Causal attributions for turnover by supervisory and nonsupervisory personnel

In the present study we examined the causal attributions for turnover of employees by supervisory and nonsupervisory employees. It was hypothesized that only among non-supervisors but not among supervisors, causes of turnover will be related to the respondents’ own job attitudes. Supervisors (N = 107) and nonsupervisors (N = 155) rated the extent of their agreement which each of the following 2 reasons for employee turnover: dissatisfaction with their work; external causes such as family matters. In addition, participants’ attitudes and commitment toward their organization were measured. Contrary to expectations, causal attributions of both supervisory and non-supervisory respondents were found to be related to their job attitudes in that those who were less satisfied tended more to attribute turnover to dissatisfaction of the leaver. Findings are discussed and compared to those of Mowday (1981), and implications for supervisory management in organizations are suggested.