Heavy work investment: Its motivational make-up and outcomes

Abstract

Purpose – The present study aims to investigate the motivational correlates of two types of heavy work investment: workaholism and work engagement. Building on Higgins’s regulatory focus theory, the paper examines which work goals workaholic and engaged employees pursue and which strategies they use to achieve these goals. Furthermore, the paper examines how workaholism and work engagement relate to three different work outcomes: job satisfaction, turnover intention, and job performance. Design/methodology/approach – Data from a cross-sectional survey study among 680 Dutch employees in the banking industry were analysed using structural equation modeling. Findings – The analyses revealed that workaholism was primarily and positively associated with having a prevention focus, whereas work engagement was primarily and positively associated with having a promotion focus. Furthermore, workaholism was negatively related to job satisfaction and job performance, and positively related to turnover intention, whereas work engagement was positively associated with job satisfaction and job performance, and negatively associated with turnover intention. Both forms of heavy work investment almost fully mediated the associations between the regulatory foci and the three work outcomes. Research limitations/implications – The conclusions rely on self-report data, a relatively homogeneous sample, and a cross-sectional design. This may have biased our findings to some degree and does not allow inferring causal conclusions. Practical implications – The findings show that workaholic and engaged employees have different work goals and use different strategies to pursue these goals. Moreover, both forms of heavy work investment are oppositely related to work outcomes. Organizations may develop policies to reduce workaholism and to promote work engagement by influencing their employees’ regulatory foci. Originality/value – The present study demonstrates that two types of heavy work investment can be distinguished, each with a unique motivational make-up and a unique pattern of work outcomes.