Relationship of core self-evaluations to goal setting, motivation, and performance.

TLDR

Core self‑evaluations combine self‑esteem, locus of control, self‑efficacy, and neuroticism into a single broad personality trait. The study aimed to test whether core self‑evaluations predict motivation and performance. Three studies were conducted to examine the relationship between core self‑evaluations and motivation, performance, and goal‑setting. Across all studies, core self‑evaluations emerged as a single higher‑order factor that predicted task motivation, performance, goal‑setting, productivity, and overall job behavior better than the individual traits alone.

Abstract

A newly developed personality taxonomy suggests that self-esteem, locus of control, generalized self-efficacy, and neuroticism form a broad personality trait termed core self-evaluations. The authors hypothesized that this broad trait is related to motivation and performance. To test this hypothesis, 3 studies were conducted. Study 1 showed that the 4 dispositions loaded on 1 higher order factor. Study 2 demonstrated that the higher order trait was related to task motivation and performance in a laboratory setting. Study 3 showed that the core trait was related to task activity, productivity as measured by sales volume, and the rated performance of insurance agents. Results also revealed that the core self-evaluations trait was related to goal-setting behavior. In addition, when the 4 core traits were investigated as 1 nomological network, they proved to be more consistent predictors of job behaviors than when used in isolation.