Focus of attention at work and organization‐based self‐esteem

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the questions “How does employees' focus of attention at work theoretically relate to organization‐based self‐esteem?”, and “Does job focus and off‐job focus moderate relationships between organization‐based self‐esteem, and employee attitudes and perceptions of job complexity?”. Design/methodology/approach – Participants in two different samples completed questionnaires containing measures of organization‐based self‐esteem, focus of attention at work, job complexity, and a variety of attitudes and behavioral intentions. Findings – What and how much employees think about when they are at work changes relationships between organization‐based self‐esteem and employee perceptions of and attitudes towards their workplaces. Job focus and off‐job focus of attention intensified or weakened relationships with organization‐based self‐esteem. Research limitations/implications – Conclusions about causality are constrained by the cross‐sectional data collected in this study. Practical implications – It appears that managers should attempt to draw employees' attention to self‐esteem bolstering aspects of their jobs; and away from debilitating ones. Social implications – Societies benefit by having members with positive well‐being, to which organization‐based self‐esteem may contribute. Originality/value – This is the first theoretical analysis and empirical study of relationships between organization‐based self‐esteem and employee focus of attention at work.