Meaning of work and work engagement among educators in Choma district, Zambia
| dc.contributor.author | Hamukang'andu, Lukondo | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2014-05-22T11:14:15Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2014-05-22T11:14:15Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2013 | |
| dc.description | Thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master in Industrial/Organisational Psychology. | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | Aim The promotion of happiness is an important goal for psychology and most studies of happiness focus on the three routes to happiness that have been identified by Seligman (2003): (1) pleasure, (2) engagement, and (3) meaning. Engagement and meaning should be targeted to promote sustainable happiness of people. The aim of this study is to investigate the subjective experiences of meaning of work, work role fit, psychological meaningfulness and engagement among a sample of educators in Zambia. Method A quantitative approach was followed and the research design used was a cross-sectional survey. The representative population (n = 150) used for this research was 75 basic and 75 secondary/high school educators who live in the Choma district of Zambia. Convenience sampling was used to identify the participants for the research. The Work-role Fit Scale, Work-Life Questionnaire, Psychological Meaningfulness Scale, and Work Engagement Scale were administered. The statistical analyses were carried out by means of the SPSS program. Descriptive statistics was used to analyse the data. The construct validity and reliability of the measuring instruments was assessed by conducting exploratory factor analyses and computing Cronbach alphas. Pearson correlations were used to specify the relationships between the variables. Multiple regression analyses were performed to test mediating effects in this study. Results The results showed that work beliefs (and specifically those with a calling orientation) explained 26.7% of the variance in psychological meaningfulness at work, which increased to 45.5% if work role fit was included as a predictor. A calling orientation to work explained approximately 52% of the variance in emotional and physical engagement of educators, but work role fit and psychological meaningfulness did not predict work engagement when work beliefs were controlled for. Structural equation modelling confirmed a model in which a calling orientation impacted psychological meaningfulness and work engagement. A calling orientation predicted work engagement directly, while such work orientation impacted psychological meaningfulness indirectly via work role fit. Conclusion The results suggest that psychological meaningfulness and work engagement are two separate individual outcomes at work, and that a calling orientation impacted both outcomes. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.other | thesis | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11070/928 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.subject | Work engagement | en_US |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Work | |
| dc.subject.lcsh | Psychology, Industrial | |
| dc.title | Meaning of work and work engagement among educators in Choma district, Zambia | en_US |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_US |