ABSTRACT
A prime reason for the attention that turnover receives is that it can have detrimental effects on organizations. The chapter upholds such concerns by revealing ample evidence attesting to such negative effects, though identifying conditions ameliorating those effects as well as turnover-rate ranges where negative effects dissipate. Moving beyond this traditional preoccupation, the chapter discusses how collective turnover can yield positive organizational consequences, such as turnover among marginal performers and infusion of new knowledge and technology by new replacements for leavers. Although often overlooked, the chapter also reviews how individual-level turnover can yield positive (e.g., acquiring a better-fitting job, relocating to more desirable communities) or negative (e.g., transition stress in new job, disruption of spousal careers by moving) consequences for leavers. Finally, turnover may also disadvantage stayers (as they lose friends or feel cognitive dissonance for staying in a disagreeable job) or may prove beneficial (e.g., develop a unique identity when people with whom they form strong relational identities exit).
