ABSTRACT

Research Question: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between work engagement and workaholism in sport employees, as well as several work and individual factors, such as job flexibility and gender, that may foster or protect against workaholism. Examining these factors can progress theoretical understanding of the relationship between work engagement and workaholism, especially a potential ‘tipping point’ within high-demand vocations. It can also provide practical insight for sport managers regarding ways to help employees engage in their work without tipping over into workaholism.

Research Methods: We used a structural modeling approach to examine the relationship between work engagement, workaholism, and work-family conflict. This model was tested within the context of a large, diverse sample of athletic department employees (N = 4,167).

Results and Findings: Results indicated a significant, positive relationship between work engagement and workaholism. We also found that work-family conflict partially mediates this relationship, which suggests work-family conflict may deter highly engaged workers from turning into workaholics. Finally, we also found the participants’ job flexibility and participants’ gender were correlated with their reported levels of work engagement and workaholism.

Implications: These findings suggest that in certain conditions engaged workers are at risk of transitioning to workaholics. It also suggests work-family conflict could act as a buffer to this transition. This study provides empirical support for a relationship previously conceptualized but untested within the business literature.

摘要

研究问题：本研究的目的是检查体育从业人员的工作投入和工作狂之间的关系，以及可能促进或防止工作狂的几个工作和个人因素，例如工作灵活性和性别。检查这些因素可以促进对工作投入和工作狂之间关系的理论理解，尤其是高需求职业中的潜在“临界点”。它还可以为体育经理提供有关如何帮助员工参与工作而不会陷入工作狂的实用见解。

研究方法：我们使用结构建模方法来检查工作投入、工作狂和工作家庭冲突之间的关系。该模型在大量不同的体育部门员工样本 ( N  = 4,167) 中进行了测试。

结果和发现：结果表明工作投入和工作狂之间存在显着的正相关关系。我们还发现工作-家庭冲突在一定程度上调节了这种关系，这表明工作-家庭冲突可能会阻止高度敬业的员工变成工作狂。最后，我们还发现参与者的工作灵活性和参与者的性别与他们报告的工作投入和工作狂水平相关。

启示：这些发现表明，在某些情况下，敬业的员工有转变为工作狂的风险。它还表明工作与家庭的冲突可以作为这种过渡的缓冲。这项研究为先前概念化但在商业文献中未经检验的关系提供了实证支持。