Workplace Spirituality and Work Engagement of Street-Level Bureaucrats: Chain Mediation Role Between Public Service Motivation and Organizational Identification

Abstract

Purpose – This study draw on the social exchange theory to explore the mediating role of public service motivation (PSM) and organizational identification between workplace spirituality and work engagement of street-level bureaucrats. Design/methodology/approach – This study takes 1150 street-level bureaucrats in China as the research object, aims to explore the influence mechanism and internal path of workplace spirituality on the work engagement by constructing a chain mediation model. Findings – The workplace spirituality of street-level bureaucrats has a significant positive impact on work engagement. PSM plays an independent mediating role between workplace spirituality and work engagement. Organizational identification plays an independent mediating role between workplace spirituality and work engagement. Public service motivation and organizational identification play a chain mediation role between workplace spirituality and work engagement. Originality/value – In addition to revealing the relationship between workplace spirituality and work engagement in street-level bureaucrats, these results connect the internal mechanism of the chain mediation model in series from the perspective of reciprocity and obtain a strategy about the psychological path to manage street-level bureaucrats, which enlightens public sector managers to motivate their bureaucrats spiritually.