Work engagement

Prof. dr. Arnold Bakker

June 15, 2011

Positive Context

PART 1

The study and application of positively oriented human resource strengths and psychological capacities that can be measured, developed, and effectively managed for performance improvement in today’s workplace

Positive Organizational Behavior

Luthans (2003)

Schaufeli & Bakker (2003, 2004, 2010)

Work Engagement

“A positive, affective-motivational state of fulfillment that is characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption.”

Utrecht Work Engagement Scale

• Vigor• At my work, I feel bursting with energy

• At my job, I feel strong and vigorous

• Dedication• To me, my job is challenging

• I am enthusiastic about my job

• Absorption• When I am working, I forget everything else around me

• I am completely immersed in my work

Schaufeli & Bakker (2003)

HIGH ACTIVATION

LOW ACTIVATION

Pleasant low activation

Unpleasant low activation

Unpleasant high activation

Enthusiastic

Excited

Happy

Energised

Agitated

Hostile

Irritated

Angry

PLEASANTUNPLEASANT

Content

Relaxed

Calm

Tranquil

Tense

Dejected

Lethargic

Fatigued

Gloomy

Sad

Pleased

ENGAGEMENT

Russell & Carroll (1999)

HIGH ACTIVATION

LOW ACTIVATION

Pleasant low activation

Unpleasant low activation

Unpleasant high activation

Enthusiastic

Excited

Happy

Energised

Agitated

Hostile

Irritated

Angry

PLEASANTUNPLEASANT

Content

Relaxed

Calm

Tranquil

Tense

Dejected

Lethargic

Fatigued

Gloomy

Sad

Pleased

ENGAGEMENT

BURNOUT

Bakker & Oerlemans (2011)

HIGH ACTIVATION

LOW ACTIVATION

Pleasant low activation

Unpleasant low activation

Unpleasant high activation

Enthusiastic

Excited

Happy

Energised

Agitated

Hostile

Irritated

Angry

PLEASANTUNPLEASANT

Content

Relaxed

Calm

Tranquil

Tense

Dejected

Lethargic

Fatigued

Gloomy

Sad

Pleased

ENGAGEMENT

BURNOUT

Bakker & Oerlemans (2011)

SATISFACTION

WORKAHOLISM

Engaged Employees

• Take personal initiative

• Generate their own positive feedback

• Are also engaged outside their work

• Are tired in a different way

• Also want to do other things than

working Schaufeli et al. (2001)

Predictors

PART 2

Arnold Bakker

Demand-Control model

Arnold Bakker

Effort-Reward Imbalance ModelSiegrist (1996)

Arnold Bakker

What are your most important Job Demands and Resources?

Write down 5 of each

EXERCISE

Workload

Emotional Demands

Mental Demands

PhysicalDemands

Autonomy

Social Support

Coaching

Feedback

Many Demands and Resources

Etc. Etc..

JD-R Model of Engagement

+ +

Bakker & Demerouti (2008)

PersonalResources

PerformanceWorkEngagement

JobResources

JobDemands

+

+

Technicians, N=163 18-month follow-up

Xan

thop

oulo

u et

al.

(200

9 -

JVB

)C

AU

SA

L E

FF

EC

TS

WorkEngagement

JobResources

PersonalResources

.21

.22Work

Engagement

JobResources

PersonalResources

Time 1 Time 2

.33

Technicians, N=163 18-month follow-up

Xan

thop

oulo

u et

al.

(200

9 -

JVB

)R

EV

ER

SE

D C

AU

SA

L E

FF

EC

TS

WorkEngagement

JobResources

PersonalResources

.18

.22

WorkEngagement

JobResources

PersonalResources

Time 1 Time 2

.30

Dutch Managers, N=201

T1 Engagement

T1 Burnout

T2Engagement

T2 Burnout

.68

-.79

Δ Job Demands

Δ Job Resources

.23

-.27

.45

.74

-.72 -.58

Schaufeli, W.B., Bakker, A.B., & Van Rhenen, W. (2009). How changes in job demands and resources predict burnout, work engagement, and sickness absenteeism. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 30, 893-917.

Finnish Dentists, N=2555

Hakanen, Schaufeli & Ahola (2008)

-

JobDemands

.23

.08 .23

-

JobResources

Burnout

OrganizationalCommitment

WorkEngagement

-.05

-.05

DepressiveSymptoms

.16

-

Belgian employees, N=745

Van den Broeck et al. (2008)

JobResources

JobDemands

Vigor

Exhaustion

.34

-.11NeedSatisfaction

-.32

.31

.62

-.15

.86

Interactions in JD-R model

BURNOUTWORK

ENGAGEMENT

APATHY BOREDOM

LOW

HIGH

LOW

HIGH

JOB RESOURCES

JOB

DE

MA

ND

S

Resources work when needed Finnish Dentists, N=1919

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Low QualitativeWorkload

High QualitativeWorkload

Wo

rk E

ng

agem

ent

Low Skill VarietyHigh Skill Variety

Hakanen, J.J., Bakker, A.B., & Demerouti, E. (2005). How dentists cope with their job demands and stay engaged: The moderating role of job resources. European Journal of Oral Sciences

Resources work when needed Finnish Teachers, N=805

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Low Pupil Misbehavior

High Pupil Misbehavior

Wo

rk E

ng

agem

ent

Low AppreciationHigh Appreciation

Bakker, A.B., Hakanen, J.J., Demerouti, E., & Xanthopoulou, D. (2007). Job resources boost work engagement, particularly when job demands are high. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99 , 274-284.

Resources work when needed Dutch Employees, N=12,000

0

0,5

1

1,5

2

2,5

3

3,5

Low Workload High Workload

Tas

k E

njo

ymen

t

Low Career Opp.High Career Opp.

Bakker, A., Van Veldhoven, M.J.P.M., & Xanthopoulou, D. (2010). Beyond the demand-control model: Thriving on high job demands and resources. Journal of Personnel Psychology, 9, 3-16.

Personal Resources

“aspects of the self that refer to individuals’ sense of their ability to control and impact upon their environment successfully”

(Hobfoll et al., 2003) Self-efficacy

Optimism

Resilience

Self-esteem

Personal Resources

Personal resources are important because they protect against negative stress, may promote health, and can be used to cope with stressful situations

Stress resilience as motivatorFinancial Firm, N=388

6

7

8

Low Emotional Demands High Emotional Demands

Wor

k E

ngag

emen

t

Low Resilience High Resilience

Outcomes

PART 3

What are the consequences of engagement?

Discuss with your neighbour

EXERCISE

Outcomes of Engagement

• Better performance

• Reduced Absence

• Reduced Personnel Turnover

• Higher productivity

• Client satisfaction

• Engaged Colleagues

Demerouti & Cropanzano (2010)

Daily Engagement

• Trait Support

• Trait Self-efficacy

• Trait Work Engagement

Xanthopoulou et al. (2008, JOHP)

Daily engagement flight attendants

SocialSupport

Self-Efficacy

WorkEngagement

Performance

• Branch

• Trait Personal Resources

• Trait Work Engagement

Xanthopoulou et al. (2009, JOOP)

Greek fast-food restaurants

Job Resources

PersonalResources

WorkEngagement

FinancialTurnover

• Branch

• Trait Personal Resources

• Trait Work Engagement

Xanthopoulou et al. (2009, JOOP)

Greek fast-food restaurants

AutonomyCoaching

Team Climate

Self-efficacyOptimism

Self-esteem

WorkEngagement

FinancialTurnover

Is engagement contagious?

Women

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Low Engagement High Engagement

En

gag

emen

t M

en

Low EmpathyHigh Empathy

Engagement is contagious

Results

TraitExtraversion

A

DailyEngagement

B

FrequencyDaily

Communic

DailyEngagement

A

DailyPerformance

B+

+

+

TraitExtraversion

B+

Bakker & Xanthopoulou (2009)

Interaction

-0.23

-0.16

-0.09

-0.02

0.05

0.12

-1.000 0.000 1.000

Work Engagement Person A

Communication + 1 SD

Communication – 1 SD

Wor

k E

nga

gem

ent

B

Bakker & Xanthopoulou (2009)

Interventions

PART 5

Job Crafting

• Employees may actively change the design of their jobs by choosing tasks, negotiating different job content, and assigning meaning to their tasks or jobs

Parker & Ohly (2008)

Job Crafting

Job crafting is defined as the physical and cognitive changes individuals make in their task or relational boundaries

Wrzesniewski & Dutton (2001)

Job Crafting

Job crafting is defined as the changes individuals make in their job demands and job resources

Tims & Bakker (in press, South African Journal of Industrial Psychology

Job Crafting

Increasing Structural

JRs

IncreasingSocial JRs

IncreasingJDs

Decreasing JDs

Job Crafting Scale

• Increase Job Resources

• I ask my supervisor to coach me

• I ask others for feedback on my job performance

• Increase Job Demands

• When an interesting project comes along, I offer

myself proactively as project co-worker

Job Crafting

• Decrease Job Demands

• I organise my work in such a way to make

sure that I do not have to concentrate for

too long a period at once

Job Crafting Scale - Reliabilities

N

Increasing Structural Job

Resources

Increasing Social Job Resources

Increasing

Job Demands

Decreasing Job Demands

375 .82 .77 .75 .79

294 .80 .78 .70 .71

196 .82 .82 .76 .72

Tims, M., Bakker, A.B. & Derks, D. (2010). Measuring Job Crafting Behavior of Employees:The Development and Validity of the Job Crafting Scale .

Job Crafting Scale – Validity

Other Ratings

Increasing Structural

JRs

Increasing Social JRs

Increasing

Job Demands

Decreasing Job Demands

Job Crafting ++ + ++ +

Employability ++ ++ ++

Leaders and Followers, N=95 Bakker, Tims & Derks (2010)

ProactivePersonality

.47Job crafting

In-rolePerformance

.37

Workengagement

.68

Increasing JR Increasing JR Increasing JD

χ2 (31) = 36,39, TLI = .99, RMSEA = .04

.37

Daily variance in crafting

• Increase Job ResourcesBetween: 57% Within: 43%

• Increase Job DemandsBetween: 59% Within: 41%

• Decrease Job DemandsBetween: 53% Within: 47%

Demerouti (2010)

ReduceDemands

Active JobsJD x C

IncreaseDemands

IncreaseResources

WorkEngagement

Antecedents Job Crafting Outcomes

+

-

+

+

Demerouti (2010)

Demerouti (2010)

Incr

ease

Res

ourc

es

Interaction (1)

Demerouti (2010)

Dec

reas

e D

eman

ds

Interaction (2)

Arnold Bakker

More on Interventions

Interventions

Level Primary Secondary

Person in Organisation

Optimize individual JDs, JRs, and PRs

Organisation Optimize JDs and JRs at department or team level

• Work environment• Increase job resources

• Leadership • Optimize social climate (crossover)• Stimulate transformational leadership

• Training• Increase personal resources

• Career development • Challenging work

Organizational strategies

Schaufeli & Salanova (2007)

• Generate positive feedback

• positive upward spiral

• Goal setting

• Use of implementation intentions

• Job Crafting

• Change job demands and resources

• Use strengths in a new way

• Engagement App

Individual strategies

JD-R Monitor

Participants:

• Go to secured website

• Fill in a personal code

• Read Introduction

• Fill in Questionnaire

• Receive individual feedback

• May print personalized report

04/21/23 Free Template from www.brainybetty.com 65

04/21/23 Free Template from www.brainybetty.com 66

04/21/23 Free Template from www.brainybetty.com 67

04/21/23 Free Template from www.brainybetty.com 68

Work Engagement Model

+ +

Bakker & Demerouti (2008)

PersonalResources

PerformanceWorkEngagement

JobResources

JobDemands

+

+Job crafting

www.arnoldbakker.com

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