The role of big five factors on predicting job crafting propensities amongst administrative employees in a South African tertiary institution

Abstract

Orientation: Personality provides a foundation for understanding employee job behaviours. It determines and reflects how they respond to their work situations. There is a shortage of previous researches that have specifically dealt with the predictive role of personality on job crafting. Job crafting is also a significantly new concept in the South African work context. It has both positive and negative consequences on employee job behaviours.

Research purpose: The present study investigated the role of big five factors on predicting job crafting propensities amongst administrative employees in Alice, South Africa.

Motivation for the study: The present study aimed to determine the role of big five factors on predicting job crafting propensities amongst administrative employees. It was premised on previous research that the big five factors are associated with many employee job behaviours.

Research approach, design and method: The present study employed a quantitative, crosssectional research design with a sample of 246 administrative employees in Alice, South Africa. A biographical questionnaire, a Big Five Inventory, and a job crafting questionnaire were used to collect data.

Main findings: The findings showed that big five factors of Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Openness to experience and Neuroticism play a significant role in predicting job crafting propensities.

Practical implications: The present study suggests that big five factors of Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Openness to experience and Neuroticism have a predictive role on job crafting behaviours. Managers of tertiary institutions can therefore consider these big five personalities to understand and predict the impacts of their job design strategies on administrative employees’ behaviours.

Contribution: The contribution of the study was significant in that it contributed to research literature representing the influence of the big five factors in understanding job crafting propensities of employees.

Keywords: Personality; Job redesign; Job Demands-Resources model; Administration.