PSYCHOLOGICAL CLIMATE AND WORK ADDICTION RISK : DO THE PERCEPTIONS OF OUR ORGANIZATIONS MATTER?

Abstract

A workaholic, the word combination of work and alcoholic, has generally had a negative connotation in the research community. Many researchers believe that the workaholic's behavior is not healthy to the individual nor to the organization. This current study was designed to explore the possibility of a relationship between psychological climate and work addiction risk. Participants (N = 175) responded to a survey to further understand not only the overall relationship between psychological climate and work addiction risk but also the relationship between each subscales (e.g., Challenge, Recognition). A correlation analysis showed that there was a significant relationship between the overall means of psychological climate and work addiction risk. No significant relationship was found between work addiction risk and the psychological climate subscales: Supportive Management, Role Clarity and Recognition. The analysis also revealed that there were significant relationships between work addiction risk and the psychological climate subscales: Challenge, Contribution and Self-Expression. The implications of these results and the potential reasons for it are discussed.