Examining the Role of Transparent Organizational Communication for Employees’ Job Engagement and Disengagement during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Austria

Abstract

This study provides an understanding of how employees’ perception of organizational transparency during the long-lasting situation of the COVID-19 pandemic engendered their job engagement as well as job disengagement. Data were collected by means of an online survey among 410 employees in Austria during March 2021. Results show that employees’ perception of their organization’s approach to transparency directly influenced their job engagement and disengagement. Importantly, the relationship between transparency and job engagement was also mediated through organizational trust, and job-specific state anxiety mediated the relationship between transparency and job disengagement. The results imply the importance of transparency during times of great uncertainty and emphasize the necessity to closely consider employees’ emotional states and worries during a crisis.

Employee-centric perspective on organizational crisis: how organizational transparency and support help to mitigate employees' uncertainty, negative emotions and job disengagement

“…This effect is partly mediated by employees' feeling of job frustration, but not by job-related anxiety as anxiety has no effect on job disengagement. This finding is contrary to previous results by Stranzl et al. (2021) and suggests that disengagement is a protection mechanism against crisis situations, in which employees feel frustrated rather than anxious.…”

“…This effect is partly mediated by employees' feeling of job frustration, but not by job-related anxiety as anxiety has no effect on job disengagement. This finding is contrary to previous results by Stranzl et al (2021) and suggests that disengagement is a protection mechanism against crisis situations, in which employees feel frustrated rather than anxious. Here, the consideration of frustration as another crisis-relevant emotion, which in comparison to anxiety has received rather little attention so far, enables a differentiated assessment of the emergence of disengagement.…”

“…The study not only corroborates the importance of transparent organizational crisis communication pronounced in previous studies (e.g. Kim, 2018;Strandberg and Vigsø, 2016;Stranzl et al, 2021), but stresses also that communication approaches that go beyond a solely informing strategy and demonstrate care and support are better suited to bolster employee well-being comprehensively. Particularly, negative emotions that not only result from the situational uncertainty but also other factors can be addressed when internal communication promotes a supportive organizational environment.…”

“…The study not only corroborates the importance of transparent organizational crisis communication pronounced in previous studies (e.g. Kim, 2018; Strandberg and Vigsø, 2016; Stranzl et al. , 2021), but stresses also that communication approaches that go beyond a solely informing strategy and demonstrate care and support are better suited to bolster employee well-being comprehensively.…”

“…As Bordia et al (2004) conclude, uncertainties during a crisis are the key factor that fosters employees' distress and anxiety. Recent research in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic confirmed a negative influence of state anxiety on job engagement (Hu et al, 2020) and a positive influence on job disengagement (Stranzl et al, 2021). Hence:…”