(The Effect of Psychological Empowerment on Innovative Work Behavior)

Abstract

Purpose – In this study, it is aimed to demonstrate the impact of psychological empowerment on innovative work behavior in the Turkish automotive sector. Design/methodology/approach – An empirical study was conducted in automotive manufacturer companies operating in Turkey. The research was applied to the White-collar employees of the firms by means of a survey form, using a simple random sampling method. “Perception of Psychological Empowerment” scale developed by Spreitzer (1995) was used to measure perception related to the psychological empowerment and “Innovative work Behavior Scale” developed by De Jong and Den Hartog (2010) was used to measure innovative work behavior. AMOS and SPSS programs were used in the analysis of the data obtained. Findings – The research concluded that other dimensions of psychological empowerment, excluding the qualification dimension, significantly affect innovative work behavior. Meaning and autonomy & impact dimensions influence both aspects of innovative work behavior. However, the meaning dimension has a greater impact on the creativity-related idea generation & research dimension than on the idea Support & Practice dimension (0.40>0.34), while the autonomy& impact dimension has a greater impact on the idea Support & Practice dimension than on the idea generation & research dimension (0.52>0.12). Discussion – Dimensions of psychological empowerment has an impact of 52% on the idea Support & Practice dimension of innovative work behavior, while it has an impact of 21% on the idea generation & research dimension that requires creativity. It has been found that the dimensions of psychological empowerment in employees have a positive and meaningful effect on the dimensions of innovative work behavior in general. However, the fact that the competence dimension of psychological empowerment has no effect on any aspect of innovative work behavior is one of the important findings of the research. It is not enough for employees to rely on their ability to carry out innovative work behaviors. In order for psychological empowerment to take place, employees must find their work meaningful, influence the work processes and results and participate in work-related decision-making.