Does affective disposition moderate the relationship between job satisfaction and voluntary turnover?

J. Weitz (1952) argued that job dissatisfaction would be more predictive of turnover if it was considered in light of an individual's predisposition to be satisfied with everyday life events. In the present study it was hypothesized that affective disposition moderates the relationship between job satisfaction and voluntary turnover. With data collected from a sample of nurses, support was indicated for the hypothesis. The more positive the disposition of the individual, the stronger the relationship that was observed between job dissatisfaction and turnover. Furthermore, individuals dissatisfied with their jobs but positively disposed to life in general were the individuals most likely to quit. Implications of the results for future research and practice are discussed. Empirical work over the years has clearly established the significant role of job satisfaction in predicting turnover. Carsten and Spector (1987), in a meta-analysis of 47 studies, estimated a corrected correlation between job satisfaction and turnover of-.26 (the 95% confidence interval did not include 0). Because sampling error accounted for only 21 % of the variance in correlations across studies, the authors concluded that room for significant moderator effects existed. In fact, Carsten and Spector found that alternative employment opportunities moderated the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover. On the basis of Carsten and Specter's findings, the potential exists that other variables interact with job satisfaction in predicting turnover. Given the importance of turnover decisions to individuals and organizations (Dalton & Todor, 1979; Mobley, 1982; Staw, 1980), it is surprising that more research concerning potential moderators of the job satisfaction-turnover relationship has not been conducted.