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Mental Health of Japanese Workers: Amotivation Mediates Self-Compassion on Mental Health Problems

Author

Listed:
  • Yasuhiro Kotera

    (School of Health Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK)

  • Kenichi Asano

    (Department of Psychological Counseling, Faculty of Psychology, Mejiro University, Tokyo 161-0032, Japan)

  • Hiromasa Kotera

    (Department Linguistics, University of Potsdam, 14469 Potsdam, Germany)

  • Remi Ohshima

    (Department of Psychological Counseling, Faculty of Psychology, Mejiro University, Tokyo 161-0032, Japan)

  • Annabel Rushforth

    (College of Health, Psychology and Social Care, University of Derby, Derby DE22 1GB, UK)

Abstract

Workplace mental health is a cause for concern in many countries. Globally, 78% of the workforce experienced impairment of their mental health in 2020. In Japan, more than half of employees are mentally distressed. Previously, research has identified that self-compassion (i.e., being kind and understanding towards oneself) and work motivation were important to their mental health. However, how these three components relate to each other remains to be elucidated. Accordingly, this study aimed to examine the relationship between mental health problems, self-compassion and work motivation (i.e., intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation and amotivation). A cross-sectional design was employed, where 165 Japanese workers completed self-report scales regarding those three components. A correlation and path analyses were conducted. Mental health problems were positively associated with amotivation and negatively associated with age and self-compassion. While intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation did not mediate the impact of self-compassion on mental health problems, amotivation did. The findings can help managers and organizational psychologists help identify effective approaches to improving work mental health.

Suggested Citation

  • Yasuhiro Kotera & Kenichi Asano & Hiromasa Kotera & Remi Ohshima & Annabel Rushforth, 2022. "Mental Health of Japanese Workers: Amotivation Mediates Self-Compassion on Mental Health Problems," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(17), pages 1-11, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:17:p:10497-:d:895487
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Yasuhiro Kotera & Katia Correa Vione, 2020. "Psychological Impacts of the New Ways of Working (NWW): A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(14), pages 1-13, July.
    2. Yasuhiro Kotera & Freya Tsuda-McCaie & Ann-Marie Edwards & Divya Bhandari & Geraldine Maughan, 2021. "Self-Compassion in Irish Social Work Students: Relationships between Resilience, Engagement and Motivation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(15), pages 1-13, August.
    3. Yasuhiro Kotera & Akihiko Ozaki & Hirotomo Miyatake & Chie Tsunetoshi & Yoshitaka Nishikawa & Makoto Kosaka & Tetsuya Tanimoto, 2022. "Qualitative Investigation into the Mental Health of Healthcare Workers in Japan during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-14, January.
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    Cited by:

    1. Yasuhiro Kotera & Holly Young & Sarah Maybury & Muhammad Aledeh, 2022. "Mediation of Self-Compassion on Pathways from Stress to Psychopathologies among Japanese Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-11, September.
    2. Yasuhiro Kotera & Muhammad Aledeh & Annabel Rushforth & Nelly Otoo & Rory Colman & Elaina Taylor, 2022. "A Shorter Form of the Work Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation Scale: Construction and Factorial Validation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(21), pages 1-11, October.

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