A field experiment on the effects of weekly planning behaviour on work engagement, unfinished tasks, rumination, and cognitive flexibility

Autor(en)
Lars Uhlig, Vera Baumgartner, Roman Prem, Katja Siestrup, Christian Korunka, Bettina Kubicek
Abstrakt

This study concerns research on self-regulation. It examines the effects of planning behaviour, a comprehensive self-regulatory strategy of goal setting, planning work steps, and developing alternative plans. Combining different strategies, rather than testing them in isolation, would strengthen their effects and make them more appropriate for complex work tasks. Drawing on self-regulation theory, we propose that planning behaviour positively affects work engagement, unfinished tasks, rumination, and cognitive flexibility. Considering cognitive flexibility as an outcome provides insight into the cognitive benefits of planning behaviour. We examine person-level cognitive demands of flexible work and predictability as moderator variables to better understand the role of contextual variables in the use of self-regulatory strategies at work. We conducted a field experiment (N = 208 individuals; 947 weekly entries) in which we manipulated employees' weekly planning behaviour in their daily work lives. We found negative effects on unfinished tasks and weekly rumination, and positive effects on weekly cognitive flexibility. No significant moderating effects were found. Our study suggests that a brief planning manipulation at the beginning of the week may have multiple benefits and may be an important tool for improving cognitive flexibility. Future research should examine the role of time and mediating variables.

Organisation(en)
Institut für Arbeits-, Wirtschafts- und Sozialpsychologie
Externe Organisation(en)
Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, FernUniversität in Hagen
Journal
Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology
Band
96
Seiten
575-598
Anzahl der Seiten
24
ISSN
0963-1798
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/joop.12430
Publikationsdatum
09-2023
Peer-reviewed
Ja
ÖFOS 2012
501002 Angewandte Psychologie, 501015 Organisationspsychologie
Schlagwörter
ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete
Applied Psychology, Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management
Link zum Portal
https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/de/publications/a-field-experiment-on-the-effects-of-weekly-planning-behaviour-on-work-engagement-unfinished-tasks-rumination-and-cognitive-flexibility(aca99000-959a-498e-a617-e9152b522ead).html