Leveraging Spirituality and Religion in European For-profit-organizations: a Systematic Review

Lydia Maidl,Ann-Kathrin Seemann,Harald Gündel,Eckhard Frick,Piret Paal

doi:10.1007/s41463-021-00110-4

Abstract

This systematic review synthesises the available evidence regarding the European understanding of workplace spirituality (definitions), the importance of spirituality and religion (evidence) as well as spiritual leadership (meaning and practice) in for-profitorganizations. The search for eligible studies was conducted in OPAC Plus, SCOPUS, Science Direct, JSTOR, EBSCO, and Google Scholar from 2007/01 to 2017/07. Three independent scholars extracted the data. Twenty studies were included (two mixed-methods, eight quantitative, ten qualitative) for the final quality assessment. A study quality assessment and thematic analysis was conducted. This review gives suggestions for study quality improvement and reporting. Thematically, two different approaches to religion and spirituality (R/S) were detected: a) work has a spiritual dimension and b) religious and spiritual orientation as “spiritual capital”. Studies demonstrated positive effect on job satisfaction, health, commitment, company productivity and sustainability; Christian leadership does not address personal religious orientation; the spiritual dimension may lead to a change of perspective; workplace spirituality may exploit people for profit-oriented business goals; non-white Muslims experience discrimination. This systematic review provides robust evidence and findings for evidence-informed policymaking and encourages a more rigorous research in this field of study.

Highlights

Studying workplace spirituality is an open field of research that examines spiritual and religious orientation(s) at different levels, such as individual, organizational and societal, and analyses its consequences for educational, managerial and marketing purposes
The major findings of the research show two different approaches to religion and spirituality (R/S) in the workplace: (a) Work as a form of self-development and world formation, and, in the broader sense, having spiritual dimensions when associated with the search for meaning and the transcending of oneself. (b) How religious and spiritual orientation becomes allied to the workplace and corporate culture in the form of “spiritual capital”
The studies show that taking these aspects into account has a positive effect on job satisfaction, health and affective and normative commitment of employees, thereby promoting company productivity and sustainability

Summary

Introduction

Studying workplace spirituality is an open field of research that examines spiritual and religious orientation(s) at different levels, such as individual, organizational and societal, and analyses its consequences for educational, managerial and marketing purposes. The evidence demonstrates that to succeed and improve, all profit-oriented organizations must constantly be on the lookout for values and norms that support sustainable human resource management, advance the image of the organization (branding) and help to produce products that are in compliance with societal norms and consumer values. Current leadership and Human Resource Management (HRM) research is constantly searching for solutions supporting the growth of emotional, spiritual, cultural, intentional and appreciative intelligence in leaders and decision-makers (Martin and Hafer 2009; Šilingienė and Škėrienė 2015; Parkkali et al 2015; Rosenauer et al 2016; Kaufmann and Gaeckler 2015; Kaufmann and Wagner 2017). The ongoing discussions call for a turn in management styles, in particular, when facing the challenge of HRM in the workplace

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion