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The Association of Individual Spirituality on Employee Engagement: The Spirit at Work

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  • Richard Roof

Abstract

Employee engagement and spirituality have both been the focus of increasing interest by researchers and practitioners, and both are still early stage theories with ill-defined constructs and definitions. Emergent empirical work related to engagement and spirituality has supported the promise of improving both organizational performance and employee conditions. Responding to the call by theorists to examine engagement antecedents and specifically, the relationship between spirituality and employee engagement, a cross-sectional study was performed to examine self-reported individual spirituality as measured by the DSES and employee engagement measured using the UWES-9 including the dimensions of vigor, dedication, and absorption. 124 usable surveys were collected from a snowballing convenience sample and after confirming demographic representativeness and identifying the individual’s organizational role as a potential influential variable, analyses of the relationships between individual spirituality, overall engagement, and three individual engagement dimensions were performed using multiple regression controlling for organizational role. Empirical support was found for relationships between individual spirituality and engagement, vigor, and dedication but not for the engagement dimension of absorption. The findings should encourage further future exploration of the relationship between spirituality and engagement and inquiry into why results differ across engagement’s dimensions; specifically, why the relationship was not supported for absorption. The empirical support for spirituality as a predictor of engagement informs practical decisions for addressing workplace spirituality and concerns with the potential to assist in countering the declining engagement trend. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015

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  • Richard Roof, 2015. "The Association of Individual Spirituality on Employee Engagement: The Spirit at Work," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 130(3), pages 585-599, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:130:y:2015:i:3:p:585-599
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-014-2246-0
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    3. Wan Rahim Wan Yunan & Aminah Ahmad & Zoharah Omar, 2017. "The Experience of Workplace Spirituality: Do Age and Educational Attainment Matter?," International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, Human Resource Management Academic Research Society, International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, vol. 7(7), pages 61-69, July.
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    7. Lilian Otaye-Ebede & Samah Shaffakat & Scott Foster, 2020. "A Multilevel Model Examining the Relationships Between Workplace Spirituality, Ethical Climate and Outcomes: A Social Cognitive Theory Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 166(3), pages 611-626, October.
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    11. Ahmed M. El-Sherbeeny & Bassam Samir Al-Romeedy & Mohamed Hani Abd elhady & Samar Sheikhelsouk & Omar Alsetoohy & Sijun Liu & Hazem Ahmed Khairy, 2023. "How Is Job Performance Affected by Ergonomics in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry? Mediating Roles of Work Engagement and Talent Retention," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-24, October.
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