Happy Ever After? Explain the Relationship between Subjective Well-Being and Work Performance in the Affective and Cognitive Perspectives

Abstract

This study focuses on the effects of subjective well-being (SWB), examining the mediating processes in the relationships of SWB and job performance. Referencing to the broaden-and-build theory (Fredrickson, 2001, 2003), this study proposes job satisfaction and self-efficacy as the affect-driven and cognition-driven mediators to explain why SWB impacts helping behavior and task performance. There are 155 employees and 61 supervisors, totaling 155 dyads, responding to the survey. Results indicate that SWB is a multi-dimensional construct, with dimensions such as happiness, life satisfaction, life meaning, and loving oneself. Results also showed that happiness and life satisfaction were positively correlated to job satisfaction and then indirectly enhance helping behaviors. Results further reveal that self-efficacy mediates the relationships among happiness, life meaning and task performance.