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Three-way interaction effects of workaholism on employee well-being: Evidence from blue-collar workers in New Zealand

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 November 2013

Jarrod Haar*
Affiliation:
School of Management, College of Business, North Shore City, Auckland, New Zealand
Maree Roche*
Affiliation:
School of Psychology, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Waikato, New Zealand
*
Corresponding author: E-mail: j.haar@massey.ac.nz; mroche@waikato.ac.nz
Corresponding author: E-mail: j.haar@massey.ac.nz; mroche@waikato.ac.nz

Abstract

Workaholism is an important workplace phenomenon that has received less empirical testing than might be expected. This study of 100 New Zealand blue-collar workers tested whether three dimensions of the workaholism triad: work involvement, drive to work and work enjoyment were related to anxiety, depression and insomnia, and in the majority this was supported. Work involvement was positively related to all outcomes, while work enjoyment was negatively related. Drive to work was positively related to anxiety and insomnia only. Overall, consistently, large amounts of variance were explained by the workaholism triad. While previously untested in the literature, a three-way interaction of the workaholism triad was found towards anxiety and insomnia. Overall, higher work involvement was useful in buffering detrimental outcomes for those with either high work involvement or high drive to work, but not both. The present study provides a new way of understanding the effects of workaholism in the workplace.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2013 

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