ME-Work: Development and Validation of a Modular Meaning in Work Inventory

Abstract

As research on meaning in work progresses, access to theoretically integrated, differentiated survey instruments becomes crucial. In response to this demand, the present article introduces ME-Work, a modular inventory to measure meaning in work. Derived from research findings on meaning in life, the ME-Work inventory offers three modules that can be used separately or jointly. Module 1 assesses four facets of meaning in work, i.e., coherence, significance, purpose and belonging; module 2 measures the subjective assessment of work as meaningful or meaningless, and module 3 records the extent to which work is perceived as a source of meaning. We report on the development of the instrument and the results of an exploratory factor analysis in a pilot study of 115 working adults. A further study with 278 working adults provided evidence for construct and incremental validity. Relationships with meaning in life, mental health, job satisfaction, socio-moral climate, burnout and work as meaning were investigated. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the factor structure. Gender-specific analyses of the four facets of meaning’s differential predictive power provided additional insights. Practical implications and further research needs are discussed.

Experiences of precariousness and exploitation of Romanian transnational live-in care workers in Austria

“…Research confirmed positive relations of meaningfulness with work engagement, commitment, job and life satisfaction and health (Allan et al, 2019), as well as a positive relationship between organizational identification with job attitudes and behaviours (Lee et al, 2015). While experiences of meaning and identification could be important resources to cope with stressors (Schnell and Hoffmann, 2020), such experiences may also foster exploitative practices as live-in care workers' commitment and involvement may drive them to invest excess effort in their work, possibly carrying out other tasks (e.g. domestic work).…”

“…The meaningful-subject-related dimension covers meaningfulness and fulfilment experienced at and through work, as well as the degree employees identify with a particular employment or work activity. According to Schnell and Hoffmann (2020), meaning in work comprises coherence, significance, purpose and belonging. Latent benefits of work (collective purpose, in this case; Jahoda, 1981) contribute to experiences of meaning.…”

Distributed Leadership and New Generation Employees’ Proactive Behavior: Roles of Idiosyncratic Deals and Meaningfulness of Work

“…This conclusion was basically consistent with Liu et al (2013) . Recently, some scholars have paid attention to the modular meaning and mediating role of meaningfulness of work ( Landells and Albrecht, 2019 ; Schnell and Hoffmann, 2020 ). However, they did not discuss the role of meaningfulness of work between leadership style and employee proactive behavior.…”

How Meaningful Work and Sources of Meaning Changed During the Pandemic: An Exploratory Study

“…Data were obtained through a longitudinal survey administered online to workers of 6 organizations belonging the Veneto region in two different temporal sessions, one month apart. They investigated (a) the level of quality at work considering the dimensions of training, safety and communication at work, and (b) the construct Meaningful Work and related dimensions for the modules (1) facets of meaning in work (i.e., coherence, significance, purpose and belonging; (2) Meaning and crisis of meaning at work; (d) Work as a Source of Meaning (Schnell & Hoffmann, 2020;Tommasi et al, 2021). Participants initially recruited were 145, but 17 of them did not complete the questionnaire; then, because of several missing data in the returned questionnaires, 128 participants (56,3 % females, n = 72, average age µ = 37 years, σ = 12,3) constitute the final sample of this study.…”

“…Considering this, the study aims to analyse how the quality of work is perceived by employees in pandemic times, e.g., if there is a perceived worsening quality of work as a result of the implementation of anti-covid rules, if there is a proper level of health protection at work, if employees develop higher or lower sense of work changing their way of perceive it with regard to the type of contribution it can make or its usefulness. It is also interesting to look at whether the dimensions that are considered to be sources of meaning for workers (coherence, significance, purpose and belonging) also change at organizational level (Schnell & Hoffmann, 2020;Tommasi et al, 2021).…”