Abstract
Previous chapters have established that, in addition to being commanded by God, work is an essential part of life. Devout Christians may choose to perform their work in ways pleasing to God even without any anticipated personal benefits. Yet substantial research shows there are many benefits realized by individuals who see their work as a means of expressing personal faith or spirituality such as more work and life meaning (Dik, Duffy, & Tix, 2012; Frankl, 1984; Maslow, 1968) and improved physical and mental health (Oman & Neuhauser, 2012). Organizations have also been shown to benefit from having a spiritually engaged workforce in areas such as organizational citizenship behavior, affective organizational commitment, and higher work unit performance (Albuquerque, Cunha, Martins, & Sá, 2014; Kazemipour & Mohd Amin, 2012). These positive effects on individuals and organizations can have a spillover effect with improved customer service and client care (Sousa & Coelho, 2013) and improved social responsibility (Chatjuthamard-Kitsabunnarat, Jiraporn, & Tong, 2014; Schouten, Graafland, & Kaptein, 2013). The significant research support reporting the benefits of faith and work integration may even convince organizations and managers not directly motivated by Christian values to create faith-friendly organization policies and cultures because it is a “win-win” for the majority.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
Genesis 17. To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of our life. 18. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”
- 2.
Chapter 5 established our view that the term faith can also encompass religion and spirituality.
- 3.
Faith-friendly as opposed to faith -based in which one religious faith is given preference over another
- 4.
One exception to this may be the assumption that Middle Easterners are Muslim (see Chap. 2).
- 5.
For example, the father’s primary responsibility to provide for the family financially, while the mother’s primary role is to provide home and child care.
References
Albuquerque, I. F., Cunha, R. C., Martins, L. D., & Sá, A. B. (2014). Primary health care services: Workplace spirituality and organizational performance. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 27(1), 59–82. https://doi.org/10.1108/jocm-11-2012-0186
Ames, D., Lee, A., & Wazlawek, A. (2017). Interpersonal assertiveness: Inside the balancing act. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 11(6). https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12317
Ashmos, D. P., & Duchon, D. (2000). Spirituality at work: A conceptualization and measure. Journal of Management Inquiry, 9(2), 134–145. https://doi.org/10.1177/105649260092008
Balkin, R. S., Schlosser, L. Z., & Levitt, D. H. (2009). Religious identity and cultural diversity: Exploring the relationships between religious identity, sexism, homophobia, and multicultural competence. Journal of Counseling & Development, 87(4), 420–427. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6678.2009.tb00126.x
Bandsuch, M. R., & Cavanagh, G. F. (2005). Integrating spirituality into the workplace: Theory and practice. Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion, 2(2), 221–254. https://doi.org/10.1080/14766080509518581
Barsade, S. G. (2002). The ripple effect: Emotional contagion and its influence on group behavior. Administrative Science Quarterly, 47(4), 644. https://doi.org/10.2307/3094912
Bassett-Jones, N. (2005). The paradox of diversity management, creativity and innovation. Creativity and Innovation Management, 14(2), 169–175. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8691.00337.x
Belding, J. N., Howard, M. G., McGuire, A. M., Schwartz, A. C., & Wilson, J. H. (2010). Social buffering by God: Prayer and measures of stress. Journal of Religion and Health, 49(2), 179–187.
Bellah, R. N. (1985). Habits of the heart. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Benefiel, M. (2005). Soul at work: Spiritual leadership in organizations. Dublin, Ireland: Veritas Publications.
Benefiel, M., Fry, L. W., & Geigle, D. (2014). Spirituality and religion in the workplace: History, theory, and research. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 6(3), 175–187. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036597
Billups, B. (2015, September 9). Managing poor performance. Work Biblically. Retrieved from http://workbiblically.com/managing-poor-performance/
Bornsheuer, J. N., Henriksen, R. C., & Irby, B. J. (2012). Psychological care provided by the church: Perceptions of Christian church members. Counseling and Values, 57(2), 199–213. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2161-007x.2012.00017.x
Boushey, H., & Glynn, S. (2012, November 16). There are significant business costs to replacing employees. Center for American Progress. Retrieved from https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2012/11/16/44464/there-are-significant-business-costs-to-replacing-employees/
Brooks, A. C. (2017). The conservative heart: How to build a fairer, happier, and more prosperous America. New York, NY: Broadside Books.
Caprariello, P. A., Cuddy, A. J., & Fiske, S. T. (2009). Social structure shapes cultural stereotypes and emotions: A causal test of the stereotype content model. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 12(2), 147–155. https://doi.org/10.1177/1368430208101053
Chatjuthamard-Kitsabunnarat, P., Jiraporn, P., & Tong, S. (2014). Does religious piety inspire corporate social responsibility (CSR)? Evidence from historical religious identification. Applied Economics Letters, 21(16), 1128–1133. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504851.2014.912032
Chawla, V., & Guda, S. (2013). Workplace spirituality as a precursor to relationship-oriented selling characteristics. Journal of Business Ethics, 115(1), 63–73.
Chen, B. X. (2011, March 15). Tech companies respond to Japan quake with resources, support. Wired. Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2011/03/tech-efforts-japan/
Chernev, A., & Blair, S. (2015, April). Doing well by doing Good: The benevolent halo of corporate social responsibility. Journal of Consumer Research, 41(6), 1412–1425. https://doi.org/10.1086/680089
Clyde, P., & Karnani, A. (2015). Improving private sector impact on poverty alleviation: A cost-based taxonomy. California Management Review, 57(2), 20–35. https://doi.org/10.1525/cmr.2015.57.2.20
Ćulibrk, J., Delić, M., Mitrović, S., & Ćulibrk, D. (2018). Job satisfaction, organizational commitment and job involvement: The mediating role of job involvement. Frontiers in Psychology, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00132
Cummings, J. P., & Pargament, K. I. (2012). Religious coping and workplace stress. In P. C. Hill & B. J. Dik (Eds.), Psychology of religion and workplace spirituality (pp. 157–177). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Daniel, J. L. (2015). Workplace spirituality and stress: Evidence from Mexico and US. Management Research Review, 38(1), 29–43.
Davidson, M. N. (2012). The end of diversity as we know it: Why diversity efforts fail and how leveraging difference can succeed. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.
Davis, E., & Hill, P. (2012). Promoting the career well-being of religiously/spiritually oriented employees by supporting their emotional resilience and spiritual fitness. In P. C. Hill & B. J. Dik (Eds.), Psychology of religion and workplace spirituality (pp. 89–112). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Day, N. E. (2007). Religion in the workplace: Correlates and consequences of individual behavior. In J. Biberman & M. D. Whitty (Eds.), At work: Spirituality matters (pp. 115–146). Scranton, PA: University of Scranton Press.
Dik, B. J., Duffy, R. D., & Tix, A. P. (2012). Religion, spirituality, and a sense of calling in the workplace. In P. C. Hill & B. J. Dik (Eds.), Psychology of religion and workplace spirituality (pp. 113–133). Information Age Publishing.
Dunks, B. (2017, May 11). How to handle an ineffective church staff member. Vanderbloemen. Retrieved from https://www.vanderbloemen.com/blog/handle-ineffective-church-staff-member
Eberstadt, M. (2013). How the west really lost god: A new theory of secularization. West Conshohocken, PA: Templeton Press.
Erickson, M. J. (2013). Christian theology. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
Ewest, T. (Ed.). (2018). Faith and work: Christian perspectives, research and insights into the movement. Charlotte, NC: IAP.
Frankl, V. E. (1984). Man’s search for meaning: An introduction to logotherapy. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
Garcia-Zamor, J. (2003). Workplace spirituality and organizational performance. Public Administration Review, 63(3), 355–363. https://doi.org/10.1111/1540-6210.00295
George, J. M. (1991). State or trait: Effects of positive mood on prosocial behaviors at work. Journal of Applied Psychology, 76(2), 299–307. https://doi.org/10.1037//0021-9010.76.2.299
Giacalone, R. A., & Jurkiewicz, C. L. (2010). Handbook of workplace spirituality and organizational performance (2nd ed.). Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe.
Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Giddens, A. (2008). Modernity and self-identity: Self and society in the late modern age. 1991. Cambridge: Polity.
Greer, C. L., Greer, T. W., Worthington, E. L., Miller, A. J., Van Tongeren, D. R., Toussaint, L., et al. (2012). Religion, and fairness, justice and forgiveness in organizational settings. In P. C. Hill & B. J. Dik (Eds.), Psychology of religion and workplace spirituality (pp. 201–222). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Gupta, M., Kumar, V., & Singh, M. (2014). Creating satisfied employees through workplace spirituality: A study of the private insurance sector in Punjab (India). Journal of Business Ethics, 122(1), 79–88.
Hall, D. E. (2006). Religious attendance: More cost-effective than Lipitor? The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 19(2), 103–109. https://doi.org/10.3122/jabfm.19.2.103
Hernandez, K. M., & Mahoney, A. (2012). Balancing sacred callings in career and family life. In P. C. Hill & B. J. Dik (Eds.), Psychology of religion and workplace spirituality (pp. 135–177). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Hewstone, M., Rubin, M., & Willis, H. (2002). Intergroup bias. Annual Review of Psychology, 53(1), 575–604. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.53.100901.135109
Hicks, D. A. (2003). Religion and the workplace: Pluralism, spirituality, leadership. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Hummer, R. A., Rogers, R. G., Nam, C. B., & Ellison, C. G. (1999). Religious involvement and U.S. adult mortality. Demography, 36(2), 273. https://doi.org/10.2307/2648114
Hunter, J. D. (2010). To change the world: The irony, tragedy, and possibility of Christianity in the late modern world. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Ironson, G., & Kremer, H. (2009). Spiritual transformation, psychological well-being, health, and survival in people with HIV. The International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine, 39(3), 263–281. https://doi.org/10.2190/pm.39.3.d
Kazemipour, F., & Mohd Amin, S. (2012). The impact of workplace spirituality dimensions on organisational citizenship behaviour among nurses with the mediating effect of affective organisational commitment. Journal of Nursing Management, 20(8), 1039–1048. https://doi.org/10.1111/jonm.12025
Keller, T., & Alsdorf, K. L. (2016). Every good endeavor: Connecting your work to God’s work. New York, NY: Penguin Books.
Kinjerski, V., & Skrypnek, B. J. (2008). The promise of spirit at work: Increasing job satisfaction and organizational commitment and reducing turnover and absenteeism in long-term care. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 34(10), 17–25. https://doi.org/10.3928/00989134-20081001-03
Koenig, H. G. (2012). Religion, spirituality, and health: The research and clinical implications. ISRN Psychiatry, 2012, 1–33. https://doi.org/10.5402/2012/278730
Krause, N. M. (2008). Aging in the Church: How social relationships affect health. West Conshohocken, PA: Templeton Foundation Press.
Krishnakumar, S., & Peck, C. (2002). The “what”, “why” and “how” of spirituality in the workplace. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 17(3), 153.
Kutcher, E. J., Bragger, J. D., Rodriguez-Srednicki, O., & Masco, J. L. (2010). The role of religiosity in stress, job attitudes, and organizational citizenship behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 95(2), 319–337. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-009-0362-z
Macky, K., & Boxall, P. (2007). The relationship between ‘high-performance work practices’ and employee attitudes: An investigation of additive and interaction effects. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 18(4), 537–567.
Marques, J., Dhiman, S., & King, R. (2007). Spirituality in the workplace: What it is, why it matters, how to make it work for you. Fawnskin, CA: Personhood Press.
Maslow, A. H. (1968). Toward a psychology of being. New York, NY: Van Reinhold.
Maslow, A. H. (1973). The farther reaches of human nature. New York, NY: Penguin Books.
McCullough, M. E., Swartwout, P., Shaver, J. H., Carter, E. C., & Sosis, R. (2016). Christian religious badges instill trust in Christian and non-Christian perceivers. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 8(2), 149–163. https://doi.org/10.1037/rel0000045
McSherry, W. (2006). Making sense of spirituality in nursing and health care practice: An interactive approach. London, UK: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
Meskelis, S., & Whittington, J. L. (2018). Work as worship: Bringing meaning to work through an integrated faith. In T. Ewest (Ed.), Faith and work: Christian perspectives, research, and insights into the movement (pp. 57–76). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Michael, R. (2002). Attitudinal organizational commitment and job performance: A meta-analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 23(3), 257–266.
Miller, D., & Ewest, T. (2011). Rethinking the impact of religion on business values: Understanding its reemergence and measuring its manifestations. Princeton University Faith & Work Initiative. Retrieved from https://faithandwork.princeton.edu/research/integration-profile/tip-publications-and-conference-papers
Mitroff, I. I., & Denton, E. A. (1999). A spiritual audit of corporate America: A hard look at spirituality, religion, and values in the workplace. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Novak, M. (1991). The spirit of democratic capitalism. Lanham, MD: Madison Books.
Novak, M. (1996). Business as a calling: Work and the examined life. New York, NY: The Free Press.
O’Brien, W. (2012). Spiritual capital in a competitive workplace. In S. Rima & M. O’Sullivan (Eds.), Spiritual capital: A moral core for social and economic justice (pp. 97–109). Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing.
O’Donnell, J. (2010, January 25). UPS workers head to Haiti to provide help. USA Today, 4B.
Oman, D., & Neuhauser, L. (2012). Spiritual factors in occupational health and well-being. In P. C. Hill & B. J. Dik (Eds.), Psychology of religion and workplace spirituality (pp. 63–85). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Organ, D., Podsakoff, P., & MacKenzie, S. B. (2006). Organizational citizenship behavior: Its nature, antecedents, and consequences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Pargament, K. I. (2002). The bitter and the sweet: An evaluation of the costs and benefits of religiousness. Psychological Inquiry, 13(3), 168–181. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327965pli1303_02
Patrick, H. A., & Kumar, V. R. (2012). Managing workplace diversity. SAGE Open, 2(2), 215824401244461. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244012444615
Porth, S. J., McCall, J., & Bausch, T. A. (1999). Spiritual themes of the “learning organization”. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 12(3), 211–220.
Puchalski, C. M., & Ferrell, B. (2010). Making health care whole: Integrating spirituality into patient care. West Conshohocken, PA: Templeton Press.
Putnam, R. D. (2007). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.
Rangan, K., Chase, L., & Karim, S. (2015). The truth about CSR. Harvard Business Review, 93(1), 40–49.
Redding, G. (1995). The spirit of Chinese capitalism (Degruyter Studies in Organization). New York, NY: Walter de Gruyter Inc Publishers.
Róz˙ycka-Tran, J. (2017). Love thy neighbor? The effects of religious in/out-group identity on social behavior. Personality and Individual Differences, 115, 7–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2016.11.009
Saari, L., & Judge, T. (2004). Employee attitudes and job satisfaction. Human Resource Management, 43(4), 395–407. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.20032
Saeidi, S. P., Sofian, S., Saeidi, P., Saeidi, S. P., & Saaeidi, S. A. (2015). How does corporate social responsibility contribute to firm financial performance? The mediating role of competitive advantage, reputation, and customer satisfaction. Journal of Business Research, 68, 341–350. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2014.06.024
Saks, A. M. (2011). Workplace spirituality and employee engagement. Management, Spirituality & Religion, 8(4), 317–340. https://doi.org/10.1080/14766086.2011.630170
Sandage, S. J., Dahl, C. M., & Harden, M. G. (2012). The psychology of religion, spirituality, and diversity. In P. C. Hill & B. J. Dik (Eds.), Psychology of religion and workplace spirituality (pp. 43–62). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Schlesinger, A. M. (1998). The disuniting of America reflections on multicultural society. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company.
Schouten, C. M., Graafland, J., & Kaptein, M. (2013). Religiosity, CSR attitudes, and CSR behavior: An empirical study of executives’ religiosity and CSR. Journal of Business Ethics, 123(3), 437–459. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-013-1847-3
Self, D. R., & Self, T. B. (2014). Negligent retention of counterproductive employees. International Journal of Law and Management, 56(3), 216–230. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijlma-07-2012-0021
Shah, J. Y., Brazy, P. C., & Higgins, E. T. (2002). Promotion and Prevention Forms of Ingroup Bias. In D. M. Mackie & E. R. Smith (Eds.), From prejudice to intergroup emotions: Differentiated reactions to social groups (pp. 31–47). New York, NY: Psychology Press.
Shantz, A., Alfes, K., Truss, C., & Soane, E. (2013). The role of employee engagement in the relationship between job design and task performance, citizenship and deviant behaviours. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 24(13), 2608–2627. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2012.744334
Smidt, C. E. (2003). Religion as social capital: Producing the common good. Waco, TX: Baylor University Press.
Sousa, C. M., & Coelho, F. (2013). Exploring the relationship between individual values and the customer orientation of front-line employees. Journal of Marketing Management, 29(15–16), 1653–1679.
Stout, H. S. (2007). Upon the altar of the nation: A moral history of the Civil War. New York, NY: Penguin Books.
Tay, L., & Diener, E. (2011). Needs and subjective well-being around the world. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 101(2), 354–365. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0023779
Thompson, W. D. (2000). Can you train people to be spiritual? Training and Development, 54(12), 18–19.
Wachholtz, A. B., & Pargament, K. I. (2005). Is spirituality a critical ingredient of meditation? Comparing the effects of spiritual meditation, secular meditation, and relaxation on spiritual, psychological, cardiac, and pain outcomes. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 28(4), 369–384. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-005-9008-5
Wachholtz, A. B., & Pargament, K. I. (2008). Migraines and meditation: Does spirituality matter? Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 31(4), 351–366. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-008-9159-2
Weber, M. (1930). The Protestant ethic and the spirit of Capitalism. New York, NY: Charles Scribner’s Sons.
Woodburn, E. (1985). Religion and economics among Japanese Americans: A Weberian study. Social Forces, 64(1), 191–204.
Wuthnow, R. (2003). Can religion revitalize civil society? In C. Smidt (Ed.), Religion as social capital: Producing the common good (pp. 191–210). College Station, TX: Texas A & M University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Buszka, S.G., Ewest, T. (2020). Benefits of Faith and Work Integration. In: Integrating Christian Faith and Work. Palgrave Studies in Workplace Spirituality and Fulfillment. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22914-6_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22914-6_6
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-22913-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-22914-6
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)