Beyond situational constraints: Job resources inadequacy and individual performance at work

Recent theory suggests that individual performance at work is influenced not only by individual effort and ability, but also by situational constraints. Focusing upon job resources inadequacy as a specific situational constraint, we develop a typology of job resources and propose a framework by which to assess the inadequacy of job resources. On the basis of this framework, we argue that job resources inadequacy not only mediates the link between individual effort and ability (on the one hand) and individual performance (on the other), but also has a more direct impact on both effort and ability. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of this model with regard to goal setting, employee development, and performance appraisal.