In the quest to understand what drives team performance, this study examines the interplay between work characteristics and two types of well-being: hedonic (job satisfaction) and eudaimonic (purpose and growth). While previous research has focused on the individual-level hedonic perspective, we extend this to the team level, integrating both perspectives. Our goal is to analyze how hedonic and eudaimonic well-being influence the relationship between work characteristics and team performance. Based on the happy-productive work-units thesis (García-Buades et al., 2020) and Vittersø and Søholt’s (2011) assertion that eudaimonic well-being drives motivated effort, we hypothesize that eudaimonic well-being will be the most significant predictor of team performance.
The sample comprised 76 work units (≥ 3 employees) from different Spanish companies. In this two-wave longitudinal study, we measured work characteristics using the Spanish short version of the Work Design Questionnaire (Montañez-Juan et al., 2023), hedonic well-being (Cooper, Rout & Faragher, 1989), eudaimonic well-being (Ryff & Singer, 2008), and team performance at two points in time, including in-role behaviors (Williams & Anderson, 1991), extra-role behaviors (Mackenzie et al., 2011), and creativity (Oldham & Cummings, 1996).
Results from structural equation modeling revealed that job autonomy and feedback significantly boosted hedonic well-being, while physical demands had a detrimental effect. Eudaimonic well-being was less affected by job characteristics, except for the negative influence of physical demands. Supporting the hypothesis, eudaimonic well-being was a significant predictor of team performance over time, whereas hedonic well-being did not directly impact long-term performance.
Our findings suggest that to enhance team performance, organizations should focus on improving job autonomy and feedback while reducing physical demands. Promoting both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being is crucial, as they are complementary facets that together drive performance. Future research should investigate longitudinal impacts and effective interventions to further leverage eudaimonic well-being in diverse work environments.

Team performance, work characteristics, hedonic well-being, eudaimonic well-being

Applied Psychology Around the World | Volume 7, Issue 2