Self-determination at work: Understanding the role of leader-member exchange

Integrating self-determination theory (SDT) and leader-member exchange (LMX) theory, we explore the role of the leader in facilitating employee self-determination. We test a model of the linkages between employees’ leader-member exchanges, psychological need satisfaction (i.e., satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs), autonomous motivation, and attitudinal outcomes. We posit that high-quality leader-member exchanges facilitate satisfaction of employees’ fundamental psychological needs, which, in turn, enhance autonomous motivation and outcomes. Results for 283 working professionals supported this notion. Structural equation modeling indicated that the employee’s perception of the quality of the LMX was positively related to satisfaction of the needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Satisfaction of competence and autonomy needs was positively related to autonomous motivation, which, in turn, was associated with higher levels of job satisfaction, affective organizational commitment, and subjective vitality. Our findings accentuate the role of leader-employee relationships in creating self-determination at work, and reinforce the importance of self-determination for employee attitudes and well-being. Limitations, implications, and directions for future research are discussed.     

When prejudice against you hurts others and me: The case of ageism at work

Ageism in the workplace has documented detrimental consequences for its victims, but its effects on those who hold ageist views are rarely investigated. A cross‐sectional study and a longitudinal study examined ageism toward both younger and older workers and its relation to intergroup contact, work behaviors, organizational identification, and the well‐being of prejudiced individuals. It was hypothesized that ageism would predict prejudiced individuals’ behaviors toward co‐workers, identification with their organization, and vitality at work, indirectly through intergroup anxiety and quality of intergroup contact. Overall, 647 employees aged 24–62 years provided data on the variables of interest. Both studies suggested that ageist views worsened the quality of intergroup contact, which in turn increased counterproductive behaviors toward co‐workers and decreased identification with the organization. Moreover, ageism marginally predicted vitality at work longitudinally through the mediation of quality of intergroup contact. No support emerged for the mediational role of intergroup anxiety. Theoretical explanations for these findings and their practical implications are discussed.     

Effects of Perceived Organizational Support on Objective and Subjective Career Success via Need Satisfaction: A Study Among French Psychologists

The authors examined potential links between perceived organizational support (POS) and objective and subjective career success through the satisfaction of the 3 basic psychological needs (BPNs) posited in self‐determination theory. The inclusion of BPN satisfaction as a mediator provides an interesting route, suggesting it is a condition for POS to lead to career success. The authors submitted an online questionnaire to 379 French counseling psychologists and examined the responses using a cross‐sectional design with only 1 measurement. The results indicated the indirect effects of POS on objective career success via the satisfaction of the 3 BPNs and on subjective career success via satisfaction of the needs for autonomy and competence.     

Sources of autonomy support,subjective vitality and physical activity behaviour associated with participation in a lunchtime walking intervention for physically inactive adults

ObjectivesBased on Basic Needs Theory (BNT: Deci & Ryan, 1985), this study examined longitudinal relationships between autonomy support from two sources, psychological need satisfaction, subjective vitality and self-reported physical activity during a walking intervention for physically inactive adults. We proposed that autonomy support provided via a walk leader and the overall programme would independently predict change in subjective vitality and physical activity from baseline to week 16 (post-intervention) and at four month follow-up. Further, we proposed that direct relationships among sources of autonomy support and outcomes would be mediated by autonomy, relatedness, and competence need satisfaction.DesignA longitudinal examination.MethodsParticipants (N = 69; n = 63 females, n = 6 males) from a 16-week walking programme completed a multi-section questionnaire measuring the aforementioned variables at three time points, including a four month post-intervention follow-up.ResultsBoth hypotheses were partly supported. Autonomy support from the walk leader positively predicted changes in subjective vitality from baseline to week 16 and in physical activity from baseline to follow-up. Autonomy support from the programme positively predicted changes in subjective vitality from baseline to week 16. Finally, autonomy gained from the walk leader mediated the relationship between autonomy support and subjective vitality, and between perceived autonomy support and physical activity.ConclusionsFindings indicate that autonomy support from both a walk leader and wider programme can predict psychological need satisfaction, subjective vitality and physical activity. Clinicians and researchers implementing future walking interventions may increase physical activity and subjective vitality by facilitating psychological need satisfaction through autonomy support from both sources.     

The prospective relationship between role stressors and new cases of self‐reported workplace bullying

In line with the “Work environment hypothesis,” role stressors have been proposed as important antecedents of bullying in the workplace. Only a few longitudinal studies on the relationship between role stressors and bullying exist, however, and earlier studies have largely been cross‐sectional. The aim of the present prospective study was to determine whether role stressors at baseline predict new cases of workplace bullying at follow‐up. A total of 2,835 Norwegian employees participated at both baseline and follow‐up, with an interval of two years between the measurements. The study supports the hypotheses that role ambiguity and role conflict, independently, contribute to subsequent new reports of workplace bullying. However, there was a weak reverse effect: reporting being bullied at work at baseline predicted reporting increased levels of role ambiguity and role conflict at follow‐up. Even though the results may indicate a circular relationship between the variables at hand, the weak reverse relationship seems to have little practical impact compared to the stronger relationship from role stressors to bullying. Hence, the results mainly support the hypotheses stating that role ambiguity and role conflict, independently, predict subsequent exposure to workplace bullying.     

The Benefits of Benevolence: Basic Psychological Needs,Beneficence, and the Enhancement of Well‐Being

Pro‐social behaviors have been associated with enhanced well‐being, but what psychological mechanisms explain this connection? Some theories suggest that beneficence—the sense of being able to give—inherently improves well‐being, whereas evidence from self‐determination theory (Weinstein & Ryan, 2010) shows that increases in well‐being are mediated by satisfaction of innate psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Here we simultaneously assess these two explanations. Study 1 (N = 335) used a cross‐sectional survey with an Internet sample to develop a measure to assess beneficence satisfaction. The next two cross‐sectional Internet‐sample studies tested mediators between pro‐social behavior and general well‐being (Study 2, N = 332) and situational peak moment well‐being (Study 3, N = 180). A fourth study (N = 85) used a diary method with university students to assess daily fluctuations in well‐being associated with needs and beneficence. It was shown across all studies that both the three psychological needs and beneficence satisfaction mediate the relations between pro‐social actions and well‐being, with all four factors emerging as independent predictors. Together, these studies underscore the role of autonomy, competence, and relatedness in explaining the well‐being benefits of benevolence, and they also point to the independent role of beneficence as a source of human wellness.     

An investigation of the unique,synergistic and balanced relationships between basic psychological needs and intrinsic motivation

The purpose of this study was to empirically investigate the relationship between psychological need satisfaction and intrinsic motivation as proposed by self‐determination theory. Three competing hypotheses regarding the relations between need satisfaction and intrinsic motivation were tested: additive, synergistic, and balance. Two cross‐sectional studies involving 1,254 employees from a broad range of Norwegian service organizations partly supported the first two hypotheses. Although the relationship between satisfaction of the needs for autonomy and relatedness with intrinsic motivation were significant, the one with satisfaction of the need for competence was not. Instead, competence was only related to intrinsic motivation when autonomy was high. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.     

A longitudinal and multi‐source test of the work–family conflict and job satisfaction relationship

Job satisfaction is one of the most frequently studied outcomes in the work–family conflict literature. This study extends the previous research examining the unique effects of work interfering with family (WIF) and family interfering with work (FIW) on job satisfaction by (1) controlling for family, personal, and job characteristics of dual‐earner couples, (2) employing cross‐sectional and longitudinal methods, and (3) predicting job satisfaction with a spousal rating of the target's WIF. Consistent with previous research, WIF was related to job satisfaction cross‐sectionally for men and women, and this effect existed beyond negative mood, job autonomy and monotony, and FIW. When predicting a change in job satisfaction a year later, and when using spouse rating of the target's WIF, WIF was predictive of women's job satisfaction but not men's, which is consistent with gender role theory. The fact that WIF predicted job satisfaction for women beyond affective and job characteristic variables, over time, and with non‐self reported measures, provides more confidence in this directional relationship than could previously be assumed. Societal and managerial implications are discussed.     

Materialism lowers well‐being: The mediating role of the need for autonomy – correlational and experimental evidence

While there is evidence from the self‐determination perspective for the mediation of basic needs satisfaction in the materialism–well‐being link, no research to date has attempted to examine the relative contribution of the three needs to the mediating effect. Given that the predictive value of psychological needs on well‐being depends upon the match between the need and life domains, in two studies we investigate the differential mediating role of all three needs in the negative relationship between materialism and well‐being. In study 1, 231 adult participants self‐reported their materialistic attitudes, basic needs satisfaction and well‐being. In study 2 (N = 82 undergraduates), we experimentally activated materialistic thoughts and examined their effects on need satisfaction and state well‐being as compared to a neutral control condition. Study 1 furnished cross‐sectional evidence that materialism diminishes well‐being through lower satisfaction of the psychological need for autonomy only. Study 2 showed that experimental activation of materialism via short‐term exposure to pictorial consumer‐cues leads to lower satisfaction of the need for autonomy, which in turn produces higher negative affect among participants. The findings point towards the importance of considering the specific role of the psychological need for autonomy in the materialism–well‐being link.     

A two wave cross‐lagged study of work‐role conflict,work‐family conflict and emotional exhaustion

By using a two‐wave panel design, the present study aimed to study causal, reversed, and reciprocal relations among work‐role conflict, work‐family conflict, and emotional exhaustion. The Conservation of Resources theory was applied as a theoretical framework. The study was conducted in a large Norwegian oil and gas company (n = 1703). The results demonstrated positive cross‐lagged effects of work‐role conflict and work‐family conflict on emotional exhaustion. In addition, emotional exhaustion predicted work‐family conflict over time, and work‐family conflict predicted work‐role conflict over time, indicating the presence of reciprocal effects. The current study adds new knowledge to the positioning of work‐family conflict in relation to perceived conflict in the workplace and emotional exhaustion.     

Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration in Japan: Controlling for the Big Five Personality Traits

Abstract : The present study investigated the function of satisfaction and frustration of the basic psychological needs – autonomy, competence, and relatedness – that contribute to subjective well‐being (life‐satisfaction, vitality, and depression) through a back‐translation procedure of the Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale (BPNSFS). A total of 564 Japanese undergraduates (356 males, 205 females, three unknown; M _age = 18.61 years, SD = 1.48) participated in a questionnaire survey. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the BPNSFS had the same six‐factor structure as that found in the original version. Structural equation modeling showed that satisfaction of each of the three needs contributed to the prediction of subjective well‐being (life satisfaction and vitality), whereas frustration of each need uniquely contributed to the prediction of ill‐being (depressed affect). These results support previous findings found in Belgium, China, the USA, and Peru, confirming that satisfaction of basic psychological needs represents a critical element for healthy functioning across cultures. However, controlling for the effects of the Big Five personality traits indicates the possible over‐estimation for the functions of the needs while clarifying these roles.     

On the relations among work value orientations,psychological need satisfaction and job outcomes: A self‐determination theory approach

Using self‐determination theory, two studies found that holding an extrinsic, relative to an intrinsic, work value orientation was associated with less positive outcomes (i.e. less satisfaction with, dedication to and vitality while on the job) and more negative outcomes (i.e. higher emotional exhaustion, short‐lived satisfaction after successful goal‐attainment, and turn‐over intention). These relations were not limited to job outcomes, but also emerged using indicators of employees' general mental health. Moreover, income level did not moderate these relations. Study 2 found that holding an extrinsic, relative to an intrinsic, work value orientation was detrimental to employees' job outcomes because these orientations thwarted the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness at work.     

Autonomy support,basic need satisfaction and the optimal functioning of adult male and female sport participants: A test of basic needs theory

Grounded in Basic Needs Theory (BNT; Ryan and Deci, American Psychologist, 55, 68–78, 2000a), the present study aimed to: (a) test a theoretically-based model of coach autonomy support, motivational processes and well-/ill-being among a sample of adult sport participants, (b) discern which basic psychological need(s) mediate the link between autonomy support and well-/ill-being, and (c) explore gender invariance in the hypothesized model. Five hundred and thirty nine participants (Male = 271; Female = 268; M _age = 22.75) completed a multi-section questionnaire tapping the targeted variables. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analysis revealed that coach autonomy support predicted participants’ basic need satisfaction for autonomy, competence and relatedness. In turn, basic need satisfaction predicted greater subjective vitality when engaged in sport. Participants with low levels of autonomy were more susceptible to feeling emotionally and physically exhausted from their sport investment. Autonomy and competence partially mediated the path from autonomy support to subjective vitality. Lastly, the results supported partial invariance of the model with respect to gender.     

The impact of environmental stressors and types of work contract on occupational stress

This study aimed to investigate the impact of seven environmental stressors (role conflict, work overload, interpersonal difficulties, work-family conflict, work instability, lack of autonomy and pressure of responsibility) and the nature of the employment contract (permanent or atypical) on three psychological reactions to occupational stress (job satisfaction, positive emotions, and negative emotions at work). 305 Brazilian workers from both sexes participated in this research, distributed between permanent and atypical workers. The results showed that the role conflict and the work overload had a negative impact on job satisfaction. The role conflict had a negative impact on the positive emotions at work, while the pressure of responsibility interfered positively in it. The work overload interfered positively in the negative emotions at work, while the pressure of responsibility interfered negatively in it. The type of contract did not affect significantly any one of the dependent variables. The implications of the results for future research are discussed.     

Basic Psychological Needs,Suicidal Ideation,and Risk for Suicidal Behavior in Young Adults

Associations between the satisfaction of basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness with current suicidal ideation and risk for suicidal behavior were examined. Two logistic regressions were conducted with a cross‐sectional database of 440 university students to examine the association of need satisfaction with suicidal ideation and risk for suicidal behavior, while controlling for demographics and depressive symptoms. Suicidal ideation was reported by 15% of participants and 18% were found to be at risk for suicidal behavior. A one standard deviation increase in need satisfaction reduced the odds of suicidal ideation by 53%, OR (95% CI) = 0.47 (0.33–0.67), and the odds of being at risk for suicidal behavior by 50%, OR (95% CI) = 0.50 (0.37–0.69). Young adults whose basic psychological needs are met may be less likely to consider suicide and engage in suicidal behavior. Prospective research is needed to confirm these associations.     

The mediating role of feelings of guilt in the relationship between burnout and the consumption of tobacco and alcohol

Earlier studies have shown that feelings of guilt appear to be involved in the burnout process. However, the exact nature of the relationship between burnout, feelings of guilt, and tobacco and alcohol use is unclear. The purpose of this study was to analyze the role of feelings of guilt in the relationship between burnout and the consumption of tobacco and alcohol. Role conflict, Role clarity, and Feedback were included as predictors of burnout. The sample of this cross‐sectional study consisted of 260 Chilean administration and customer service workers. Hypotheses were tested using a path model. The hypothesized model (i.e., Indolence to guilt to tobacco/alcohol use) showed an adequate data fit, including a mediator role of feelings of guilt in the relationship between burnout and alcohol use. The results of this study recommending taking into consideration the evaluation of feelings of guilt as a symptom of burnout in order to develop a more reliable diagnosis of burnout syndrome and its consequences.     

Effects of three training types on vitality among older adults: A self-determination theory perspective

ObjectivesTo investigate effects of endurance, functional and strength training on subjective vitality in older adults. Using the self-determination theory (SDT) framework we tested the moderating effects of autonomy support and mediating effects of need satisfaction on participants’ changes in vitality.DesignParallel-groups randomized controlled trial.Methods138 older adults (M = 74.2 years, SD = 4.5) were randomized to a training group or wait-list control, with assessments at baseline, at 7 weeks (short term), and 16 weeks (long term). Mixed models provided estimates of treatment effects, with covariates for moderating effects of autonomy support and mediating effects of need satisfaction (autonomy, competence, relatedness). Inferences were based on uncertainty in standardized effect-sizes (ES) in relation to a smallest important ES of 0.20.ResultsAt short term, effects on vitality were moderate for endurance training (ES = .70, ±.44), and small for functional (ES = .54, ±.36) and strength training (ES = .21, ±.47). At long term only endurance training had a clear effect on vitality (ES = .27, ±.38). Perceived autonomy support moderated the effect of endurance training at short term (ES = .66, ±.66), and functional training at long term (ES = .23, ±.40). Change in competence mediated the effect of functional and strength training at long term, while in endurance training high perceptions of autonomy support moderated the mediation effect of competence on vitality.ConclusionsEndurance training is recommended for increasing subjective vitality in older adults. Moderating effects of autonomy support and mediating effects of need satisfaction are partially consistent with self-determination theory.     

Innovative behaviour and job involvement at the price of conflict and less satisfactory relations with co‐workers

Although innovative behaviour is widely claimed to contribute to long term organizational effectiveness, the price that an individual worker may have to pay for taking an innovative approach has generally not been examined. The present study hypothesizes that a worker's innovative behaviour interacts with his or her job involvement in producing conflict and less satisfactory relations with resisting co‐workers who want to prevent innovative change. Moreover, conflict with co‐workers is hypothesized to mediate the interactive effect of innovative behaviour and job involvement on satisfaction with co‐worker relations. These hypotheses were supported in a survey study among 76 secondary school teachers based on supervisor ratings of the teachers' innovative behaviour and teachers' self‐report data of job involvement, conflict with co‐workers and satisfaction with co‐worker relations.     

The Influence of Emotional Dissonance on Subjective Health and Job Satisfaction: Testing the Stress–Strain–Outcome Model

We adopted the stress–strain–outcome model ( Koeske & Koeske, 1993 ) to examine the influence of work stressors on subjective health and job satisfaction among Chinese service employees. Two independent studies were reported. In the first study, 271 employees provided cross‐sectional data on work characteristics, emotional dissonance, work strain, and job satisfaction. Structural equation modeling showed that work characteristics were related to emotional dissonance, which, in turn, was associated with work strain, with the latter eventually predicting job satisfaction. Study 2 was a 3‐month longitudinal survey with a separate sample of 155 call‐center and retail‐shop representatives. Longitudinal data showed that emotional dissonance at Time 1 significantly predicted work strain at Time 2, which predicted job satisfaction at Time 2.     

Volunteer engagement and intention to quit from a self‐determination theory perspective

Drawing on self‐determination theory, the current study investigates the mediation process of satisfaction with the 3 basic needs (i.e., autonomy, competence, relatedness) between autonomous motivation and volunteers' turnover intention and work engagement. A study of 349 Romanian volunteers reveals an interesting dichotomy. For work engagement, the positive effect of autonomy and competence needs satisfaction appears to have been partially mediated by autonomous motivation. Turnover intention, however, was directly influenced by the degree of autonomy and competence needs satisfaction. Moreover, satisfaction of the relatedness need had no effect on the 2 outcome variables when controlling for satisfaction of autonomy and competence needs. Implications and possible explanations are suggested.