Toward an Improved Understanding of Work Motivation Profiles

Students' motivational trajectories in vocational education: Effects of a self-regulated learning environment

Motivation is central for successful learning processes and lifelong learning. In the present study, the motivational development of vocational students in a learning environment promoting self-regulated learning (SRL) was examined in comparison to a control group with regular, teacher-centered instruction. The first aim was to examine the development of the dispositional and situational motivation of vocational students. The second aim was to gain a deeper understanding of the students' motivational experiences and the factors of the learning environment that promote and impede motivation. For this purpose, a mixed-methods design was applied. Through multilevel analysis, we investigated the development of dispositional motivation between the beginning and the end of the first year of vocational education (N = 159), as well as the development of situational motivation over the first 14 weeks using weekly motivation measures (N = 119). In addition, we interviewed 19 students from the SRL-promoting and regular school settings. The quantitative results revealed significant changes in dispositional and situational motivation over time. The qualitative results showed that the three basic psychological needs (relatedness, competence, and autonomy) were central determinants of the students' motivation in both learning environments-albeit to varying extents. Overall, the SRL-promoting learning environment has positive effects on student motivation, but interindividual differences must be considered. Moreover, the results shed light on the coexistence of different motivation regulations within students and interindividual differences in the interpretation of the satisfaction of the three basic psychological needs.

Do Resources Help or Hurt? The Critical Roles of Me, Others, and Organization in Mitigating Workplace Demands

Today's job demands-resources (JD-R) literature emphasizes the interactions between job demands and resources. However, the dynamism of JD-R processes in which individuals manage to counteract the detrimental effects of job demands on employees by flexibly adjusting resources calls this relationship into question. Hence, in this study, we depict JD-R dynamics in the workplace by developing a cross-level moderated-mediation model that unveils the different roles played by job and personal resources when they are woven together with job demands. We examine how and when the relationships among three types of resources-organizationally assigned high-performance work systems (HPWSs), psychological capital (PsyCap), and social support climate (SSC)-help employees deal with excessive workload and unhealthy emotional demands. Using a two-wave research design, we measured and tested the causal relationships of the proposed variables. We found that (1) HPWSs had a negative effect on workload, (2) workload provoked employee emotional demands, (3) the interaction between HPWSs and PsyCap increased workload, and (4) SSC mitigated the positive effect of workload on employee emotional demands. This study contributes to the JD-R theory and literature by unlocking the potential roles of various resources. Theoretical and practical implications, limitations, and future research avenues are also presented.

Sensation seeking, drinking motives, and going out mediate the link between eveningness and alcohol use and problems in adolescence

The present study was aimed at obtaining a more comprehensive understanding of the possible mediating factors in the morningness-eveningness → alcohol consumption relation. We explored the role of mediators such as sensation seeking, the frequency of going out in the evenings, and drinking motives. We tested the proposed mediation model via structural equation modeling based on cross-sectional research conducted among Hungarian adolescents and young adults (N = 1695, 42.5% male, Mage = 18.98, SDage = 1.89). The outcomes included the frequency of alcohol consumption and problematic drinking. Both alcohol consumption and problematic drinking were predicted in similar directions and magnitudes by sensation seeking, "going out," and coping drinking motives. However, eveningness still had a significant direct effect on alcohol consumption and problematic drinking after we controlled for sensation seeking, going out, and drinking motives. For problematic drinking, the possible role of drinking motives seems to be higher and more complex than it is for alcohol consumption. The mediators, such as sensation seeking, the amount of time spent out in the evenings, and drinking motives, can explain the eveningness → alcohol consumption relationship and should be targeted for alcohol prevention programs among evening-type adolescents.

Nature, implications and determinants of academic motivation profiles among upper elementary and secondary students

The present study sought to contribute to self-determination theory by examining the nature of adolescents' academic motivation profiles defined while considering its global and specific nature. The construct validity of these profiles was examined by considering their replicability across samples of upper elementary (n = 781) and secondary (n = 467) school students, as well as their associations with predictors (perceived parental need nurturing behaviors) and outcomes (academic achievement and expectations of success). Latent profile analyses revealed four profiles (Non-Motivated, Identified, Amotivated, and Strongly Motivated) characterized by differing levels of global and specific levels of academic motivation. These profiles were fully replicated across educational levels. Most profiles differed from one another in terms of outcomes, although differences in terms of outcomes associations were observed across educational levels. Finally, profile membership was predicted by global levels of need nurturing and by some of the specific need nurturing behaviors in a way that replicated across educational levels. Our results suggest that the specific qualities of academic motivation and the global levels of self-determination are equally important in the identification of academic motivation profiles.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-023-04687-x.

Algorithmic management, preferences for autonomy/security and gig-workers' wellbeing: A matter of fit?

The objective of this study was to understand how gig-workers interpret the effects of their laboral activity on their wellbeing. We developed a grounded theory based on interviews with 57 Brazilian gig-workers. The results show that (1) workers and gig-work organizations have preferences for work relationships with more autonomy or security; (2) when there is a congruence of preferences, the worker experiences greater wellbeing, and when the preferences diverge, there are episodes of preference violations that, when repeated, reduce worker wellbeing; and (3) however, not everything is a matter of fit: when both individuals and organizations have the same preference (for example, for more autonomy and less security), worker wellbeing may be vulnerable to abuse, for example, in terms of an unsustainable workload. Our study draws attention to an integrated discussion of the benefits and harms of algorithmic management, which allows overcoming a polarized view in which it would be seen only as beneficial or harmful to workers.

On the global and specific nature of psychological need satisfaction and work motivation in predicting employees' wellbeing: a self-determination theory perspective

Using data from 708 French-Canadian nurses, the present study relies on self-determination theory (SDT) and its proposed motivation mediation model to examine the associations between need satisfaction, work motivation, and various manifestations of psychological wellbeing (work satisfaction, emotional exhaustion, and turnover intentions). To increase the precision and accuracy of these analyses, we relied on analytic approaches that explicitly account for the dual global/specific nature of both work motivation and need satisfaction. Results revealed that nurses' global psychological need satisfaction, and their specific autonomy and competence satisfaction, were positively associated with their global self-determined work motivation and specific intrinsic motivation. In turn, global self-determined work motivation and specific intrinsic motivation were associated with more desirable outcome levels. Nurses' global need satisfaction and specific autonomy satisfaction were also directly associated with more desirable outcome levels. Our results provided support for a partially mediated version of SDT's motivation mediation model.

Motivational Profiles in Unemployment: A Self-Determination Perspective

In general, being unemployed has negative implications for the individual and the mental health of the public as a collective. One way to escape this situation is to search for a job. However, following self-determination theory (SDT), unemployed people's different reasons (i.e., their motivation) for engaging in a job search influence their well-being, attitudes, and behaviors for better or worse. Some research has already supported the associations between different types of motivation and these outcomes, but less is known about how these types of motivation simultaneously associate with these outcomes. The current study addressed this issue by studying how different motivational profiles had different implications for the affective experiences, commitment to employment, and job search behavior of the unemployed. Latent profile analysis, among 865 unemployed individuals from previously disadvantaged communities in South Africa, highlighted four distinct motivational profiles: motivated, ambivalent, amotivated, and unmotivated. The motivated reported some good well-being (i.e., positive experiences) and economic outcomes (i.e., employment commitment and job search), but these came at a cost (i.e., more negative experiences). The same went for the ambivalent, but to a lesser extent. Being unmotivated seemed to have the opposite effect in that it came with psychological benefits, but with economic costs, as these individuals might withdraw from the labor market. This also applied to the amotivated, although they experienced less psychological benefit than their unmotivated counterparts. The findings made several contributions to SDT and unemployment research and could help tailor interventions and policies for particular types of unemployed people.

Employment preferences of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities: An evaluation of gender and age differences

BACKGROUND

Employment is often central to individuals' lives. However, individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities are often absent from the workplace, and little research has examined their interest in working.

AIMS

This study examined whether people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities want jobs; why they do or do not want jobs; and, if they want to work, what types of jobs they would like to have.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Our analyses consisted of 629 participants (379 male, 248 female, 2 unspecified) who participated in an interview.

RESULTS

Results suggested that many individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities want jobs. Our study identified gender differences in vocational interests and motivation for employment. There were no significant differences between age groups.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

In the future, research could expand upon these findings by exploring how various factors, such as other social identities, affect vocational interests of individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

Sexual Motivations Underlying Compulsive Sexual Behavior in Women and Men From Germany and Hungary

BACKGROUND

There are ongoing debates about conflicting models on how to conceptualize compulsive sexual behavior. At the heart of these discussions is the question about the sexual motivations underlying compulsive sexual behavior, as different models assume different motivations.

AIM

The aim of the present study was to understand sexual motivations underlying compulsive sexual behavior and their relation to the most prominent conceptualizations of compulsive sexual behavior (eg, compulsive sexual behavior disorder [CSBD], sex addiction).

METHODS

We used self-reported data from 2 large samples of Hungarian and German populations (N = 9814). The Sexual Motivation Scale (SexMS), a 24-item self-report measure based on self-determination theory, was used to assess a diverse set of sexual motivations. Compulsive sexual behavior was assessed with the 19-item Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder Scale (CSBD-19), that is based on the ICD-11 diagnostic guidelines of CSBD. We used structural equation modeling to examine the hypothesized associations between sexual motivations and compulsive sexual behavior and examined potential gender differences in these associations.

OUTCOMES

Compulsive sexual behavior was assessed in relation to a set of sexual motivations.

RESULTS

Amotivation had the strongest positive association with compulsive sexual behavior, but integrated, introjected, and intrinsic motivations were also positively related to it. Importantly, these associations did not differ for women and men, and between the 2 samples.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

Future research and treatment should also consider sexual motivations that are not listed among the ICD-11 guidelines for CSBD, including high levels of sexual interest, continuing the behavior despite having little satisfaction from it and coping with sex.

STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS

Although we used large samples of general populations in 2 Western countries, this motivational background of compulsive sexual behavior awaits replication in a clinical sample of individuals experiencing CSBD.

CONCLUSION

The identified sexual motivations underlying compulsive sexual behavior are relevant for assessing and treating patients as motivations may be integrated into psychotherapeutic interventions. Koós M, Fuss J, Klein V, et al. Sexual Motivations Underlying Compulsive Sexual Behavior in Women and Men From Germany and Hungary. J Sex Med 2022;19:170-181.

Having the Cake and Eating It Too: First-Order, Second-Order and Bifactor Representations of Work Engagement

Even though work engagement is a popular construct in organizational psychology, the question remains whether it is experienced as a global construct, or as its three components (vigor, dedication, absorption). The present study thus contributes to the ongoing scientific debate about the dimensionality of work engagement systematically compared one-factor, first-order, higher-order, and bifactor confirmatory factor analytic (CFA) representations of work engagement measured by the short version of Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9). We also documented the validity evidence of the most optimal representation based on its test-criterion relationship with basic psychological need fulfillment at work, turnover intentions, work addiction, and work satisfaction. Based on responses provided by two distinct samples of employees (N ₁ = 242, N ₂ = 505), our results supported the superiority of the bifactor-CFA representation including a global factor of work engagement and three co-existing specific factors of vigor, dedication, and absorption. This representation replicated well across the two samples through tests of measurement invariance. Finally, while global work engagement was substantially related to all correlates, the specific factors also demonstrated meaningful associations over and above the global levels of work engagement.