PMP. The Beta weight for the following
variables was not statistically significant: ATTRACT (r = 0.07, ns), COMP
(r = 0.12, ns), and SS (r = 0.05, ns), suggesting that only COMM (r = 0.19, p
< 0.005) and CID (r = 0.18, p < 0.05) contributed to the variation in combined
PMP (see Table 3).
Table 3. Regression results for PMPs as a single dependent variable
B
Std. Error
β
Sig
ATTRACT
0.236
0.187
0.070
0.209
COMM
0.770
0.270
0.186
0.005***
CID
0.560
0.240
0.179
0.021*
COMP
0.220
0.150
0.120
0.150
SS
0.142
0.220
0.050
0.520
N = 380; F = 25.607***
R
2
= 0.255; Adjusted R
2
= 0.245
* p < 0.05; *** p < 0.001; Dependent: PMPs = performance management practices.
Source: Prepared by authors, based on SPSS V.22 output
The study further examined the combined effect of the PSM construct
as a single independent variable on the four bundles of PMBP: SP, PME,
PEREVIEW, and PERIMP as separate dependent variables. The
hypothesized relationships, ATTRACT, COMM, CID, COMP, and SS, were
entered in the first model as independent variables, and SP was included as
the dependent variable. The results from Table 4 show that the combined
relationship between ATTRACT, COMM, CID, COMM, and SS on SP was
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
69
statistically significant F (5, 390) =31.354, p < 0.001 and accounted for 28.7
per cent of the variance in SP. The Beta coefficients for ATTRACT (r = 0.05,
ns), COMP (r = 0.05, ns) and SS (0.04, ns) were not statistically significant,
indicating that only COMM (r = 0.28, p < 0.001) and CID (r = 0.20, p <0.001),
contributed most to explain the total variance in SP. Additionally, to observe
the effect of the five scales of the PSM construct on PME, the regression
results in the second model showed that the five scales were statistically
significant F(5, 402)=16.549, p < 0.001 and could only explain 17.1 per cent
of the variance in the dependent variable (PME). The standardized beta
coefficients for the two of the scales: ATTRACT (r = 0.16) and CID (r =0.16),
were statistically significant, while COMM (r = 0.04, ns), COMP (r = 0.07,
ns), and SS (r = 0.09, ns) were not significant.
Also, the third model showed that the Beta weights for three indicators
of PSM: COMM (r = -0.08, ns), CID (r = 0.05, ns), and SS (r = -0.04) were
not significant, whereas ATTRACT (r = 0.11, p < 0.01) and COMP (r = 0.23,
p < 0.01) were statistically significant at 10%. The total variance explained in
the dependent variable, PERIMP was only 6.5 per cent. The fourth regression
model shows that the hypothesized relationships for all five scales were not
statistically significant. Employees who rated themselves higher on the five
scales of the PSM construct were more likely to report that their LGs were
not engaged in performance improvement practices. Although this finding
confirms previous studies on LG PM practices (Moynihan et al., 2012), the
finding must be interpreted cautiously because other contextual factors may
account for this. The five scales contributed about 11.8 per cent of the
variance in PERIMP as the dependent variable. However, the overall model
was significant F (5, 394) =10.578, p < 0.001.
Furthermore, the hypothesized relationship that total PSM levels of
employees should predict employees' LGs PMBPs was supported in this
study. Table 4 shows that the effect of total PSM on combined PMPs was
statistically significant F (1, 379) = 124.427, p < 0.001, contributing 24.7 per
cent of the variance. The standardized Beta weight for total PSM was
statistically significant (r = 0.49, p < 0.001), thus explaining the changes in
combined PMPs.
pp. 54-80 Vol. 4 No. 1 (2022) Management & Economics Research Journal
70
Table 4. Regression results of the relationship between PSM sub-measures and PMBP sub-
measures
Model
Variable
B
SE B
β
R
2
Adj.R
2
F
N
Dependent
variable
1
ATTRACT
COMM
CID
COMP
SS
0.10
0.63
0.35
0.06
0.07
0.09
0.14
0.13
0.08
0.12
0.05
0.28
***
0.20
***
0.05
0.04
0.287
0.278
31.354
***
395
SP
2
ATTRACT
COMM
CID
COMP
SS
0.14
0.04
0.12
0.03
0.06
0.05
0.07
0.06
0.04
0.05
0.16
***
0.04
0.16
***
0.07
0.09
0.171
0.160
16.549
***
407
PME
3
ATTRACT
COMM
CID
COMP
SS
0.08
-
0.08
0.04
0.11
-
0.03
0.05
0.07
0.06
0.04
0.06
0.11
**
-
0.08
0.05
0.23
**
-
0.04
0.065
0.054
5.643
**
408
PEREVIEW
4
ATTRACT
COMM
CID
COMP
SS
-0.10
0.32
0.21
0.17
0.20
0.14
0.20
0.18
0.12
0.16
-0.04
0.11
0.09
0.13
0.08
0.118
0.107
10.578
***
399
PERIMP
5
Total PSM
0.41
0.37
0.49
0.247
0.245
124.427***
380
PMBP
*** = p < 0.001
**
= p < 0.05
The hypotheses were developed to show that LGs' PM best practices
are partly influenced by their employees' PSM levels measured by three main
motives that compel them to join LGs. The first motive that compels and
explains why employees choose to work with public institutions is based on
rationality. With this motive, employees are attracted to LGs' policymaking
processes and view their presence there as contributing to protecting the
public interest. The second motive involves normative assumptions of
institutions. The norm-based motive is premised on the assumption that
organizations exist to perform a communal duty to society. Therefore,
employees help their LGs achieve their core mandate and mission by
fulfilling this motive.
Moreover, the third motive is that LGs employees' behaviours are
influenced by affective feelings where employees see their service to the
larger social system as above their interests. LG employees believe that this
'call to service' and the perceived impact of their work transcend beyond their
immediate environment. The focus of affective motives measured by
compassion and self-sacrifice is for employees to see the social benefits of
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
71
their work to minorities and the less privileged at the local level. This study
examined PSM at five levels to give a clearer picture of the unique
contributions of each of the scales on PMBPs, and how employees' PSM
levels can influence these bundles.
H1 examined the relationship between employees' scores on the
individual scales of the PSM construct and the combined PMPs of their LGs,
and the results showed that they were correlated. Although this relationship
has been empirically demonstrated in many studies (Andersen et al., 2014;
Christensen et al., 2017; Homberg & McCarthy, 2015; Moynihan & Pandey,
2007), the results demonstrate that the mixed findings identified in previous
studies of the PSM construct might have been due to factors specific to the
context or the setting (Kim et al., 2012; Perry & Hondeghem, 2008;
Vandenabeele, 2008).
We found that ATTRACT, COMM, CID, COMP, and SS correlate
with the four PMP scales in the Ghanaian LG system. Further regression
analysis revealed that compassion and self-sacrifice did not contribute any
unique variance to the prediction of combined PMP in our LG sample. This
finding provides further evidence to support Cun (2012), Perry & Hondeghem
(2008), and Kim et al. (2012) findings that employees' PSM levels are
influenced by organizational setting, socialization process, and culture and
hence. This finding may require further testing in different organizational
settings in the Ghanaian experience to conclude.
H2 indicated a positive and significant effect on total employees' PSM
levels and the combined PMP of LGs. Overall, the results support the findings
of Moynihan et al. (2012) and Kroll & Vogel (2013), who found that public
managers' PSM levels were significantly associated with performance
information used by federal governments. Performance information use is a
key component of a PM system. Hence, the combined effect of the PSM
construct was significant, contributing about 24.7 per cent to explain the
variance in PMP of LGs in this sample. This study may suggest that the PSM
scores of employees are important in determining the effectiveness of LGs
PM best practices. For example, LGs may vary the PM process by relying on
employees with higher levels of PSM to encourage and lead the change
process, especially in new performance regimes in developing country
contexts. However, the absence of the significant contributions of compassion
and self-sacrifice as separate variables on PMP in this sample may require
further analysis. The two scales constitute the highest scores on the PSM
construct (Perry, 1996). However, this sample showed no significant effect of
the two on PMP. The implication is that PSM is suitable for predicting
relationships when used as a single construct (Perry et al., 2010). Nonetheless,
pp. 54-80 Vol. 4 No. 1 (2022) Management & Economics Research Journal
72
this finding may require further research with different samples and in a
different organizational setting to conclude (Cun, 2012; Kim et al., 2012).
The implications of this research for practitioners in LGs indicate that
management practices should be rational and normative to elicit positive
employee behaviour in public organizations. Subsequently, increasing LG
activities that encourage and release employees' rational and norm-based
motives through ATTRACT, COMM, and CID is associated with positive
outcomes of their PMBPs which is important for overall organizational
performance (Vandenabeele, 2009). LGs should seek to reinforce their
employees' COMP and SS behaviour that will lead to effective outcomes on
management practices such as strategic planning, PME, PEREVIEW, and
PERIMP. Further, LGs should develop frameworks that allow every
employee the opportunity to take part in the strategic formulation of
organizational goals and allow them to participate in the policymaking and
implementation process at the local level.
5. Conclusion
This study was limited to using a cross-sectional design with data
collected only from one LG administrative region involving 11 MMAs in the
national capital. In order to compensate for this shortfall and avoid common
response bias, the sample size was randomly distributed among the 11
MMAs. Using a single geographical region of LG employees has the potential
limitation of common source bias. Since this is an exploratory study, there is
a need to expand the cases to other regions to see whether the same results
will be attained. However, in particular, LG in the GAR appears to have
different incentives than those in other regions or even poor LGs, which
forestalls any deficiency.
Our study contributes to the literature on the relationship between
PSM and PMPs by finding that higher PSM levels are significantly associated
with increases in LG PMPs. The findings also confirmed that PSM is more
related to the rational motives of employees than affective motives in most
cultures (Christensen et al., 2017; Cun, 2012; Kim et al., 2012). While
previous studies have provided evidence to support that PSM is positively
related to performance information use (Moynihan et al., 2012), our research
is one of its kind to test the PSM variable on the four bundles of PMBP.
Hence, this finding requires further studies in similar and different settings to
test the relationship between PSM and the PMP bundles of LGs. Of particular
interest will be to test the relationship between national culture and employee
PSMs levels on the PMP of LGs.
This study suggested that PSM plays an important role in the study of
Performance Management Practices and Motivation in
Developing Countries: A Further Validation of the Public
Service Motivation Construct in Ghana
Abane, J. A., &
Phinaitrup, B.
73
PMBP. While the results may hold brief for the Ghanaian experience, they
may have different implications for different contexts. Further studies should
be conducted on the PSM construct on the four bundles of PMP as a single
independent variable to support theory building, as the individual treatment
of the construct has yielded no significant impact on the dependent variable.
In contrast, we believe that future research should be undertaken on the PSM
as a single construct (Perry & Hondeghem, 2008; Christensen et al., 2017).
The cultural component of PSM should be addressed to strengthen theory
building by including a cultural dimension of both PMPs and the PSM
construct since some cultures may support higher organizational management
practices than others.
Declaration of conflicting interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect
to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
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Appendix A
Abbreviations
ATTRACT- Attraction to policymaking
CID- Civic duty
COMM- Commitment to the public interest
COMP- Compassion
GAR- Greater Accra Region
LG- Local government
LGs- Local governments
MMAs- metropolitan and municipal assemblies
LGS- Local Government Service
PM- Performance management
PMPs- Performance management practices
PME- Performance monitoring and evaluation
PERIMP- Performance improvement
PEREVIEW- Performance review
PSM- Public service motivation
SS- Self-sacrifice
SP- Strategic planning
VIF- Variance Inflation Factor
