Effects of performance appraisal politics on job satisfaction and turnover intention

There is evidence that performance ratings are often manipulated for political purposes. The present study examined the effects of employees' perceptions of political motives in performance appraisal on their job satisfaction and intention to quit using survey data from an occupationally heterogeneous sample of white-collar employees (N = 127) from various organizations. Regression analysis results indicated that when employees perceived performance ratings to be manipulated because of raters' personal bias and intent to punish subordinates they expressed reduced job satisfaction that, in turn, led to greater intentions to quit their jobs. Manipulations of ratings for motivational purposes, however, had no effect on job satisfaction and turnover intention.