Premium
Flow at Work and Basic Psychological Needs: Effects on Well‐Being
Author(s) -
Ilies Remus,
Wagner David,
Wilson Kelly,
Ceja Lucia,
Johnson Michael,
DeRue Scott,
Ilgen Dan
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
applied psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.497
H-Index - 88
eISSN - 1464-0597
pISSN - 0269-994X
DOI - 10.1111/apps.12075
Subject(s) - deci , psychology , experience sampling method , experiential learning , autonomy , competence (human resources) , social psychology , self determination theory , personality , pedagogy , political science , law
Recent conceptual work draws meaningful distinctions between experiential and declarative well‐being (Shmotkin, [Shmotkin, D., 2005]), but little has been done to apply such distinctions in organisational psychology. We use this framework to integrate self‐determination theory (Deci & Ryan, [Deci, E.L., 1985]) and flow theory (Csikszentmihalyi, [Csikszentmihalyi, M., 1975]), leading to hypotheses proposing that flow experiences at work (experiential well‐being) lead to declarative well‐being outcomes through their influence on the satisfaction of basic psychological needs for competence and autonomy. Findings from a two‐week experience sampling study of full‐time employees offer support for our hypotheses. This study also shows support for the moderating effect of individual differences in personality on the relationships among flow experiences, need fulfillment, and declarative well‐being.