Extending the nomological network of wellness at work

Abstract

Modern-day organisations face rapid and continuous change. In order to deal with this rapidly changing and current hostile economic environment, most organisations have become increasingly dependent on a healthy and engaged workforce. As a result of the direct and indirect organisational costs associated with work wellness, the total well-being of the individual worker has become the focal point of many organisational interventions. Although work wellness is a multifaceted and continuously evolving concept, most studies have adopted either a pathological or a salutogenic (positive) perspective when examining the construct. Congruent with current thinking in vocational psychology, a balanced model of work wellness was conceptualised in this study, containing both salutogenic (work engagement) and pathological (burnout) constructs. Strong empirical support was found for the proposed balanced model of work wellness based on data collected from a sample of 854 employees working across various sectors of the South African economy.