The relationship between how an employee perceives support for participation in human resource development (HRD) practices, engagement, and turnover intent has been underrepresented in the literature. Using social exchange theory as a guiding framework, this research sought to better understand the possible linkages of HRD practices and employee engagement to turnover intentions. An Internet-based self-report survey battery utilizing a four-stage preparation method was used as the primary data collection tool. Research was conducted in the health care industry ( N = 207). Linear, simultaneous, and mediated regression analyses were used to examine the variables of interest. Results suggested that participation in HRD practices and cognitive, emotional, and behavioral engagement were negatively related to turnover intent. Mediated regression analyses indicated that engagement partially mediated the relation between HRD practices and turnover intent. The findings support the utility of supporting employee participation in HRD practices to improve employee engagement and reduce turnover intent.

Human Resource Development Practices and Employee Engagement: Examining the Connection With Employee Turnover Intentions

Among scholarly researchers, the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) is a popular scale for assessing employee or work engagement. However, challenges to the scale's validity have raised major concerns about the measurement and conceptualization of engagement as a construct. Across 4 field samples, we examined 2 measures of engagement, the UWES and the Job Engagement Scale (JES), in both factor structure and patterns of relationships with theoretically hypothesized antecedents and consequences. In a fifth field sample, we examined the construct-level relationships between engagement and related variables, while controlling for sources of measurement error (i.e., item-specific factor, scale-specific factor, random response, and transient). By examining 2 measures, each derived from different theoretical bases, we provide unique insight into the measurement and construct of engagement. Our results show that, although correlated, the JES and UWES are not interchangeable. The UWES, more so than the JES, assesses engagement with overlap from other job attitudes, requiring improvement in the measurement of engagement. We offer guidance as to when to use each measure. Furthermore, by isolating the construct versus measurement of engagement relative to burnout, commitment, stress, and psychological meaningfulness and availability, we determined (a) the engagement construct is not the same as the opposite of burnout, warranting a reevaluation of the opposite-of-burnout conceptualization of engagement; and (b) psychological meaningfulness and engagement are highly correlated and likely reciprocally related, necessitating a modification to the self-role-expression conceptualization of engagement. (PsycINFO Database Record

The struggle with employee engagement: Measures and construct clarification using five samples.

Interest in the employee engagement construct has gained increasing attention in recent years. Measurement tools focused on nuanced areas of engagement (i.e., job engagement and organizational engagement) have been offered; however, no measure of employee engagement has been advanced despite persistent calls in the research. We present the development, method, and results of a three-dimensional employee engagement measurement tool developed for use in the human resource and management fields of study. Across four independent studies, the employee engagement scale (EES) was found to consist of three subfactors (cognitive, emotional, and behavioral) and a higher-order factor (employee engagement). Across a series of four studies, we explored the factor structure and reliability of the EES (Study 1), then refined the scale, confirmed the factor structure, and examined reliability and both convergent and nomological validity evidence (Study 2). Next (Study 3), we completed a final reduction in scale items and examined additional evidence of reliability and nomological validity as well as evidence of discriminant validity. Finally (Study 4), we tested for evidence of incremental validity. In the implications for theory and practice section, we discuss the importance of an employee engagement measure aligned alongside an agreed-upon definition and framework. Limitations and future directions for research—such as the need for further psychometric testing and exploring issues of measurement invariance—are discussed. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Employee Engagement Scale: Initial Evidence for Construct Validity and Implications for Theory and Practice

Purpose




The purpose of this paper is to examine the casual relationship between training satisfaction, work engagement (WE) and turnover intention and the mediating role of WE between training satisfaction and turnover intention.




Design/methodology/approach




Data were collected from 409 oil and gas professionals using an email survey questionnaire. Structural equation modelling, using Analysis of Moment Structures (IBM AMOS) 22.0, was performed to test the hypothesized model.




Findings




The results suggest that training satisfaction is significantly positively related to employees’ level of WE and is negatively related to turnover intention. The results also reveal that WE mediates the relationship between training satisfaction and turnover intention.




Practical implications




Training has long been thought to play an important role in achieving positive attitudinal and behaviours outcomes among employees. This study reconfirms these ideas and highlights the importance of training satisfaction as being key to achieving greater WE and reducing voluntary turnover. Therefore, the finding of this study have a number of implications for research and human resource development practitioners.




Originality/value




This study makes a significant theoretical contribution to the literature as this is the first study to demonstrate the significance of training satisfaction and the mediating effects of WE in reducing the turnover intention of employees.

The link between training satisfaction, work engagement and turnover intention

We explore existing perspectives of organizational alignment and employee engagement from the literature to better understand the alignment-engagement linkages to individual performance This is an underexplored area of inquiry in human resource development (HRD) Our analysis of the alignment and engagement literatures resulted in the development of an exploratory conceptual model The conceptual model elaborates on the organizational alignment–employee engagement linkages and their impact on individual performance These interconnections emphasize the importance of developing internally consistent HRD interventions or programs that align individual skills and knowledge with job characteristics and organizational systems and routines Furthermore, the model highlights the dynamic nature of the alignment-engagement linkages both as a source and context which facilitates individual performance, and influences the extent to which employees exhibit essential as well as discretionary behaviors We elaborate on the implications for HRD theory, research, and practice

Exploring Organizational Alignment-Employee Engagement Linkages and Impact on Individual Performance A Conceptual Model

The need to suppress emotion and sustain outward expressions in pediatric health care facilities can be overwhelming for employees, leading to low job performance and high turnover. This is particularly true within the field of child life. Notwithstanding, retention and performance of health care professionals have emerged as national agenda items, and hospital administrators are routinely asked to increase performance, reduce turnover, and increase patient-care quality. Although human health care professionals are asked to support these initiatives, few evidence-based models are available to guide intervention. This correlational study (N = 241) examined links among organizational-level climate variables, turnover-related attitudes, and emotional labor in the field of child life. Hypotheses were tested through correlational and hierarchical regression analytic procedures. Contributions to practice and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Angie L. Shuck

Papers

Human Resource Development Practices and Employee Engagement: Examining the Connection With Employee Turnover Intentions

Emotional Labor and Performance in the Field of Child Life: Initial Model Exploration and Implications for Practice