Achievement Goals and Goal Progress as Drivers of Work Engagement

The Importance of Autonomy and Performance Goals in Perceived Workload Among Behavioral Health Providers

OBJECTIVE

The authors sought to assess workplace characteristics associated with perceived reasonable workload among behavioral health care providers in the Veterans Health Administration.

METHODS

The authors evaluated perceived reasonable workload and workplace characteristics from the 2019 All Employee Survey (AES; N=14,824) and 2019 Mental Health Provider Survey (MHPS; N=10,490) and facility-level staffing ratios from Mental Health Onboard Clinical Dashboard data. Nine AES and 15 MHPS workplace predictors of perceived reasonable workload, 11 AES and six MHPS demographic predictors, and facility-level staffing ratios were included in mixed-effects logistic regression models.

RESULTS

In total, 8,874 (59.9%) AES respondents and 5,915 (56.4%) MHPS respondents reported having a reasonable workload. The characteristics most strongly associated with perceived reasonable workload were having attainable performance goals (average marginal effect [AME]=0.10) in the AES and ability to schedule patients as frequently as indicated (AME=0.09) in the MHPS. Other AES characteristics significantly associated with reasonable workload included having appropriate resources, support for personal life, skill building, performance recognition, concerns being addressed, and no supervisor favoritism. MHPS characteristics included not having collateral duties that reduce care time, staffing levels not affecting care, support staff taking over some responsibilities, having spirit of teamwork, primary care-mental health integration, participation in performance discussions, well-coordinated mental health care, effective veteran programs, working at the top of licensure, and feeling involved in improving access. Facility-level staffing ratios were not significantly associated with perceived reasonable workload.

CONCLUSIONS

Leadership may consider focusing resources on initiatives that support behavioral health providers' autonomy to schedule patients as clinically indicated and develop attainable performance goals.

Fostering Learning Goals at Work: The Interplay of Dispositional and Workplace Learning Goal Orientation and Supervisor Appraisal Behavior

A workplace that emphasizes personal learning and task mastery fosters employee development and performance. However, it is yet unclear which specific factors support such a learning goal-oriented workplace. Based on research in the educational domain, we investigated the reciprocal effects of dispositional learning goal orientation, supervisor's appraisal behavior, and a learning goal-oriented workplace. In a study with a repeated measurement design (N = 144 employees), we did not find support for an effect of supervisor's appraisal behavior (operationalized by the perceived use of self-reference norms and constructive handling of errors by employees) on workplace learning goal orientation over time. However, we found that a dispositional learning goal orientation of employees supports a learning goal-oriented work environment. Furthermore, workplace learning goal orientation had a cross-lagged effect on dispositional learning goal orientation and supervisor's appraisal behavior. By comparing our results from work to findings from the educational context, our results convey important theoretical implications about the construct of workplace goal orientation and suggest practical applications to foster a learning goal-oriented workplace in terms of personnel development and performance management.

Professional Nursing Practice Environment and Work Engagement: The Mediating Roles of Self-Efficacy and Achievement Motivation

BACKGROUND

The shortage of nurses is a global problem. Increasing the level of work engagement is known to effectively reduce turnover rate among nursing staff. Strategies to improve work engagement based on the job demands-resources model may effectively improve nurses' job satisfaction and reduce staff turnover.

PURPOSE

A job demands-resources model was used in this study to test the hypothesis that work engagement is affected by both external resources (professional nursing practice environment) and internal resources (self-efficacy and achievement motivation). In addition, the mediating role of self-efficacy and achievement motivation in the relationship between professional nursing practice environment and work engagement was also verified.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey employing a convenience sampling design was implemented. Five hundred fifteen registered nurses were recruited from four tertiary hospitals in Chengdu, China, from January to June 2020. The Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index, General Self-Efficacy Scale, Achievement Motive Scale, and Utrecht Work Engagement Scale were used to measure the four variables.

RESULTS

The results of the structural equation model showed that the degree of fit for each index model was good, indicating that all of the three variables, including professional nursing practice environment, self-efficacy, and achievement motivation, directly affected work engagement. In addition, the variable professional nursing practice environment was found to indirectly influence work engagement through the partial mediation of self-efficacy and achievement motivation.

CONCLUSIONS

The results may be used to guide health policymakers and nurse managers attempting to enhance the work engagement of nurses by providing a supportive working environment, improving the welfare mechanism, formulating a talent training plan, and fostering appropriate empowerment to improve the working environment, self-efficacy, and motivation in nurses.

Work climate in emergency health services during COVID-19 pandemic-An international multicenter study

Introduction

A good working climate increases the chances of adequate care. The employees of Emergency in Hospitals are particularly exposed to work-related stress. Support from management is very important in order to avoid stressful situations and conflicts that are not conducive to good work organization. The aim of the study was to assess the work climate of Emergency Health Services during COVID-19 Pandemic using the Abridged Version of the Work Climate Scale in Emergency Health Services.

Design

A prospective descriptive international study was conducted.

Methods

The 24-item Abridged Version of the Work Climate Scale in Emergency Health Services was used for the study. The questionnaire was posted on the internet portal of scientific societies. In the study participated 217 women (74.5%) and 74 men (25.4%). The age of the respondents ranged from 23 to 60 years (SD = 8.62). Among the re-spondents, the largest group were Emergency technicians (85.57%), followed by nurses (9.62%), doctors (2.75%) and Service assistants (2.06%). The study was conducted in 14 countries.

Results

The study of the climate at work shows that countries have different priorities at work, but not all of them. By answering the research questions one by one, we can say that the average climate score at work was 33.41 min 27.0 and max 36.0 (SD = 1.52).

Conclusion

The working climate depends on many factors such as interpersonal relationships, remuneration or the will to achieve the same selector. In the absence of any of the elements, a proper working climate is not possible.

Relationships Between Achievement Goal Orientations, Learning Engagement, and Academic Adjustment in Freshmen: Variable-Centered and Person-Centered Approaches

Academic adjustment is a principal determining factor of undergraduate students' academic achievement and success. However, studies pay little attention to freshmen's antecedent variables of academic adjustment. This study aimed to examine the mechanisms underlying the relationship between achievement goal orientations and academic adjustment in freshmen using variable- and person-centered approaches. A sample of 578 freshmen (aged 18.29±1.04years, 58.5% female) completed questionnaires on achievement goal orientations, learning engagement, and academic adjustment. Latent profile analysis of achievement goal orientations revealed four groups: low-motivation (11.1%), approach-oriented (9.5%), average (52.8%), and multiple (26.6%). In the mediating analysis, results of the variable-centered approach showed that learning engagement mediated the effects of the mastery-approach and performance-avoidance goals on academic adjustment. For the person-centered approach, we selected the average type as the reference profile, and the analysis revealed that compared with the reference profile, learning engagement partially mediated the link between the approach-oriented profile and academic adjustment. The current study highlights the important role that achievement goal orientations and learning engagement play in academic adjustment. We discuss the implications and limitations of the findings.