title: Non-Preferred Work Tasks in Work Design
Creators: name: Rana, Vishal
Publisher: name: Griffith University
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: job design
subject: job characteristics model
subject: work design questionnaire
subject: non-preferred work tasks

description: Both academics and practitioners have devoted increasing attention to job design as a result of continued changes to the nature of work. There have been many studies on job design over the last five decades, and the most prominent model used to study job design is the job characteristics model (JCM) (Hackman &amp; Oldham, 1980). More recently, Morgeson and Humphrey (2006) extended the JCM and job design research by developing a comprehensive work design questionnaire (WDQ) that includes characteristics such as social characteristics, knowledge characteristics and work context, in addition to the already existing JCM. The focus of JCM, and now WDQ, has primarily been on the job characteristics that motivate employees. In reality, however, not every task that an employee performs in their work role is preferred by that employee. Therefore, it would be naïve to not consider those tasks in work roles that employees prefer not to perform. A mixed methods research approach was used in this research to delve deeper into the task level analysis of job design. In particular, this research investigates those tasks that employees prefer not to perform. This research is based on the following research questions: RQ1: Do employees identify non-preferred work tasks (NPWTs)?; RQ2: How do employees manage NPWTs?; RQ3: What is the effect of NPWTs on work outcomes? The first and second research questions were answered through Study 1, which was qualitative in nature and sought responses from 40 professionals working over two industries (hospitality and university). The semi-structured interviews with the participants provided greater understanding of the nature of NPWTs in work roles. Furthermore, the respondents provided various ways in which they managed their NPWTs when answering the second research question. Addressing the third research question required the use of a scale development process in Study 2, as there were no pre-established scales measuring NPWTs. This process established the reliability and validity of the scale for NPWTs by testing the scale for predictive and discriminant validity with a sample size of 126 respondents. After successfully establishing a scale for NPWTs in Study 2, Study 3 was undertaken to answer the third research question, using an experimental design that manipulated positive emotions (high and low) and further test the predictive and discriminant validity for the scale of NPWTs. Study 3 tested whether NPWTs predict organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) and work engagement. Chapter 1 provides the background and introduction to the dissertation, including justifying the broad research questions. Chapter 2 provides a review of the literature across a diverse range of fields under which research on this topic has been undertaken. NPWTs are conceptualised and unpacked in Chapter 3 through a variety of examples that provide the basis and reasoning to understanding NPWTs in this thesis. Chapter 4 describes Study 1, which involved the conduct of semi-structured interviews to explore the nature of NPWTs and how employees manage NPWTs in their work roles. Upon confirming that NPWTs exist and employees identify and differentiate between their NPWTs and preferred work tasks (PWTs), the data from Chapter 4 were used to develop a scale to measure NPWTs in Chapter 5, which outlines Study 2. Study 2 established the items for the scale of NPWTs and confirmed the internal reliability for the measure. The predictive and discriminant validity with a small sample size of 126 respondents was also assessed. The predictive validity of NPWTs was tested against the outcome variables of creativity and workplace deviance. Once the reliability and validity of the scale was confirmed, an experimental design was conducted in Chapter 6, Study 3, to manipulate positive emotions (high and low activation) further test the predictive validity of the scale of NPWTs with 145 respondents. The outcome variables for this study were organisational citizenship behaviours and work engagement. The results of this study confirmed the prediction that NPWTs are negatively related to positive organisational outcomes of OCB and work engagement. Chapter 7 outlines the overall results, draws out emerging themes, and notes the contributions to research and practice that emerged from this program of research. The research findings, limitations, and implications for practice and theory are discussed. The results of these studies offer several contributions to research and practice. Firstly, they offer researchers a new, timely, and an important avenue of research in job design literature by highlighting the importance of task analysis in job design. The results also draw attention to the new concept of non-preferred work tasks. The scale developed in this thesis will further help researchers to investigate the impact of NPWTs in organisational outcomes. Finally, the findings from this new measure will assist practitioners to understand the impact of NPWTs on work outcomes and the role of positive emotions in ameliorating this effect. Given that billions of dollars are being lost on lack of employee engagement in workplaces, it is anticipated that this research will support managers and organisations in making decisions about the tasks that employees perform in their roles and reduce NPWTs by addressing these with their employees.