Dedication to work: social workers in a Norwegian activation work context

Abstract

Dedication to work is about enthusiasm for the job and feelings of pride and inspiration from one’s work, which is important due to its influence on work performance. We have surveyed dedication to work among 1347 trained social workers and street-level bureaucrats with other educational backgrounds in the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration. By using the Job Demand–Control–Support model, we examined the relationship between perceived working conditions and dedication to work. The results revealed rather high levels of dedication to work among street-level bureaucrats in an activation work context, and highest among those who most strongly supported welfare conditionality measures. Whereas perceptions of demand were negatively associated with dedication, perceptions of control and support yielded positive relationships, with the latter variable being the most salient predictor of dedication to work. Educational background seems to be less important, and minor differences in the prediction of dedication were found between educational groups.