THE INFLUENCE OF PERSON – JOB FIT ON INTENTION TO LEAVE AMONG MEDICAL WORKERS OF MULAGO NATIONAL REFERRAL HOSPITAL, UGANDA

Abstract

This study aimed at establishing the influence of person – job fit on intention to leave
among medical workers of Mulago National Referral Hospital in Uganda. The review of
literature revealed that many studies had been conducted on person – job fit and intention
to leave. However, most of these studies have focused on the nature of fit perceptions,
person – organisation fit and intention to leave the organisation, in which the organisation
has been the unit of analysis and not the individual. These studies did not explain fully the
influence of person – job fit on employee intention to leave which created a gap that this
study sought to address. Hypothesis was formulated to the research the question. The study
adopted a cross sectional descriptive survey design. A population of 1,007 was used for the
study and a sample of 475 medical workers including Director, Deputy Director, Senior
Consultant, Consultant, Medical Officer, Nurses and Other Allied workers was used. A
structured questionnaire with likert type statements was used for data collection. The study
used both descriptive and inferential statistics for data analysis. The findings of the study
indicate a positive relationship between person – job fit and intention to leave and thus the
hypothesis that person – job fit influences intention to leave was confirmed. The results of
this study have contributed to the job characteristics theory which posits that job
characteristics are important determinants of work outcome and that they vary in their
contribution to intention to leave thus providing reference for further studies. It is
recommended that Mulago National Referral Hospital should improve the fit between
employees and their jobs and recognize the combination of antecedents of intention to
leave. The study had a limitation in using cross sectional survey method of data collection
which limits the ability to establish and prove causativeness and changes over time.
Key words: Person – Job Fit, Intention to Leave, Mulago National Referral Hospital, Uganda