Organisations are faced with challenges and opportunities due to the constantly changing world of work. These changes lead to organisational members to compete or survive in the dynamic world of work. Job Insecurity, Psychological Empowerment, Work Engagement as well as the employee's well-being are affected by these changes. The South African education environment has been changing since the beginning of the new political dispensation in 1994. The changes include the social, economic, technological and organisational environment. The unsuccessful implementation of the outcome based education and subsequent review has placed Educators under considerable pressure. The changes are being exacerbated by the unprecedented world economic down turn which has created further uncertainty in employment and has resulted in increased levels of Job Insecurity and employee disengagement. Employee engagement and job satisfaction become the key aspects that may contribute to high performance levels and the retention of motivated employees during this period of uncertainty. The schools that would engage their staff members are likely to retain their Educators whilst unengaged Educators will feel more insecure and are likely to look for other jobs elsewhere. The objective of this study was to establish the relationship between Job Insecurity, Psychological Empowerment, Work Engagement and General Health of Educators in the Sedibeng West District. A cross sectional survey design was used to collect data from an available sample of Educators in the specified district. A Job Insecurity Questionnaire (JIQ), Psychological Empowerment Questionnaire (PEQ), Work Engagement Scale (UWES) and General Health questionnaire (GHQ) as well as a Biographical Questionnaire were administered in this regard. Results indicated a statistically significant and negative relationship between Job Insecurity and Psychological Empowerment as measured by Influence and Attitude. Higher levels of Job Insecurity are therefore associated with lower levels of perceived Psychological Empowerment (as measured by Influence and Attitude). A statistically significant negative correlation was obtained between Job Insecurity and Work Engagement. Job Insecurity was found to be statistically significant associated with three dimensions of General Health (Somatic Symptoms, Social Dysfunction and Severe Depression). A practically significant correlation of medium effect was obtained between Influence and Work Engagement as measured by the UWES. Influence also showed statistically significant negative correlations with Somatic Symptoms, Social Dysfunction and Severe Depression. The Attitude factor obtained a practically significant correlation of large effect with Work Engagement and furthermore statistically negatively correlates with the three GHQ factors, being Somatic Symptoms, Social Dysfunction and Severe Depression. A practically significant negative correlation of medium effect was obtained between Work Engagement and Social Dysfunction. Somatic Symptoms and Severe Depression showed a statistically significant correlation with Work Engagement. Regression analysis indicated that Job Insecurity and Psychological Empowerment as measured by Attitude have a significant predictive value towards Work Engagement and General Health as measured by Somatic Symptoms, Social Dysfunction and Severe Depression. Based on the findings, limitations of the research followed by recommendations for the Department of Education and for future research were made. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2009

Employee engagement is a relatively new construct in academic literature and an increasingly popular idea in practice. Proponents of employee engagement claim a strong positive relationship between engagement and business success, both at the firm and individual levels, and outcomes including retention, productivity, profitability, and customer loyalty and satisfaction. Despite numerous academic and practitioner publications on employee engagement, no consistently-accepted conceptualization of the construct or its sub-dimensions exists, and there is an ongoing debate regarding whether the employee engagement construct is a new idea or a re-hashing of old ideas. Similarly, no consistently-accepted tool to measure employee engagement exists. In the absence of consistent conceptualization and measurement, relationships between employee engagement and its antecedents and outcomes cannot be empirically tested. Drawing on prior literature and practitioner interviews, the present study defines employee engagement as an attitude towards one’s work at one’s company, comprising feelings of vigor, dedication, and absorption; cognitive appraisals of psychological empowerment; and motivation to act, both within role and extra role, in the service of the organization’s goals. In addition, the present study validates a self-report instrument to measure this conceptualization of employee engagement, using construct and scale validation procedures accepted in marketing and information systems literature.

Magister Commercii (Industrial Psychology) - MCom(IPS) / Literature on turnover intentions revealed that various factors predict employee turnover intention. For higher education, the ongoing transformation that has been taking place has posed many challenges, one of them being the recruitment and retention of staff in academia. However, there is the notion that employees who experience sufficient support and acknowledgement from their supervisors are more likely to develop a sense of empowerment, thus helping in either creating or increasing feelings of commitment which could decrease turnover intentions.

Much has been said and written about the reasons for the slow progress of the Black Economic Empowerment interventions in South Africa. This research paper aims to explore the meaning of empowerment in the South African context, with the objective of uncovering what real and holistic empowerment means given the particular history of the country. Apartheid, through its social re-engineering intervention, targeted the minds of both whites and blacks to send an unequivocal message to each racial group about their superiority and inferiority as a race, respectively. Suffice to say; to have a nation whose majority still harbours feelings of inferiority would not only impede the progress of BEE interventions but pose a serious restraint to economic growth. It requires directed and deliberate effort to reverse a habit or to renew a mind-set; to that end this research assesses whether the current BBBEE policy is an adequate antidote to the effects of Apartheid on the minds of blacks. This study concludes that psychological empowerment is a necessary condition for economic empowerment; indicating that the current BBBEE policy is less efficacious as it does not address the essence of psychological disempowerment. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

This study aims to define workforce agility via a literature review and a conducted research survey of the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Engineering workforce. The survey results will help us determine the workforce agility of the KSC engineering team and understand what has allowed them to transition from the Space Shuttle Program to the new Exploration Ground System (EGS) program. Structural Equation Modeling was used to develop a model of relationships to test the hypotheses. The results show that organizational practices and psychological empowerment significantly support workforce agility. The implications of this study for understanding the characteristics of workforce agility are also discussed.

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The management of human capital is becoming of great importance. Research on this topic is largely based on talent shortages. In South Africa, considerable attention has been given to the issue of skills shortages, which are also evident in the education environment. The government has exerted many efforts; however, despite these efforts, skills shortages are still prevalent. A definite need for reform and change is necessary, with emphasis on a more positive and combined approach, focusing on strengths use and deficit improvement, psychological empowerment, work engagement and intention to leave. Therefore, the retention of talented employees has been identified as the most important outcome of a positive organisation. The general objective of this study was to determine if the Strengths Use and Deficit Improvement Questionnaire (SUDIQ) and Measuring Empowerment Questionnaire (MEQ) were reliable and valid to administer to educators in South Africa; and whether (a) psychological empowerment mediated the relationship between perceived organisational support for strengths use (POSSU) and work engagement, and between perceived organisational support for deficit improvement (POSDI) and work engagement; and (b) whether work engagement mediated the relationship between psychological empowerment and turnover intention. The study furthermore contributed to positive psychology research, using a combined focus on strengths use and deficit improvement in relation to psychological empowerment in the education sector. A need existed to test the reliability and validity (construct and convergent) of the SUDIQ and the MEQ among educators in the Southern Cape region. A cross-sectional survey was used to reach the objectives of this study. Convenience samples were drawn from educators in the Southern Cape region (N = 271). The results revealed that the SUDIQ scale comprised four factors, namely perceived organisational support for strengths use (POSSU), perceived organisational support for deficit improvement (POSDI), proactive behaviour towards strengths use (PBSU) and proactive behaviour towards deficit improvement (PBDI). In the same way, meaning, self-determination, competence and impact were revealed as the four distinct factors of the MEQ. In testing the relationships between the constructs, POSSU correlated practically significantly (medium effect) with all the MEQ constructs. PBSU correlated practically significantly (large effect) with meaning and competence, and practically significantly (medium effect) with self-determination and impact. POSDI, as a construct of the SUDIQ, showed to correlate practically significantly (medium effect) with meaning, competence, self-determination and impact. In the case of PBDI, practically significant correlations (medium effect) were aligned between PBDI and all the constructs of the MEQ. Through this study, it was revealed that POSSU significantly predicted psychological empowerment, but not work engagement. Significant and positive paths were found between POSDI and both psychological empowerment and work engagement. POSDI played a significant role in the prediction of psychological empowerment and work engagement. Furthermore, psychological empowerment played a significant predicting role in work engagement, but not with turnover intention. In the last instance, a significant and negative path was found between work engagement and turnover intention. In terms of the mediation analysis, POSSU indirectly impacted work engagement and intention to leave of educators in the Southern Cape region via psychological empowerment; and POSDI indirectly impacted work engagement and intention to leave of educators in the Southern Cape region via psychological empowerment. Lastly, work engagement was not revealed as a mediator in the relationship between psychological empowerment and intention to leave. A combined focus, incorporating both strengths use and deficit improvement, is a relative new concept and research field. Through this study educators could learn about the benefits of strengths use and deficit improvement and how those could be used to their advantage, especially in becoming more empowered in an education context. Also, this would indeed alert the schools and principals to the benefits of moving away from traditional approaches of focusing on only weaknesses or what was wrong with people, compared to a combined strengths and deficit focus. The results obtained would offer a valuable contribution to research and the limited literature available on this topic. In the South African context, it would be the first study in which the SUDIQ scale had been used in the education sector in the Southern Cape region, examining the extent to which strengths were used and deficits were developed by both employees and the organisation, and how it related to the well-being of educators. Recommendations were made for application and for future research. / MCom (Human Resource Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015.

The management of human capital is becoming of great importance. Research on this topic is largely based on talent shortages. In South Africa, considerable attention has been given to the issue of skills shortages, which are also evident in the education environment. The government has exerted many efforts; however, despite these efforts, skills shortages are still prevalent. A definite need for reform and change is necessary, with emphasis on a more positive and combined approach, focusing on strengths use and deficit improvement, psychological empowerment, work engagement and intention to leave. Therefore, the retention of talented employees has been identified as the most important outcome of a positive organisation. The general objective of this study was to determine if the Strengths Use and Deficit Improvement Questionnaire (SUDIQ) and Measuring Empowerment Questionnaire (MEQ) were reliable and valid to administer to educators in South Africa; and whether (a) psychological empowerment mediated the relationship between perceived organisational support for strengths use (POSSU) and work engagement, and between perceived organisational support for deficit improvement (POSDI) and work engagement; and (b) whether work engagement mediated the relationship between psychological empowerment and turnover intention. The study furthermore contributed to positive psychology research, using a combined focus on strengths use and deficit improvement in relation to psychological empowerment in the education sector. A need existed to test the reliability and validity (construct and convergent) of the SUDIQ and the MEQ among educators in the Southern Cape region. A cross-sectional survey was used to reach the objectives of this study. Convenience samples were drawn from educators in the Southern Cape region (N = 271). The results revealed that the SUDIQ scale comprised four factors, namely perceived organisational support for strengths use (POSSU), perceived organisational support for deficit improvement (POSDI), proactive behaviour towards strengths use (PBSU) and proactive behaviour towards deficit improvement (PBDI). In the same way, meaning, self-determination, competence and impact were revealed as the four distinct factors of the MEQ. In testing the relationships between the constructs, POSSU correlated practically significantly (medium effect) with all the MEQ constructs. PBSU correlated practically significantly (large effect) with meaning and competence, and practically significantly (medium effect) with self-determination and impact. POSDI, as a construct of the SUDIQ, showed to correlate practically significantly (medium effect) with meaning, competence, self-determination and impact. In the case of PBDI, practically significant correlations (medium effect) were aligned between PBDI and all the constructs of the MEQ. Through this study, it was revealed that POSSU significantly predicted psychological empowerment, but not work engagement. Significant and positive paths were found between POSDI and both psychological empowerment and work engagement. POSDI played a significant role in the prediction of psychological empowerment and work engagement. Furthermore, psychological empowerment played a significant predicting role in work engagement, but not with turnover intention. In the last instance, a significant and negative path was found between work engagement and turnover intention. In terms of the mediation analysis, POSSU indirectly impacted work engagement and intention to leave of educators in the Southern Cape region via psychological empowerment; and POSDI indirectly impacted work engagement and intention to leave of educators in the Southern Cape region via psychological empowerment. Lastly, work engagement was not revealed as a mediator in the relationship between psychological empowerment and intention to leave. A combined focus, incorporating both strengths use and deficit improvement, is a relative new concept and research field. Through this study educators could learn about the benefits of strengths use and deficit improvement and how those could be used to their advantage, especially in becoming more empowered in an education context. Also, this would indeed alert the schools and principals to the benefits of moving away from traditional approaches of focusing on only weaknesses or what was wrong with people, compared to a combined strengths and deficit focus. The results obtained would offer a valuable contribution to research and the limited literature available on this topic. In the South African context, it would be the first study in which the SUDIQ scale had been used in the education sector in the Southern Cape region, examining the extent to which strengths were used and deficits were developed by both employees and the organisation, and how it related to the well-being of educators. Recommendations were made for application and for future research. / MCom (Human Resource Management)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015.

The world of work has changed dramatically in the last decade and constant change has become the new normality. Employees are affected by possible re-organisation, retrenchments and downsizing which affects their behaviours and attitudes at work. Leaders have the responsibility of leading their followers through these difficult times to the best of their ability. A positive leader is seen as someone who recognises and focuses on the strengths and accomplishments of his or her employees. When a leader is positive and has a positive leadership approach, it may influence their followers’ feelings of psychological empowerment, work engagement and satisfaction with life. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between positive leadership, psychological empowerment, work engagement and satisfaction with life of employees in a chemical industry. A cross-sectional survey design was used with a convenience sample (n = 322). The measuring instruments used were the Positive Leadership Measure, the Measuring Empowerment Questionnaire, the Work Engagement Scale and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test whether the measures of the constructs were consistent with the understanding of the nature of the constructs and to test whether the data fitted the hypothesised measurement model. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to examine the structural relationships between the constructs. The results show that there are statistically significant relationships between positive leadership, psychological empowerment, work engagement and satisfaction with life. Positive leadership has an indirect effect on work engagement and satisfaction with life via psychological empowerment. The implication of the results is that the work related aspects of positive leadership, psychological empowerment and work engagement has a positive effect on the non-work related aspect of satisfaction with life. Practical implications and directions for future research are offered. / MCom (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2013

Globalisation radically changed the way in which talent is sourced, organised and managed. The chemical industry as competitor in the global landscape is increasingly faced with challenges to attract and retain talent. The success and global competitiveness of the chemical industry largely depends on its employees, their ideas and intellectual resources. Highly talented employees are targeted by competitor companies and head hunters with substantial financial incentives and benefits. Leadership plays a vital role in creating a stimulating, empowered and challenging work environment that will attract and retain employees. Employees need to experience a sense of meaning, have the resources to do their jobs and most importantly, need to be empowered beyond being asked to meet performance goals. The aim of this study was to determine if a relationship existed between leadership empowerment behaviour, psychological empowerment, work engagement and turnover intention in a chemical industry. The study secondly examined whether leadership empowerment behaviour affected turnover intention via psychological empowerment and thirdly the study investigated if leadership empowerment behaviour affected work engagement via psychological empowerment. A random cross-sectional design with paper-based surveys as the primary method of data collection was used to accomplish the research objectives. The measuring battery for this study consisted of the Leader Empowering Behaviour Questionnaire (LEB), the Measuring Empowerment Questionnaire (MEQ), the Work Engagement Scale (WES) and the Turnover Intention Scale (TIS). The simulation and statistical analysis was carried out using the Statistical Program for the Social Sciences IBM SPSS version 21 and Mplus. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) which is theory driven was used in the study. The results showed that a significant relationship existed between leadership empowerment behaviour, psychological empowerment, work engagement and turnover intention. Regression analysis indicated that leadership empowerment behaviour had significant predictive value towards psychological empowerment and work engagement. The results showed that leadership empowerment behaviour did not affect turnover intention via psychological empowerment, but rather had a direct effect on employee’s turnover intention. The results further showed that psychological empowerment did have an indirect effect on the relationship between leadership empowerment behaviour and work engagement. The results indicated that it would be worthwhile if organisations develop leader’s competence and skills to empower their workforces. This would lead to higher levels of psychological empowerment, work engagement and retention of talent. Recommendations for future research were made. / MA (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2013