Work engagement as a mediator between subjective well-being and work-and-health outcomes

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of work engagement as a mediator in the relationship of subjective well-being with work performance, work withdrawal behavior, physical and mental health. Design/methodology/approach A survey design was used to collect the data from 369 Indian software developers. Latent variable structural equation modeling was used to test the hypothesized relationships. Findings Subjective well-being was found to have a significant positive association with work engagement and this, in turn, had significantly enhanced employee’s work performance and reduced work withdrawal behavior, mental and physical ill-health. In addition, work engagement was found to fully mediate the association of subjective well-being with work performance and mental ill-health, while it partially mediated the association of subjective well-being with work withdrawal behaviors and physical ill-health. Practical implications This paper contributes to the development of self-sustaining approach toward increasing work engagement and provides a way to deal with work-and-health outcomes. Originality/value This study is one of the early attempts to examine direct and indirect associations of subjective well-being with work-and-health outcomes in an Indian setting.