5139.0: Wednesday, November 15, 2000 - Board 4

Abstract #12348

Contextual factors affecting job attitudes and perceptions of care in Community Mental Health Centers undergoing system changes in the delivery of care

Anne Morris, PhD and Joan R. Bloom, PhD. Center for Mental Health Services Research, University of California, Berkeley, 2020 Milvia Street, Suite 405 MC5610, Berkeley, CA 94720, 415-346-1794, amorris@uclink4.berkeley.edu

This study examines the relationship between contextual factors and job satisfaction and organizational commitment among a sample of 183 administrators and staff in 17 Community Mental Health Centers (CMHCs) undergoing the transition from fee for service (FFS) reimbursement to capitation of Medicaid-funded mental health services in Colorado. The data presented here are part of a ongoing comprehensive statewide evaluation of capitation in Medicaid financing of mental health care. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to assess both organizational level factors as well as factors at the individual level of analysis in relation to job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Results indicated significant associations between type of financing for Medicaid-funded services and job attitudes, with both non-profit and for-profit capitation positively linked to job satisfaction and organizational commitment, relative to traditional fee-for-service (FFS) reimbursement. Aggregate perceptions of organizational culture and climate were strongly linked to organizational commitment, but were unrelated to job satisfaction, which appeared to be more closely related to individual factors. These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for policy, research and intervention in mental health service settings.

Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will learn more about how sytem changes, such as capitation, affect administrators and staff within organizations. 2. Participants will learn more about methods in organizational research

Keywords: Mental Health Services, Mental Health System

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

The 128th Annual Meeting of APHA