Workplace climate and satisfaction in sexual minority populations: An application of social cognitive career theory.

Abstract

Workplace sexual identity management has drawn increasing attention in the counseling psychology literature. Disclosing a sexual minority identity at work may lead to greater levels of work satisfaction, but it may also lead to occupational barriers (e.g., lack of advancement opportunities, interpersonal harassment) when disclosing in nonaffirming workplace environments. The present study used social-cognitive career theory (SCCT)'s self-management model with a sample of 214 American sexual minority employees recruited via Facebook to examine the adaptive nature of workplace sexual identity management and its resulting impact on work satisfaction. The present model employed path analysis to hypothesize more affirmative workplace environments lead to greater levels of identity disclosure through the mediating variables of disclosure self-efficacy and outcome expectations. Further, the model posited workplace climate moderates the relationship between sexual identity disclosure and work satisfaction such that work satisfaction increases in the presence of both an affirming workplace climate and employee's decision to self-disclose. Results largely supported all hypotheses and demonstrate continued use of SCCT's self-management model for examining sexual identity management while also highlighting the importance of both an affirming workplace climate and factors that influence an employee's decision to self-disclose. Specifically, the relationship between identity disclosure and work satisfaction was strongest in the presence of more affirming workplace environments. These findings provide support for inclusive workplace policies such as nondiscrimination ordinances in order to maximize sexual minority work satisfaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).