Backgroundofthestudy
Nowadays,inane v o l v i n g environment,organizationsa r e workingunderhigh lycompetitivecontext.Inordertosurviveinsuchatoughenvironment,organizationstrytos e e k outtheircompetitive advantages.Themostcritical challengestheyhavet o f a c e a ret he needt o increaseproductivity,enhanceorganizationalcapabilities,expandintoglobal markets,developandimplementnewtechnologies…,etc.(BurkeandC o o p e r , 2005).
Employeeisregardedasabackboneofanorganizationthatperformscriticaltasksfort hesurvivaloftheorganization.Withtheneedsofchangingforthegrowingnowadays,organiz ationshaveforced notonlyt odevelopthequa li ty ofproductofservicebutalsotheorgani zationcapabilities,especiallytheiremployeethroughtheirperformance.However,theimpa ctofhumanresourcesonoperationalsystemshasoftenbeenoverlooked(Boudreaue t a l.2003).Ane m p o w e r e d andcommittedw o r k f o r c e isgenerallyclaimedtobee ssential fortheeffectivefunctioningofmodernorganizations(Bowenetal,1992;Sparrowe,1995;Kirk manetal,1999).
Ino r g a n i z a t i o n s , empowermentmeansdelegatingr e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s t o em ployeeswithcompletecon fi de nce andtrustsoa s t o assumea m o r e activeandresponsib lerole.Thisstrengthenstheirsenseofeffectivenessaswellasb ysharingp o w e r , infor mationandt h e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o managetheirownworka s mucha s possible.
Empowerment encompasses various dimensions and perspectives, highlighting the proactive work orientation that enhances employee performance It can be approached through managerial practices aimed at increasing employee autonomy and responsibility Researchers like Burke (1986) and Kanter (1977) define empowerment in terms of job structure, focusing on the transfer of power or authority and the sharing of resources and information (Blau and Alba, 1982; Hardy and Leiba-O'Sullivan, 1998) These studies emphasize the leader's role in empowering employees Additionally, other research views empowerment as related to individual task motivation (Conger and Kanungo, 1988; Thomas and Velthouse, 1990) or the relationship between personal and environmental fit (Zimmerman, 1990) Randolph (1995) further asserts that employee empowerment represents a transfer of power from employers to employees.
Mosto f t h e literaturewhichreviewedmanyperspectiveo f e m p o w e r m e n t co ncludest h a t ane m p o w e r e d w o r k f o r c e willleadtheirorganizationto achievea comp etitiveadvantage.Employeee m p o w e r m e n t i n c r e a s e s p r o d u c t i v i t y b y incre asingemployeepride,self-respectandself-worth.Inrecentstudies,oneof thedominantclassificationsofemployee empowermentacceptedbymanyresearchersisgivenbySpreitzer(1995).Theauthordefines psychologicalempowermentas“theintrinsicmotivationmanifestedinmeaning,compet ence,s e l f - d e t e r m i n a t i o n , andimpact,inwhichanemployeefeelsabletoshapehisroleinwork andcontext”.TheconceptisemployedinanumberofstudiessuchasAvolioetal.
According to Hofstede and Bond (1984), power distance is defined as the extent to which less powerful members of an organization accept unequal power distribution In Vietnam, this concept is heavily influenced by Confucianism, which establishes hierarchical relationships and societal behaviors (Gudykunst, 2000) In Vietnamese culture, taking on more responsibility and authority is often accompanied by additional benefits, yet there is a tendency to be indecisive in delegating power As a social republic with high power distance, Vietnam exemplifies a society where power is not equally distributed, which is perceived as a fundamental aspect of its structure Within organizations, characteristics such as close supervision, fear of disagreeing with supervisors, lack of trust among coworkers, and directed supervision are more pronounced in high power distance cultures compared to low power distance cultures.
Researchproblem
Afterbecomingano ff ic ia l memberoft h e WorldTradeOrganization, Vietna mhasopportunitiesaswellaschallengestoadaptwithglobalizationtrendint h e world. Inordertomovingforwardsuccessfully,organizationsinVietnamshouldt a k e t h e advantagesofnotonlythenewtechnologybutalsoimprovetheirworkforcewithhighco mpetence,empowermentanddevelopment.
Intheliterature,manypriorstudiesonpsychologicalempowerment(Tsuietal.,1 997;Shawetal.,1998;GerhartandRynes,2003)indicatethatmanagementoft h e organ izationmustimproveemployees a t i s f a c t i o n andt h a t canencourageemployeest o i mprovet h e performanceo f theirt a s k s andboostt h e levelo f theirw o r k performance, whichinturncontributetothecompany’sgrowth.Hunjraetal( 2 0 1 1 ) andBowenandLa wler(1992)foundthatthereisassociationbetweenp s y c h o l o g i c a l empowermentan djobs a t i s f a c t i o n S o itisessentialt o t a k e t h e s e f a c t o r s intoaccount.
According to Hofstede Center (2010), Vietnam, with a score of 70, is classified as a high power distance country, indicating that Vietnamese people accept hierarchical order, where the eldest individuals hold the most influence This hierarchy is evident in various aspects such as age, education level, and job positions, extending beyond the workplace into daily life In high power distance cultures, powerful individuals often seek to maintain or enhance their influence at the expense of those with less power, who typically do not challenge the status quo (Hofstede, 2001) Therefore, understanding psychological empowerment and job satisfaction within the Vietnamese context is essential for organizational development.
W e s t e r n countries,butlittleempiricalstudiesforEasternonesespeciallyinVietnam,e x c e p t f r o m Thange t a l ( 2 0 0 7 ) w h o consideratet h e employeeempowermentin
This research focuses on comparing the service and manufacturing industries, both of which are crucial for Vietnam's economic development According to Looney (2014), the rapid growth of manufacturing output maintains a significant share of manufacturing in Vietnam's GDP, while the service sector continues to expand More than a third of Vietnam's growth is linked to structural changes driven by the shift of labor from low-productivity agriculture to more productive manufacturing and services (McCaig and Pavcnik, 2013) Given the ongoing changes in Vietnam's economic landscape, it is essential to study the relationship between psychological empowerment and job satisfaction.
Researchobjective andquestions
Theobjectiveo f thisthesisist o investigatet h e relationshipbetweenp s y c h o l o g i c a l empowermentandjobsatisfaction.Fourfactorsofpsychologicalempowermentas givenbySpreitzer(1995),ThomasandVelthouse(1990)aretakenintoconsiderationi n thi sthesis,namelyempowermentmeaning,empowermentcompetence,empowermentself- determination,empowermentimpact.
Question1:D o t h e empowermentmeaning,empowermentcompetence,empowerments elf- d e t e r m i n a t i o n andempowermentimpactaffectthejobsatisfactioninVietnam?Ifyes,towhatextentdotheseabovefactorsaffectthejobsatisfactioninVietnam?
Scopeoftheresearch
Intheliterature,empowermentcanbeclass if ie d intot wo mainstreamsn a m e l y stru cturale m p o w e r m e n t andp s y c h o l o g i c a l empowerment( L a s c h i n g e r , 2 0
0 4 andThomasandVelthouse,1990).Thisresearchonlyinvestigatestheinfluenceoffou r factorsofpsychologicalempowerment,namelyempowermentmeaning,empowerment competence,empowermentself- determination,empowermentimpacttowardsjobsatisfactioninsteadofstructuralempowerm ent.
Inaddition,t h e r esea rc h onlyfocusesonemployeesi n organizationsi n theVietn amesec o n t e x t M o r e specifically,thisstudycollectsd a t a o n l y f r o m H o ChiMinhCi ty.HoChiMinhCityisselectedbecausethisisthemostdynamiccityi n Vietnam,w h e r e a t t r a c t s manycompanieso r enterprisesfrommanykindo f industries.
This study examines the influence of four dimensions of psychological empowerment on employee job satisfaction in various companies in Ho Chi Minh City, focusing on the manufacturing and service industries These sectors are pivotal for economic growth, especially as Vietnam is poised to implement extensive regulatory and economic reforms that will enhance the business environment for foreign investors and create new opportunities for local firms Consequently, there is a significant shift in the workforce from agriculture to services and manufacturing, highlighting their growing importance in Vietnam's overall labor market.
Significancesoftheresearch
Thisresearchdiffersfrompreviousstudiesinthefollowingways.First,priorstudies havemainlyfocusedontheVietnamcontext.Then,therehavebeenlittleofstudieswhichinv estigatestheimpactofemployeeempowermentonemployeesatisfactionandtheirproducti vitiesi n twoindustriesserviceandmanufacturinginVietnam,inthescopeofthisstudyitise ssentialtohavedeepinsightintothefourdimensionsofemployeeempowermentsoastoid entifytheimpactontheemployeejobsatisfactionaswellasthecompanyoverallperform ancebecausethejobsatisfactionwillincreaseproductivity,creativity,innovative,s e r v i c e qualityandreduceturnoverrate.
Structureoftheresearch
Chapter1presentsthe overviewofresearch background,research problem,r e s e a r c h objectives,scopeofstudy,significanceofthestudyandresearchstructure.
Chapter2focusesontheliteraturereview,includingt he d e f i n i t i o n o f ea c h con cept,rationaleforhypothesesaswellasproposedtheconceptualmodelforther e s e a r c h
Chapter3 i l l u s t r a t e s t h e detailedr e s e a r c h methodology:r e s e a r c h p rocess,r e s e a r c h design,measurementoftheconstructs,questiondesignanddatacoll ectionprocedure.
Chapter4describesempiricalresultsanddiscussionsbasedonthedatacollected:ch aracteristicsofthesample,analyzingthereliabilityandvalidity,testingtheassumptionofre gressionandtestinghypotheses.
Chapter5 summarizest h e discussionsont h e r e s e a r c h r e s u l t s , t h e o r e t i c a l contributions,suggestf o r p r a c t i c a l implications,limitationso f t h e studya r e r ecognizedforthefutureresearches.
Thischapter reviewst h e literatureandgives anoverviewo f whatr e s e a r c h alr eadyhasbeendone,regardingthemainvariablesmentionedint h e introduction.First,theor eticalfoundationsarediscussedtogaina betterunderstandingo f thisunknownconcept.S e c o n d , anoverviewofonpsychologicalempowermentandjobsatisfactionisoutlined.Third ,t h e dependentvariableandindependentvariableperformancearedescribedinhypothesisd evelopment.Finally,t h e conceptualmodelwillbepresentedtogetherwiththehypotheses.
The concept of employee empowerment evolved from "Employee Involvement," as defined by Lawler and Mohrman in 1989 This approach emphasizes the necessity of providing employees with access to information, influence, and incentives Various models of employee involvement have been developed, including those by Lowin (1968), Saskin (1976), Locke (1979), and Leana (1987) Lowin's model highlights that the effectiveness of involvement relies on the personal attributes and attitudes of participants, the significance of their engagement, the quality of the participation process, and the visibility of the issues at hand Saskin's model identifies four psychological targets of employee involvement: goal setting, decision-making, problem-solving, and change Additionally, Locke and Schweiger distinguished between cognitive and motivational effects in the participation process, while Leana emphasized the difference between employee participation and delegation, advocating for greater autonomy and involvement in decision-making.
The concept of empowerment, as introduced by Conger and Kanungo (1988), is rooted in a five-stage model emphasizing self-sufficiency and confidence through participative management and job enrichment Earlier models, such as those by Lowin (1968) and Saskin (1976), highlighted attitudes towards processes and commitment to change Building on these foundations, Ripley and Ripley (1992) developed empowerment into a comprehensive concept, philosophy, organizational program, and set of behavioral practices, focusing on granting authority and aligning with company vision Empowerment involves providing individuals with the power to make decisions, enabling self-management within teams, and allowing personal goals to align with organizational objectives As an organizational program, it encourages the workforce to develop their skills and broaden their knowledge, contributing to both personal growth and organizational success Different models address various aspects of employee and organizational interaction, including environmental factors, market dynamics, product nature, and technology Organizations can effectively approach empowerment by adopting a suitable definition that leverages their unique market challenges and opportunities.
Aunifyingmodelisemergingwhichallowsfo r suchdifferentap pr oa ches Theempo wermentmodelstartswiththeneedtochangedrivenbyexternalforcessuchascompetitivene ss,globalizationandtheintroductionoftheadvancedtechnology.Theempoweredorgani zation inwhichhighperformanceemployeesa r e bornwillincreaseinitsefficiencyandpr oductivity.
9 dissatisfaction.Thefactorst h a t a r e relatedt o t h e jobs a t is f a c t i o n arer e g a r d e d a s " motivators"andthefactorswhichresultsinjobdissatisfactionareknownas"hygiene".Herz bergetal.
(1959)indicatedthesefactorsareregardsasMotivators:w o r k itself,recognition,achi evement,r e s p o n s i b i l i t y , advancement.TheHygienef a c t o r s a r e including:s alary,supervision,policyandadministration,workingconditions,interpersonalrelations.H erzbergetal.
(1959)isoneoft h e theoriestostudyjobsatisfaction.Therearetwoothertheories: Discrepancy theorywaspresentedbytheLocke(1969)andEquitytheorywasdeveloped byMowday
Overviewonpsychologicalempowermentandjobsatisfaction
Psychologicalempowerment
N e w s t r o m andD a v i e s ( 1 9 9 8 ) definee m p o w e r m e n t asp r o c e s s t h a t providesg r e a t e r a u t o n o m y b y sharingo f relevantinformationandcontroloverf a c t o r s affectingjobperformancewhileZimmerman(1990)viewede m p o w e r m e n t withreferencetobehaviororperformancerelatedoutcomes.
Empowermenthasalsobeendescribeda s dependentonmanagemento r leadershipa c t i o n s (BennisandNanus,1985;Block,1 9 8 7 ) andhumanr e s o u r c e practices(Congeran dKanungo,1 9 8 8 ; Lawler,1986).
Itcouldbeseenthatt h e r e a r e t w o typeso f em pow er me nt : structuralempow ermentandpsychologicalempowerment(Laschinger,2004,Spreitzer,1995;Thomasan
Structural empowerment pertains to workplace conditions and relies on employees' perceptions of their empowerment within the organization It involves enhancing management practices, delegating decision-making authority from higher-level employees to subordinates, and providing access to essential information and resources for autonomous task completion In contrast, psychological empowerment focuses on the individual employee's response to structural empowerment, characterized by increased intrinsic motivation related to their work role This form of empowerment encompasses four dimensions that reflect an employee's orientation towards their job responsibilities.
Spreitzer( 1 9 9 5 ) definesp s y c h o l o g i c a l empowermenta s “ theintrinsic motivationmanifestedi n meaning,competence,self- determination,andi m p a c t , i n whichanemployeefeelsabletoshapehisroleinworkandco ntext”.Recentstudiess h o w s thatpsychologicalempowermentisbecomingaconcernof manyresearcherssuchasAvolioetal.(2004),Corsunetal.
Meaning:involvesa fitbetweenrequirementso f a w o r k roleandbeliefsvalues,andbehavi our.
- Competence:isanindividual’sbeliefi n hisorhercapabilitytoperformajobwe ll.
Impact:thebeliefthatindividualcaninfluenceoverstrategic,administrativeo r operational outcomesatwork.
Thetheorysupportedfortheempowermentisdevelopedby severalr e s e a r c h e r s Specifically,t h e t h e o r y camefromt h e conceptof“Empl oyeeevolvement”whichwas definedb y LawlerandMohrman(1989).I n thiscon cep t, information,influenceandincentivesare the combinationofemployees.AModelofEmployeeInvolvementw a s developedbyLowin(
1 9 6 8 ) , Saskin( 1 9 7 6 ) , L o c k e ( 1 9 7 9 ) andLeana(1987)etc.whichemphasize dgivingemployeesmoreinvolvement,a u t o n o m y andp a r t i c i p a t i o n i n d e c i s i o n making.Cominga f t e r t h a t model,someresearcherswhoaddresssomeconceptsofempowermentinModelofEmp owermentsuchasCongerand Kanungo(1988),RipleyandRipley(1992)etc.
Jobsatisfaction
Thereisanincreasingattentionforjobsatisfactionthemeintheliterature.Jobsatisf actionisdefinedasthefeelingsanemployeehasaboutthejobingeneral(Smithetal.1975)o rasanindividual’spositiveornegativeattitudetowardstheirjob(Wollacketal.1971).Rob binsandJudge(2007)definedjobsatisfactionasapositivefeelingaboutone’sjobbasedon evaluationofthecharacteristics.GeorgeandJones(2008)definejobsatisfactionas“ t h e f eelingsa workerh a s abouthisjob.Thus,itcouldbeconcludedthatjobsatisfactionisthepl easureofemployeeswhenhe/shehavepositivefeelingaboutthejobs.
Therearea numberof specificfacetso f satisfactionrelatedtopay,work,supervisio n,professionalopportunities,benefits,organizationalpracticesandrelationshipswithco workers(Miseneretal.1996).Areviewofpriorstudyshowedastrongcorrelationbetween turnoverandnegativefeelingsaboutthejobHerzbergetal.
(1957).Researchhasshownthatattitudesaboutone'sjobinfluencet h e waythejobi s done (Herzberg1959).Conversely,studieshavereporteda positivecorrelationbetweennegati vefeelingsaboutthejobandturnover(Robbins1979)anda strongpositivecorrelationamo nginitiallateness,thenabsenceandsubsequentturnover(Rosse1988).Employeesatisfac tion(andcustomersatisfaction)wasalsofoundtoimpactchangesinsalesbyKeininghamet al.
(2006).Jobdissatisfactionleadstoabsenteeism,problemsofgrievances,lowmoraleandh ighturnover(Gangadhraiahetal.1990,Martin1990).
2006;MakSockel2001;MartensenandGronholdt2001),negativelyrelatedtoturnover( Tekleabetal.2005;Ward1988)andabsenteeism(Muchinsky1977).
Hypothesisdevelopment
Empowermentmeaningandjobsatisfaction
Int h e r e s e a r c h o f ThomasandVelthouse( 1 9 9 0 ) , empowermentmeaning concernsthevalueofthetaskorpurposewhichhastherelationshiptotheemployees’ide as,theirbeliefsortheirstandards.Spreitzeretal.
(1997)indicatedthefitrelationshipbetweentheemployees’needsinthejobandtheirownva lues,theirbeliefsandtheirbehaviors.Empowermentmeaninghasbeenlinkedtoworksatis factionb y previousr e s e a r c h
( H a c k m a n andOldham1980;Spreitzere t a l , 1 9 9 7 ) Andfromtheser e s e a r c h e s e m p o w e r m e n t meaningamongtheo t h e r dimensioncandirectlypresentther elationbetweenthepersonandthejob,thatis,t h e fitbetweenthejobrolerequirementsa ndtheemployee’sbeliefsandvalues.Anemployeedoe s notfeelenthusiasticaboutthejobi fhe/ shed o e s notge t energizedaboutwork,anemployeewillnotfeelempowered(Thomas and Velthouse,1990).
Literatureshowst ha tap osi ti ve relationshipisfoundbetweenmeaningandjobsat isfaction(Spreitzer,KizilosandNason,1997;HackmanandOldham,1980;Bennisand Nanus,1 9 8 5 ) Ifw o r k ismoremeaningfulfora personitwillleadt o moresatisfactionwi thhisorherworkwhichwillresultinanincreaseinemployeesatisfaction.Whereaslowleve lso f m e a n i n g f u l w o r k willleadt o l o w e r levelso f w o r k satisfaction.Wecanformu latethefollowinghypothesis.
Empowermentcompetenceandjobsatisfaction
13Accordingt o ThomasandVelthouse(1990),empowerment competence,o r so metimesunderstoodasself-efficacy,isthedegreeapersonbeliefshe orshecan skillfullyperformasetoftaskoractivitieswhenheorshetries.Apersonwillfeelmoresatisfi edwithhisworkwhenhefeelsmorecompetentabouttheirwork.
( 1 9 9 7 ) founda positiverelationshipbetweencompetenceandproductivity.Locke(1991) indicatedthatself- efficacyhasa powerfulimpactontaskperformance.Multipleempiricalstudiesreviewedb yGistandMitchell (1992),reportapositiverelationshipbetweenself- efficacyandavarietyo f w o r k - r e l a t e d performancemeasures,suchassalesandresearchproductivityanda d a p t a b i l i t y Thusitise x p e c t t h a t e m p o w e r m e n t competenceispositivelyrelatedtoemploy eesatisfaction.
Empowermentself-determinationandjobsatisfaction
Empowerment and self-determination are crucial concepts in the workplace, as defined by Hackman (1987) and Susman (1976), highlighting the degree to which employees experience freedom and independence within their organization According to Deci, Connell, and Ryan (1989), self-determination allows individuals to choose how they perform their tasks, fostering a sense of autonomy This empowerment can enhance intrinsic motivation by developing personal efficiency, leading to increased employee motivation (Conger and Kanungo, 1988) Furthermore, Spreitzer et al (1997) and Wagner (1995) emphasize that self-determination involves believing in one's control over work tasks, contributing to a sense of personal responsibility (Thomas and Velthouse, 1990) Employees who experience greater autonomy are more likely to receive intrinsic rewards and achieve higher job satisfaction, supporting the hypothesis that empowerment leads to more engaged and satisfied employees.
Empowermentimpactandjobsatisfaction
( 19 97 ), empowermentimpactistheperception t h a t one,asanindividual,caninfluen cestrategic,administrativeoroperatingoutcomesa t w o r k Thisd i m e n s i o n o f empo wermentisp o s i t i v e l y r ela te d t o effectiveness.WhileAshfort(1989)considersempo wermentimpactasthe degree towhichoneisablet o influencea d m i n i s t r a t i v e , o p e r a t i n g , o r strategicoutcomesa t w o r k tomakeadifference.Thisleadstothefollowinghypothesis.
Hypothesis4 ( H 4 ) : Empowerment impacti s p o s i t i v e l y relatedt o jobsatisfact ion.
Researchmodel
Basedontheabovediscussion,theresearchmodelpresentingtherelationshipbet weentheps yc ho lo gic al empowermentf a c t o r s onjobsatisfactioninserviceandma nufacturingindustryissuggestedasfollow:
Hypothesis 2:E m p o w e r m e n t c o m p e t e n c e is positivelyr e l a t e d to jobsatisfaction.
Chaptersummary
Inconclusion,thisc h a p t e r reviewsthevariousd e f i n i t i o n s o f psychologicalempo werment and jobsatisfactionfrommanyofpreviousauthorstoprovideconcepto f thefourmainfactorsof psychologicalempowermentintherelationshipwithjobsatisfaction.Fromtheliterature,weexposefourhypothesis.Finally,theconceptualmodelfortheresearchisproposedfors tudying.
Thischapterdescribesthedetailedresearchmethodologyappliedf o r theconducti onofthisstudy.Thechapterexaminesfromtheobjectivesofthestudy,thetechniquesusedt o conductt h e r e s e a r c h , a s wella s t h e designo f t h e questions,sample,t h e datac o l l e c t i o n procedureandthed a t a analysismethod.M o r e o v e r , justificationofe achchoiceofmethodmaderegardingthementionedobjectivesareincluded,inorderfort heresearchdesigntobesupported.Inthefollowingsections,thisresearchdescribesourre searchmethodcontainingpilotstudyandmainsurveytoa p p r o a c h t o a betterunderstan dingo f fourdimensionso f psychologicalempowermentaffectingonjobsatisfaction.
Researchprocess
This thesis explores the relationship between the four dimensions of psychological empowerment and employee job satisfaction in Vietnam, specifically examining the differences in the impact of psychological empowerment on job satisfaction between the service and manufacturing industries To achieve this goal, the research process includes several stages: a literature review, research design, pilot test, main survey, and data analysis Initially, the research problem is formulated, followed by a comprehensive literature review that informs the development of hypotheses and research questions The research design is established through the creation of a questionnaire and measurement scales, leading to the execution of a pilot test Ultimately, quantitative research is conducted in the main survey to collect data for model testing.
Formulating Research problem Literature Review
Development of hypothesis, Research questions
Descriptive Statistics Reliability analysis Exploratory Factor Analysis Correlation analysis
Testing of Hypotheses (Multiple Linear Regression Analysis
Researchdesign
Questionnairedesign
Thequestionnaireisdividedintosevenparts:personali n f o r m a t i o n , empowe rmentmeaning,empowermentcompetence,empowermentself- determination,empowermentimpact,employeesatisfactionandproductivity.The5- pointLikertscales,whicha r e ratingscaleswidelyu s e d f o r askingrespondents’ attitudes,areutilizedtoasktheemployeetoevaluatethedegreesoftheiragreementwiththe impactsoffourdimensionsofemployeeempowermentontheirsatisfactiona s w e l l a s p r o d u c t i v i t i e s The5 pointsi n t h e scalea r e r e s p e c t i v e l y from1 t o 5 s c o r i n g : s t r o n g l y disagree,d i s a g r e e , neutral,a g r e e , ands t r o n g l y a g r e e T h e que stionnaireisinitiallypreparedin
EnglishandthentranslatedintoVietnamesebyanacademicfluentinbothlanguages.Thisp rocedureisundertakenbecauseEnglishisnotwellunderstoodb y a l le m p l o y e es i n Vietn am.Translationisundertakent o ensuretherespondentscanunderstandthemeanings.
Measurementscale
Thequestionnaireismentionedintofourdimensions:empowermentmeaning,empo wermentcompetence,empowermentself- determination,empowermentimpactinfluencingjobs a t i s f a c t i o n S p r e i t z e r ' s ( 1995)scalesa r e usedt o measuret h e s e abovecomponentsofpsychologicalempowerment.
ThemeaningitemsweretakendirectlyfromTymon(1988).Tomeasuretheempowe rmentmeaning,t h e studya d a p t t h e measurementgivenb y D i m i t r i a d e s (2005 ) ,Cyboran(2 00 5) , M e n o n (1 99 9) whosuggestt w o q u e s t i o n s basedont h e Likert- typescalefrom1="stronglydisagree"to5="stronglyagree"scale.Thequestionsareasf ollows:
ThecompetenceitemswereadaptedfromJones's(1986)self- efficacyscale.Tomeasuretheempowermentcompetence,thestudyadaptthemeasurem entgivenb y Dimitriades(2005),Cyboran
(2005),Menon(1999)whosuggestthreequestionsbasedontheLikert- typescalefrom1="stronglydisagree"to5"stronglyagree"scale.Thequestionsareasfollows:
2 EC2 Iamself- assuredaboutm y capabilitiestop e r f o r m my workactivities.
Theself- determinationitemswereadaptedfromHackmanandOldham's( 1 9 8 0 ) autonomyscal e.Tomeasuretheempowermentself- determination,thestudya d a p t themeasurementgivenbyDimitriades(2005),Cyboran( 2005),Menon(1999)w h o suggestthreequestionsbasedont h e Likert- typescalefrom1 = " s t r o n g l y disagree"to5="stronglyagree"scale.Thequestionsareasfol lows:
2 ESD2 Icandecideonm y ownhowt o g o aboutdoing mywork.
TheimpactitemswereadaptedfromAshforth's(1989)helplessnessscale.Tomeas uretheempowermentimpact,thestudyadaptthemeasurementgivenbyDimitriades( 2 0 0
5 ) , C y b o r a n (2005),Menon(1999)whos u g g e s t threequestionsbasedontheLikert- typescalefrom1= "stronglydisagree"to5"stronglyagree"scale.Thequestionsareasfollows:
EI1 My impact on whatdepartmentislarge. happens in my
3 EI3 Ihavea sig ni fi ca nt influenceoverwha thapp ensinmydepartment.
Tomeasurejobsatisfaction,thisstudyusethefouritemsJun,Cai,andShin( 2 0 0 6 ) inTotalQualityManagement practices.Fourquestionaredesigned asbelow,alsousingLikert-scalefrom1 ="stronglydisagree"to5="stronglyagree"scale.
JS1 Iwouldr e c o m m e n d thiscompanyt o a friendi fhe/shewerelookingforajob.
Pilottest
Apilott e s t w a s c o n d u c t e d with2 0 employeesc o n v e n i e n t l y intwokind so f company:serviceandmanufacturing.B e f o r e thepilot- testwasconducted,t ofindoutthemistakesofquestionnaires,theseemployeeswereinter viewedasbelow:
- Interviewingsomee x p e r t s fromt w o kindso f i n d u s t r i e s : twelveexpertsf r o m servicecompaniesandeightexpertsinmanufacturingcompaniestofindoutanymist akesinquestionnaires.
- Revisingq u e s t i o n n a i r e : afterinterviewingwe havetorevisethreequestionsint h r e e variablesintonegativequestionstoavoidbias.Thequestionswerereviseda s belo w:
EC1 Id o nothaveenoughconfidencei n m y abilit ytodomyjob.
ESD1 I do not have enough autonomy indetermininghow Ido myjob.
Theresultsofthepilottestshowthatthereliabilityandtheresultaregood,allthevariab lesareacceptable.Sothereisnotanymorechangeinresearchmodel.Moredetailscoul dbeseeninAppendixD.
Mainsurvey
Our research framework is developed through a comprehensive review of existing literature We design questionnaires containing various items to gather data on the relationships between empowerment dimensions and employee satisfaction, as well as between employee satisfaction and productivity To ensure reliable statistical analysis, the minimum sample size must be at least five times the number of independent variables, totaling no less than 100 participants (n ≥ 100 and n ≥ 5k, where k represents the number of items) With 16 items in this study, the minimum required sample size is n ≥ 5 x 16 Additionally, for multiple regression analysis, the sample size should follow the formula n = 50 + 8m, where m is the number of independent variables In our research, with four independent variables, the minimum sample size for multiple regression analysis would be n = 50 + 8 x 4.
This research requires a minimum of 82 samples to ensure reliability and validity, with an initial target sample size of approximately 200 employees from both service and manufacturing industries A total of 200 questionnaires will be distributed to employees in Ho Chi Minh City using a mail survey method To minimize potential misinterpretation of question wording, a pilot study will be conducted for clarity The chosen methods of mail and online surveys are cost-effective, allow for a large number of respondents in a short time frame, enable respondents to take their time in answering, and help maintain privacy.
Afterfinishingt h e d a t a collection,t h e p r o c e s s o f d a t a analysisisconducted.A l l a c c e p t e d questionnaireswillbereviewedf o r validityandcompletion.Reverse- scoringnegatively- keyeditemsmustbeimplementedbeforecomputingindividuals’t o t a l scoresandbefore conductingdataanalyses.Wedothissothathighscoresont h e questionnairereflectrela tivelyhighlevelsoftheattributebeingmeasuredbythequestionnaire.ThisstudyusedtheIB MSPSSStatisticversion20toanalyzethedata.D a t a processingproceduresusedinthisstu dyaresummarizedasfollowings:
TheCronbach’sAlphaisthemostwidelyusedobjectivemeasureofreliabilityoft hescale.Cronbach’sAlphaisastatisticaltestifthecorrelationoftheitemsinthescaleisrela tivetoeachother.Consequently,thismethodofanalysiscanremoveinappropriatevariables andlimitjunkvariablesi n t h e studyp r o c e s s andevaluatethe reliabilityof thescalethroughtheCronbach’sAlphacoefficient(Hairetal.,1 9 9 8 ) Accordingt o Palla nt( 2 0 0 1 ) , t hescalesa r e reliablewhenCronbach’sAlphacoefficientofeachscaleiseq ualtoorhigherthan0.7.Alowvalueofalphacouldbeduetoalownumberofquestions,poo rinterrelatednessbetweenitemsorheterogeneousconstructs.
Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was performed to identify the number of factors influencing employee job satisfaction by examining the relationships among independent variables This multivariate statistical technique aims to uncover the underlying structure among numerous variables, allowing for the summarization of information into a smaller set of factors In this study, four key factors were identified as significant contributors to employee satisfaction EFA not only facilitated the creation of factors for each measuring scale but also helped determine which factors were strongly correlated with job satisfaction According to Pallant (2001), factor analysis is suitable for data that meets specific criteria.
TheKaiser-Meyer-Olkinvalue(KMO)is0.6orgreater.
Thet r a n s m i s s i o n coefficientvariables(factorsloading)islessthan0.5orthedifferenc eb e t w e e n t h e t w o f a c t o r s lessthan0 3 willbed i s q u a l i f i e d
StopsEigenvalue(representingthevarianceexplainedbyeachfactor) greaterthan1an dt h e totalvariancee x t r a c t e d ( C u m u l a t i v e
Pearson’scorrelation coefficientwasusedtoexaminetherelationshipsbetwee ntwoormoreresearchvariables.Ifthevalueofcorrelationcoefficientis1.0,thenthereisaper fectpositivecorrelationbetweentwovariables.Incontrast,ifthevalueo f c o r r e l a t i o n coefficientis-
1.0,itcanbeconcludedt h a t t h e r e isa p e r f e c t negativecorrelationbetweent w o variabl es.I n a d d i t i o n , t h e r e isnor e l a t i o n s h i p betweentwovariablesifthevalueofco rrelationcoefficientiszero.
Testf o r t h e r e g r e s s i o n a s s u m p t i o n s : W h e n choosingt o analyzet h e d a t a usi ngmultipleregression,wemustcheckingtomakesurethatthedataforanalyzingcana c t u a l l y bea n a l y z e d usingmultipleregression.S o ift h e d a t a p a s s e s t h e s e assu mptionsthatarerequiredformultipleregressions,itcangiveavalidresult,andw e areready tousemultipleregressions.
S h o w t h e re gr essi on modelsf o r entiregroupandt w o sepa ra te g r o u p s : Multipler egressionanalysisisastatisticaltechniquethatisusedt o analyzetherelationshipbetwe enseveralindependentvariablesandasingledependentvariable(Hairetal.
1998).Itwasusedtoexaminethesimultaneouseffects of severalindependentvariablesonadependentvariable.Inthisstudy,MultipleLinearRegre ssionmethodw a s usedt o t e s t t h e r e s e a r c h modelandhypotheses.Twos e p a r a t e g r o u p s hierarchicalmultipleregressionanalyseswereperformedtotestinteractioneffects ofindependentvariablesandthemoderatorintwoindutries.Pallant(2001)explainsthecondi tionstoaccepttheresultare:
Chaptersummary
Thischapterillustratesthedetailedresearchmethodologythatusedtotestthehy pothesisgiveni n thec h a p t e r 2 Theya r e including:r e s e a r c h p r o c e s s , r e s e a r c h design,measuremento f t h e c o n s t r u c t s , questiondesignanddatac o l l e c t i o n pr ocedure,d a t a a n a l y s i s methods.Questionnairesw e r e d i s t r i b u t e d t o respondent sthroughemailordirectly.Thepilottestwasalsomentionedinthischapterwiththeresultof acceptalltheitemstoensurethattheycouldbeusedinthemainsurvey.Allo f themethodsi n t hischapterwillbeappliedb y datacollectedi n themainsurveyanddemonstratedtheresultsi nchapter 4.
Thisc h a p t e r d e s c r i b e s e m p i r i c a l resultsandd i s c u s s i o n s basedont h e d a t a collectedwhichincluding:characteristicsofthesample, analyzingthereliabilityandvalidity,testingtheassumptionofregressionandtestinghyp otheses.Dataextractedf r o m thequestionnaireswere statisticallyanalyzedwiththemethodmentionedinthepreviouschapter usingt he SPSS s o ft wa re Detailedanalysisof th e resultsder iv ed f r o m thisanalysistowardstheobjecti vesoftheresearchispresented inthischapter.
Preliminariesofdataanalysis
Themainsurveywasconductedwiththetotal200questionnairesweredeliveredtot hreeservicecompaniesandthreemanufacturingcompaniesinHochiMinhCitybyemail. Thereare185 participantsansweredand165 questionnairesareusedtoanalyze.
Participantsi n thiss u r v e y varyi n termso f a g e s , genders,educationlevel,aver ageyearsa t c o m p a n y , o r g a n i z a t i o n a l roleandfromt w o kindso f company:ser viceandmanufacturing.Insummaryemployees’profile,femaleis5 3 9 % andmaleis46. 1%.Themajorgroupofageisfrom18-25years(52.1%),followingbyt h e groupof26–
3 5years(40.6%).Mostoftheemployeesare bachelor(69.7%),followedbythemasterde gree(13.9%).Themajorityofthegroupiswhoworksatt h e companyfrom3t o 5 years(
3 2 1 % ) , f o l l o w e d b y 29.1% workingfrom1- 2 years.Mostof theemployeesarestaffatcompany(61.8%),followed byprofessionalemployeeswhoa r e ex pe rt i n theirmajorandi n higherlevelsthanstaffs( 2
7 3 % ) Theo t h e r o r g a n i z a t i o n a l rolewhichisconsistedo f leaderso r s u p e r v i s o r s o r anyo t h e r s rolei n organizationhaveth e minoritypercentageo f th e group(4
No Items Scale Frequency Percent
Reliabilityanalysis
Cronbach’salphawasusedtotestthereliabilityofeachmeasurementscales.Thea lphacoefficientnormallyrangesfrom0to1andwherethealphacoefficientisg r e a t e r th an0.7,thiscanbeconsideredanacceptablereliability.I n thisr e s e a r c h , itemswithC r o n bach’sAlphacoefficientlessthan0 7 andcorrecteditem-total
841 4 correlationlowerthan0.30wouldbedeleted.Cronbach’sAlphacoefficientsofallf a c t o r s inthisresearchsatisfiedtherequirementbecausetheyaregreaterthan0.7,rangingfr om0.796to0.841.
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of
ExploratoryFactorAnalysis
Theco nce pt ua l frameworkofthisstudyhasbeendefined4 factorswith1 2 obse rvedvariablest h a t influencet o employees a t i s f a c t i o n T h e f i v e c o m p o n e n t s satisfiedKMOequivalentto0.826,significanceequivalentto0,eigenvalueshighertha n1,eigenvaluesc u m u l a t i v e
ExtractionSumsofSquaredLoa d in gs Total %of Cumulativ
RotationSumsofSquaredLoa d in gs Total %of Cumulativ
ESD1 716 m po ne nt InitialEigenvalues
ExtractionSumsofSquaredLoa d in gs Total %of Cumulativ
RotationSumsofSquaredLoa d in gs Total %of Cumulativ
The factor analysis conducted in this study revealed a five-factor solution that accounts for 74.356% of the data variance The Rotated Component Matrix indicated that 16 factors had loading factors greater than 0.5, meeting the necessary criteria Notably, five variables strongly loaded across these factors, yielding positive results Additionally, the reliability testing and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) demonstrated that four independent variables—empowerment meaning, empowerment competence, empowerment self-determination, and empowerment impact—along with one dependent variable, are acceptable and possess practical value.
Correlationanalysis
Asc o r r e l a t i o n result,t h e Pearsoncorrelation coefficientsb e t w e e n dependentv ariable(Employeesatisfaction)andeachindependentvariable(empowerment meanin g,empowermentcompetence,empowermentself- determination,empowermentimpact)w e r e alllessthan0 5 Thiss h o w e d thatt h e r e w erecorrelationsbetweenthemandtherewereenoughdiscriminationnottobemergedt ogether.Thereforetheseindependentvariablescanbefurtherutilizedformultipleregressi onanalysis.
EM EC ESD EI JS
MultipleLinearRegressionAnalysis
Wecodedthevariablesbycomputingvariables(meanvalues)intofivenewvariables: (1)empowermentmeaning( E M ) bymeanvalueof3itemsfromE M 1 , E M 2 , E M 3 ;
(2) e m p o w e r m e n t competence( E C ) withmeanvalueo f 3 itemsf r o m EC1,EC2,EC 3;( 3 ) e m p o w e r m e n t self- d e t e r m i n a t i o n ( E S D ) b y meanvaluef r o m 3itemsofESD1,ESD2,ESD3;
(4)empowermentimpact(EI)withmeanvalueo f 3 itemsfromEI1,EI2,EI3;jobsatisfact ion(JS)b y meanvaluefrom4itemso f JS1,JS2,JS3,JS4.Fivecompositevariableswereread yforregressionanalysis.
Whenchoosingtoanalyzethedatausingmultipleregression,wemustcheckingtoma kesurethatthe dataforanalyzingcana c t u a l l y beanalyzedusingmultipleregression.S o ift h e d a t a p a s s e s theseassumptionst h a t a r e r e q u i r e d f o r multipleregressions,itcangiveavalid result,andwearereadytousemultipleregression.
The study's sample size of 165 exceeded the minimum requirement of 80 for multiple regressions, ensuring robust statistical analysis Additionally, the distribution of the interval or ratio scale variables approximated a normal distribution, as indicated by a bell-shaped histogram This suggests that all variables demonstrated reasonable normality, with means close to zero, confirming the appropriateness of the data for further analysis.
PPlotin(AppendixB),therelativelystraightlinewentfromthebottomlefttothetoprighti ndicatedthelinearrelation betweenallindependentvariablesanddependentvariable.
Thirdly,t h e scatterplots h o w e d i n AppendixB f o r regressionf o r employee’sjobsatis faction,indicatedt h a t allt h e valuesw e r e r o u g h l y distributedsymmetricallyaroun dthecenterpointzero,thereforeheteroskedasticity doesnotoccur.Thisresultpointedoutth eap pr op ri at enes st o usemultiplelinearregress ionswithth e sampled a t a
Fourthly,the" R " columnrepresentst h e valueo fR,t h e multiplecorrelationcoefficient. Rcanbeconsideredtobeonemeasureofthequalityofthepredictionoft h e dependentvariab le“jobsatisfaction”.Avalueof0.618,i nthetable4.7below,indicatesagoodlevelofpredi ction.The"RSquare"columnrepresentstheR 2value o r thecoefficientofdetermination,whic histheproportiono f varianceint h e dependentvariablethatcanbeexplainedbytheindep endentva ri ab les Inthetable
4.7below,thevalueo f R squareis0.382t h a t ourindependentvariablese x p l a i n 3 8 2 % o f t h e variabilityo f ourd e p e n d e n t variable,jobsatisfaction.H o w e v e r , t h e adjusted RSquare(adj.R 2 )isusedmoreaccuratelyforreportdata.
(Constant),EI,EM,EC,ESDDependentVari able:JS
TheF- ratiointheANOVAtable(seeTable4.8)testswhethertheoverallregressionmodelisagoo dfitforthedata.Thetableshowsthattheindependentvariablesstatisticallysignificantlypr edictthedependentvariable,F(4,95)= 24.705,p0.3,t h e r e f o r e theresearchm o d e l isa ppropriate,t h e resultalsoshowsthatR2adjustedsmallerthanR2,usethissystemtoassesst herelevanceo f modeliss a fe r andm o r e accuratebecauseitd o e s note x a g g e r a t e t h e d e g r e e ofconsistencywiththemodel.R2adjustedis0.366indicatesthat36.6%oft h e v ariancecanbepredictedfromtheindependentvariables.
Model R R Adjusted Std.Erroro fthe R
Predictors:(Constant),EI,EM,EC,ESD
Model Sumof Df MeanSquare F Sig.
Predictors:(Constant),EI,EM,EC,ESD
ToleranceandVIFvaluesintheCoefficientstable4.9belowshowthatdonotexistm u l t i c o l l i n e a r i t y becauseVIFofallvariablesarelessthan10.WhentheVIFe x c e e d s 10i tisasignofmulticollinearity.
B Std.Error Beta Tolerance VIF
Fourfactorsempowermentmeaning,empowermentcompetence,empowermentself- determination, empowermentimpactallaffectonemployee’sjobsatisfactionbuttheempowermentself- determinationimpactthemostandtheempowermentcompetencehaslessimpactthanthe others.
No Hypothesisstatement B p -value Testingres ult Bothindustries:serviceandmanufacturing
H4 Empowermentimpactisp o s i t i v e l y relate dt o jobsatisfaction .179 0.037 Supported
Toanswerf o r t h e secondq u e s t i o n regardingt h e differenceonthee f f e c t o f p s y c h o l o g i c a l empowermentonthejobsatisfactionbetweentheserviceindustryand manufactureindustryinVietnam,weconducttheregressionanalysisforeachkindo f ind ustryseparately.
( T a b l e 4 1 0 ) Evaluatemultiplelinearregressionmodel,thecoefficientofdeterminat ionR2(Rsquare)isusedtoaccesstherelevanceoftheresearchmodel.R2coefficientwhenass essingtherelevanceofthemodelis0.431>0.3,th ere fo re theresearchmodelisappro priate,t h e resultalsoshowsthatR2adjustedsmallerthanR2,usethissystemtoassesstherel evanceo f modelissa f e r andm o r e accuratebecauseitd o e s note x a g g e r a t e t h e degreeofconsistencywiththemodel.R2adjustedis0.403indicatesthat40.3%oft h e vari ancecanbepredictedfromtheindependentvariables.
FChange df1 df2 Sig.FC hange
Predictors:(Constant),EI,EM,EC,ESD
Unlessnotedotherwise,statisticsarebasedonlyoncasesforwhichIndustries=S e r v i c e DependentVaria ble:JS
Model SumofSquares Df MeanSquare F Sig.
ToleranceandVIFvaluesintheCoefficientstable4.12belowshowthatdonotexistm u l t i c o l l i n e a r i t y becauseVIFofallvariablesarelessthan10.Thereisnosignofmulticollin earity.
B Std.Error Beta Tolerance VIF
( T a b l e 4 1 3 ) Evaluatemultiplelinearregressionmodel,thecoefficientofdetermin ationR2(Rsquare)isusedtoaccesstherelevanceoftheresearchmodel.R2coefficientwhen assessingtherelevanceofthemodelis0.379>0.3,th ere fo re theresearchmodelisap propriate,t h e resultalsoshowsthatR2adjustedsmallerthanR2,usethissystemtoassessth erelevanceo f modeliss a fe r andm o r e accuratebecauseitd o e s note x a g g e r a t e t h e d e g r e e ofconsistencywiththemodel.R2adjustedis0.344indicatesthat34.4%oft h e va riancecanbepredictedfromtheindependentvariables.
FChangedf1 df2 Sig.F Manufact ~=Ma nufact
Predictors:(Constant),EI,EM,ESD,EC
Mode l SumofSquares Df MeanSquare F Sig.
SelectingonlycasesforwhichIndustries=M a n u f a c t Pr edictors:(Constant),EI,EM,ESD,EC
ToleranceandVIFvaluesintheCoefficientstable4.15belowshowthatdonotexistm u l t i c o l l i n e a r i t y becauseVIFofallvariablesarelessthan10.VIFdoesnotexceeds1 0 soth ereisnosignofmulticollinearity.
B Std.Error Beta Tolerance VIF
Thetablebelowg i v e s anoverviewwithresultso f t h e h y p o t h e s i s studiedi n thisr e s e a r c h Thehypothesiswiththep-valueishigherthan0.05isnotsupported.
No Hypothesisstatement B p -value Testingres ult Bothindustries:serviceandmanufacturing
H4 Empowermentimpactisp o s i t i v e l y relate dt o jobsatisfaction .179 0.037 Supported
H4 Empowermentimpactisp o s i t i v e l y relate dt o jobsatisfaction .135 176 NotSuppo rted
No Hypothesisstatement B p -value Testingres ult
H4 Empowermentimpactisp o s i t i v e l y relate dt o jobsatisfaction .214 172 NotSuppo rted
Withbothindustriesserviceandmanufacturingindustry,threeof fourhypotheses a r e s upported,exceptfromhypothesisH3.
Hypothesis H1: Empowerment meaning is positively related to jobsatisfaction.
HypothesisH2:Empowermentcompetenceisp o s i t i v e l y relatedt o jobsatisfacti on.
The comparison between the service and manufacturing industries reveals differing impacts of four independent empowerment variables on employee job satisfaction Empowerment self-determination significantly influences job satisfaction in both sectors, with a stronger effect observed in manufacturing In the service industry, empowerment meaning has a more pronounced effect on job satisfaction compared to manufacturing Conversely, empowerment competence and empowerment impact are more influential in the service industry, while their effects in manufacturing are comparatively weaker.
Chaptersummary
Inconclusion,thischapterdescribesempiricalresultsanddiscussionsbasedon thedat a collectedwhichincluding:characteristicsoft he samplei n DescriptiveStatistics, analyzingthereliabilitybyChronbach’salphaandvalidityinExploratoryFactorAnalysis,t estingthehypothesesandtheoreticalmodelinhierarchicalmultipleregression.Thesamples w e r e drawnfromt w o differentindustries:serviceandmanufacturing.Detailedanalysis oftheresultsderivedfromdataextractedwiththequestionnaireswasstatisticallyanalyzed withthemethodabovedrawingtotheresulto f 3outof4hypothesesweresupported.Inordert oarriveatalogicalconclusionforthisr e s e a r c h objective,t h e findingswillb e discussed mored e t a i l e d i n t h e nextc h a p t e r andleadtotheimplicationsaswellasthedirectio nforfurtherresearch.
Themainfindingsoft h i s researchfromresultsinpreviouschapter,theoreticalcontribu tions,suggestforp r a c t i c a l implications,limitationso f t h e studyanddirectionsfor furth erresearch a re discussedi nthischapter Ourresearch exploredt h e relationshipbet weenthefour dimensionsofpsychologicalempowerment andthejobsatisfactionofemployeesinVietnamandinparticularhowthedifferencesonthee f f e c t o f psychologicalempowermentont h e jobs a t i s f a c t i o n b e t w e e n th e servic eindustryandmanufactureindustryinVietnamare.
Keyfindingsofthethesis
The objective of this thesis is to explore the relationship between psychological empowerment and job satisfaction, comparing these dynamics in the service and manufacturing industries Based on Spreitzer's (1995) four factors of psychological empowerment—meaning, competence, self-determination, and impact—this research reveals a significant influence of psychological empowerment on job satisfaction across all dimensions Notably, the impact of certain dimensions differs between the service and manufacturing sectors Overall, these findings contribute to existing literature by enhancing the understanding of employee motivation through job satisfaction.
This research aims to explore the relationship between dimensions of empowerment and employee job satisfaction through a structured framework It involves a comprehensive literature review and the collection of data via questionnaires that include various question items The methodology encompasses several stages, including a pilot test, main survey, and data analysis, ensuring a thorough investigation of the subject matter.
45 resultsanddiscussionsbasedonthedatacollectedwhichincluding:characteristicso f th esample,analyzingthereliabilityandvalidity,testingtheassumptionofregressionandtesti nghypotheses.
Question1 : D o t h e empowermentm e a n i n g ,empowermentcompetence,e m p o w e r m e n t self- determination,empowermentimpactaffectthejobsatisfactioninV i e t n a m ?
Withallkindsofindustrieswhichincludeserviceandmanufacturingindustry,threeo f fou rhypothesesaresupported,e x c e p t fromh y p o t h e s i s
H 3 Thatmeanstheempowermentmeaning,empowermentself- determination,empowermentimpactalla f f e c t onemployee’sjobs a t i s f a c t i o n e x c e p t fromempowermentc o m p e t e n c e , t h e empowermentself- determinationimpactthemostandtheempowermentcompetencehasnoimpactontheoth ers.
No Hypothesisstatement B p -value Testingres ult
Theresultoftherelationshipsbetweenthefourdimensionsofpsychological empow ermentandjobsatisfactionh a s foundtobevariedfromstudyt o study( D i c k s o n andLore nz,2009;Carless,2004;Liden,Wayne,andS p a r r o w e , 2000;Spreitzeretal.
( 1 9 9 7 ) Theonlymeaningfoundb y allofthestudieshasth e sameresultst h a t ith a s sig nificantr e l a t i o n s h i p t o jobsa tis fac ti on Thecompetenceand impactdimensionshavealsobeenfoundt o beinconsistentresult.Spreitzere t al.
( 1 9 9 7 ) andCarless(2004)foundthatthereisasignificantpositiverelationshipwithjobs atisfactionwhileWayneandS p a r r o w e ( 2 0 0 0 ) indicatedt h a t thec o m p e t e n c e dime nsionsisfoundtohavesignificantnegativerelationship withj o b satisfaction.AndDicks onandLorenz(2009)indicatedthatthecompetencedimensionisnotanyrelatedtojobsatisf action.Theself- determinationdimensionhasbeenfoundthathassignificantpositiverelationshipwithjobsat isfactionandthisstudyresultisfoundtobeunconsistentwitho t h e r s t u d i e s ( C a r l e s s , 2 0 0 4 ; Liden,WayneandS p a r r o w e , 2000).However,DicksonandLorenz(20 09)generatedthatthereisnegativerelationshipandSpreitzere t al.
( 1 9 9 7 ) indicatedt ha tt her e isnosi gn if ic an t relationshipbetweenself- determinationdimensionsandjobsatisfaction.Forimpactdimensions,Liden,WayneandS parrowe(2000)foundthatitisnopositivelyrelatedwithjobsatisfactionwhileDicksonandLo renz(2009)andCarless(2004)foundthatitissignificantlypositivelyrelatedwithjobsat isfactionandSpreitzeretal.(1997)foundthatthereisnoanyrelationshipbetweenthem.
Inthescopeofthisstudy,weonlyfocusonemployeeswhoworkinserviceindustryandmanuf acturingindustrywhicharefrommanykindofdepartment.Thedegreeofjobsatisfactionma ydifferfromservicet o manufacturingb u t allt h e f a c t o r s o f p s y c h o l o g i c a l em powermentimpactonit.Andamongthesefactors, theempowerments e l f - d e t e r m i n a t i o n impactsthemostandt h eempowermentcompetencehaslessimpacttha ntheothers.
The findings from the previous chapter reveal differing impacts of psychological empowerment dimensions on employee job satisfaction in the service and manufacturing industries Specifically, empowerment self-determination positively influences job satisfaction in both sectors, with a stronger effect observed in manufacturing In contrast, empowerment meaning significantly affects job satisfaction more in the service industry than in manufacturing Additionally, empowerment competence and empowerment impact are more influential in the service sector, while their effects in the manufacturing industry are comparatively weaker.
Therearelimitofpreviousresearchstudyonthe comparisonbetweentwoindustries.TheseabovefindingsaresuitablewiththestudyofHam mudaandDulaimi(1997)thatsomewaysservicecompanieshavemoretogainfromempow ermentthanthato f manufacturing.Theyprovidesomereasonsforthatstatement.
(3) Thes e r v i c e industrya s a wholehas beenr e l a t i v e l y slowerthant h e m a n u f a c t u r i n g industryinimplementinge mpowerment.Thismaybeattributedtos e r v i c e companiesp e r c e p t i o n o f t h e r i s k o f empowermenttooutweighi t s b e n e f i t s
(5) Manufacturings e c t o r f a c e s m o r e i n t e n s e globalcompetitionthan t h e servicesector,puttinggreaterpressureonittofindnewwaysofd o i n g things.”
Implications
Thisstudyhascontributedascientificliteratureinthecontentofthep s y c h o l o g i c a l e m p o w e r m e n t , throught h e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f a t h e o r e t i c a l modeltoexpla inthefactorsaffectingthejobsatisfactioninserviceandinmanufacturingi nH o Chi MinhCity.Thescaleoftheresearchwasalreadydoneinthedevelopmente n v i r o n m e n t , thisstudywasa d j u s t e d , testingt h e scaleintheVietnameseenvironmentthroughdat acollectioninHoChiMinhCity,shouldadditionald a t a willcontributet o t h e scaletheory contributetot h e academicandappliedresearchtobetterunderstandtheVietnameseworkforc e.
ManagementinVietnamhastheobligationtocreatetheenvironmentthatfosterslocal employeeempowerment,andemployeeshavetheresponsibilitytoaccepttheoppor tunityanddemonstratetheya r e w i l l i n g andcapable.Thatcouldcreate apositiveworkenvironmentinwhichemployeesaregiventheauthorizationinexception allevelo f p e r s o n a l freedomandf l e x i b i l i t y t o havea fullperformancesuccess.
Theresultso f t h i s studys h o w t h a t threedimensionsempowermentmeaning,emp owermentself- determination,empowermentimpacta r e p o s i t i v e l y relatedtoonperformanceo f e mployees,butempowermentcompetenceisnot.Eachdimensionimpactsonjobsatisf actionwithdifferentlevels,thereisa differenceint w o differentindustries:serviceandm anufacturing.Tomanagers,whenusingthosedimensionsasfactorstomotivateemployee s,theyshouldconsidercarefullywhichf a c t o r s w i l l beusedi n flexibleoptionst o haver e s u l t s Talentedande m p o w e r e d humancapitalsareessentialtothesuccessofcom paniesinVietnam.
The study suggests that management should focus on optimizing individual dimensions when implementing empowerment programs to achieve a balanced combination that leads to the most positive outcomes While all four dimensions of empowerment are crucial, attaining a balanced approach is essential for optimal job performance Notably, the meaning dimension is strongly related to job satisfaction, aligning with much of the existing research Therefore, programs that emphasize a high level of meaning should be prioritized to enhance employee job satisfaction.
However,atanaveragelevelofjobmeaning,acombinationoftoohighlevelsofchoice,compe tence,andimpactmayactuallyworkagainstemployeeperformanceaswellasjobsatisfaction.
Managementshouldgivetheiremployeesencouragementto pointoutproblemsandsugg estforsolutions.Thatisthewaytoempowerthem,andthroughthat,theemployees’decis ionshaveacompassandsuccessmeasurements,broadentheopportunityforempowered behavior.Toadoptthewesternconceptofempowermentistoacceptthatdecisionsshouldb ebasedonthemembers’competenceandcontributiontotheorganization.
Somemores u g g e s t i o n s f o r managementa r e toorganizemorea c a d e m i c an dp r a c t i c a l activitiesregardingempowermenttopromoteawarenessofempowermentc oncept,importanceandprovideemployeeswithmoredirectionsand approachingofeffectivea p p l i c a t i o n i n o r g a n i z a t i o n s Thisincludesmorer e s e a r c h , trainingandchangesthatencourageemployeeempowermentasbelow:
Limitationanddirectionsforfurtherstudies
The findings of this study on psychological empowerment in Vietnam are limited by several factors Firstly, there is a scarcity of research on this topic within Vietnam and specific industries, which restricts the literature available for review Secondly, the study's sample size of 165 respondents may hinder the robustness of the results, especially given the challenges of collecting data from larger groups in a short timeframe Additionally, the research was confined to Ho Chi Minh City and focused on only two industries, limiting its generalizability across Vietnam's diverse demographics Future research should encompass a broader range of industries and demographics to enhance validity Furthermore, this study only examined the impact of four dimensions of psychological empowerment on job satisfaction, without exploring the interrelationships among these dimensions A more comprehensive approach could yield valuable insights into these relationships Lastly, while this study utilized self-reported performance indicators of job satisfaction, future research should aim to measure these indicators more objectively to reduce bias Overall, the study found that empowerment and self-determination positively affect employee job satisfaction in both service and manufacturing sectors, suggesting a promising avenue for future investigations.
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Phần A: Thông tin cá nhân
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