Relationships between employee mental wellbeing, psychological capital, organisational and union commitment : an exploration among Australian trade unions members

Background: The proportion of working-age Australians experiencing psychological distress has doubled over the last two decades (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2018). This situation harms individuals, industries and Australian society (LaMontagne et al., 2016b). To reverse this adverse scenario, an increasing body of research has aimed to gain an understanding of factors that might enhance employee mental wellbeing (Page et al., 2014). Notwithstanding positive results in these initiatives, more research efforts are needed to understand the variables that positively impact Australian employee mental wellbeing (LaMontagne et al., 2016a). This thesis investigates four focal factors that might enhance employee mental wellbeing to respond to this call for research.
The first focal factor is the role of trade unions. International research has suggested that trade unions might enhance employee mental wellbeing. However, in Australian literature, there is a difference of opinion regarding the role of Australian trade unions in enhancing employee mental wellbeing. Therefore, research is needed to elucidate this role.
The second focal factor is the core construct of psychological capital (PsyCap). International positive organisational research has demonstrated that PsyCap is positively related to employee mental wellbeing and negatively related to employee psychological distress. However, there is a lack of understanding regarding these relationships within an Australian context.
The third and fourth focal factors are organisational commitment and union commitment. In this thesis, these factors are considered as moderating variables in the relationship between PsyCap and employee mental wellbeing. Research has highlighted that organisational commitment is positively related to employee mental wellbeing. However, there is no consensus on its moderator role in the relationship between individual resources and employee mental wellbeing. Furthermore, it has been theorised that union commitment might be related to employee mental wellbeing and PsyCap. However, there is little empirical evidence about these relationships. Therefore, the idea that union commitment might play a moderator role in the relationship between PsyCap and employee mental wellbeing is an underdeveloped area of research.
Aims: This thesis aims to provide further knowledge about the degree to which the four focal factors play a role in enhancing Australian employee mental wellbeing. First, the role of Australian trade unions in enhancing employee mental wellbeing is critically assessed. Subsequently, the relationship between PsyCap and employee mental wellbeing is investigated. In addition, the moderator role of organisational commitment and union commitment in the relationship between PsyCap and employee mental wellbeing is examined. It is expected that the achievement of the aims will contribute to enriching the academic understanding of the four focal factors that enhance employee mental wellbeing. Furthermore, the development of this thesis might increase the knowledge of Australian trade unions. It is expected that this thesis will provide a deeper insight into PsyCap research by considering a sample of Australian unionised employees.
Methods: Two separate but related studies have been conducted to achieve the proposed aims. In Study 1, a systematic literature review of extant empirical research was conducted to provide a comprehensive critical analysis of the role of Australian trade unions in enhancing employee mental wellbeing. Twelve sequential steps were implemented to conduct this systematic literature review. Furthermore, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocol (PRISMA-P, Moher et al., 2015) , was followed to develop the study to ensure methodological quality (Chapter 4). In Study 2, exploratory research that employed a cross-sectional design with a non-probabilistic sample of 431 unionised employees across Australian industries was conducted. This study aimed to examine the relationship between PsyCap and employee mental wellbeing and the moderator role of organisational commitment and union commitment in this relationship. Six previous validated measures were adopted to assess the variable of interest. The PROCESS macro tool was used to assess the relationship between PsyCap and employee mental wellbeing via linear regressions analyses. Subsequently, the moderator effect of organisational and union commitment was added to significant relationships.
Results: The systematic literature review revealed that few empirical research studies aimed to reveal the role of Australian trade unions in enhancing employee mental wellbeing since only three previous research studies have focused on this relationship. Notwithstanding this issue, it was possible to conclude that previous research studies have highlighted that Australian trade unions play a minor and indirect role in enhancing employee mental wellbeing (Chapter 4).
Study 2 (Chapter 5) revealed that male participants have better mental wellbeing and PsyCap indicators than their female counterparts, with higher organisational and union commitment levels than female participants. Furthermore, older participants have better mental wellbeing indicators, and they are more committed to organisations and trade unions. This novel study provides original insights that union commitment is positively related to PsyCap and employee mental wellbeing indicators, and that it is negatively related to employee psychological distress. Analyses revealed a positive and significant relationship between PsyCap and employee mental wellbeing. Moreover, a negative and significant relationship between PsyCap and employee psychological distress was found. In addition, organisational commitment and union commitment have a moderator effect on these relationships, but they are not significant. However, significant moderator role effects were observed when the sample was divided by gender and by age groups. It was found that the combined effect of organisational and union commitment has a detrimental effect on employee mental wellbeing among female and younger participants. A similar effect was revealed for senior employees in the interaction between PsyCap and mental wellbeing.
Conclusion: The findings of this thesis indicate that there is a lack of research focused on Australian trade unions and employee mental wellbeing. Based on the limited evidence, it is possible to conclude with caution that the role of Australian trade unions role in enhancing employee mental wellbeing is indirect and minimal. The findings also indicate that PsyCap is positively related to employee mental wellbeing and negatively related to employee psychological distress. These interactions are different for males and females, and younger and more senior employees. These findings highlight the need to conduct more research with a different methodology, such as longitudinal research, to gain a comprehensive understanding of these relationships. Finally, the findings reveal that the combined effect of the moderator role of organisational and union commitment has a detrimental effect on participants’ mental wellbeing. The unmitigated communion and role conflict should explain this effect, and further research may explain it. The findings are relevant since they have identified research opportunities to conduct research to explore the relationship between Australian trade unions and employee mental wellbeing in more detail.