Meaningful Work at a Construction Company : Consti Group
Särkelä, Hilla (2024)
2024
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2024120332207
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2024120332207
Tiivistelmä
The purpose of this thesis was to examine what meaningful work in a construction company is and find out what factors can help foster the feeling of meaningfulness among employees, and how meaningful work can be supported in daily leadership. The thesis was commissioned by Consti Group.
The theoretical framework consists of a few selected motivation theories: Maslow’s theory of human motivation, the two-factor theory, job characteristics theory, self-determination theory and the framework of pathways to meaningful work. In addition, a review and comparison are made about concepts of meaning, meaningfulness and meaningful work.
The research data were collected through a mixed-methods, anonymous questionnaire to a purposively selected sample of employees of the commissioner. The questionnaire was based on the motivation theories chosen for the literature review.
The results revealed the importance of intrinsic factors to the responders. The responders gain a sense of accomplishment, belongingness and significance from their work. In addition, external factors were deemed important which was to be expected. Meaningful work in a construction company thus is a combination of opportunities to challenge oneself, accomplish things and see tangible results, while being a part of something greater than oneself. However, the results cannot be generalized due to limitations of the research.
For future research, the recommendation is to examine a larger and broader sample with mixed research methods, such as surveys and interviews.
The theoretical framework consists of a few selected motivation theories: Maslow’s theory of human motivation, the two-factor theory, job characteristics theory, self-determination theory and the framework of pathways to meaningful work. In addition, a review and comparison are made about concepts of meaning, meaningfulness and meaningful work.
The research data were collected through a mixed-methods, anonymous questionnaire to a purposively selected sample of employees of the commissioner. The questionnaire was based on the motivation theories chosen for the literature review.
The results revealed the importance of intrinsic factors to the responders. The responders gain a sense of accomplishment, belongingness and significance from their work. In addition, external factors were deemed important which was to be expected. Meaningful work in a construction company thus is a combination of opportunities to challenge oneself, accomplish things and see tangible results, while being a part of something greater than oneself. However, the results cannot be generalized due to limitations of the research.
For future research, the recommendation is to examine a larger and broader sample with mixed research methods, such as surveys and interviews.