Commentary: Insightful Observations for Managing Change Efforts

• Author: Christopher D. Lee
• Published date: 01 September 2013
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/puar.12112
• Date: 01 September 2013

Insightful Observations for Managing Change Efforts 747

Christopher D. Lee

Virginia Community College System

Insightful Observations for Managing Change Ef‌f orts

The conclusions drawn from the article

“Motivated to Adapt?  e Role of Public

Service Motivation as Employees Face

Organizational Change,” by Bradley E. Wright,

Robert K. Christensen, and Kimberley Roussin Isett,

raise some exciting possibilities for both practitioners

and researchers. Researchers might be eager to rep-

licate the study with dif‌f erent populations to extend

the authors’ line of inquiry. Practitioners will f‌i nd an

additional tool by which to better lead austerity-based

changes.  e authors conclude that individuals give

less resistance to change when they are high on one

dimension of motivation—self-sacrif‌i ce.  is comple-

ments existing research showing that both the context

and the implementation of change matter. While the

authors posit a limited interpretation of the results,

there may be cause for a more exuberant response to

their f‌i ndings when interpreted more broadly.

Previous research has shown that public service motiva-

tion (PSM) is correlated with commitment to change,

especially when changes are positive and consistent

with one’s value system.  erefore, when change could

conceivably improve public services or better serve the

greater good, many employees might be more support-

ive. By testing these ideas in a cost-cutting or unpleasant

situation that had the potential to negatively impact

individuals, PSM was investigated at a deeper level.  e

authors challenge the assumption that people will only

support things that are in their perceived self-interest as

opposed to things that might af‌f ect them badly.

 e results provide some valuable insight into the

general notion that individuals are less supportive of

things that af‌f ect them negatively. While PSM did not

increase one’s support of adversity-based changes, it

did show a correlation with less resistance to change.

 is may be a keen insight into human behavior, and

it is particularly important for practitioners like me.

 e authors caution readers not to emphasize the

impact of personal characteristics in the response to

Public Administration Review,

Vol. 73, Iss. 5, pp. 747–748. © 2013 by

The American Society for Public Administration.

DOI: 10.1111/puar.12112.

Christopher D. Lee is associate vice

chancellor for human resources for the

Virginia Community College System.

Previously, he served as chief human

resources off‌i cer for a community college

and a state university in the University

System of Georgia and a private liberal arts

college in Maine. He is a former question

writer for the PHR and SPHR examinations

administered by the Human Resources

Certif‌i cation Institute.

E-mail: clee@vccs.edu

Commentary