New employee orientation, role-related stressors and conflict at work: Consequences for work attitudes and performance of hospitality employees

•Effective new employee orientation reduces role ambiguity and role conflict in employees.•Hindrance stressors are negatively related to job attitudes and performance.•Role ambiguity is negatively related to task performance.•Role conflict predicts job attitudes; this relationship is fully mediated by relationship conflict.•Results are based on a survey of 156 hospitality interns with a longitudinal component. Combining role theory with theories on hindrance stressors and intragroup conflict, we develop a model of the attitudinal and behavioral consequences of new employee orientation in hospitality organizations. We test hypotheses about main and mediated effects in this model, using data from a sample of 156 recently hired hospitality interns and applying a longitudinal approach, with data collection shortly after organizational entry and several months later. Results suggest that employee orientation is negatively related to two hindrance stressors: role ambiguity and role conflict. Role ambiguity predicts a range of attitudinal outcomes and the relationship is partially mediated by relationship conflict. In addition, role ambiguity is negatively related to task performance. Role conflict predicts hospitality employees’ job attitudes and this relationship is fully mediated by relationship conflict. We discuss important theoretical and practical implications of these findings for human resource management in hospitality firms.