본 연구는 일과 가정의 상호작용 모형(work life interaction model )과 몰입-증진 이론에 근거하여 직무요구와 창의적 성과 간의 곡선적 관계에서 나타나는 일-가정 증진의 매개효과를 검증하고자 한다. 근로자들은 직장에서 경험하는 업무량이나 시간 압박의 정도가 적정 수준일 때에 이를최적의 자극으로 받아들이고 일에 몰입한다. 이러한 일 몰입은 일 외의 경험에도 영향을 줄 수있는데, 구체적으로 근로자들이 일 경험을 바탕으로 가정에서 주어진 역할을 보다 잘 수행할 수있다고 느끼게 되는 일-가정 증진에 영향을 주게 된다. 그리고 주목할 것은 근로자의 일-가정 증진이 근로자의 직장 영역에서 과업성과에도 긍정적인 영향을 준다. 근로자는 일-가정 증진을 통하여 일에 대한 긍정적인 태도를 가지기도 하지만, 무엇보다 다양한 역할을 수행하면서 발생한긍정적 감정과 지식 및 기능의 축적으로 자원의 풍족을 경험한다. 이러한 자원의 풍족으로, 근로자는 과업을 수행하면서 발생하는 문제를 해결하는 데에 여유를 가지고 접근하게 되며 다양한 생각을 바탕으로 해결책을 제시하여 창의적 성과를 향상시킬 수 있다. 실증분석을 위하여 다양한산업과 규모의 26개 기업에서 근무하는 244명 근로자들을 표본으로 사용하였다. 분석결과에 따르면 첫째, 직무요구와 창의적 성과 사이에 유의미한 비선형적 관계가 존재하며, 둘째, 직무요구와일-가정 증진 역시 유의미한 비선형적 관계를 갖는 것으로 나타났다. 마지막으로, 일-가정 증진은직무요구와 창의적 성과 간의 곡선적 관계를 완전매개(full mediation)하는 것으로 확인되었다.
Individual creativity is important to organization innovation. We focus on jobdemands that affect the creative performance as a crucial work environment. Jobdemands refers to aspects of job that require sustained effort, and, as such incurcertain costs as a result. Bear & Oldham (2006) argued that the relationshipbetween job demands and creativity is inverted U-shape. When job demands arenot high or low levels but moderate level, the employees recognize intermediatelevel of job demands as a optimal stimulation. However, the study has explainedthe curvilinear relationship between job demand and creativity in manufacturingindustry, and in concept of job demand as time pressure for creative workperformance. In addition, the study cannot demonstrate the mechanism that explainthe curvilinear relationship between job demands and creative performance.
How does moderate level of job demands enhance creativity? According toengagement-enrichment theory, engagement leads to enrichment. Previous studiesfocus on enrichment such as job satisfaction and organizational commitment thatare caused by work engagement. However, work engagement can lead to non-workexperience. For example, Bakker & Domerouti (2008) demonstrated that employeeswho experience work engagement that is characterized by vigor and absorptionvoluntarily participate in various activities at home. In addition, they argued becausevarious domains such as work and family are not separate but integrate, familylife affect work performance. Greenhaus & Powell (2006) insist although there is awork-family conflict which is negative role conflict, there is a work-family enrichmentwhich is positive synergy role accumulation. Based on work and life integrationmodel, especially, enrichment process, this study presents that the relationshipbetween moderate level of job demands and creative performance. In addition, we demonstrate the effect of non-work experience such as work-family enrichment inthe curvilinear relationship between job demands and creativity based onengagement-enrichment theory.
Amabile(1988) has demonstrated intrinsic motivation is key factor in creativity.
Job demand can be enhancer intrinsic motivation as well as hinder intrinsicmotivation depend on perception of employees. Previous literature insists there arecurvilinear relationship between job demand and creativity. According to optimalexperience theory, the moderate level of pressure for work load and work speed ortime lead to intrinsic interest. The optimal stimulation makes employees engagetheir work. As a result, the employees who engage the job show risk takingbehavior to achieve the goal. In other word, because the employees who engagetheir task show experimental behavior and exploitation activities, they createoutstanding new and novel performance. Furthermore, engagement of the job causeenrichment state according to engagement-enrichment theory. Work engagement,which is defined as a positive, fulfilling work-related state of mind characterizedby vigor, dedication, and absorption, causes enrichment according to engagementenrichmenttheory. Employees who engage their job feel vigor or absorption, as aresult, they think that their job is very meaningful and helpful for their development.
The feeling leads to positive affect and attitude for their job as well astheir life such as family. Thus, the employees have confidence to carry out theirroles as a father or mother through the positive affect accumulated by job. Inaddition, when the employees experience work-family enrichment, they recognizethat they have abundant resource such as social capital and psychological resource.
Thus, the employees feel relaxed, which make them have various alternative andshow risk taking behaviors.
We use 224 samples consist of various firm sizes and industry in the analysis.
We conduct confirmatory factor analysis, correlation analysis and hierarchicalregression to verify the hypothesis based on Baron & Kenny (1998)’s mediationprocess. In the results, first of all, there is a curvilinear relationship between jobdemands and creative performance. In addition, there is a curvilinear relationshipbetween job demands and work family enrichment. Finally, work family enrichmentfully mediate the relationship between job demands and creative performance.
Based on the result, there are some theoretical implications. First of all, weexpand not only the study of cuvilinear relationship between job demand andcreativity but also work and family interaction. Previous studies could not explainhow moderate level of job demand affect creativity. In addition, previous studies demonstrated the relationship between work to family or family to work. That is,they represented the one-way relationship with work and family. we propose theconcept of work family enrichment to explain the cuvilinear relationship betweenjob demand and creativity, and show two-ways relationship with work and family.
Secondly, we expand the empirical studies of the relationship between work-familyenrichment and work performance. Previous studies have focused on not only therelationship between work-family enrichment and work performance such as jobsatisfaction, organizational commitment or intention to turnover but also imitatedempirical analysis. We demonstrate that work family enrichment increase creativity.
Thus, we propose work family enrichment is key factor in increase organizationaloutcomes. Furthermore, there are some practical implications. The firms shouldhave integrated perspective for work and family to respect employees’ life. Thus,firms should design work practice or procedure in the integrated perspectives.