Self-regulation: from goal orientation to job performance

Area of Science:

• Organizational Psychology
• Sales Management
• Behavioral Economics

Background:

• Job performance is crucial for organizational success.
• Understanding the drivers of sales performance is a key area of research.
• Goal orientation and self-regulation strategies are recognized factors influencing employee behavior and outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of different goal orientations on sales performance.
• To examine the mediating role of self-regulation tactics in the goal orientation-performance relationship.
• To identify other predictors of sales performance, such as social competence, proactive behavior, and emotional control.

Main Methods:

• A longitudinal field study was conducted with a sample of salespeople.
• Data on goal orientation, self-regulation tactics, social competence, proactive behavior, emotional control, and sales performance were collected over time.
• Statistical analyses were used to examine direct and indirect effects.

Main Results:

• Learning and performance-prove goal orientations positively predicted subsequent sales performance.
• Performance-avoid goal orientation negatively predicted sales performance.
• Self-regulation tactics mediated the relationship between learning/performance-prove goal orientations and sales performance.
• Social competence and proactive behavior directly and positively predicted sales performance.
• Emotional control negatively predicted sales performance.

Conclusions:

• Goal orientation significantly influences sales performance, with learning and performance-prove orientations being beneficial.
• Self-regulation tactics play a crucial mediating role, translating goal orientations into actual performance.
• Beyond goal orientation, social competence, proactive behavior, and emotional control are important determinants of sales success.