İş Anlamlılığının Sosyal ve Kültürel Belirleyicileri: Bütünleştirici Bir Sosyal Çevre mi Sağlamalı, Çeşitlendirici Bir Kültür mü Oluşturmalı

Amaç – Bu araştırma, iş anlamlılığının nasıl şekillendiğinin incelenmesinde kısmen daha fazla göz ardı edilmiş faktörler olarak sosyal bütünleşme ve kültürel çeşitliliğin algılanan iş anlamlılığı üzerindeki rolünün incelenmesini amaçlamaktadır. Yöntem – Araştırmanın örneklemini İstanbul Sanayi Odasına bağlı 216 firma oluşturmaktadır. Bu firmalarda iki yıl veya daha uzun süredir çalışmakta olan yöneticiler ve uzman çalışanlar firmaları temsil eden anahtar bilgi kaynakları olarak çalışmaya dahil edilmiştir. Çalışanlardan anket yöntemi aracılığıyla toplanan araştırma verilerinin yapısal eşitlik modellemesi aracılığıyla geçerlilik ve güvenilirlikleri sınanmış, path analizi kullanılarak hipotezler test edilmiştir. Bulgular – Araştırmada elde edilen bulgulara göre sosyal bütünleşme, iş anlamlılığının pozitif anlam, iş aracılığıyla anlam yaratma ve daha iyi bir amaca yönelik motivasyon boyutlarıyla pozitif ilişkiye sahipken, kültürel çeşitliliğin iş anlamlılığı boyutlarından pozitif anlam ve iş aracılığıyla anlam yaratma boyutlarıyla negatif ilişkili ve şaşırtıcı olarak daha iyi bir amaca yönelik motivasyon boyutuyla ise pozitif ilişkili olduğu belirlenmiştir. Tartışma – Sonuçlar, bireylerin iş anlamlılığına yönelik algılarının kolektif şekilde geliştiğini göstermektedir. Organizasyon içerisindeki sosyal bütünleşmenin gelişmesiyle çalışanların psikolojik anlamda artan yakınlaşma ve birbirlerine bağlanma dereceleri iş anlamlılığı algılarını güçlendirmektedir. Aynı zamanda sonuçlar, iş ortamında sosyal bütünleşme sağlandığında, algılanan kültürel çeşitliliğin şaşırtıcı şekilde çalışanların işleri aracılığıyla daha iyi bir amaca katkı sağladıklarına yönelik algılarını artırdığını ve böylece çalışanların organizasyondaki çeşitlilik ortamını değerli bir kaynak olarak görmeye yönelik motive olduklarını ortaya koymaktadır. Genel anlamıyla bu araştırma, organizasyonlardaki sosyal ve kültürel mekanizmaların bir aradaki eşzamanlı etkilerini içeren ve organizasyon içerisindeki sosyal ve kültürel “anlam ağını” ampirik olarak test eden bütüncül bir model geliştirerek iş anlamlılığı kavramına ilişkin teorik yapının genişletilmesine katkı sağlamaktadır.

(The Social and Cultural Determinants of Creating Meaning at Work: An Integrative Social Environment or a Diversified Organizational Culture)

Purpose – This research aims to empirically examine the role of social integration and cultural diversity on perceived meaningfulness of work as rather neglected factors in analyzing how meaning of work is shaped. Design/methodology/approach – The sample of the study consists of 216 firms affiliated to Istanbul Chamber of Industry. Managers and senior employees who have been working in these firms for two years or more were included as key informants representing the firms. The research data collected from the employees through the survey method were subjected to validity and reliability analyses by using structural equation modeling in AMOS 21.0 program and hypotheses were tested using path analysis. Findings – According to the findings of the study, while social integration has positive relationship with positive meaning, meaning-making through work, and greater good motivations as meaningfulness dimensions, cultural diversity has negative relationship with positive meaning and meaning-making through work and surprisingly has positive relationship with greater good motivations. Discussion – The results show that individuals' perceptions about meaningfulness of work are constructed collectively. With generating social integration within the organization, increased degree of psychological attraction and attachment of employees leverages their perception of work meaningfulness. At the same time, the results show that when social integration in the workplace is achieved, the perceived cultural diversity surprisingly increases employees' perceptions that they contribute to a greater good through their work, thereby motivates employees to see the diversity in the organization as a valuable resource. In general sense, this research extends the theory on work meaningfulness by developing an integrative model involving the simultaneous and concurrent effects of social and cultural mechanisms within the organization and empirically testing this social and cultural “web of meaning”.

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