Employees' personality architecture matters at work: predicting motivation and well-being

Abstract

Personality plays a significant role in the workplace, and organizations need to take this into consideration when making decisions about hiring, task design, and creating a positive work environment. However, there is no universally agreed personality model or theory. Instead, there are interindividual (between-person differences) and intraindividual (within-person dynamics) perspectives on personality, which provide different insights each. The combination of both interindividual differences and intraindividual dynamics is referred to as personality architecture, with Personality Systems Interaction (PSI) theory (Kuhl, 2001) being a prominent example. PSI theory proposes seven sources of motivation that interact in shaping employees' experiences and behaviors. The purpose of this cumulative dissertation is to address how personality architecture relates to motivation and well-being at work. The results indicate that interindividual and intraindividual differences in personality architecture predict motivation and well-being at work. The dissertation provides new insights into the development of motivation and well-being at work and stresses the importance of dealing with negative experiences to become more competent.