How workplace experiences shape civic participation

Research Highlight How workplace experiences shape civic participation

Altruism and wanting to make a difference motivate us all to engage in social causes, but whether we actually do depends not only on who we are but also on what we experience at work. Indeed, research by Daniel Lup shows our workplaces can make us more (or less) active citizens.  

What makes people more likely to donate time to a homeless shelter, march for a cause or go door-to-door drumming up support for a candidate before an election? Interestingly, whether people actively engage in civic causes or stay home does not depend only on individual character and convictions, but also on what people experience at their workplaces.

The ‘long arm of the job’

Researchers have long used the metaphor of the ‘long arm of the job’ to draw attention to the many ways in which what happens to us at work affects our attitudes and behaviours in other life domains, such as the civic domain. In particular, workplace autonomy and participation in decision-making have been proposed as important factors that contribute to the formation of skills, knowledge and attitudes that inspire individuals to volunteer in the community or become political activists.

Back in 1970, Carole Pateman proposed that employees who enjoy autonomy at work develop a sense of “self-efficacy” that further enables them to become more engaged citizens. She contended that participation in decision-making at work has an ‘integrative effect’ in that it emphasizes the importance of considering the needs and interests of others, and thus drives individuals towards civic causes. After all, if someone is trusted to express their opinions and if their engagement in decision-making is encouraged, they will see themselves as part of the group and will consider the others’ needs in more detail. Learning to make decisions with and for others at work will likely empower individuals to do the same in other instances about which they care, such as coordinating a neighbourhood movement to demand safety measures around the local school.

The many ways in which the ‘long arm of the job’ affects civic engagement

In an article entitled “What makes an active citizen?” published in the British Journal of Industrial Relations, Daniela Lup probed the multiple links between workplace demands and resources, and civic participation in a more detailed manner.

She questioned whether, aside from work autonomy and engagement in decision-making, other work experiences could also affect civic engagement. And if so, whether these experiences have the same effect on different kinds of civic acts, such as volunteering and charitable engagement on the one hand, and political and union activism on the other? Furthermore, she questioned whether some positive workplace experiences might end up detering individuals from engaging in the civic life and whether negative work experiences, such as workplace discrimination, could in fact push people toward civic action. It is only by answering all these questions that one can understand the many ways in which the long arm of the job affects the potential for civic engagement. 

The research used data from a European-wide survey, the Sixth European Working Conditions Survey, which covers 27 EU countries plus the UK (which still belonged to the EU at the time of the survey). Its richness and breadth enabled the researcher to better explore the following factors: work autonomy, participation in work decisions, complex problem-solving experience, sense of accomplishment, discrimination, and job satisfaction.

Work-related factors that drive civic engagement

What Daniela Lup found not only confirmed previous insights but also shed light on some little-studied aspects:

• First, participation in decision-making at work is positively associated with participation in the civic domain. But work autonomy, the other well-established determinant of civic engagement, is significantly linked only to volunteering but not to political or union activism.
• Second, workplace experiences that allow employees to engage in solving unforeseen, complex problems that require them to learn new things are also linked with enhanced civic participation. “This new result solidifies the claim made by industrial relation scholars that high-performance work practices are not only beneficial for the employees’ personal growth but also could foster more civic participation,” writes the author.
• Third, the study draws attention to less explored positive work experiences, such as the sense of accomplishment that employees derive from doing work that they feel is useful and at which they are good. The study shows that these experiences are likely to absorb workers and reduce their engagement outside of work, though Daniel Lup warns this should not be the case if employers have corporate volunteering programmes in which employees are carefully paired with volunteering opportunities.
• Fourth, the study shows that experiencing discrimination at work is more likely to drive employees to seek “compensation”, to restore their self-worth, by engaging in charitable work, unionism or political activism. This finding throws a dark shadow over employers who condone such behaviours, as it appears that only by going outside the organization can those who experience discrimination have a fair chance to restore their sense of worth.
• Finally, satisfaction with one’s job is associated with more participation in volunteering and charitable activities. In turn, for political/union activism, it is the lower satisfaction with the work experience that is more likely to drive employees’ participation – in other words, unhappy workers are more likely to be found in picket lines or campaigning for better labour laws. Thus, it is not surprising that the media is full of examples in which dissatisfaction with work conditions has moved many into the streets and left them less time and energy to engage in volunteering and charitable work.

Beyond its theoretical interest in painting a more complete picture of what makes an active citizen, this study has very concrete applications:

• First, companies can play a role in strengthening the civic society, if they are so inclined (most likely so, in our ESG-minded times). “Companies interested in contributing to the communities from which they draw their employees should consider expanding [work participation and growth opportunities] as a possible way to foster employees' engagement in the civic life of their communities,” suggests Daniela Lup.
• Second, the finding about rewarding work experiences that may prevent employees from engagement in the civic sphere is relevant for civic organizations hoping to recruit more volunteers, or for broker organizations that match potential volunteers with charities as part of corporate volunteer programs. The researcher suggests that if “organizations want to pique the interest of employees with a high sense of work accomplishment, they need to offer volunteering opportunities that allow these employees to use work skills that they are good at and for which they can be appreciated.”
• Last but not least, Daniel Lup highlights the need for public policies that support employers “to provide high-quality jobs and sanction organizational practices that suppress autonomy, voice and the development of higher order skills for all employees.”