College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Date of Award

Spring 6-14-2019

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Goran Kuljanin, PhD

Second Advisor

Joseph R. Ferrari, PhD

Abstract

Psychological home is a relatively new topic within the field of psychology, defined as a person’s need to self-identify with a physical environment. Clutter, defined as the over-accumulation of material items, is even less studied. Previous research has shown that clutter in the home may negatively influence a person’s well-being, but this tendency has not been investigated in workplace settings (Crum & Ferrari, 2019a; Crum & Ferrari, 2019b; Roster, Ferrari & Jurkat, 2016). Within workplace research, there is a construct called work-related well-being (Narainsamy & Van Der Westhuizen, 2013; Rothman, 2008), consisting of job satisfaction, employee engagement, burnout, and occupational stress. Previous research has shown that job-related tension may negatively impact job satisfaction (Bateman & Strasser, 1983). The present study will address whether clutter in the office negatively impacts work-place well-being, using a crowd-sourced sample of adults (n = 290) who work full-time within the United States in office and home settings. It was hypothesized that office clutter would negatively impact job satisfaction and employee engagement, positively impact emotional exhaustion and occupational stress, and job-related tension was expected to moderate the relationship between office clutter and job satisfaction. Multiple linear regressions and a moderated regression were used to analyze the data and test the hypotheses. This present study benefited both scientists and practitioners by helping them understand the possible benefits of companies initiating “clean desk policies” and how personal materials and spending habits may reflect workplace behaviors or impact work outcomes.

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Psychology Commons

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