The psychological conditions of meaningfulness, safety and availability and the engagement of the human spirit at work

Abstract

Building on Kahn's (1990) ethnographic work, a field study in a U.S. Midwestern insurance company explored the determinants and mediating effects of three psychological conditions — meaningfulness, safety and availability — on employees' engagement in their work. Results from the revised theoretical framework revealed that all three psychological conditions exhibited significant positive relations with engagement. Meaningfulness displayed the strongest relation. Job enrichment and work role fit were positively linked to psychological meaningfulness. Rewarding co‐worker and supportive supervisor relations were positively associated with psychological safety, whereas adherence to co‐worker norms and self‐consciousness were negatively associated. Psychological availability was positively related to resources available and negatively related to participation in outside activities. Finally, the relations of job enrichment and work role fit with engagement were both fully mediated by the psychological condition of meaningfulness. The association between adherence to co‐worker norms and engagement was partially mediated by psychological safety. Theoretical and practical implications related to psychological engagement at work are discussed.

The Relationship between Work Value and Organizational Commitment on Student of Sekolah Polisi Negara Mojokerto

“…Other study stated that when individuals find a meaning in a job, they will feel happy and more engaged with his job (May, Gilson, & Harter, 2004). That is why organization should strive to strengthen employees' mental by providing jobs that can foster a sense of engagement between employees and organization (Townsend & Gebhardt, 2008).…”

A Prognostic Examination of Employee Engagement from its Historical Roots

“…According to May et al (2004) 16 engagement is most closely associated with the constructs of job involvement and ‗flow' (Csikszentmihalyi 1990) 17 . Job involvement is defined as ‗a cognitive or belief state of psychological identification' (Kanungo 1982:342) 18 .…”

“…He defined disengagement as the decoupling of the self within the role, involving the individual withdrawing and defending themselves during role performances (May et al 2004). Disengaged employees displayed incomplete role performances and were effortless, automatic or robotic (Kahn 1990).…”

“…In the only study to empirically test Kahn's (1990) model, May et al (2004) found that meaningfulness, safety, and availability were significantly related to engagement. They also found job enrichment and role fit to be positive predictors of meaningfulness; rewarding coworker and supportive supervisor relations were positive predictors of safety, while adherence to co-worker norms and self-consciousness were negative predictors.…”

“…Therefore, there is reason to expect employee engagement is related to individuals' attitudes, intentions, and behaviors. Although neither Kahn (1990) nor May et al (2004) included outcomes in their studies, Kahn (1992) proposed that high levels of engagement lead to both positive outcomes for individuals, (eg quality of people's work and their own experiences of doing that work), as well as positive organizational-level outcomes (eg the growth and productivity of organizations).…”