Antecedents Of Work Engagement Research Articles

Team behaviors as antecedents for team members' work engagement in interdisciplinary health care teams.

Due to the increasing complexity and diversity of work tasks in teams, teams need team members who are dedicated and energetic, both characteristics attributed to team members' work engagement. Especially in the domain of health care, high demands at work impact professionals' work engagement. Despite teams being the main work unit in this domain, team research on antecedents of work engagement has been neglected. The present study examines the role of team behaviors such as reflection activities in the relationships between demands at work and team members' work engagement. In doing so, the study aims to extend findings on team behaviors by considering cognitive and work-task related team behaviors as well as team behaviors that focus on emotional aspects. Data of 298 team members of 52 interdisciplinary teams of health and social care organizations which provide care and assistance were collected in this cross-sectional survey study. Relationships between team demands at work, team learning behaviors, dealing with emotions in the team and team members' work engagement were estimated in a mediation model using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results indicate that team members' work engagement is positively related to team learning behaviors and dealing with emotions in the team. Cognitive team demands at work such as the complexity of work tasks, were found to relate positively to team members' work engagement, while emotional team demands such as the amount of emotional labor at work had a negative relationship. Team learning behaviors and dealing with emotions in the team were found to mediate the relationship between team demands at work and team members' work engagement. Our results provide insights into the actual behavior of teams in the domain of health care, both on cognitive and emotional aspects, and the capability of team learning behaviors and dealing with emotions in the team to mediate the relationship between team demands at work and team members' work engagement. The findings encourage future researchers and practitioners to address cognitive, emotional and motivational components in team research to provide a better understanding of team conditions, team behavior and team outcomes.

Linking work engagement of emergency physicians to patient centricity in underdeveloped regions

Orientation: Health facilities in underdeveloped regions present their challenges in terms of research, especially regarding the work engagement (WE) of health workers, in this case, emergency physicians. Adjustments to existing research models are needed to obtain accurate responses. Patient centricity (PC) as a new term in healthcare is the estimated variable in this study.Research purpose: This study aimed to examine the relationship between the antecedents of WE and PC in emergency physicians who worked at hospitals in underdeveloped regions in Indonesia, incorporating WE as a mediator.Motivation for the study: Studies linking WE to PC have never been established. Furthermore, studies regarding WE have never been carried out in underdeveloped regions, and most of them are only limited to job resources as a benchmark.Research design/approach, and method: A quantitative survey was conducted through a purposive sampling technique to collect data from emergency physicians in hospitals in East Nusa Tenggara. There are 183 eligible respondents, whose responses were analysed through partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).Main findings: The direct link to WE was found to be predominated by physician autonomy and public service motivation. It was found that WE positively and significantly connected to PC. The PLS-predict resulted in large cross-validated redundancy for this model.Practical/managerial implications: This study has implications for policymakers and hospital management in developing personal and job resources in optimising PC through WE.Contribution/value-add: This study will show a new approach where WE can estimate PC, and this model can be replicated and tested in a larger population of physicians.

Work Engagement as a Moderating Factor between Positive Attitude toward Smart Working and Job and Life Satisfaction.

Attitude toward smart working reflects feelings of favorableness towards this object; attitudes influence intentions, which in turn guide behaviors. Recent research confirms the positive influence that attitude toward smart working has on expected usage of it. Despite a direct influence, other factors could interact in the context of opportunities for ICT usage for teleworkers; among these factors, work engagement stands out. In turn, work engagement influences the perception of job satisfaction and life satisfaction. Considering that literature suggests that among the antecedents of work engagement are attitudes, the present study analyzes the role of positive attitude towards smart working on work engagement, and consequently on job satisfaction and on life satisfaction, hypothesizing that work engagement could mediate between positive attitude towards smart working and job and life satisfaction. The participants were 342 workers (115 males and 227 females) in private and public organizations, aged 24 to 66 years. The results showed that a positive attitude towards smart working, along with work engagement as a mediator, positively influences job satisfaction and life satisfaction. This means that employers and human resources managers (HRM) can organize training sessions to enhance the positive attitude toward smart working and this can help workers feel more engaged and satisfied.

Knowledge Management and Job Performance of Business Studies Teachers: The Mediating Effect of Work Engagement

Considering the complex and multiple job performed by business studies teachers, there is need to examine the relationships between three dimensions of knowledge management (KM), three dimensions of work engagement (WE) and two components of job performance (JP). There is need also to examine the mediating effect of WE in the relationship between KM and JP of business studies teachers. A correlational design was used in the study and data were collected from 138 business studies teachers in public universities in Nigeria. The authors applied bivariate correlation, linear regression and path analysis via 5000 re-samples bootstrap method. The results showed that KM dimensions, i.e. knowledge acquisition, knowledge dissemination and responsiveness to knowledge significantly predict WE. It also showed that WE dimensions, i.e. cognitive engagement, emotional engagement and physical engagement significantly predict JP components, i.e. task and contextual performance. The results also showed that knowledge acquisition and knowledge dissemination significantly predict JP, while responsiveness to knowledge did not significantly predict JP. It also showed that WE did not mediate the relationship between KM and JP. The results suggest that knowledge acquisition and knowledge dissemination and responsiveness to knowledge are among the key antecedents of WE. The results also suggest that cognitive engagement, emotional engagement and physical engagement are among the key antecedents of JP. It also suggest that low WE will not bring about the relationship between KM and JP. The results will help stakeholders to understand the salient roles of KM and WE in Nigerian tertiary institutions and their salient roles as human resource management strategies that must be implemented optimally within all work processes. In turn, help tertiary institutions to compete with other organizations through improved performance of staff.

Antecedents of Work Engagement in the Public Sector: A Systematic Literature Review

This article systematically reviewed the body of literature concerning work engagement in public organizations, aiming to examine the antecedents of work engagement in the public sector. Web of Science and Scopus, two prominent journal databases, were utilized to identify relevant literature. Adopting the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach, a final of 48 articles were systematically analyzed as research samples. The review identified five main themes: organizational and team factors, perceived leadership, job-related experience, individual, and organizational intervention factors. Generally, most studies reviewed emphasized individual and job-design-related factors as antecedents of work engagement in the public sector. Only minimal emphasis has been placed on organizational intervention compared to the other factors. This study also found that most literature addressed a single or a few themes of work engagement antecedents instead of a comprehensive work engagement model comprising all related aspects. This systematic review ends with directions for future studies to aid future scholars.

Organizational learning, resilience and psychological empowerment as antecedents of work engagement during COVID-19

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the relationship between organizational learning (OL) and work engagement (WE) in the Middle East region amid the COVID-19 pandemic and to test the mediating role of employee resilience (ER) and psychological empowerment (PE) on this relationship.Design/methodology/approachThe sample size was 208 respondents working in the Middle East area during COVID-19. Hypotheses were tested using regression analysis with bootstrapping.FindingsThe findings indicate a significant positive impact of OL on WE. Moreover, both constructs – ER and WE – were identified as mediators for this relationship.Practical implicationsPractical implications within this study call for organizations to focus on promoting a learning culture in order to adapt and respond effectively to unprecedented external challenges.Originality/valueThe current study extends previous research and strengthens the antecedents of WE, namely, OL, ER and PE in the Middle East region while controlling for COVID-19 perceptions.

Perfectionistic Cognitions as Antecedents of Work Engagement: Personal Resources, Personal Demands, or Both?

Whereas personal resources have been established as a counterpart to external job resources in the Job Demands–Resources Theory, personal demands as a counterpart to job demands have been rather neglected. In this study, we propose that multidimensional perfectionism—in the form of daily perfectionistic cognitions—is a relevant personal characteristic for predicting daily work engagement in addition to and in its interplay with daily time pressure as a common job demand. 157 employees participated in a daily diary study for 15 workdays. As hypothesized, multilevel regression analyses yielded a positive unique effect of perfectionistic strivings cognitions and a negative unique effect of perfectionistic concerns cognitions on daily work engagement. Furthermore, we found that both unique perfectionistic strivings cognitions and perfectionistic concerns cognitions moderated a quadratic relationship between daily time pressure and daily work engagement. Building on the Job Demands–Resources Theory, we propose that the dimension of perfectionistic strivings constitutes a personal resource and the dimension of perfectionistic concerns constitutes a personal demand in the prediction of work engagement.

Work Engagement in Nursing: A concept Analysis

Work engagement is ongoing challenge among nurse leaders, including health care systems, to keep nurses engaged. Conceptual clarity about work engagement gives empirical direction for future research and a theoretical underpinning for the myriad studies about nurses and their work environment. Purpose: The present study was conducted with the aim of clarifying and defining the concept of work engagement, its attributes, antecedents, and consequences. Methods: In this study, the steps of concept analysis were as follows: Select a concept, determine the aims of the analysis, identify various definitions of the concept, determine the concept attributes and identify the antecedents and consequences. All studies between the years 2010 and 2019 were reviewed.  For purposes of this concept analysis, PubMed, Google search engines, Ovid, and ProQuest, were scanned and searched using the keywords. Conclusion: Work engagement is a positive, fulfilling state of mind about work that is characterized by vigor, dedication and absorption. Trust (managerially, organizationally and collegially) and autonomy are the antecedents of work engagement. The outcomes of nurses’ work engagement are higher levels of personal initiative that are contagious, decreased hospital mortality rates and significantly higher financial profitability of organizations. There is a need to explore the determinants that encourage work engagement among nurses. Also there is a need to explore the influence of external work environment on nursing work engagement.

An Empirical Framework toUnderstand the Antecedents of Work Engagement and Employability in the Thai Universities

Present research is basically concerned to investigate the impact of ethical leadership and creative self-concept on work engagement and employability. In addition to that, the study has examined meaningful work as the mediator, and cognitive emotional regulation is taken as the significant moderator between leadership and meaningful work. The study has used the survey-based methodology, and the questionnaire is adopted from the prior findings. In order to reply to the questions raised in current research, the SEM-PLS tool is employed. The data is collected from Thai universities; the findings of the study have provided support to the proposed results. The mediation and moderation effect appears in a significant. The study broached an argument that Happily engrossed in ones work and fully concentrated is the state of absorption. Engrossment, satisfaction and full concentration of job-related tasks that one individual receives refers to this component of absorption, thus deriving pleasure from work, the eudemonic approach is also referred to this state. Such individuals having the state of absorption have difficult often to detach or disengage their jobs from themselves. The results of the research study might provide help to the policymakers, researchers, and HR personnel in understanding the issues related to employability, and work engagement.

Authentic leadership, followership, and psychological capital as antecedents of work engagement

The present study investigated authentic leadership, psychological capital, and followership behaviour influences on work engagement of employees. Respondents were 901 South African employees within the healthcare industry organisation (n = 647) and mining industry (n = 254). The employees completed questionnaires on authentic leadership, psychological capital, and followership behaviour, and work engagement. Results following structural equation modelling and mediation analysis suggest work engagement to be explained by the psychological capital of the employee rather than by authentic leadership qualities. Improving employee psychological capital has the potential to enhance the levels of work engagement of employees.

The job demands and resources as antecedents of work engagement

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine work engagement and its antecedents in two countries: Finland and Russia. The job demands-resources model provides the background theory for the analysis.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a quantitative approach with a cross-sectional research design. The data were analysed using descriptive methods and stepwise logistic regression analysis.FindingsThe overall level of work engagement was higher in Finland than in Russia. The opportunity to learn new skills at work was the strongest predictor of work engagement in both countries. The most significant difference was that once job demands and resources were taken into account, the managerial position had a strong effect on work engagement in Russia, while in Finland it had no significant effect.Practical implicationsKnowledge about the antecedents of work engagement and especially the strong effect of opportunities to learn new skills could encourage organisations to provide their employees with development opportunities throughout their careers.Originality/valueThis study adds to the limited comparative research on work engagement and its predictors.

Engagement of secondary school teachers in Namibia: Relational context effects

The aim of this study was to investigate relational antecedents of work engagement for secondary school teachers and to determine whether specific psychological conditions mediate the effects of relational factors on work engagement. A cross-sectional survey was used. The participants were 502 secondary school teachers in Namibia (females = 64.7%, Afrikaans-speaking = 49%). They completed the following measuring instruments: Co-worker and Supervisor Relationships Scales, Emotional Exhaustion Scale, Perceived Organizational Support Scale, Psychological Conditions Scale and the Work Engagement Scale. Data were analysed using Mplus 7.3. The results showed that low emotional exhaustion and high psychological meaningfulness and availability explained work engagement. Relational factors (i.e. co-worker relations, supervisor relations, and emotional exhaustion) influenced psychological meaningfulness and safety strongly, and psychological availability moderately. Supervisor relationships and emotional exhaustion indirectly influenced work engagement via psychological meaningfulness. Co-worker relationships and emotional exhaustion indirectly affected work engagement via psychological availability. The results provide support for a relational model of work engagement.

Time Pressure Promotes Work Engagement

Based on activation theory and appraisal theory, this study examines the curvilinear relationship between time pressure and work engagement. Further, we argue that this curvilinear relation holds only if time pressure is not induced by unreasonable or unnecessary tasks. We tested our hypotheses in a heterogeneous sample of 191 employees. Results of moderated hierarchical multiple regression analyses provide evidence for an inverted U-shape relation between time pressure and work engagement. Our findings show that the motivating effect of a moderate level of time pressure holds only when employees are assigned to tasks with a low unreasonability rating. Our findings have implications for research on antecedents of work engagement and the job demands-resources model.

Spirituality and work engagement among church leaders

Much research attention has been given to the mental health problems of church leaders, but relatively few studies have investigated positive indicators of clergy mental health at work, such as work engagement. This paper examines spiritual resources and job resources as key antecedents of work engagement. In contrast, job demands were examined as a moderator of the relationship between resources and work engagement. Hypotheses were framed within the motivational process of the Job Demands-Resources model, and tested using data from 1230 church leaders who completed the 2011 National Church Life Survey in Australia. Results of structural equation modelling analyses supported hypothesised positive relationships between resources and work engagement but, contrary to expectations, job demands did not amplify the positive relationship between spiritual resources and work engagement. Findings are discussed in the light of recent empirical studies of church leaders and the conservation of resources theory.

Leadership styles to engage employees: evidence from human service organizations in Italy

Purpose – This study aims to examine the relationship between work engagement and leadership styles in human service organizations (HSOs). Specifically two leadership styles are investigated that are: participative and instrumental leadership style. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire was used for data collection, and analysis of data were carried out using descriptive statistics and regression analysis. Findings – By examining workers (n=251) operating in nine HSOs in Italy, this study shows that the three dimensions of work engagement relate to leadership styles. The data analysis found that while the participative leadership style of supervisors is particularly significant in predicting vigour and dedication among employees, the instrumental leadership style is positively related to vigour and absorption. Research limitations/implications – The study has some limitations that could represent stimuli for future research. The analysis is cross-sectional, and variables were measured using a common method and source. Furthermore, since the study involves only a small number of Italian HSOs, the results cannot be generalized and must be interpreted accordingly. Practical implications – The findings from this study give rise to implications for the development of employees' engagement in HSOs. It additionally provides useful suggestions on effective leadership style among supervisors in HSOs. Originality/value – An important contribution of the present study to current debate on work engagement is an insight into the construct of leadership styles as antecedents of work engagement. Furthermore, support is provided to the current debate that calls for a multi-dimensionality of work engagement and therefore suggests that the three dimensions may be differently affected by the antecedents. A third contribution is a greater understanding of ways to manage human resources in HSOs through the lever of leadership style.

Role Clarity, Supervisory Support, Peer Support and Work Engagement of Customer-Contact Employees in Hotels: A Future Research Agenda

In light of competitive pressures, organizations particularly service providers, need to unleash the talents of their employees in order to accomplish peak performance. Recent efforts have highlighted the importance of work engagement which focuses on human strengths and optimal functioning. Despite its potential beneficial outcomes, research on the prevalence and antecedents of work engagement has remained scarce. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to develop a model linking role clarity, supervisory support, and peer support as predictors of work engagement. A review of the literature to support the proposed model among customer-contact employees within the Malaysian hotel industry is provided.

Work engagement in nursing: a concept analysis

This article is a report of an analysis of the concept of work engagement. Background.  Work engagement is the central issue for 21st century professionals and specifically for registered nurses. Conceptual clarity about work engagement gives empirical direction for future research and a theoretical underpinning for the myriad studies about nurses and their work environment. Walker and Avant's method of concept analysis was used. Nursing, business, psychology and health sciences databases were searched using Science Direct, CINAHL, OVID, Academic One File, ABI INFORM and PsycINFO for publications that were: written in English, published between 1990 and 2010, and described or studied work engagement in any setting with any population. Work engagement is a positive, fulfilling state of mind about work that is characterized by vigour, dedication and absorption. Trust (organizationally, managerially and collegially) and autonomy are the antecedents of work engagement. The outcomes of nurses' work engagement are higher levels of personal initiative that are contagious, decreased hospital mortality rates and significantly higher financial profitability of organizations. When work engagement is conceptually removed from a transactional job demands-resources model, the relational antecedents of trust and autonomy have greater explanatory power for work engagement in nurses. Untangling the antecedents, attributes and outcomes of work engagement is important to future research efforts.

Resources and time pressure as day‐level antecedents of work engagement

This diary study adds to research on the Job Demands‐Resources model. We test main propositions of this model on the level of daily processes, namely, additive and interaction effects of day‐specific job demands and day‐specific job and personal resources on day‐specific work engagement. One hundred and fourteen employees completed electronic questionnaires three times a day over the course of one working week. Hierarchical linear models indicated that day‐specific resources (psychological climate, job control, and being recovered in the morning) promoted work engagement. As predicted, day‐specific job control qualified the relationship between day‐specific time pressure and work engagement: on days with higher job control, time pressure was beneficial for work engagement. On days with lower job control, time pressure was detrimental for work engagement. We discuss our findings and contextualize them in the current literature on dynamic and emergent job characteristics.

Work engagement among breast cancer survivors and the referents: The importance of optimism and social resources at work

Despite a growing number of cancer survivors returning to work, little is known about their well-being at work and the work and personal characteristics related to it. The aim of the present study was to investigate personal resources (optimism and pessimism) and job-related resources (organizational climate, social support and avoidance behaviour) as antecedents of work engagement among female breast cancer survivors and their referents. A community-based postal survey was conducted among female breast cancer survivors and their referents. The final study population consisted of 398 employed survivors (86% response rate) and 560 of their referents (71% response rate). The level of work engagement was high in both study groups, although it was slightly higher among the referents than among the cancer survivors (p < .05). Various social job resources were equally related to work engagement in both groups. However, optimism and pessimism were more strongly associated with work engagement among cancer survivors compared to the referents. In addition, in cancer survivors high optimism buffered against the negative impact of avoidance behaviour by supervisors on work engagement. Personal resources, such as optimism, may be especially important for cancer survivors' work-related well-being. On the other hand, social resources at work seem to be of similar salience to work engagement in cancer survivors and others. Understanding the role of job resources and personal resources appears to be important in efforts to increase a cancer survivors' commitment to work life even more so than in those working with a out breast cancer history.

Job demands and resources as antecedents of work engagement: A longitudinal study

By utilizing a 2-year longitudinal design, the present study investigated the experience of work engagement and its antecedents among Finnish health care personnel ( n = 409). The data were collected by questionnaires in 2003 (Time 1) and in 2005 (Time 2). The study showed that work engagement—especially vigor and dedication—was relatively frequently experienced among the participants, and its average level did not change across the follow-up period. In addition, the experience of work engagement turned out to be reasonably stable during the 2-year period. Job resources predicted work engagement better than job demands. Job control and organization-based self-esteem proved to be the best lagged predictors of the three dimensions of work engagement. However, only the positive effect of job control on dedication remained statistically significant after controlling for the baseline level of work engagement (Time 1).