Fostering conditions for growth and change

Abstract

Organizations change constantly but in order for change to succeed, employees and functions need to be prepared. Poor motivation and attitudes from employees concerning change initiatives can lead to detrimental results. This research consists of two studies, of which the first utilizes the Job Demands-Resources model to seek an answer to the question of what can lead to increased employee work engagement and willingness to change. The relation between three job resources, namely social support, feedback and job control, and work outcomes were studied together with expected moderation effects of two personal resources: regulatory focus (promotion versus prevention focus) and occupational self-efficacy. Results of a hierarchical regression analysis partially supported the fundamental assumptions of the JD-R model as most main effects were significant. With regard to the moderation effects, results found moderation of occupational self-efficacy on relations between social support and work engagement but also between job control and willingness to change. Only a moderation effect of prevention focus was found on the relation between job control and willingness to change. The second study employed a 2 (prevention versus promotion employee focus) x 2 (prevention versus promotion framing of a hypothetical change message) design to determine attitude toward change using the regulatory fit theory. Results found an increased willingness to change for promotion-focused employees who received the promotion scenario. The practical implications and suggestions for further research are discussed.