Job Characteristic Beliefs and Personality as Antecedents of Subjective Person–Job Fit

Theory and research on Person–Environment (P–E) fit tend to focus on the outcomes of fit, while antecedents have received less attention. Two antecedents of individuals’ subjective Person–Job (P–J) fit are studied: personality and job characteristic beliefs (JCBs). In a framework similar to work on objective fit, the interaction of these person and environment variables is hypothesized to predict subjective P–J fit. The hypotheses are studied with customer service job scenarios that varied in the nature of employee-customer contact. Two studies found significant interactions between personality and JCBs in predicting subjective P–J fit. Implications and directions for research are discussed.