Dissent Expression as an Indicator of Work Engagement and Intention to Leave

Abstract

This study examined how dissent expression related to employees' self reports of work engagement and intention to leave. A sample of full-time employees completed a multi-instrument questionnaire. Findings indicated that dissent expression related to both employees' work engagement and their intention to leave. In particular, dissent expressed to management and coworkers associated with work engagement, whereas dissent expressed to nonmanagement audiences associated with intention to leave. Additional analysis revealed that for managers, work engagement was primarily a function of refraining from expressing dissent. © 2012 by the Association for Business Communication.