Job Crafting and Work Engagement: The Mediating Role of Work Meaning

Abstract

One of the most widely researched personal resources is job crafting, for which several studies have confirmed the existence of a positive relationship with engagement. Some authors suggest that it would be necessary to go deeper into the mechanisms that can help us explain this relationship. Therefore, the aim of this study is to ascertain the possible influence of the meaning of work on the relationship between job crafting and engagement. The sample is composed of 814 workers (50.4% women) with an average age of 41.68 years (SD = 9.78). The results were obtained by simple mediation analysis using PROCESS. The meaning of work mediates the relationship between job crafting and engagement, this influence being especially significant in the case of cognitive crafting. This study confirms the positive relationship between job crafting and engagement. However, in the case of some types of job crafting, increased levels of engagement only occur if the individuals also manage to increase the levels of meaning attributed to the work role. Therefore, in order to improve the well-being levels of working people, it would also be necessary to help them understand how these changes help them to attribute more meaning to their work.

Keywords: cognitive crafting; engagement; job crafting; mediation; positive organizational psychology; work meaning.

Figure 1

Simple mediation model between the dimensions of the JCQ and engagement, with work meaning as mediating variable. Non-standardized values. ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001.

Figure 2

Simple mediation model between the dimensions of the JCS and engagement, with work meaning as mediating variable. Non-standardized values. * p < 0.05, *** p < 0.001.