A multigroup SEM analysis of moderating role of task uncertainty on budgetary participation-performance relationship: Evidence from Korea

Abstract This study examines the effects of motivational and cognitive factors of budgetary participation on performance concurrently under different conditions of task uncertainty. Drawing upon prior literature, goal acceptance and job-relevant information were identified as mediators conveying the motivational and cognitive influence of participation to performance, while task uncertainty as a moderator conditioning such mediated relationships. Multigroup structural equation modeling on survey data collected from 229 Korean managers revealed that the motivational and cognitive effects of participation on performance vary significantly between high and low task uncertainty conditions. When there was low task uncertainty, the motivational factor was more important than the cognitive factor in determining performance. When there was high task uncertainty, however, both motivational and cognitive factors were important determinants of performance. In addition, the intervening role of these two factors, in general, appeared more significant under high than low task uncertainty conditions.