The presented four approaches all stress different dimensions of employee engagement; the needs-satisfying approach the relation of employee engagement with role performance, the burnout-antithesis approach the positive nature of employee engagement in terms of employee well-being, the satisfaction-engagement approach the relation of employee satisfaction-engagement with resourceful jobs and the multidimensional approach its relation with the job and the organization (Schaufeli 2014, 19).
After having studied the evolution of the concept, Shuck and Wollard (2010) define employee engagement as “an individual employee’s cognitive, emotional, and behavioral state directed towards desired organizational outcomes” (Shuck &
Wollard 2010, 103). According to the scholars, engagement is often discussed as behavioral outcome and little attention is given to the antecedents that may drive the cognitive and emotional states of engagement, which may lead to the behavior that is seen as engagement (Wollard & Shuck 2011, 434). In their research, the scholars focused on antecedents to employee engagement by a structured literature review. As a result, 42 antecedents were grouped by application at the individual and organizational level (Wollard et Shuck 2011, 429).
In turn, in their literature review on the construct Macey and Schneider (2008) conclude that employee engagement has either been looked at attitudinally or behaviorally; as psychological state engagement (what it is), behavioral engagement (behaviors it produces) or trait engagement (attitude towards work) (Macey & Schneider 2008, 6). Of the three facets, each can be further divided into several aspects of engagement.
Macey and Schneider stress the importance of psychological state engagement to engagement. Psychological state engagement includes feelings like energy, absorption, satisfaction, involvement, commitment, attachment, enthusiasm, and empowerment (Macey & Schneider 2008, 6). Behavioral engagement is regarded as observable behavior in the work context including e.g. extra role behavior, organizational citizenship behavior, proactive and/or personal initiative, and role expansion (Macey & Schneider 2008, 14). Behavioral engagement also affects state engagement and is a moderator between trait and state engagement. Finally, trait engagement consists of positive views of life and work, proactive or autotelic personality, trait positive affect, and conscientiousness. It may be an orientation to experience the world in a particular way. According to the scholars, trait engagement is reflected in state engagement and these together lead to behavioral engagement. Thus, psychological state engagement is seen as an antecedent of behavioral engagement (Macey & Schneider 2008, 5).
Macey and Schneider propose that employee engagement possesses a few origins of both attitudinal and behavioral variety. They define employee engagement as “a desirable condition that has an organizational purpose and connotes involvement, commitment, passion, enthusiasm, focused effort, and energy" (Macey & Schneider 2008, 4). The nature of work (work attributes, variety, challenge, and autonomy) and the nature of leadership (especially transformational leadership) are seen as affecting engagement. Leadership has an indirect effect on behavioral engagement through the creation of trust (Macey &
Schneider 2008, 6).
To conclude, the majority of the research on employee engagement so far is located in the field of psychology and conducted within a positivistic paradigm using quantitative methods. Common to different definitions is that employee engagement is seen as including employee’s passion and commitment to his or her job and at some point to his or her organization. Employee engagement is not transactional, and it is seen as an internal state of being that includes emotion, behaviors, relationships, and a connection between the employee and the organization.
Despite the several studies and research, there is a lack of agreement of the concept employee engagement. Comparing the different definitions is not easy as each definition is made using different measures (Kular et al. 2008, 18). Finding a generally accepted definition would be important to be able to study, measure and manage employee engagement. According to Schaufeli there is an emerging consensus that employee engagement is a psychological state experienced by employees in relation to their work. It is sufficiently distinct from other, similar constructs and regarded as worthy of investigation in its own right (Schaufeli 2014, 9). Employee engagement has different antecedents and consequences than the related concepts such as satisfaction, commitment and involvement, and is something beyond them. Employee engagement is investing one´s hands, head and heart in the performance, it´s passion for work (Rich et al. 2010). The development of the concept is presented in table 1 below.
ArticleRelevant theoryConstructsSurvey model (country, industry)ResultsFuture researchCitations (Google Scholar 29.10.2016) Construct and theory development & literature reviews Kahn, W. A. (1990) Psychological conditions of personal engagement and disengagement at work Grounded (new) theoryPersonal engagement and disengagementQualitative interviews backed up by frequences and correlations Three psychological conditions influencing work behavior: psychological meaningfulness, psychological safety, and psychological availability.
Personal engagement and disengagement as not static orientations (like involvement and commitment) but having variance.
3934 Harter, J. K., Schmidt, F. L. & Hayes, T. L. (2002) Business- Unit-Level Relationship Between Employee Satisfaction, Employee Engagement, and Business Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis
Employee/Job satisfaction Employee engagementMeta-analysis of 42 studies in 36 companies and close to 8 000 business-units by The Gallup Organization
Companies can learn a great deal about the management talents and practices that drive business outcomes by studying their top-scoring employee engagement business units. Employee satisfaction and engagement are related to meaningful business outcomes the correlations of which can be generalized across companies.
A causal model for exploring the generalized path of employee satisfaction- engagement to short-term outcomes that result in financial outcomes later should be developed. Future research should emphasize longitudinal designs that study changes in employee satisfaction- engagement, the causes of such changes, and the resulting usefulness to the business.
2974 Saks, A. (2006) Antecedents and consequences of employee engagement
Social exchange theoryJob engagement and organization engagement as separate constructs Survey on job and organization engagement (correlation and multiple regression analysis between the variables and job & organization engagement) There exists a meaningful difference between job and organization engagements. The relationship between the antecedent variables and consequences is partially mediated by job and organization engagement.
HR practices such as flexible working arrangements, training programs, and incentive compensation might also be important for engagement. What are the most important factors for engagement in different roles? Conclusions about the causal effects of employee engagement are needed.
2015
Table 1. Employee engagement concept development in literature (continues)
ArticleRelevant theoryConstructsSurvey model (country, industry)ResultsFuture researchCitations (Google Scholar 29.10.2016) Construct and theory development & literature reviews Schaufeli, W. & Salanova, M. (2007) Work Engagement An Emerging Psychological Concept and Its Implications for Organizations
Positive psychologyWork engagement as a psychological conceptWork engagement may play a crucial role in the development of the organization's human capital.1089 Kular, S., Gatenby, M., Rees, C., Soane, E. & Truss, K. (2008) Employee Engagement: A Literature Review
Social exchange theoryEmployee engagementLiterature reviewConfirms that employee engagement is a separate construct and has been conceptualized in many different ways. Emphasized the importance of management and leadership skills in enhancing employee engagement.
Which specific actions taken by employers lead to increased levels of employee engagement? Actionable surveys to reveal problem areas and actions to eliminate barriers to engagement.
166 Macey, W. H. & Schneider, B. (2008) The Meaning of Employee Engagement
Engagement as a multi- faceted construct consisting of trait, state and behavioral engagement Literature reviewEngaged employees will provide the sustainable competitive advantage in the future.
1507 Wollard, K. K. & Shuck, B. (2011) Antecedents to Employee Engagement: A Structured Review of the Literature
Individual employee engagement Organizational employee engagement Literature reviewAntecedents are not process dependent, but rather functions that usher in the conditions for the state of engagement to develop.
Do antecedents vary by industry, organizational level, and personality? Future research calls for the implications of employee engagement to HRD. What are the individual psychological factors of engaged and disengaged employees?
110
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Table 1. Employee engagement concept development in literature(continues)
ArticleRelevant theoryConstructsSurvey model (country, industry)ResultsFuture researchCitations (Google Scholar 29.10.2016) Construct and theory development & literature reviews Bakker, A. B., Demerouti, E. & Xanthopoulou, D. (2012) How do Engaged Employees Stay Engaged?
Russell's model of affect Job demands-resources model Job performance Proactive behavior Job crafting Work engagement
Literature reviewAutonomy plays a crucial role in why engaged employees stay engaged.28 Schaufeli, W. (2013) What is Engagement?The needs-satisfying approach The job demands-resources model The affective shift model Social exchange theory
Engagement as a separate construct (work related state of mind that can be measured) Literature reviewEngagement should be seen as a psychological state in conjunction with its behavioral expression.
Research on the engagement- performance and engagement- productivity nexus are needed. 88 Saks, A. & Gruman, J. (2014) What Do We Really Know About Employee Engagement?
NEW Theory of employee engagement (based on Kahn 1990 & Bakker & Demerouti 2007) Employee engagementLiterature review followed by construct development (antecedents and consequences), theory development
Not enough attention has been paid to things that really matter: meaning, measurement, and theory. We need to know what causes employee engagement and the effect of employee engagement on organizational outcomes.
Future research should focus on the development of new measures of engagement founded in Kahn and Maslach et al. 52 Measuring employee engagement and scale development Schaufeli, W. B., Salanova, M., González-Roma, V. & Bakker, A. B. (2002) The Measurement of Engagement and Burnout: A Two Sample Confirmatory Factor Analytical Approach
Burnout Engagement: three dimensions of vigor, dedication, and absorption Two sample survey of Spanish students (n=314) and employees (n=619) in various industries.
Engagement is not adequately measured by the opposite profile of burnout thus it needs to be opeationalized in its own right. An extended engagement factor - including efficacy - describes the structure of the data best. Thus efficacy seems to be an element of engagement.
Future research on the divergent validity of the three engagement dimensions (vigor, dedication, absorption) should reveal whether they share similar antecedents and consequences.3920
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Table 1. Employee engagement concept development in literature(continues)
ArticleRelevant theoryConstructsSurvey model (country, industry)ResultsFuture researchCitations (Google Scholar 29.10.2016) Measuring employee engagement and scale development Gruman, J. A. & Saks, A. M. (2011) Performance management and employee engagement Social exchange theory Job Demands-Resources model Transformational leadership
Performance management Employee engagementLiterature review followed by a model developmentThe focus of the model developped is on employee engagement instead of performance management. The model offers thus a new way to assess employee engagement through a performance management approach.
Empirical testing of the model and whether its use results in higher levels of employee engagement. 299 Kumar, V. & Pansari, A. (2014) The Construct, Measurement, and Impact of Employee Engagement: a Marketing Perspective
Employee engagement Customer engagementLiterature review followed by a conceptual framework and scale development
Formal defition of employee engagement based on earlier literature and managerial interviews. Dimensions of employee engagement consist of employee satisfaction, identification, commitment, loyalty, and performance.
Impact of employee engagement between customer engagement and firm profitability. Analysis of employee engagement framework in a multinational company.
5 Kumar, V. & Pansari, A. (2015) Measuring the Benefits of Employee Engagement
Employee engagement consists of five dimensions: satisfaction, identification, commitment, loyalty, and performance Data from 200 managers at 50 companies worldwide Scorecard developed based on the results
Companies with higher levels of employee engagement showed higher levels of profits.4 Near-concepts of employee engagement Maslach, C., Schaufeli, W. B. & Leiter, M. P. (2001) Job Burnout
No actual theories mentioned but investigates the construct at the level of person and organization.
Burnout vis-à-vis person and job engagementSummary of theoretical and empirical research on job burnout (not a literature review per se).
Expands the construct of burnout towards job engagement due to the emergence of positive psychology. Both managerial and educational interventions are needed for dealing with employee burnout.
Achieving solutions to the problem of employee burnout. 9918
Table 1. Employee engagement concept development in literature(continues)