Effect of Loneliness at Work on the Employees’ Intention to Leave

Yalnızlık ve işyerinde yalnızlık, çalışanların sosyo-psikolojik açıdan çalışma performanslarını etkileyen ve “insan” odaklı kurumsal uygulamalar açısından dikkatle değerlendirilmesi gereken önemli kavramlardır. İşyerinde yalnızlık hissi, kurumsal bağlılığı azaltabilmekte, sosyal ilişkileri zayıflatabilmekte ve dolayısıyla işgücü verimliliğini negatif yönde tetikleyebilmektedir. Bu durum göreli olmakla birlikte işten ayrılma niyetinin oluşmasına ve belki de bir sonraki adımda fiili işten ayrılma davranışının ortaya çıkmasına zemin hazırlayabilmektedir. Bu çerçevede, araştırmadan elde edilen en önemli bulgu, işyerinde yalnızlık hissinin, işten ayrılma niyeti oluşturduğu yönündedir. Dolayısıyla insan kaynakları pratikleri açısından “işyerinde yalnızlık”, üzerinde dikkatle durulması gereken önemli bir olgudur. Çalışanlar arası iş içi ve iş dışı sosyal ilişkilerin geliştirilmesi, formel düzeyde ast üst ilişkilerinin iyileştirilmesi, takım çalışmaları, biçimsel ve biçimsel olmayan iletişim kanallarının etkinleştirilmesi, psikolojik / sosyal destek hizmeti sunan uzmanların istihdamı vb. uygulamalar, işyerinde yalnızlık hissini azaltan örgütsel önlemler olarak düşünülebilmektedir. Bu araştırmanın amacı, işyerinde yalnızlık hissinin çalışanların işten ayrıla niyeti üzerindeki etkilerini tespit etmektir. Araştırma verilerinin toplanabilmesi için ilgili literatürde yer alan ve işyerinde yalnızlık ile işten ayrılma niyetini ölçümlemeye yarayan iki ayrı ölçek kullanılmıştır. İşyerinde yalnızlık endeksinin oluşturulması için PCA analizi kullanılmış, hesaplanan endeks değerleri regresyon analizine açıklayıcı değişkenler olarak dahil edilmiştir. Elde edilen sonuçlar, bu araştırma kapsamında işyerinde yalnızlığın, işten ayrılma niyeti üzerinde etkisi olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır. Diğer taraftan, araştırmaya katılan çalışanların işyerinde yalnız hissetmedikleri bulgulanmıştır.

Effect of Loneliness at Work on the Employees’ Intention to Leave

act As loneliness and loneliness at work are important socio-psychological concepts that affect employee job performance, they should be carefully considered with respect to human-oriented corporate practices. Loneliness at work may decrease organizational commitment and weaken social relationships, thereby adversely affecting the employee’s level of productivity. Loneliness at work may further result in intention to leave and perhaps even culminate in actual leaving behavior. Therefore, “loneliness at work” is an important phenomenon that should be carefully addressed in terms of human resources practices. The development of social relationships between employees both at work and outside of work, the improvement of formal relations between senior and junior employees, team collaboration, the activation of formal and informal communication channels, and the employment of experts providing psychological / social support services are organizational measures that will help to reduce loneliness at work. The aim of the research is to determine the effect of loneliness at work on the employee’s intention to leave. In the study, two main survey were used from the related literature for both loneliness at work and intention to leave in order to collect data. A primary components analysis (PCA) was employed to create the loneliness index, and the calculated index values were included in the regression analysis as explanatory variables. The results indicate that in the context of this study loneliness at work effect the employee’s intention to leave. On the other hand, employees included in the research do not feel lonely at their workplaces

___

  • Allen, N. & Meyer, J.P. (1990). The Measurement and Antecedents of Affective, Continuance and Normative Commitment to the Organization, Journal of Occupational Psychology, 63, 1-18.
  • Asher, S.R., Hymel, S. & Renshaw, P.D. (1984). Loneliness in Children, Child Development, 55 (4), 1456-1464.
  • Asher, S.R. & Paguette, J.A. (2003). Loneliness and Peer Relations in Childhood, Current Directions in Psychological Science, 12 (3), 75-78.
  • Atabek A., Coşar E. E. & Şahingöz S. (2005). A Composite Leading Indicator for the Turkish Economic Activity, Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, 13.
  • Bluedorn, A.C. (1982). The Theories of Turnover: Causes, Effects, and Meaning, Research in The Sociology of Organizations, 1, 75-128.
  • Booth, Richard, (1983). Toward an Understanding of Loneliness, National Association of Social Workers, Inc., 116-119.
  • Cacioppo, John T., Hawkley, L.C. & Bernston, G.G. (2003). The Anatomy of Loneliness, Current Directions in Psychological Science, 12 (3), 71-74.
  • Cacioppo, John T. & Patrick, William (2008). Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection, New York: W.W. Norton & Co.
  • Cho, S., Johanson, M.M. & Guchait, P. (2009). Employee Intention to Leave: A Comparison of Determinants of Intention to Leave Versus Intention to
  • Management, 28, 374-381. Journal of
  • Hospitality Çivitçi, N. & Çivitçi, A. (2009). Self-Esteem As Mediator and Moderator of The Relationship Between Loneliness and Life Satisfaction in Adolescents, Personality and Individual Differences, 47, 954-958.
  • Demir, A. (1989). UCLA Yalnızlık Ölçeğinin Geçerlik ve Güvenilirliği, Psikoloji Dergisi, 7 (23), 14- 18.
  • Dhar, R.L. & Dhar, M. (2010). Job Stress, Coping Process and Intentions to Leave: A Study of Information Technology Professionals Working in India, The Social Science Journal, 47, 560-577.
  • Doğan, T., Çetin, B. & Sungur, M. Z. (2009). İş Yaşamında Yalnızlık Ölçeği Türkçe Formunun Geçerlilik ve Güvenilirlik Çalışması, Anadolu Psikiyatri Dergisi, 10, 271-277.
  • Dunteman G. H. (1989). Principal Components Analysis, Sage Publications, London.
  • Erdil, O. & Ertosun, Ö.G. (2011). The Relationship Between Social Climate and Loneliness in the Workplace and Effects on Employee Well-Being, Procedia Social and Behavirol Sciences, 24, 505-525.
  • Ertosun, Ö.G &. Erdil, O. (2012). The Effects of Loneliness on Employees’ Commitment and Intention to Leave, Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 41, 469-476.
  • Ernst, J.M. & Cacioppo, J.T. (1999). Lonely Hearts: Psychological Perspectives on Loneliness, Applied & Preventive Psychology, 8, 1-22.
  • Forbes, A. (1996). Loneliness, British Medical Journal, 313 (7053), 352-354.
  • Huang, T.C., Lawler, J. & Lei, C.Y. (2007). The Effects of Quality of Work Life on Commitment and Turnover Intention, Social Behavior and Personality, 35 (6), 735-750.
  • Hwang, J.I. & Chang, H. (2009). Work Climate Perception and Turnover Intention Among Korean Hospital Staff, International Nursing Review, 56, 73- 80.
  • Johnson, D.E. (1998). Applied Multivariate Methods for Publishing, London. International
  • Thompson Jolliffe, I.T. (2002). Principal Component Analysis, II. Edition, Springer-Verlag, New York.
  • Karadağ, M., Teke, A. & Demir, C. (2011). Gata’da Görevli Akademik Yönetici Personelin Örgütsel Bağlılık ve Örgütten Ayrılma Düşünceleri Üzerine Bir İnceleme, Gülhane Tıp Dergisi, 53, 162-169.
  • Kraus, L.A., Davis, M.H., Bazzini, D., Church, M. & Kirchman, C.M. (1993). Personal and Social Influences on Loneliness: The Mediating Effect of Social Provisions, Social Psychology Quarterly, 56 (1), 37-53.
  • Labatmediene, L., Endriulaitiene, A. & Gustainiene, L. (2007). Individual Correlates of Organizational Commitment
  • Organization, Baltic Journal of Management, 2 (2), 196-212. to Leave
  • the Lasgaard, M. (2007). Reliability and Validity of the Danish Version of UCLA Loneliness Scale, Personality and Individual Differences, 42, 1359-1366.
  • Liu, L.J & Guo, Q. (2007). Loneliness and Health Related Quality of the Life for the Empry Nest Elderly in the Rural Area of a Mountainous County in China, Quality of Life Research, 16 (8), 1275-1280.
  • Liu, B., Liu, J. & Hu, J. (2010). Person Organization Fit, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover Intention: An Empirical Study in the Chinese Public Sector, Social Behavior and Personality, 38 (5), 615-626.
  • Loi, R., Hang-Yue, N. & Foley, S. (2006). Linking Employees’ Justice Perceptions to Organizational Commitment and Intention to Leave: The Mediating Role of Perceived Organizational Support, Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 79, 101- 120.
  • Lopata, H.Z. (1969). Loneliness Forms and Components, Social Problems, 17 (2), 248-262.
  • Mellor, D., Stokes, M., Firth, L., Hayashi, Y. & Cummins,
  • Relationship Satisfaction, Loneliness, and Life Satisfaction, Personality and Individual Differences, 45, 213-218. Need for
  • Belonging, Mobley, W.H., Horner, S.O. & Hollingsworth, A.T. (1978). An Evaluation of Precursors of Hospital Employee Turnover, Journal of Applied Psychology, 63, 408-414.
  • Mobley, W.H. (1982a). Employee Turnover: Causes, Consequences, and Control, Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA.
  • Mobley, W.H. (1982b). Some Unanswered in Turnover and Withdrawal Research, Academy of Management Review, 7, 111-116.
  • Neto, F. (1992). Loneliness Among Portuguese Adolescents, Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 20 (1), 15-22.
  • Nurmi, J. & Katariina, S. (1997). Social Strategies and Loneliness: A Prospective Study, Personality and Individual Differences, 23 (2), 205-215.
  • Özdevecioğlu, M. (2004). Algılanan Örgütsel Desteğin İşten Ayrılma Niyeti Üzerindeki Etkileri, Amme İdaresi Dergisi, 37 (4), 97-115.
  • Peplau, H.E. (1955). Loneliness, The American Journal of Nursing, 55 (12), 1476-1481.
  • Peplau, L.A. & Perlman, D. (1984). “Loneliness Research: A Survey of Empirical Findings”, In L.A. Peplau, S.E. Goldston (Eds.), Preventing the Harmful Consequences of Severe and Persistent Loneliness, 13-47, Rockville Maryland: National Inst. of Mental Health.
  • Pidd, V.D.K. & Roche, A.M. (2009). The Impact of Work Stress and Job Satisfaction on Turnover Intention: A Study of Australian Specialist Alcohol and Other Drug Workers, Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy, 16 (3), 217-231.
  • Plooy, J. & Roodt, G. (2010). Work Engagement, Burnout and Related Constructs as Predictors of Turnover Intention, SA Journal of Industrial Psychology, 36 (1). 1-13.
  • Ponzetti, J.J. (1990). Loneliness Among College Students, Family Relations, 39 (3), 336-340.
  • Revenson T. (1981). Coping With Loneliness: The Impact of Casual Attributions, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 7, 565-571.
  • Rosser, V.J. (2004). Faculty Members’ Intention to Leave: A National Study On Their Worklife and Satisfaction, Research In Higher Education, 45 (3), 285- 309.
  • Russell, D.W. (1996). UCLA Loneliness Scale (Version 3): Reliability, Validity and Factor Structure, Journal of Personality Assessment, 66, 20-40. Savikko, N., Routasalo, P., Tilvis, R.S., Strandberg, T.E. & Pitlaka, K.H. (2005). Predictors and Subjective Causes of Loneliness in an Aged Population, Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 41, 223-233.
  • Simon, M., Müller, B.H. & Hasselborn, H.M. (2009). Leaving the Organization or the Profession-a Multilevel Analysis of Nurses’ Intentions, Journal of Advanced Nursing, 66 (3), 616-626.
  • Tak, B. & Çiftçioğlu, B.A. (2009). Mesleki Bağlılık ile Çalışanların Örgütte Kalma Niyetleri Arasındaki İlişkiyi İncelemeye Yönelik Görgül Bir Çalışma, Ankara Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Fakültesi Dergisi, 63 (4), 155-178.
  • Tsai, Y. & Wu, S.W. (2010). The Relationship Between Organizational Citizenship Behavior, Job Satisfaction and Turnover Intention, Journal of Clinical Nursing, 19, 3564-3574.
  • Yılmaz, E. (2008). Organizational Commitment and Loneliness and Life Satisfaction Levels of School Principles, Social Behavior and Personality, 36 (8), 1085-1096.
  • Wright, S. L., Burt, C.D.B. & Strongman, K.T. (2006). Loneliness in the Workplace: Construct Definition and Scale Development, New Zeland Journal of Psychology, 35 (2), 59-68.