Does popularity at work matter? Examining the effects on career satisfaction through self-evaluation and abilities

Much research has been conducted on the effect of popularity among children and adolescents, but the popularity of adults at work has received little attention. I investigated the effects of employees’ popularity on their career satisfaction, and, in regard to this relationship, the roles of employees’ knowledge, skill, and abilities (KSA) as moderators, and of their core self-evaluations as a mediator. Participants were 219 supervisor–subordinate dyads employed by 32 enterprises in China. Multiple regression analysis of the data showed that the employees’ popularity was positively related to their career satisfaction. Their KSA level moderated this relationship, so that, among employees with less KSA, popularity had a stronger effect on their career satisfaction than among those with more KSA. Employees’ core self-evaluations fully mediated the moderating effect of KSA on the relationship between popularity and career satisfaction. The findings suggest that if employees can increase their popularity, this is an effective way to improve their career satisfaction, especially for those who are low in KSA. Improvement of employees’ core self-evaluations may also directly enhance their career satisfaction.