Development intention of support staff in an academic organization in The Netherlands

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate which psychological determinants relate to the intention to participate in development activities. Psychological determinants such as attitude toward development activities, self‐efficacy, job satisfaction, organizational commitment and management support are related to the intention of support staff workers of a University Medical Centre in The Netherlands to participate in job‐related and/or career‐related development activities. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire study was conducted in a sample of support staff employees. By means of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), the study analyses the relationship between the two intentional orientations and a number of determinants. Findings – Analyses revealed that job satisfaction relates positively with the intention for job‐related development activities and negatively with career‐related activities. Surprisingly, there was no direct relation between management support and either of the two orientations of development intention. Furthermore, the study revealed that the respondents prefer development in their current job over career development to obtain other functions in the current or future organization. Research limitations/implications – Although it is a small‐scale study focused on one labour organization, the paper presents two independent developmental orientations and reveals their distinct relationships with job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Practical implications – The paper argues that a better fit between HRD strategies and manager‐employee dialogue may encourage the influence of managers on development intention. Originality/value – The paper discusses two independent developmental orientations and their distinct relationships with psychological determinants.