Autonomy constrained: The dynamic interplay among job autonomy, work engagement, and innovative behavior under performance pressure

This study examines how performance pressure influences the complex relationships between job autonomy and critical employee outcomes in contemporary organizations. Specifically, we investigate the relationships between employees' job autonomy, work engagement, and innovative behavior, while testing the moderating effects of performance pressure perceived within teams. Drawing on Self-Determination Theory and the Job Demand-Resource Model, this research explores the dynamic tension between autonomy and performance demands in organizational settings. Using a two-wave survey design to prevent common method bias, data were collected from 485 employees across diverse organizations in South Korea, representing various industries and organizational levels. The results revealed that job autonomy positively impacts both work engagement and innovative behavior, supporting the fundamental role of autonomy in employee motivation and performance. More importantly, performance pressure perceived within teams had significant moderating effects, weakening the positive relationships between job autonomy and work engagement and innovative behavior. The results of simple slope analyses further confirmed these interaction effects, demonstrating that the benefits of job autonomy were consistently diminished under conditions of high performance pressure. These findings contribute to the organizational behavior and human resource management literature by demonstrating how performance pressure within teams can systematically constrain the benefits of job autonomy in contemporary work environments. For practitioners, our results suggest that organizations should enhance employees' job autonomy while carefully managing performance pressure within team contexts. To optimize organizational effectiveness, organizations should balance autonomous decision-making with performance expectations, fostering immediate outcomes (work engagement) and long-term capabilities (innovative behavior) in an increasingly competitive business environment.