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Thriving at work as a mediator of the relationship between workplace support and life satisfaction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 December 2017

Qingguo Zhai ,
Saifang Wang  and
Helen Weadon
Qingguo Zhai*
Affiliation:
Federation Business School, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Australia
Saifang Wang
Affiliation:
School of Economics, Shenzhen Polytechnic, Shenzhen, P. R. China
Helen Weadon
Affiliation:
Federation Business School, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Australia
*
Corresponding author: q.zhai@federation.edu.au
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Abstract

Conservation of resources theory is employed to examine the effect of workplace support on thriving at work and the mediation of thriving at work on the workplace support and life satisfaction relationship using data on white-collar workers in China. We find that workplace support is positively related to thriving at work and thriving at work is positively related to life satisfaction. We also find that thriving at work fully mediates the relationship between life satisfaction and supervisor support, while the relationship between life satisfaction and coworker support is partially mediated by thriving at work. Consistent with the COR caravan and spillover hypothesis, we conclude that thriving at work is a mechanism that transmits the positive effects of workplace support on life satisfaction. The research findings suggest that an increase in workplace support can benefit both individuals and organizations by improving individuals’ thriving at work and life satisfaction.

Keywords

Chinaconservation of resources theorylife satisfactionthriving at workworkplace support
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Management & Organization , Volume 26 , Issue 2 , March 2020 , pp. 168 - 184
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press and Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management 2017

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