Shining a Light: Examining Similarities and Differences in the Work Psychology of Health Support Workers Employed in Long-Term Care and Home and Community Care Settings

Health Support Workers (HSWs) provide up to 80% of care to residents and clients in the long-term care (LTC) and home and community care (HCC) sectors but have received little research attention compared with the regulated professions. The authors explore similarities and differences in the work psy...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of applied gerontology 2019-11, Vol.38 (11), p.1595-1614
Main Authors: Perreira, Tyrone A., Berta, Whitney, Laporte, Audrey, Ginsburg, Liane, Deber, Raisa, Elliott, Gillian, Lum, Janet
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Citizenship
Empowerment
Health services
Job satisfaction
Long term health care
Organizational behavior
Organizational commitment
Professions
Quality of work
Support workers
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Summary:Health Support Workers (HSWs) provide up to 80% of care to residents and clients in the long-term care (LTC) and home and community care (HCC) sectors but have received little research attention compared with the regulated professions. The authors explore similarities and differences in the work psychology of HSWs employed in LTC and HCC settings. Data were collected via survey from 276 LTC and 184 HCC HSWs. Descriptive statistics and path analyses were conducted. HSWs in LTC and HCC settings have significant, positive associations between organizational citizenship behaviors directed toward the organization (OCB-Os) and psychological empowerment, as well as intention to stay (ITS) and job satisfaction. For LTC sector HSWs, there are significant relationships between OCB-Os and quality of work life (QWL), ITS and work engagement, and individual performance and both job satisfaction and QWL. For the HCC sector, OCB-Os and ITS are significantly and directly related to organizational commitment. This study has implications for organizations interested in developing targeted interventions to improve the retention of HSWs.
ISSN:0733-4648
1552-4523
DOI:10.1177/0733464817737622