The Effects of Career Calling and Perceived Overqualification on Work Outcomes for Primary and Secondary School Teachers

Abstract

While perceived overqualification (POQ) has received increased research attention in recent years, the identification of variables that moderate POQ-outcome relationships is critical to our understanding of how the construct affects career outcomes. This study, involving 170 full-time primary and secondary school educators in a suburban mid-Atlantic school system, found that POQ is negatively related to job satisfaction and affective commitment while positively related to turnover intentions and desire to turnover. While POQ was not significantly related to performance or continuance organizational commitment, the relationships between POQ and both performance and continuance organizational commitment were significantly moderated by the experience of career calling orientation. Generally, the relationship between POQ and performance was stronger, and the relationship between POQ and continuance organizational commitment was weaker, for those with high calling. Additionally, the effects of career calling were considerably stronger than those of POQ for all criteria. The implications surrounding these results, and opportunities for future investigation, are discussed.

Keywords

perceived overqualification calling performance moderation

Recent years have seen an increased recognition of overqualification in the workplace. During the economic recession starting in 2008, some organizations began seizing opportunities to hire highly skilled and educated individuals that would otherwise be unavailable or unaffordable (Katcher, 2010). The psychological and long-term financial consequences of such hiring practices are just beginning to emerge, creating an increased interest in the concept of overqualification. Fine (2007) defines perceived overqualification (POQ) as “the degree to which individuals perceive themselves (or others) as possessing more than the required job qualifications” (p. 61) and although POQ is a subjective experience, Maynard, Joseph, and Maynard (2006) argue that POQ is more relevant than objective levels of overqualification for predicting work outcomes. Johnson, Morrow, and Johnson (2002) support the notion that POQ is worth investigating since it is a meaningful and applicable interpretation of the work environment by the employee.

While a growing body of literature exists relating POQ to a number of important career-related outcomes such as lower job satisfaction (Fine, 2007; Fine & Nevo, 2008; Johnson & Johnson, 2000a, 2000b; Johnson, Morrow, & Johnson, 2002), higher turnover intentions (Erdogan & Bauer, 2009; Kraimer, Shaffer, & Bolino, 2009; Maynard, Joseph, & Maynard, 2006; McKee-Ryan, Virick, Prussia, Harvey, & Lilly, 2009), and increased performance (Erdogan & Bauer, 2009; Fine & Nevo, 2008), few studies have investigated variables that may moderate these empirically established relationships. Currently, the list of potential moderator variables explored is very small and includes empowerment (Erdogan & Bauer, 2009) and personal initiative (Agut, Peiró, & Grau, 2009). One such important variable not previously explored as a moderator of POQ is career calling orientation. Career calling is an experience characterized by opportunity to do work that is personally fulfilling (Wrzesniewski, McCauley, Rozin, & Schwartz, 1997). We expect that an individual’s career progression may be strongly impacted by both POQ and career calling. While POQ may exert pressure on an individual to change jobs and possibly careers, career calling should have the opposite effect. In this study, we are the first to examine the effects of both POQ and career calling on several work outcomes, including job satisfaction, organizational commitment, turnover intentions, desire to turnover, and job performance.

Career Calling

Wrzesniewski, McCauley, Rozin, and Schwartz (1997) divide work orientation into three categories: job, career, and calling. They explain that monetary or material compensation motivates people who hold a “job” orientation. If motivated by the opportunity for advancement and achievement, employees are considered to be in a “career” orientation. In contrast, when an individual attempts to make the world a better place and experiences personal fulfillment through his or her work, he or she is considered to have a “calling.”

A number of theorists have attempted to propose clear definitions of calling orientation. Duffy and Sedlacek (2007) argue that the experience of a calling is best understood through a process including three vital ingredients: (a) the individual should first experience a force that motivates him or her to perform a task or job, (b) the individual must pursue meaning, and (c) he or she must personally hold other-oriented values, which are one’s propensity to be concerned with, and to be helpful to, others (Meglino & Korsgaard, 2007). Other definitions are less restrictive, for example, stating that calling is simply a career used to serve the greater good and gain personal fulfillment (Wrzesniewski et al., 1997), which can be achieved through a sense of competence, autonomy, and relatedness (Ryan & Deci, 2000) while leading to an experience of intrinsic motivation (Buskist, Benson, & Sikorski, 2005; Ryan & Deci, 2000). Unique from typical conceptions of commitment, these associated rewards specifically reflect the impact an individual can have on others. Callings are generally conceptualized as lifelong convictions that involve both a sense of meaning and purpose while facilitating the experience of intense personal commitment to the profession, regardless of any required sacrifice (Buskist et al., 2005).

In general, calling is associated with the experience of wholeness, satisfaction, and fulfillment, although at times the pursuit of a calling means sacrificing some forms of satisfaction (Hall, 2008). For example, called individuals must often be willing to sacrifice higher pay, time with their families, and less demanding positions in order to pursue their callings. Although many may experience a calling, few may actually pursue it due to the uncertainty and cost involved; hence, callings are personal convictions that can be ignored but are clear and undeniably present (Hall, 2008). The state of experiencing a calling is not only an ultimate goal but also a challenging process that involves a series of deliberate actions that must be taken in order to find, act upon, and live within a calling (Hall & Chandler, 2005). The effects of the experience of a calling have received inadequate research attention.

This study will explore the potential mitigating effects calling may have on the relationship between POQ and undesirable work outcomes. Since the pursuit of a calling can inherently involve personal sacrifice, we believe calling may act as a buffer against the inclination that employees with high POQ have to turnover or exhibit other negative attitudes and behaviors.

POQ

Johnson and Johnson (2000a) applied relative deprivation theory to explain POQ from a psychological perspective. According to the relative deprivation theory, unpleasant feelings result from the discrepancy between actual experiences and a priori expectations (cf Mirowsky & Ross, 1989). Moreover, the experience and degree of deprivation are dependent on the distance (i.e., degree of dissimilarity) between expectations and actual experience (Feldman, Leana, & Bolino, 2002). Johnson and Johnson maintained that the discrepancy between work expectations and the experience of not being able to fully utilize knowledge, skills, abilities, and other attributes (KSAOs) results in POQ.

Like Johnson and Johnson (2000a), we postulate that POQ is accurately represented as a function of both cognitive perceptions and affective reactions to the job environment. While we believe that POQ can arise via the discrepancy experienced with underutilized KSAOs, importantly, we also posit that POQ is a function of not only the cognitive realization of underutilized skills but also the negative affective reactions of discrepancy associated with the underutilization of these skills. In support of this notion, previous research has identified a positive relationship between equity sensitivity, the extent to which one is troubled by inequity, and one’s awareness of his or her overqualification status (Sauley & Bedeian, 2000).

The experience of calling is expected to mitigate POQ by interacting with the mechanisms that cause it. It is possible that although a priori expectations may not be met, one’s KSAOs may not be fully utilized, and one’s position may serve as a signal of low status, individuals may be more willing to tolerate the discrepancy when simultaneously experiencing a calling. Since the pursuit of a calling often involves voluntary sacrifice (Buskist et al., 2005; Hall, 2008) in order to do highly rewarding work (Wrzesniewski et al., 1997), the experience of a calling orientation may reduce the negative affective reactions associated with the experience of POQ. As a result, the individual’s career may be impacted by choosing to remain in the current position despite the negative psychological effects of POQ.

In this study, we empirically investigate the relationships among POQ and numerous work outcomes. We expect many of these relationships to be moderated by career calling. Below, we describe these outcomes and detail why they are expected to relate to both POQ and calling. In order to limit the number of formal hypotheses, we investigate main effect relationships between POQ and work outcomes but do not pose formal hypotheses. Our formal hypotheses are limited to tests of previously unexplored relationships (i.e., those in which calling orientation serves as a moderator).

Relevant Work Outcomes

Turnover attitudes

Numerous negative outcomes are associated with hiring ill-suited employees, such as decreases in productivity, lower profit margins (Sagie, Birati, & Tziner, 2002), and contagious employee withdrawal (Sagie et al., 2002) including employee turnover (McCulloch & Turban, 2007; Sagie et al., 2002; Zimmerman, 2008). Voluntary employee withdrawal behaviors include withholding effort at work, lateness, absenteeism, and turnover (Sagie et al., 2002). Among the consequences of employee withdrawal are unfinished work, unmet commitments, and reduced profitability (Sagie et al., 2002). Failing to select well-suited employees can eventually lead to the most expensive form of withdrawal, employee turnover (McCulloch & Turban, 2007; Sagie et al., 2002; Zimmerman, 2008).

Rather than investigating actual turnover, turnover intentions and desire to turnover are included in this study. Maynard et al. (2006) defined turnover intentions as the extent to which an individual plans to leave an organization or position of employment. Turnover intentions are often measured instead of actual turnover, as intentions reveal valuable information about an individual’s plans and expectations (Mobley, 1977). Turnover intentions typically predict turnover (Mobley, 1977; Zimmerman, 2008), and the two constructs have similar relationships with variables such as performance and tenure (Carless, Fewings-Hall, Hall, Hemsworth, & Coleman, 2007). Previous research points to a positive relationship between POQ and turnover intentions (Kraimer et al., 2009; Maynard et al., 2006; McKee-Ryan et al., 2009). Turnover intentions involve an element of choice and imply actual capability to turnover. As some individuals may wish to leave his or her position, but are unable to, desire to turnover will also be included in this study.

Hypothesis 1: Calling orientation will moderate the positive relationship between POQ and turnover intentions such that the relationship will be weaker when calling is higher.

Hypothesis 2: Calling orientation will moderate the positive relationship between POQ and desire to turnover such that the relationship will be weaker when calling is higher.

Organizational commitment

Organizational commitment is an individual’s psychological bond to the organization, including a sense of job involvement, loyalty, and a belief in the organization’s values (Salincik, 2003). High commitment is beneficial for both employers and employees (Pinder, 1998), offering employees a sense of identity, satisfaction, and security while offering employers low turnover and a stable workforce. However, today workers are not expected to remain within a single organization for the duration of their careers (Cooper-Hakim & Viswesvaran, 2005). Researchers typically conceptualize commitment in terms of three dimensions: affective, continuance, and normative (Allen & Meyer, 1990). This study will focus on the relationship between affective and continuance organizational commitment and POQ.

Affective organizational commitment is defined as “an affective or emotional attachment to the organization such that the strongly committed individual identifies with, is involved in, and enjoys membership in, the organization” (Allen & Meyer, 1990, p. 2). It is experienced when an individual wants to continue working for a specific organization and closely identifies with the organization (Cooper-Hakim & Viswesvaran, 2005). A 2005 meta-analysis found that affective organizational commitment is positively related to job performance (ρ = .27) and negatively related to turnover (ρ = −.20; Cooper-Hakim & Viswesvaran, 2005). Previous findings also indicate that affective organizational commitment is negatively related to POQ (Johnson et al., 2002; Maynard et al., 2006; McKee-Ryan et al., 2009). These findings suggest that if an individual experiences POQ, he or she is more likely to want to leave the organization.

Hypothesis 3: Calling orientation will moderate the negative relationship between POQ and affective organizational commitment such that the relationship will be weaker when calling is higher.

Continuance organizational commitment is commitment one feels toward the organization because the costs of leaving the organization are high (Cooper-Hakim & Viswesvaran, 2005). Continuance organizational commitment involves the ease with which one can leave his or her current organization for another and is reportedly negatively related to job performance (ρ = −.12) and negatively related to turnover (ρ = −.25; Cooper-Hakim & Viswesvaran, 2005). Limited research is available regarding the relationship between POQ and continuance organizational commitment. However, it is expected that individuals who possess greater KSAOs are likely to report both higher POQ and lower continuance commitment (feeling stuck in their jobs). Thus, we expect a general negative relationship between POQ and continuance commitment. However, persons experiencing a calling are likely to report low levels of feeling stuck in their current position, regardless of POQ.

Hypothesis 4: Calling orientation will moderate the negative relationship between POQ and continuance organizational commitment such that the relationship will be weaker when calling is higher.

Job satisfaction

Job satisfaction is an individual’s subjective assessment of work (Johnson & Johnson, 2000b) and is defined as the response of an individual to the circumstances of his or her working environment that is shaped by his or her interpretations and perceptions of the objective work conditions (Johnson & Johnson, 1996, 2000b; Maynard et al., 2006). POQ can be a source of job dissatisfaction, which, in turn, may lead to higher turnover intentions and other work withdrawal symptoms (Johnson & Johnson, 2000b). Fine and Nevo (2008) found a negative relationship between POQ and job satisfaction (r = −.44) for customer service representatives. Johnson and Johnson (2000b) looked at two components of POQ in relation to job satisfaction: perceived lack of growth opportunity and perceived mismatch of individual qualifications and job requirements (mismatch). They found that both perceived lack of growth opportunity (r = −.57) and mismatch (r = −.33) were significantly negatively related to work satisfaction. Another study involving postal workers found that POQ had a negative effect on job satisfaction, with POQ accounting for 34% of the variance (Johnson & Johnson, 2000a). Most recently, Erdogan and Bauer (2009) found that POQ was negatively related to job satisfaction. In accordance with the findings of previous research, it is expected that individuals with higher POQ are more likely to experience job dissatisfaction.

Wrzesniewski et al. (1997) found that people who experience callings had both higher life and job satisfaction. In fact, Hall and Chandler (2005) suggest that one of the deepest forms of satisfaction and psychological success can occur when an individual holds a calling. Given this, we expect that when calling is high, participants will report uniformly high levels of job satisfaction.

Hypothesis 5: Calling orientation will moderate the negative relationship between POQ and job satisfaction such that the relationship will be weaker when calling is higher.

Performance

Researchers agree that the relationship between POQ and performance has not received adequate research attention (Bolino & Feldman, 2000; Erdogan & Bauer, 2009; Erdogan, Bauer, Peiro, & Truxillo, 2011; Fine & Nevo, 2008). There are two conflicting approaches to making decisions about whether to hire overqualified candidates based on expected performance. According to Fine and Nevo (2008), some organizations currently avoid hiring overqualified individuals in order to avoid costly turnover, after which organizational performance may suffer. Nonetheless, some employers reportedly intentionally hire overqualified individuals in anticipation of eventual promotion (Dekker, de Grip, & Heijke, 2002). To date, very little is known about the appropriateness of either approach.

Recently, Erdogan and Bauer (2009) surveyed 244 Turkish retail associates and obtained objective performance data. A key contribution of their study is the positive link between POQ and objective performance; they found that individuals with higher POQ demonstrated higher performance than those with lower scores. Erdogan and Bauer (2009) proposed that although employees with higher POQ are more likely to turnover, they are also able to make valuable contributions based on higher ability levels that compensate for the cost of their shorter employment periods with the organization. Moreover, they found that the effects of POQ on performance may be moderated by employee empowerment.

According to the previous research, those who experience a calling are more likely to invest time and effort in their work, which usually results in higher performance (Serow, 1994). Additionally, those who have callings may be better able to perform and maintain high levels of performance due to high adaptability and willingness to change that derives from a clear sense of identity and self-awareness (Hall & Chandler, 2005). It is thought that employees who feel called are better able to identify their strengths and weaknesses and make personal changes to meet the demands of the work. This heightened awareness is called self-directed career performance, which is an ultimate result of the experience of a calling, through the mechanisms of increased self-confidence, the pursuit of challenging goals, and increase in effort (Hall & Chandler, 2005). We expect POQ to have a positive relationship with performance based on Erdogan and Bauer’s (2009) finding of such a relationship. However, we expect calling to moderate this relationship as employees higher in calling are likely to put forth greater effort and to invest more of themselves in their work.

Hypothesis 6: Calling orientation will moderate the positive relationship between POQ and performance such that the relationship will be stronger when calling is lower.

In sum, this study examines the effects of POQ and career calling on a number of variables for teachers. Teaching can be difficult and challenging work, and many teachers consider changing occupations at some stage in their career (Smithers & Robinson, 2003). Estimates are that approximately 5 years of experience are needed to become fully effective at improving student performance (Rivkin, Hanushek, & Kain, 2005). New positions are typically filled with inexperienced teachers (Lankford, Loeb, & Wyckoff, 2002), and teacher turnover has been shown to directly affect student achievement (Ronfeldt, Loeb, & Wyckoff, 2012). As such, it is important to understand how POQ and calling orientation relate to job attitudes known to be associated with turnover (Griffeth, Hom, & Gaertner, 2000).

Method

Participants

We chose to investigate educators in a public school system as there is likely to be significant variance in career calling orientation in such a sample. The sample of 170 teachers came from K–12 public school online databases of teacher e-mail addresses. The contact information was acquired for a single school district in Arlington County, Virginia. Arlington County is among the more affluent counties in the state and is primarily suburban with teacher compensation somewhat above the national average (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012). Participants who completed less than 50% of the survey were excluded from the data analysis. About half (50.4%) of respondents were elementary school teachers, while about a third were high school teachers (30.1%) and about a fifth were middle school teachers (19.5%). Consistent with the population of teachers in the region, women comprised 86.1% of the respondents. Most respondents self-identified as “White or Caucasian” (90.8%), followed by 3.9% “Hispanic or Latino/a,” 3.3% “Black or African American,” while 1.3% were “Asian,” and 0.7% reported themselves as being “Pacific Islander.” Participants’ age ranged from 23 to 75 (M = 40.65, standard deviation [SD] = 13.05) with tenure spanning less than 1 year to 29 years (M = 7.19, SD = 6.42).

Procedures

E-mails were sent to approximately 1,000 suburban public school teachers requesting their participation. The e-mail recruitment letter explained that completion of the study would require approximately 15 min, provided a brief explanation of the research, and a description of the participation incentive. Ten percent of participants were randomly selected to receive a Starbucks gift card through the mail. The e-mail text also included a link to the online survey. To ensure anonymity of the data, all identifying information was collected in a separate, second survey linked to the last page of the general survey. Teachers who did not respond to the initial participation request were sent follow-up e-mails, up to 2 times, with at least 1 week between each reminder.

Measures

All items measuring all study constructs were on a 7-point Likert-type scale (1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree) unless otherwise noted. Scale scores were computed by averaging across scale items, resulting in a possible range between 1 and 7 such that higher numbers indicate a higher level of the construct.

POQ

POQ was assessed via the mismatch items of Johnson and Johnson’s (1997) original POQ measure that inquires about perceived inconsistencies between the characteristics of the person and the demands of the position. The 4 items yielded an α coefficient of .74 in this sample. Example questions include “my talents are not fully utilized on my job” and “based on my skills, I am overqualified for my job.” Johnson and Johnson found the scale to show good fit via confirmatory factor analysis and a coefficient α of .73 as well as convergent and discriminant validity evidence.

Turnover attitudes

Turnover intention was measured through the self-report item “how often have you seriously considered quitting your present job?” (Spector, 1985). Spector found good convergent validity with job satisfaction for this item. Additionally, desire to turnover was assessed using a 3-item measure including “if I could, I would leave this job” (Craig & Gustafson, 1998). These items had an α of .85 in this sample. Craig and Gustafson (1998) found excellent convergent validity with both job satisfaction and a measure of leadership integrity for these items.

Commitment

Affective commitment and continuance commitment were measured through two 9-item scales adapted from the organizational commitment measure originally developed by Allen and Meyer (1990). In this sample, Allen and Meyer’s scale had a coefficient α of .88 for affective organizational commitment and .80 for continuance organizational commitment. In order for the measure to be more easily understood by teachers, the measure was adapted by changing all references to the “organization” to “school.” Example items are “I would be very happy to spend the rest of my career with this school” and “it would be very hard for me to leave my school right now, even if I wanted to.” Allen and Meyer found support for their measure via factor analysis and discriminant validity among their scales. They also found differential patters of convergent validity with a host of predictor variables (e.g., equity, participation, etc.) as well as coefficient αs between .75 and .87.

Job satisfaction

Participants reported their job satisfaction on a short measure developed by Judge, Bono, and Locke (2000), based on the original work of Brayfield and Rothe (1951). Items include “most days I am enthusiastic about work” and “I find real enjoyment in my work” (1 = strongly disagree to 7 = strongly agree, α = .85). Judge et al. found good fit for their measure via confirmatory factor analysis as well as excellent convergent and discriminant validity evidence with several organizationally relevant variables (e.g., perceived job characteristics).

Performance

A performance item required that the incumbent recall their last supervisor performance rating on a scale from 1 to 10, with 5 being adequate and 10 being outstanding (adapted from Schoorman & Mayer, 2008). The stem of the item was “identify the rating you were given at the time of your last performance appraisal.” While self-report was used to collect performance information, respondents did not rate their own perceptions of their performance. Rather, they were asked to recall their supervisor’s assessment of their performance. Schoorman and Mayer (2008) found that this measure of self-reported recollections of the most previous performance evaluation correlated at .88 with archival records of the same evaluation.

Calling

Calling was assessed via the 9-item Vocational Identity Questionnaire developed by Dreher, Holloway, and Schoenfelder (2007). The reliability of the scale was .78 and included items such as “I see my work as a way to make a positive difference in the world” and “I have a calling that enables me use my skills and talents in a meaningful way.” Dreher et al. examined the calling measure in a religious context and found convergent validity with education, religious participation, and salience.

Results

Correlations among the study variables are presented in Table 1. The main effects of POQ on each work outcome were investigated by including POQ in the first step of the hierarchical regression investigating the moderating relationships (see Table 2). In order to control for Type I error associated with multiple comparisons, we used a probability value of .01 to evaluate significance of the main effects. As seen in Table 1, POQ was positively related to both turnover intentions and desire to turnover. Both affective organizational commitment and job satisfaction were negatively related to POQ. POQ was not significantly correlated with continuance organizational commitment or performance.

Table 1.

Intercorrelations Among POQ and Self-Reported Outcomes.

	M	SD	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
1. POQ	3.80	1.34	—
2. Turnover intentions	2.17	1.04	.26**	—
3. Desire to turnover	2.71	1.59	.38**	.66**	—
4. Affective commitment	4.83	1.16	−.38**	−.47**	−.64**	—
5. Continuance commitment	4.36	1.17	−.07	.22**	.15	−.17*	—
6. Job satisfaction	5.68	.92	−.35**	−.55**	−.58**	.66**	−.16*	—
7. Performance	8.93	1.13	.01	−.24**	−.23**	−.22**	−.22**	.33**	—
8. Calling	5.66	.76	−.31**	−.42**	−.58**	.62**	−.19*	.69**	.24**

Note. M = mean; POQ = perceived overqualification; SD = standard deviation. N > 161 for all variables.

*p < .05. **p < .01.

Table 2.

Tests of Moderation Hypotheses for Each of Six Criteria.

		Turnover Intentions		Desire to Turnover		Affective Commitment		Continuance Commitment		Job Satisfaction		Performance
Step		b (β)	p	b (β)	p	b (β)	p	b (β)	p	b (β)	p	b (β)	p
1	Intercept	2.17		2.71		4.83		4.36		5.68		8.93
1	POQ	.2 (.26)	.]003	.44 (.38)	<.001	−.33 (−.38)	<.001	−.06 (−.07)	.411	−.24 (−.35)	<.001	.01 (.01)	.890
	R ²	.06		.14		.14		.01		.12		0
2	Intercept	2.45		3.4		4.57		5.38		5.17		7.98
	POQ	.11 (.15)	.086	.27 (.23)	.002	−.19 (−.22)	.003	−.11 (−.13)	.158	−.11 (−.16)	.018	.06 (.07)	.409
	School level	−.06 (−.05)	.526	−.15 (−.08)	.240	.04 (.03)	.684	−.13 (−.1)	.255	.15 (.15)	.022	.02 (.02)	.827
	Age	.00 (−.05)	.504	−.01 (−.09)	.237	0 (.05)	.447	−.02 (−.22)	.014	.01 (.08)	.210	.02 (.26)	.003
	Calling	−.51 (−.37)	<.001	−1.04 (−.5)	<.001	.83 (.55)	<.001	−.31 (−.2)	.029	.77 (.64)	<.001	.32 (.22)	.016
	R ² (Δ R ²)	.20 (.14)	<.001	.39 (.25)	<.001	.43 (.28)	<.001	.11 (.10)	.004	.52 (.40)	<.001	.13 (.13)	.001
3	Intercept	2.45		3.41		4.57		5.41		5.17		7.95
	POQ	.11 (.15)	.087	.27 (.23)	.002	−.19 (−.22)	.003	−.11 (−.12)	.164	−.11 (−.16)	.018	.06 (.07)	.424
	School level	−.06 (−.05)	.528	−.15 (−.08)	.241	.04 (.03)	.685	−.13 (−.1)	.251	.15 (.15)	.022	.02 (.02)	.822
	Age	.00 (−.05)	.510	−.01 (−.08)	.249	0 (.05)	.456	−.02 (−.21)	.017	.01 (.08)	.211	.02 (.25)	.004
	Calling	−.51 (−.38)	<.001	−1.06 (−.51)	<.001	.84 (.55)	<.001	−.38 (−.25)	.010	.77 (.64)	<.001	.40 (.27)	.004
	Calling × POQ	.01 (.01)	.918	.05 (.04)	.634	−.02 (−.01)	.843	.17 (.15)	.091	.01 (.01)	.930	−.20 (−.18)	.040
	R ² (Δ R ²)	.20 (.00)	.920	.39 (.00)	.630	.43 (.00)	.843	.13 (.02)	.091	.52 (.00)	.930	.16 (.03)	.040

Note. POQ = perceived overqualification. School level (elementary, middle, and high) and age were entered as control variables.

The hypotheses involved moderation analyses using a series of hierarchical moderated regression models. For each hierarchical regression, POQ was entered in the first step. The second step included level of school (i.e., elementary, middle, and high) and participant age as control variables along with career calling (and POQ from the previous step). The subjective experience of teaching elementary, middle, and high school differs considerably and age is often related to job satisfaction (Ng & Feldman, 2010). Thus, we sought to control for differences in outcome variables that may be due to age or level of school in which the teacher worked. The third step included the previously entered variables along with an interaction term for POQ and calling. POQ and calling were centered prior to computing the interaction term in order to reduce multicollinearity. Given that tests of moderation are notoriously underpowered (Aguinis, 2004; Aguinis, Beaty, Boik, & Pierce, 2005; McClelland & Judd, 1993), we used a probability value of .10 to evaluate the moderation hypotheses. In his text on moderated regression, Aguinis indicates that this is one potential solution to compensating for the excessively low power of moderation tests.

Examining Table 1 indicates that calling tended to correlate with the outcome variables at the p = .01 level with the exception of continuance commitment. Examining the hierarchical regression results indicated a similar pattern in which there was a main effect of calling on all criteria except continuance commitment and also performance (where the p value was < .02 but above the .01 threshold).

Our moderation hypotheses were tested in the third step of the hierarchical regression analyses. Hypotheses 1 and 2 explored calling as a moderator between POQ and two types of turnover attitudes: intentions and desires. As can be seen in Table 2, while calling had a significant main effect on turnover intentions and desire to turnover, calling did not significantly moderate either of these variables as the inclusion of the interaction term in the third hierarchical model did not significantly change the model R ².

Similarly, while calling had a strong main effect on affective organization commitment, the data did not support Hypothesis 3 as calling did not moderate the relationship between POQ and affective organizational commitment. With respect to continuance commitment, calling did not have a significant main effect (Step 2 results in Table 2); however, the interaction term was significant using a p < .10 criterion. In order to interpret the interaction, values were chosen 1 SD above and below the mean for POQ and calling and the resulting regression relationships are plotted in Figure 1. As can be seen in the figure, as POQ increases, for those lower in calling, continuance commitment tends to decrease, while for those higher in calling, continuance commitment tends to increase. As Figure 1 suggests, levels of continuance commitment tended to remain higher for those with lower calling than for those with higher calling. As expected, the negative relationship between POQ and continuance organizational commitment is weaker when calling is higher.

Figure 1.

Two-way interaction effects for continuance commitment and performance.

Although both POQ and calling were positively related to job satisfaction, calling did not moderate the relationship (Hypothesis 5). As with our other criteria, the effect of calling was considerably stronger than that of POQ. The final hypothesis, exploring calling as a moderator between POQ and performance, was supported (see Table 2). This support for Hypothesis 6 emerged despite no significant main effect of POQ on performance. Figure 1 illustrates that as POQ increases, for those with higher calling, performance tends to decrease while for those with lower calling, performance tends to increase. Overall, however, those who report higher calling tend to have higher performance than those with lower levels of calling. It should be noted with both significant moderation findings that although the overall model accounted for considerable variance in the criteria, the variance attributable to the moderation was much more modest.

Discussion

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the moderating role of career calling orientation between POQ and important work outcomes. POQ is an emerging topic of interest (Erdogan et al., 2011) and its relation to calling has not previously received research attention. High POQ relates to a number of important outcomes, such as lower job satisfaction (Fine, 2007; Fine & Nevo, 2008; Johnson & Johnson, 2000a, 2000b; Johnson et al., 2002) and higher turnover intentions (Erdogan & Bauer, 2009; Maynard et al., 2006), so it is important to understand the variables, such as calling, that may alter one’s experiences at work. As with previous studies (Fine & Nevo, 2008; Maynard et al., 2006), POQ was related to turnover attitudes, affective commitment, and job satisfaction. Also, although POQ was not significantly correlated with continuance organizational commitment and performance, the interactions between POQ and calling were significant for both outcomes. Thus, these findings must be interpreted in light of those moderating relationships.

POQ-Outcome Relationships

In this study, POQ was negatively related to self-reported job satisfaction and affective commitment and positively related to turnover intentions and desire to turnover. These findings may be due to the desire of incumbents to seek challenge through work. The negative POQ-job satisfaction relationship is consistent with Fine and Nevo’s (2008) study, which revealed a negative relationship between job satisfaction and POQ among customer service representatives. The results provide further support for this relationship in a sample of employees from K–12 educational settings. Similarly, it appears that POQ may be related to negative emotional interpretations (affective organizational commitment) about one’s work organization and thus decreased desire to stay with the organization. This study provides evidence for a positive relationship between POQ and both turnover intentions and desire to turnover, implying that individuals who experience POQ may be more likely to leave the organization. Given this, it may be useful for organizations to consider adopting new practices to better utilize employees’ KSAOs and increase the perceived value of even low-level positions.

Calling as a Moderator

The relationships between POQ and both continuance commitment and performance were more complicated. POQ was not linearly related to either criterion on its own. However, significant interactions existed between POQ and calling for these variables. The results suggest that overall those with lower calling tended to have higher levels of continuance commitment than those who had higher calling. Employees who have lower levels of calling may remain at the organization out of necessity due to a lack of perceived alternative employment opportunities. Individuals with both lower calling and higher POQ may have a lower perceived cost of leaving the organization, which may occur due to an increased expectation regarding the existence of desirable alternatives. These alternatives may promise to better utilize KSAOs or offer more valuable rewards. Such work characteristics may be more highly valued by individuals not experiencing the motivation of a calling.

Alternatively, individuals with higher levels of calling may be in situations marked by higher POQ because of a lack of alternatives; specifically alternatives that simultaneously offer the highly valued experience of a calling as well as rewarding and challenging work environments. Therefore, a choice is made to stay in the position for which there is a calling, despite the experience of POQ. Continuance organizational commitment is typically conceptualized as involving a lack of choice; however, it seems likely that someone with higher calling orientation may experience continuance commitment because he or she could not pursue the highly valued calling elsewhere. It is also possible that those who experience POQ but are unable to leave their jobs may resolve associated dissonance by changing their interpretation of the work situation to that of a calling. Such individuals may search for meaning or purpose in their work as a way to adapt to their inflexible and undesirable work situations. We note, however, that the additional explained variance in both continuance commitment and performance due to the moderation was modest.

The finding that the POQ-performance relationship is moderated by calling also offers an important contribution to the literature. While some previous research has found POQ to be related to increased performance (Erdogan & Bauer, 2009; Fine & Nevo, 2008) others have found evidence of a negative relationship (Bolino & Feldman, 2000), leading to calls for additional research attention in order to fully understand this relationship (see Bolino & Feldman, 2000; Erdogan & Bauer, 2009; Fine & Nevo, 2008).

The findings of this study support the theories of Hall and Chandler (2005) in that overall those with a higher calling orientation report higher performance than those with lower calling. This main effect of calling on performance was presumably due to increased interest and dedication. We also found the highest levels of performance for those with both higher in calling and lower in POQ, which contributes a sense of fair matching between one’s self and the position. Alternatively, as levels of POQ increase for those with lower calling, performance increased. It is possible that individuals’ actual qualifications may be more than those required to do the job, improving their performance. It is important to note that our performance measure was a self-reported recall measure, so those who experience POQ may simply claim they are doing better than those who do not experience POQ.

Despite these promising findings for continuance commitment and performance, three of our moderation hypotheses were not supported. Specifically, there was no moderating effect of calling on the relationship between POQ and the following criteria: turnover intentions, desire to turnover, job satisfaction, and affective organizational commitment. These null results were found despite the strong theoretical rationale to suggest that moderation would be present. While it is tempting to blame the low power associated with tests of moderators, inspection of the p values associated with the regression interaction terms indicates that none of these moderating relationships approached significance. In examining the regression coefficients, it appears that the effects of career calling on these criteria were much stronger than the corresponding effects of POQ (see Table 2). In other words, the effects of calling on job satisfaction (β = .64) dwarf those of POQ (β = −.16) such that someone higher in calling will tend to experience higher job satisfaction to such an extent that POQ has little detriment to that higher level of satisfaction. Similar interpretations can be made for turnover and affective organizational commitment. For someone experiencing calling, POQ has little or no effect on these variables. Despite this, we expected POQ to have a negative association with these criteria for persons low in calling. The failure to find such an effect warrants further investigation, though our relatively restricted range on the calling variable may in part explain this null relationship. That is, most of our sample was well above the scale midpoint on the calling measures. As such, it is possible that relatively few respondents were low enough in calling for the effect of POQ to be manifest.

Implications

Theoretical implications

This study sheds light on three variables with limited previous research related to POQ: career calling, continuance commitment, and performance. These variables highlight the potential for theoretical advancement of POQ through the use of moderators. As has been described, while there was no significant relationship between POQ and continuance commitment, there was a significant interaction between POQ and calling in predicting continuance commitment, suggesting that such nonsignificant relationships cannot be discounted without considering additional variables. The relationship between POQ and continuance commitment is complex. Continuance commitment is unaffected by the psychological mechanisms leading to POQ (e.g., low KSAO usage and a lack of desirable status-related outcomes), possibly because continuance commitment is less of a subjective attitude or choice and more of an experience based on objective costs.

Also noteworthy was the lack of moderation for calling and POQ for turnover intentions, desire to turnover, job satisfaction, and affective organizational commitment. The finding of much stronger effects of calling on these variables than POQ suggests that experiencing a career calling decreases perceived costs, possibly because KSAO usage and status are of lesser importance under such psychological conditions, and employees stay with the organization because they want to stay, rather than because they have to stay. The experience of discrepancy, which links POQ to negative work outcomes, appears to be effectively mitigated in the presence of a calling. Additionally, our results suggest that the link between POQ and performance must be qualified by calling. While POQ may be connected to higher performance due to higher ability, not all people who experience POQ are actually overqualified. Therefore, only under certain psychological conditions can the link be made. These findings support the theories of Hall and Chandler (2005), which suggest that those who experience callings are better able to perform due to increased self-confidence, effort, and interest in pursuing challenging goals.

A major theoretical contribution of this study is the idea that calling changes interpretations of work in desirable ways, even in the presence of high POQ. Calling may decrease the negative affective reactions associated with underutilized KSAOs and also decrease concern associated with a lack of desirable status-related work outcomes. In other words, the psychological mechanisms through which POQ operates, in turn leading to negative work outcomes, are mitigated by the experience of a calling.

Organizational implications

There are a number of practical implications that can be drawn from the findings. First and most clearly, it is to an organization’s advantage to hire individuals who experience a calling orientation. However, in the event that there are no job candidates available who report being called to an available position, it may be strategic to hire overqualified individuals, as POQ is associated with higher performance than low POQ for those low in calling. Alternatively, hiring managers should consider that those with higher POQ also report lower affective commitment, satisfaction, and stronger turnover attitudes. Therefore, the duration of the employment opportunity and the goals of the hiring organization should also be taken into consideration. For short-term employees, where turnover is expected due to the nature of the position, hiring overqualified individuals is more advantageous. However, if the organization is more concerned with maintaining low turnover rates (e.g., high initial training costs) and better morale, it is more strategic to hire individuals who are not overqualified.

All of these implications are contingent upon practitioners being able to correctly discern the presence of a calling in potential job candidates. It is possible that educated interviewers may be able to probe for evidence of a calling orientation by asking pointed questions and detecting sincere enthusiasm. Questionnaires may be prone to faking. Shrewd measurement composition and assessment techniques may mitigate the disadvantages associated with using the subjective construct for decision making.

Finally, although callings are personal convictions, it may be to the organization’s advantage to foster a sense of purpose and meaning in the workplace. There may be benefits associated with highlighting increasing contact with consumers, philanthropic activities, and general appreciation for each employee’s contribution to the organization’s goals. Regular reminders of the organization’s mission and socially constructive goals, even if not closely linked with each employee’s day-to-day activities, may cultivate a sense of purpose that reaps some of the psychological benefits associated with the experience of a calling.

Limitations and Future Research

Like all studies, there were limitations. Measures were self-reported from a single source, introducing potential common method bias. Due to the personal, psychological nature of the hypotheses including calling, POQ, turnover intentions and desires, job satisfaction, and commitment, self-report measures are the only valid means to acquire such information. We also note that there were nonsignificant correlations among our self-report variables, implying that common methods variance was not a source of uniform upward bias among correlations. While performance would have ideally been collected using archival resources, the self-reported item was based on a frame-of-reference to one’s most recent performance evaluation. This method has been used effectively and validated in previous research by Schoorman and Mayer (2008), where the measure correlated at .88 with archival records.

Another potential limitation of this study is potential participant selection bias. Respondents were recruited through “cold” e-mails and participation was voluntary. It is possible that those who chose to respond to a random e-mail request may have had unique traits or characteristics, such as other orientation or an appreciation for research, which would moderate the relationships investigated. Additionally, the sample was comprised of individuals from a single affluent county. The demographic makeup of the sample of teachers, as well as the students they serve, could reduce the generalizability of findings to less privileged areas. Note that even if our sample is nonrandom or particular to a specific region, such effects are most likely to affect variable means. All of our analyses are based instead on correlations. We believe that even if the sample itself is nonrandom, there is no reason to believe the relationships among the psychological constructs would differ by sample, even if variable means did differ.

We also note that further work is needed to fully understand the extent to which our results generalize to other occupational settings. There may well be some undesirable occupations for which calling simply does not exist. We found that career calling has a large effect on vitally important variables such as turnover intentions, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. However, many questions remain related to how callings arise, how common they are, and whether callings are possible for all jobs. As an anonymous reviewer pointed out, it is unclear of the effects of a calling if someone is in a position not related to their calling, though we suspect that not pursing a calling would be detrimental to job attitudes and potential behaviors.

Summary

This study offers novel contributions to the POQ, calling, and careers literatures. We found that calling orientation tended to have considerably stronger relationships with our study variables than did POQ. We also found that calling moderated the relationship between POQ and performance. In doing so, we partially fulfill Erdogan and Bauer (2009)’s call for the exploration of potential moderating variables of POQ. The results suggest a more intricate relationship between POQ and performance than has previously been considered in the literature.

Footnotes

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to thank Miles Smaxwell for his contributions to the data collection.

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.

Funding

The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

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