An Examination of Competing Versions of the Person-Environment Fit Approach to Stress.

This study examined two versions of the person-environment (P-E) fit approach to stress, one representing the fit between environmental supplies and employee values (S-V fit), and another the fit between environmental demands and employee abilities (D-A fit).Hypotheses based on three competing models derived from the P-E fit literature were tested with a procedure that overcomes problems with the measurement and analysis of fit.Results indicated that the relationships of S-V and D-A fit with strain combined aspects of the models with other relationships suggested by P-E fit theory and the organizational stress literature.Also, S-V fit was linked primarily to dissatisfaction and D-A fit to tension, but both versions were related to both forms of strain.