Value congruence and teachers’ work engagement: The mediating role of autonomous and controlled motivation

This study aimed to examine the importance of value congruence in work engagement and to extend the previous literature by investigating the potential mediating effects of autonomous and controlled motivation in this relationship. The Perceived Value Congruence, Autonomous and Controlled Motivation and Work Engagement scales were administered to 767 teachers in Mainland China. Correlation analysis revealed that value congruence, autonomous and controlled motivation and work engagement were significantly correlated with each other. Furthermore, structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis showed that value congruence exerted its indirect effect on teacher’s work engagement through the mediating effect of autonomous and controlled motivation. These findings provide a new perspective to explain the complex association between value congruence and work engagement. The possible explanations and the research limitations are discussed.