Date of Award
2022
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)
Department
School of Business
First Advisor
Dr. Paul Shelton, Ph.D.
Second Advisor
Dr. Debby Thomas, Ph.D.
Third Advisor
Dr. Debby Espinor, Ed.D.
Abstract
Workplace anxiety costs U.S. businesses approximately $45 billion in lost productivity each year, increases the likelihood of absenteeism and presenteeism in the workplace, and causes four times the number of job absences as those due to other nonfatal injuries or illnesses. Over 110 million workers in the U.S. report feeling at least one symptom of workplace anxiety. Meaningful work and increased social support can reduce the effects of anxiety in the workplace. Workplace mentoring can help make work meaningful for people with workplace anxiety because it offers them social support through increased career-related support and psychosocial support. This quantitative analysis explored the impact of workplace mentoring on meaningful work for employees in the insurance industry who experience workplace anxiety. Three variables were considered: workplace anxiety, meaningful work, and workplace mentoring. Participants for this study were employees of a Fortune 100 insurance company headquartered in the Northeastern United States, resided in the U.S., were over the age of 18, and included workplace mentoring participants and non-workplace mentoring participants. The findings indicate a significant effect of the length of workplace mentoring participation on the degree to which workplace anxiety symptoms are eased for insurance industry employees and that participation in a workplace mentoring program significantly impacts both meaningful work and the degree to which symptoms are eased. This study is significant as it identifies the benefits of workplace mentoring to employees with workplace anxiety thereby offering opportunities to find meaning in their work, promotes organizational opportunities to cultivate workplaces that are conducive to fostering meaningful work for employees, and suggests providing workplace opportunities that support to employees’ overall mental health in employee-centric ways.
Recommended Citation
Nelson, Susan L., "The Impact of Workplace Mentoring on Meaningful Work for People With Workplace Anxiety in the Insurance Industry" (2022). Doctor of Business Administration (DBA). 58.
https://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/dbadmin/58