A Research Study about Work Motivation and Work Engagement:

Measures of Employee Well-Being in a Healthy Workplace

Principal Investigator: Mark Antonison, Ph.D.
Overview of Research Study

The purpose of this research study is to develop a better understanding about healthy
workplace practices that promote employee well-being through goal setting. A primary purpose
of the research is to confirm the results of a previous study by the principal investigator that
supported the utility of the psychological construct Work Engagement as an effective measure of
employee work motivation.
Work Engagement is evaluated as an organizational health indicator that measures both
employee well-being and work motivation. Work Engagement is a three factor construct, with
measurement scales for an employees level of Vigor, Dedication, and Absorption on the job.
An employees general state of psychological well-being, and several related factors from
the goal theory of work motivation are also measured. Measurements are accomplished with a
survey instrument that combines several validated measurement scales selected from peerreviewed academic literature, including Work Engagement, the goal attributes of specificity and
difficulty, feedback about job performance, and occupational self-efficacy. Two components of
subjective well-being are also measured, using a cognitive overall satisfaction with life scale, and
an affective well-being scale. The relationships between these psychological constructs are
analyzed using structural equation modeling and confirmatory factor analysis methods.
Employees are contacted via work email address. Prior study respondents took fifteen
minutes on average to complete the survey. The survey is administered via a secure web-server.
Participation in this web-based survey is completely anonymous and confidentiality of all
individual responses is strictly maintained. A confidential aggregate summary and evaluation of
survey results for sampled organizations is provided to management.
The results of the survey can be used to provide management with an independent
evaluation of the company in three areas:
1) Psychological health of workforce.
2) Efficacy of employee occupational development.
3) Goal setting and feedback components of performance appraisal process.