Skip to main content

How organizations promote person-environment fit: using the case of japanese firms to illustrate institutional and cultural influences

Asia Pacific Journal of Management volume 23, pages 47–69 (2006)Cite this article

Abstract

The majority of person-environment (P-E) fit studies have been conducted in the Western context and little is known about the process through which organizations promote P-E fit. In this paper, I illustrate how Japanese organizations promote multiple types of P-E fit through their human resource practices. I also develop conceptual models in which promoting P-E fit in Japanese firms is contrasted with that of U.S. firms. The case and models suggest that institutional and cultural contexts affect the way organizations promote P-E fit. Future research directions for a better understanding of P-E fit management especially in the Asia-Pacific region are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

References

  • Abegglen, J. C. 1958. The Japanese factory: Aspects of its social organization. Chicago: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adkins, C. L., Russell, C. J., & Werbel, J. D. 1994. Judgments of fit in the selection process: The role of work value congruence. Personnel Psychology, 47: 605–623.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adkins, C. L., Ravlin, E. C., & Meglino, B. M. 1996. Value congruence between co-workers and its relationship to work outcomes. Group and Organizational Management, 21: 439–460.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aoki, M. 1988. Information, incentives and bargaining in the Japanese economy. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Argyris, C. 1957. Some problems in conceptualizing organizational climate: A case study of a bank. Administrative Science Quarterly, 2: 501–520.

    Google Scholar 

  • Becker, G. S. 1964. Human Capital. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bhappu, A. D. 2000. The Japanese family: An institutional logic for Japanese corporate networks and Japanese management. Academy of Management Review, 25: 409–415.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boxx, W. R., Odom, R. Y., & Dunn, M. G. 1991. Organizational values and value congruency and their impact on satisfaction, commitment, and cohesion. Public Personnel Management, 20: 195–205.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bretz, R. D., & Judge, T. A. 1994. Person-organization fit and the theory of work adjustment: Implications for satisfaction, tenure, and career success. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 44: 32–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cable, D. M., & DeRue, D. S. 2002. The convergent and discriminant validity of subjective fit perceptions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87: 875–884.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cable, D. M., & Judge, T. A. 1996. Person-organization fit, job choice decisions, and organizational entry. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision processes, 67: 294–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cable, D. M., & Parsons, C. K. 2001. Socialization tactics and person-organization fit. Personnel Psychology, 54: 1–23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chatman, J. A. 1989. Improving interactional organizational research: A model of person-organization fit. Academy of Management Journal, 14: 333–349.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chatman, J. A. 1991. Matching people and organizations: Selection and socialization in public accounting firms. Administrative Science Quarterly, 36: 459–484.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clegg, S., & Kono, T. 2002. Trends in Japanese management: An overview of embedded continuities and disembedded discontinuities. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 19: 269–285.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Downey, H. K., Hellriegel, D., & Slocum, J. W. Jr. 1975. Congruence between individual needs, organizational climate, job satisfaction and performance. Academy of Management Journal, 18: 149–155.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dore, R. 1987. Taking Japan seriously. London: Athlone Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, J. R. 1991. Person-job fit: A conceptual integration, literature review, and methodological critique. In C. L. Cooper & I. T. Robertson (Eds.), International review of industrial and organizational psychology, vol. 6: 283–357. New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fujiwara, M. 1993. Hiring and staffing. In M. Tsuda (ed.), Personnel management: 107–120. Tokyo: Minerva Publishing (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Goodman, S. A., Svyantek, D. J. 1999. Person-organization fit and contextual performance: Do shared values matter. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 55: 254–275.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harbison F. & Myers, C. (Eds.). 1959. Management in the industrialized world. New York: McGraw Hill.

  • Heenan D. A., & Perlimutter, H. V. 1979. Multinational organization development. Reading, MA: Addision-Westley Longman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G. 1980. Culture's consequences: International differences in work-related values. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G. 1991. Cultures and organizations: Intercultural cooperation and its importance for survival. New York: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holland, J. L. 1985. Making vocational choices. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Huo, Y. P., Huang, H. J., & Napier, N. K. 2002. Divergence or convergence: a cross-national comparison of personnel selection practices. Human Resource Management, 41: 31–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ichniowski, C., & Shaw, K. 1999. The effects of human resource management systems on economic performance: An international comparison of U.S. and Japanese plants. Management Science, 45: 704–721.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ito, H. 1994. Japanese human resource management from the viewpoint of incentive theory. In M. Aoki & R. Dore (Eds.), The Japanese firm: The source of competitive strength: 233–264. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (JFEO). 1997. Survey on the change in corporate staffing and training practices. Tokyo: Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Japan Institute of Labor. 2000. College recruitment and human resource management in transition. JIL Research Report, No. 128. Tokyo: Japan Institute of Labor (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Japan Productivity Center for Socio-Economic Development (JPC-SED). 2002. Survey on the recruitment of fresh school graduates. Tokyo: JPC-SED (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Japan Productivity Center for Socio-Economic Development (JPC-SED). 2003. Survey on the transformation of Japanese human resource management. Tokyo: JPC-SED (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Judge, T. A., & Bretz, R. D. 1992. Effects of work values on job choice decisions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 77: 261–271.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kanai, T., Suzuki, R., & Matsuoka, K. 1998. Career Development and Individual-Organization Relationship. The Monthly Journal of the Japan Institute of Labor, 40(5): 13–26 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Koike, K. 1988. Understanding industrial relations in modern Japan. London: Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koike, K. 1992. Human resource development and labor-management relations. In K. Yamamura and Y. Yasuba (Eds.), The political economy of Japan, vol. 1: The domestic transformation: 289–330. Stanford: Stanford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koike, K. 1993a. Human resource development among college graduates in sales and marketing. In K. Koike (ed.), An International comparison of professionals and managers: JIL report No. 2: 42–64. Tokyo: Japan Institute of Labor.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koike, K. 1993b. White-collar employees in the U.S. Tokyo: Toyo Keizai Shimposha (In Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Kristof, A. L. 1996. Person-organization fit: An integrative review of its conceptualizations, measurement, and implications. Personnel Psychology, 49: 1–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kristof-Brown, A. L. 2000. Perceived applicant fit: Distinguishing between recruiters' perceptions of person-job and person-organization fit. Personnel Psychology, 53: 643–671.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kristof-Brown, A. L., Bono, J. E., & Lauver, K. J. 1999. Learning to fit in: How socialization affects perceived and actual person-environment fit. Paper presented at the 14th Annual Conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Atlanta, GA.

  • Kristof-Brown, A. L., Jansen, K. J., & Colbert, A. 2002. A policy-capturing study of the simultaneous effects of fit with jobs, groups, and organizations. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87: 985–993.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kristof-Brown, A. L., & Stevens, C. K. 2001. Goal congruence in project teams: Does the fit between members' personal mastery and performance goals matter? Journal of Applied Psychology, 86: 1083–1095.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lauver, K. J., & Kristof-Brown, A. 2001. Distinguishing between employees' perceptions of person-job and person-organization fit. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 59: 454–470.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lewin, K. 1951. Field theory in social science. New York: Harper & Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, J. R., & Hamada, M., & McBride, K. 1986. Organizational structures in Japanese and U.S. Manufacturing. Administrative Science Quarterly, 31: 338–364.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, J. R., & Kalleberg, A. L. 1990. Culture, control, and commitment: A study of work organization and work attitudes in the U.S. and Japan. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, J. R., & Nakata, Y. 1997. The transformation of the Japanese employment system. Work and Organizations, 24: 33–55.

    Google Scholar 

  • McDaniel, W. A., Whetzel, D. L., Schmidt, F. L., & Maurer, S. D. 1994. The validity of employment interviews: A comprehensive review and meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 79: 599–616.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milliman, J., Nason, S., Zhu, C., & Cieri, H. D. 2002. An exploratory assessment of the purposes of performance appraisals in North and Central America and the Pacific Rim. Human Resource Management, 41: 87–102.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. 2001. Survey on employment management. Tokyo: Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Morishima, M. 1995. The Japanese human resource management: A learning bureaucracy. In L. F. Moore & P. D. Jennings (eds.). Human resource management on the pacific rim: institutions, practices, and attitudes: 119–150. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morishima, M. 1996. Renegotiating psychological contracts: Japanese style. In C. L. Cooper & D. M. Rousseau (eds.), Trends in organizational behavior, vol. 3: 139–158. Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morishima, M. 2002. Pay practices in Japanese organizations: Changes and non-changes. Japan Labor Bulletin, 41(4): 8–13.

    Google Scholar 

  • Muchinsky, P. M., & Monahan, C. J. 1987. What is person-environment congruence? Supplementary versus complementary models of fit. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 31: 268–277.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nakamura, M. 1993. Career structure of college graduates in Japanese Manufacturing. In K. Koike (ed.), An international comparison of professionals and managers: JIL report, No. 2: 67–85. Tokyo: Japan Institute of Labor.

  • OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development). 1973. Manpower Policy in Japan. Paris: OECD.

    Google Scholar 

  • O'Reilly, C. A., & Chatman, J. 1986. Organization commitment and psychological attachment: The effects of compliance, identification and internalization on prosocial behavior. Journal of Applied Psychology, 71: 492–499.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O'Reilly, C. A., Chatman, J., & Caldwell, D. F. 1991. People and organizational culture: A profile comparison approach to assessing person-organization fit. Academy of Management Journal, 34: 487–516.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ornatowski, G. K. 1998. The end of Japanese-style human resource management? Sloan Management Review, 39(3): 73–83.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oyserman, D., Coon, H. M., & Kemmelmeier, M. 2002. Rethinking individualism and collectivism: evaluation of theoretical assumptions and meta-analyses. Psychological Bulletin, 128: 3–72.

    Google Scholar 

  • Posner, B. Z. 1992. Person-organization values congruence: No support for individual differences as a moderating influence. Human Relations, 45: 351–361.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Posner, B. Z., Kouzes, J. M., & Schmidt, W. H. 1985. Shared values make a difference: An empirical test of corporate culture. Human Resource Management, 24: 293–309.

    Google Scholar 

  • Powell, G. N. 1998. Reinforcing and extending today's organizations: The simultaneous pursuit of person-organization fit and diversity. Organizational Dynamics, 26(3): 50–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robinson, P. A. 2003. The embeddedness of Japanese HRM practices: The case of recruiting. Human Resource Management Review, 13: 439–415.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rowley, C. (Ed.). 1998. Human resource management in the Asia Pacific region: Convergence questioned. London: Frank Cass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rowley, C., & Bensonm J. 2000. Convergence and divergence in Asian human resource management. California Management Review, 44(2): 89–109.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rynes, S. L., & Gerhart, B. 1990. Interviewer assessments of applicant “fit”: An exploratory investigation. Personnel Psychology, 43: 13–35.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saks, A. M., & Ashforth, B. E. 1997. A longitudinal investigation of the relationships between job information sources, applicant perceptions of fit, and work outcomes. Personnel Psychology, 50: 395–426.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sato, H. 1997. Human resource management systems in large Japanese firms. In H. Sato & M. Sako (eds.), Japanese labour and management in transition: Diversity, flexibility and participation: 104–130. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sato, H. 2001. The Japan, Germany, and the U.S. comparison of career and skills development. In K. Koike and T. Inoki (eds.), The development of white-collar employees: 249–267. Tokyo: Toyo Keizai Shimposha (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

  • Sato, H., et al. 2001. Promotion and staffing of white-collar college graduates and the role of HR departments. JIL Research Report, No. 111. Tokyo: Japan Institute of Labor (in Japanese).

  • Schneider, B. 1987. The people make the place. Personnel Psychology, 40: 437–454.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sekiguchi, T. 2003. A contingency perspective on the importance of P-J fit and P-O fit in employee selection. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of Academy of Management, Seattle, WA.

  • Statistics Bureau. 2002. Labor force survey 2002. Tokyo: Statistics Bureau, Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Triandis, H. C. 1995. Individualism and collectivism. Boulder, CO: Westview.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tom, V. R. 1971. The role of personality and organizational images in the recruiting process. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 6: 573–592.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turban, D. B., Lau, C. M., Ngo, N. Y., Chow, I. H. S., & Si, S. 2001. Organizational attractiveness of firms in the People's Republic of China: A person-organization fit perspective. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86: 194–206.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tziner, A. 1987. Congruency issue retested using Fineman's achievement climate notion. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 2: 63–78.

    Google Scholar 

  • Umetani, S. 1995. Enterprise Training in Japan: A Summary of Findings. In Japan Institute of Labor (Ed.). Study on company training and productivity. JIL Research Report, No. 81. Tokyo: Japan Institute of Labor (in Japanese).

  • Vancouver, J. B., Millsap, R. E., & Peters P. A. 1994. Multilevel analysis of organizational goal congruence. Journal of Applied Psychology, 79: 666–679.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vancouver J. B., & Schmitt, N. W. 1991. An exploratory examination of person-organization fit: Organizational goal congruence. Personnel Psychology, 44: 333–352.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Vianen, A. E. M. 2000. Person-organization fit: The match between newcomers' and recruiters' perceptions for organizational cultures. Personnel Psychology, 53: 113–149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wakabayashi, M. and Graen, G. 1989. Human resource development of Japanese Manufacturers: Leadership and career investment. In A. Nedd, G. R. Ferris, and K. M. Rowland (eds.), Research in personnel and human resource management, Suppl. 1: 235–256. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Walsh, W. B. 1987. Person-environment congruence: A response to the Moos perspective. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 31: 347–352.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Warner, M. 2000. Introduction: the Asia-Pacific HRM model revisited. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 11: 171–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Werbel, J. D., & Gilliland, S. W. 1999. Person-environment fit in the selection process. In Ferris G. R. (Ed.), Research in personnel and human resource management, vol. 17: 209–243. Stamford, CT: JAI Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Werbel, J. D., & Johnson, D. J. 2001. The use of person-group fit for employment selection: A missing link in person-environment fit. Human Resource Management, 40: 227–240.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitley, R. 1992. Business systems in East Asia: Firms, markets and society. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yashiro, A. 1992. The organization and function of personnel departments in large Japanese companies. The Studies of the Japan Institute of Labor, 4: 13–24 (in Japanese).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Business Administration, Osaka University of Economics, 2-2-8, Osumi, Higashiyodogawa-ku, Osaka, 533-8533

    Tomoki Sekiguchi

Authors
  1. Tomoki Sekiguchi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tomoki Sekiguchi.

Additional information

An early version of this manuscript was presented at the Asia Academy of Management Professional Development Workshop, Academy of Management Meeting, Seattle, August 2003.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Sekiguchi, T. How organizations promote person-environment fit: using the case of japanese firms to illustrate institutional and cultural influences. Asia Pacific J Manage 23, 47–69 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-006-6115-y

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-006-6115-y

Keywords

  • Person-environment fit
  • Japanese HRM
  • International
  • Cross-cultural