Di Giampaolo, Luca e al.
A icle
Explo ing wo k engagemen and cynicism in indus y: A
p elimina y in es iga ion in a cen al I alian enginee ing
company
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Sugges ed Ci a ion: Di Giampaolo, Luca e al. (2025) : Explo ing wo k engagemen and cynicism
in indus y: A p elimina y in es iga ion in a cen al I alian enginee ing company, Adminis a i e
Sciences, ISSN 2076-3387, MDPI, Basel, Vol. 15, Iss. 5, pp. 1-11,
h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/admsci15050166
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Recei ed: 30 Sep embe 2024
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Published: 29 Ap il 2025
Ci a ion: Di Giampaolo, L., Galan i,
T., Co ini, M., De Sio, S., Giu gola, C.,
Ma ino, F., As ol i, P., Ma elli, R.,
Zicca di, D., Bo elli, P., Fo cella, L.,
Maiolo, M. E., & Coppe a, L. (2025).
Explo ing Wo k Engagemen and
Cynicism in Indus y: A P elimina y
In es iga ion in a Cen al I alian
Enginee ing Company. Adminis a i e
Sciences,15(5), 166. h ps://doi.o g/
10.3390/admsci15050166
Copy igh : © 2025 by he au ho s.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Swi ze land.
This a icle is an open access a icle
dis ibu ed unde he e ms and
condi ions o he C ea i e Commons
A ibu ion (CC BY) license
(h ps://c ea i ecommons.o g/
licenses/by/4.0/).
A icle
Explo ing Wo k Engagemen and Cynicism in Indus y:
A P elimina y In es iga ion in a Cen al I alian
Enginee ing Company
Luca Di Giampaolo 1, Te esa Galan i 2,* , Michela Co ini 2, Simone De Sio 3, Claudia Giu gola 1,
Fede ica Ma ino 1, Pie gio gio As ol i 1, Rossella Ma elli 1, Da ia Zicca di 1, Paola Bo elli 4, Lau a Fo cella 1,
Ma ia Elisa Maiolo 1and Luca Coppe a 5
1Depa men o Inno a i e Technologies in Medicine and Den is y (DTIMO), “G. d’Annunzio” Uni e si y,
Chie i-Pesca a, 66100 Chie i, I aly
2Depa men o Psychology, “G. d’Annunzio” Uni e si y, Chie i-Pesca a, 66100 Chie i, I aly
3Depa men o Ana omical, His ological, Fo ensic Medicine and O hopedic Science,
“La Sapienza” Uni e si y o Rome, 00161 Rome, I aly
4Labo a o y o Bios a is ics, Depa men o Medical, O al and Bio echnological Sciences,
“G. d’Annunzio” Uni e si y, Chie i-Pesca a, 66100 Chie i, I aly
5Depa men o Biomedicine and P e en ion, “To Ve ga a” Uni e si y o Rome, 00161 Rome, I aly
*Co espondence: e [email p o ec ed]
Abs ac : Backg ound: Wo k engagemen is de ined as a posi i e and ul illing wo k-
ela ed s a e o mind, cha ac e ized by igo , dedica ion, and abso p ion. High le els o
engagemen a e associa ed wi h imp o ed o ganiza ional unc ioning and a s onge sense
o belonging among employees. Objec i e: This s udy, conduc ed in collabo a ion wi h a
la ge me alwo king company in cen al I aly, aimed o explo e he ela ionship be ween
wo k engagemen and o ganiza ional cynicism among Main enance Team Leade s. Speci i-
cally, he goals we e o assess he le els o engagemen and emo ional in ol emen and o
examine how hese dimensions a y acco ding o socio-demog aphic ac o s such as gende ,
age, educa ional backg ound, and senio i y. The ul ima e aim was o suppo occupa ional
physicians and wo kplace sa e y o ice s in iden i ying he bes p ac ices o p e en ing
psychosocial isks, wo k- ela ed s ess, and bu nou . Me hods: A o al o 99 Main enance
Leade s pa icipa ed in he s udy. The I alian e sion o he U ech Wo k Engagemen Scale
(UWES) was used o assess he h ee co e dimensions o engagemen : igo , dedica ion,
and abso p ion. Addi ionally, he Cynicism scale de elopmen by Naus, Van I e son, and
Roe was adminis e ed. Resul s: While he sample size limi s gene alizabili y, he indings
o e p elimina y insigh in o engagemen le els wi hin his popula ion. The esul s empha-
size he need o expand he sample and o conduc compa a i e analyses ac oss di e en
eams wi hin he company be e unde s and engagemen pa e ns and in o m a ge ed
in e en ions. Conclusions: Al hough wo k engagemen has been ex ensi ely s udied in
he heal hca e sec o , especially du ing he COVID-19 pandemic, limi ed esea ch has ad-
d essed i s ole in he indus ial con ex , and e en less wi hin he me alwo king sec o . This
s udy con ibu es o illing ha gap by p o iding an ini ial p o ile o engagemen among
main enance leade s and by highligh ing he in e play be ween engagemen , cynicism, and
indi idual cha ac e is ics in a high-demand indus ial en i onmen .
Keywo ds: wo k engagemen ; o ganiza ional cynicism; psychosocial isk; wo k- ela ed
s ess; occupa ional heal h; indus ial sec o
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 166 h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/admsci15050166
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 166 2 o 11
1. In oduc ion
Wo k engagemen is de ined as a posi i e, ul illing, wo k- ela ed s a e o mind cha ac e -
ized by igo , dedica ion and abso p ion (Pisan i e al.,2008). Vigo e e s o he ene gy, bo h in
he physical and men al sense, wi h which a wo ke is dedica ed o he pe o mance o hei
asks, esis ing and knowing how o eac o s ess ul o di icul si ua ions.
–
Dedica ion e e s o he endency o be highly in ol ed in one’s wo k, o expe ience i
as a challenge and associa e i wi h a meaning ul expe ience.
–
Abso p ion is cha ac e ized by ull concen a ion and imme sion in wo k ac i i ies.
I ep esen s, he e o e, a psychological condi ion ha leads o a s a e o comple e
well-being, such ha i p esen s di icul y in in e up ing i (Schau eli e al.,2002).
The cons uc encompasses emo ional (Lu hans & Pe e son,2002), cogni i e (Maslach
e al.,2001), and beha io al (Ha e e al.,2002) dimensions, e lec ing he pe sonal in es -
men o ene gy and iden i y in he job ole (C aw o d e al.,2010). Engaged employees
a e no only mo e p oduc i e bu also show g ea e job sa is ac ion, o ganiza ional com-
mi men , and psychological well-being. In he ace o g owing o ganiza ional complexi y,
global compe i ion, and apid echnological change, engagemen has eme ged as a key
d i e o bo h indi idual and o ganiza ional pe o mance. A he same ime, o ganiza ional
us has been iden i ied as a co e componen o os e ing engagemen , especially in a
high- isk, high-change en i onmen (Maiolo & Zu o,2018;Schau eli,2018).
Howe e , mode n wo kplaces a e also expe iencing a ise in nega i e psychosocial
phenomena such as o ganiza ional cynicism, a c i ical a i ude owa d he o ganiza ion cha -
ac e ized by dis us , us a ion, and emo ional de achmen (S occhi e al.,2010;Rousseau,
1989;Fan inelli e al.,2023). This a i ude can lead o educed pe o mance, absen eeism
(Reiche s,1985), and inc eased u no e in en ions (Meye & Allen,1997), ul ima ely ha m-
ing bo h employee well-being and co po a e pe o mance. No ably, wo k engagemen and
o ganiza ional cynicism a e conside ed opposing cons uc s, wi h engagemen ac ing as
a bu e agains he onse o cynicism and bu nou (Di Giampaolo e al.,2024;Schau eli
& Bakke ,2004;A slan & Roudaki,2019). While engaged wo ke s may s ill expe ience
a igue, hey end o pe cei e i as manageable and ied o a sense o pu pose (A slan,2018;
Schau eli e al.,2006).
Much o he exis ing esea ch on engagemen was ocused on heal hca e p o essionals,
especially du ing he COVID-19 pandemic (Del Ca men Giménez e al.,2020;Di Giampaolo
e al.,2021;Mangi es a e al.,2021;Galan i e al.,2024), whe e s udies ha e shown high le els
o engagemen despi e ex eme wo king condi ions. In hese con ex s, engagemen has been
linked o esilience, a s ong sense o p o essional iden i y, and pe cei ed social impac .
Howe e , less is known abou engagemen and cynicism in o he high-demand sec-
o s, such as mechanical enginee ing, a key pilla o he I alian economy. This sec o ,
encompassing indus ies om machine y p oduc ion o me allu gy, has aced inc easing
challenges such as supply chain ins abili y, ecological ansi ions, and wo k o ce ans o -
ma ions (Guide i e al.,2022). The men al and emo ional engagemen o wo ke s in his
con ex emains unde explo ed despi e i s po en ial impac on p oduc i i y, inno a ion,
and o ganiza ional clima e.
The mechanical enginee ing sec o is c ucial o he I alian economy, ep esen ing a
signi ican po ion o added alue and employmen . I includes a wide ange o ac i i ies,
om he p oduc ion o machine y and elec ical equipmen o me allu gy and he p o-
duc ion o anspo ehicles. The sec o has aced inc easing c ises and h ea s, such as
geopoli ical con lic s, high in e es a es, and supply chain issues. P oduc ion and expo s
ha e slowed down, wi h a dec ease in mechanical enginee ing p oduc ion in ecen yea s.
Ecological and echnological ansi ions a e a p io i y, wi h in es men s in s a egic sec o s
and he agg ega ion o small and medium-sized en e p ises in he supply chains. In his
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 166 3 o 11
con ex , he cons uc ion o engagemen becomes inc easingly c ucial: engaged employees
a e mo e p oduc i e and end o exceed expec a ions, imp o ing he quali y o p oduc s
and se ices. A high le el o engagemen educes u no e , dec easing he cos s associa ed
wi h eplacing and aining new hi es. A posi i e wo k en i onmen os e s collabo a ion
and inno a ion, essen ial o ackling he sec o ’s challenges. Mo eo e , engaged employ-
ees a e mo e likely o con ibu e ideas and inno a i e solu ions. Engagemen inc eases job
sa is ac ion and employee well-being, educing absen eeism and imp o ing he co po a e
clima e. On he o he hand, o ganiza ional cynicism is nega i ely co ela ed wi h wo k
pe o mance, leading o a educ ion in p oduc i i y and employee e ec i eness (Naus
e al.,2007). Cynical employees end o be less mo i a ed and less commi ed o hei
wo k. Cynicism can c ea e a oxic wo k en i onmen , cha ac e ized by a lack o us and
collabo a ion among colleagues. This nega i e clima e can slow down decision-making and
ope a ional p ocesses, nega i ely a ec ing he company’s o e all pe o mance. Cynicism
can inc ease employees’ in en ion o lea e he company, leading o high u no e and addi-
ional cos s o pe sonnel eplacemen . Main aining high engagemen le els and educing
cynicism is he e o e essen ial o imp o ing wo k pe o mance and he compe i i eness o
he mechanical enginee ing sec o in I aly.
The e o e, he p esen s udy aims o explo e he le els o wo k engagemen and o gani-
za ional cynicism among Main enance Team Leade s wo king in a la ge I alian mechanical
enginee ing company and o examine how hese cons uc s ela e o key sociodemog aphic
ac o s such as age, gende , educa ion le el, and enu e. By iden i ying he p o iles mos
a isk o disengagemen o cynicism, ou goal is o suppo occupa ional physicians and
wo kplace heal h and sa e y p o essionals in de eloping a ge ed in e en ions o p omo e
engagemen , p e en bu nou , and os e psychosocial well-being. This ocus is pa icula ly
ele an in en i onmen s whe e eamwo k, leade ship, and esou ce a ailabili y play a
c i ical ole in shaping he wo k expe ience (Schau eli,2021).
2. Ma e ials and Me hods
2.1. S udy Design and P ocedu e
This c oss-sec ional s udy in ol ed a sample o 99 Main enance Leade s employed on
h ee o a ing shi s a he enginee ing company loca ed in he Ab uzzo egion. Pa icipa ion
was olun a y, and da a we e collec ed anonymously o p o ec pa icipan s’ p i acy.
2.2. P ocedu e
The o al sample was di ided in o i e g oups ( ou g oups o 20 pa icipan s and one
o 19). Each pa icipan ecei ed a sealed en elope con aining he ques ionnai es a e a
b ie o al explana ion ega ding how o ill hem ou and eassu ances o con iden iali y.
Pa icipan s comple ed he su ey du ing wo king hou s, wi h app oxima ely 10 min
alloca ed o he ask. Two occupa ional physicians we e p esen du ing da a collec ion o
p o ide cla i ica ion and suppo i needed.
2.3. Ma e ials
1.
Pa icipan s comple ed h ee ques ionnai es a e signing an in o med consen o m:
Socio-anag aphic ques ionnai e, composed o 9 ques ions on he ollowing a iables:
gende , age, educa ional le el, ma i al s a us, child en (numbe and age), yea s o
employmen in he company, enu e in he cu en job, p e ious oles wi hin he
company, and o e all yea s o wo k expe ience.
2.
U ech Wo k Engagemen Scale (UWES—I alian e sion). This sel - epo ins u-
men measu es h ee componen s o wo k engagemen : igo (6 i ems; C onbach’s
Alpha = 0.78
), dedica ion (5 i ems; C onbach’s Alpha = 0.85), and abso p ion (6 i ems;
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 166 4 o 11
C onbach’s Alpha = 0.63), o a o al o 17 i ems (Pisan i e al.,2008). Each i em is a ed
on a 6-poin scale (1 = ne e , 6 = always). Subscale sco es a e calcula ed by a e aging
i em esponses. Highe sco e indica es highe le els o engagemen .
3.
O ganiza ional Cynicism Scale (Naus, Van I e son and Roe). Based on he Exi –Voice–
Loyal y–Neglec model, his scale includes 7 i ems (C onbach’s Alpha = 0.77), based
on he Exi –Voice–Loyal y–Neglec model, measu ing c i ical and nega i e eelings
owa d he o ganiza ion. Example i ems include he ollowing poin s: “you happen
o alk o you colleagues abou you bosses’ incompe ence” and “you happen o
wi hhold use ul sugges ions o imp o e hings, because you hink ha in no way will
hings change”. Responses a e a ed on a 6-poin Like scale (1 = s ongly disag ee,
6 = s ongly ag ee). The e en-numbe ed scale was chosen o a oid a neu al midpoin ,
his minimizing cen al endency bias.
2.4. Da a Analysis
Desc ip i e analysis was ca ied ou using mean and s anda d de ia ion,
±
s anda d
de ia ion, o median and in e qua ile ange (IQR) o quan i a i e a iables. In con as ,
equencies and pe cen ages we e used o desc ibe he quali a i e a iables. No mali y
dis ibu ion was es ed by he Shapi o–Wilk es . The associa ion be ween ca ego ical da a
was in es iga ed by Pea son
χ2
o Fishe ’s exac es and S uden ’s - es o pai ed da a
o con inuous da a. A s a is ical signi icance was se a he le el o α≤0.05. All analyses
we e pe o med using S a a so wa e 18 (S a aCo p., College S a ion, TX, USA).
3. Resul s
3.1. Sample Cha ac e is ics
The sample examined consis s o 99 pa icipan s (91 males and 8 emales), o whom
69.7% a e o e 41 yea s old, 81.9% ha e a high school diploma, 82.8% a e ma ied o
cohabi ing, and 75% ha e child en. In his sample, he a e age senio i y in e ms o yea s
spen in he company is 19
±
9.62 yea s, and in he speci ic ole o Main enance Leade is
12 ±8.7 yea s. O hese, 51.6 pe cen a e Blue Colla (Table 1).
Table 1. Socio-demog aphic cha ac e is ics o he sample.
To al N= 99
Gende , n(%)
Female 8 (8.1%)
Male 91 (91.9%)
Age, n(%)
18–30 2 (2.0%)
31–40 28 (28.3%)
41–50 47 (47.5%)
51–olde 22 (22.2%)
Quali ica ion, n(%)
Uni e si y Deg ee 14 (14.9%)
Mas e ’s Deg ee 1 (1.1%)
High School Diploma 77 (81.9%)
Middle School Diploma 2 (2.1%)
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 166 5 o 11
Table 1. Con .
To al N= 99
Ma i al S a us, n(%)
Ma ied o cohabi an 82 (82.8%)
Sepa a ed 8 (8.1%)
Single 9 (9.1%)
Child en, n(%)
No 25 (25.3%)
Yes (≤3 yea s old) 9 (9.1%)
Yes (6–11 yea s old) 25 (25.3%)
Yes (12–17 yea s old) 19 (19.2%)
Yes (≥18 yea s old) 21 (21.2%)
How long ha e you been wo king in his company? (mon hs) 228.5 ±115.5
How long ha e you been holding you ole in his
company? (mon hs) 144.2 ±104.5
Ha e you p e iously held o he oles in his company?
I so, which one/ones? n(%)
Blue colla 51 (51.6%)
Whi e colla 35 (35.3%)
O he 13 (13.1%)
How long ha e you been wo king, in gene al? (mon hs) 281.9 ±113.2
The da a a e exp essed wi h n(%) and mean ±s anda d de ia ion.
3.2. Resul s o he Su ey
Based on he no ma i e alues o he UWES e e ence scale (Table 2), he mean alues
epo ed by he sample o Main enance Leade s in he h ee dimensions o engagemen a e
medium o high.
Table 2. No ma i e alues UWES.
Vigo Dedica ion Abso p ion UWES Sco e
Ve y Low 2.17 1.60 1.60 1.93
Low 2.18–3.20 1.61–3.00 1.61–2.75 1.94–3.06
A e age 3.21–4.80 3.01–4.90 2.76–4.40 3.07–4.66
High 4.81–5.60 4.91–5.79 4.41–5.35 4.67–5.53
Ve y High 5.61 5.80 5.36 5.64
The analysis o s anda d de ia ions, ela ed o he h ee examined cha ac e is ics, did
no e eal any signi ican di e gence. Speci ically, “ igo ” and “dedica ion” showed an
iden ical s anda d de ia ion (
±
1.00), while “abso p ion” showed a less uni o m esponse
om he su eyed popula ion (±1.23) (Table 3).
Acco ding o he Dedica ion Scale i em “I am en husias ic abou my wo k”, only in he
41–50 age g oup a e 17% o wo ke s no en husias ic, while in all o he age g oups, 100%
epo being en husias ic (p= 0.020) (Table 4).
Acco ding o he Engagemen Scale i em “I is di icul o de ach mysel om my job”,
86.7% o college g adua es ind i di icul o de ach hemsel es om hei jobs, while i is
di icul o only 59.5% o high school g adua es (p= 0.045) (Table 5).
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 166 6 o 11
Table 3. Mean and S anda d De ia ion (±SD) in UWES subscales.
UWES Subscales Mean ±SD
Vigo 4.93 ±1.00
Dedica ion 5.09 ±1.00
In ol emen 4.81 ±1.23
Table 4. Dedica ion scale: compa ison by age g oup.
Dedica ion Scale
Age G oup p-
Value
18–30
(n= 2)
31–40
(n= 28)
41–50
(n= 47)
51–Olde
(n= 22)
I am en husias ic
abou my wo k, n(%)
Ne e —Some imes 0 (0.0%) 0 (0.0%) 8 (17.0%) 0 (0.0%) 0.020
O en—Always 2 (100.0%) 28 (100.0%) 39 (83.0%) 22 (100.0%)
The da a a e exp essed wi h n(%).
Table 5. Abso p ion scale: compa ison by quali ica ion.
Abso p ion Scale
Quali ica ion
p-Value
Uni e si y Deg ee/
Mas e ’s Deg ee
(n= 15)
Middle School Diploma/
High School Diploma
(n= 79)
I is di icul o
de ach mysel om
my job, n(%)
Ne e —Some imes 2 (13.3%) 32 (40.5%) 0.045
O en—Always 13 (86.7%) 47 (59.5%)
The da a a e exp essed wi h n(%).
Acco ding o he Dedica ion Scale i em “Fo me, my job is challenging”, 100% o
wo ke s wi h child en ind hei jobs challenging, while he pe cen age is sligh ly lowe o
hose wi hou child en (89.2%) (p= 0.086) (Table 6).
Table 6. Dedica ion scale, compa ison by child en (yes/no).
Dedica ion Scale
Child en
p-Value
Yes
(n= 74)
No
(n= 25)
Fo me, my job is challenging, n(%)
Ne e —Some imes 8 (10.8%) 0 (0.0%) 0.086
O en—Always 66 (89.2%) 25 (100.0%)
The da a a e exp essed wi h n(%).
Acco ding o he Vigo Scale i em “I am always pe se e ing in my wo k e en when
hings a e no going well”, hose who ha e been in hei oles he longes a e mo e pe se-
e ing (p= 0.048) (Table 7).
Acco ding o he Engagemen Scale i em “When I wo k, I o ge abou e e y hing
else”, hose who ha e been wo king o less ime, bo h in e ms o o al yea s and wi hin he
company, a e able o ocus mo e and o ge abou e e y hing else while wo king (Table 8).
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 166 7 o 11
Table 7. Vigo Scale, compa ison by senio i y o ole.
Vigo Scale
I em: I Am Always Pe se e ing in My Wo k,
E en When Things A e No Going Well p-Value
Ne e —Some imes
(n= 5)
O en—Always
(n= 94)
How long ha e you
been wo king in his
company? (mon hs)
190.4 ±161.3 230.5 ±113.4 0.452
How long ha e you been
holding his ole in his
company? (mon hs)
54.6 ±67.0 149.0 ±104.2 0.048
How long ha e you
been wo king, in
gene al? (mon hs)
230.4 ±140.6 284.7 ±111.8 0.298
The da a a e exp essed wi h mean ±s anda d de ia ion.
Table 8. Abso p ion Scale, compa ison by wo king senio i y.
Abso p ion Scale I em: When I Wo k, I Fo ge Abou
E e y hing Else p-Value
Ne e —Some imes
(n= 21)
O en—Always
(n= 78)
How long ha e you
been wo king in his
company? (mon hs)
290.3 ±92.7 211.8 ±115.9 0.005
How long ha e you been
holding his ole in his
company? (mon hs)
167.1 ±97.7 137.9 ±106.0 0.257
How long ha e you
been wo king, in
gene al? (mon hs)
328.0 ±104.0 269.5 ±113.0 0.035
The da a a e exp essed wi h mean ±s anda d de ia ion.
The e alua ion o he Cynicism Scale, on he o he hand, showed ha
–
Wo ke s wi h child en exp ess a highe le el o cynicism, compa ed o he popula ion
wi hou child en (p= 0.066) (Table 9);
–
As age inc eases, i is possible o see an inc ease in cynicism and he eeling o no
being aken se iously by he company;
–
Almos all wo ke s sha e use ul sugges ions o he company, hinking ha hey will
be aken in o conside a ion.
Table 9. Cynicism Scale, compa ison by child en (yes/no).
Cynicism Scale
Child en
p-Value
Yes
(n= 74)
No
(n= 25)
Amoun o con idence you exp ess in
he since i y o you company, n(%)
Low 8 (10.8%) 0 (0.0%) 0.066
Medium 33 (44.6%) 8 (32.0%)
High 33 (44.6%) 17 (68.0%)
Da a a e exp essed wi h n(%).
Adm. Sci. 2025,15, 166 8 o 11
4. Discussion
Wo k Engagemen has eme ged as a c ucial ac o in o ganiza ional success, di ec ly
in luencing bo h employees’ well-being and ope a ional pe o mance. Low le els o wo k
engagemen , pa icula ly in haza dous wo k en i onmen s, may lead o a decline in en hu-
siasm and concen a ion, inc easing he isk o sa e y iola ions and unde mining complex
ask managemen (Mo i e al.,2024;An onucci e al.,2010). Wo ke s wi h lowe engagemen
may also lack he ene gy equi ed o adap o changing condi ions, u he educing hei
abili y o suppo colleagues and con ibu e o company goals (Zhang e al.,2021). Acco d-
ing o he da a om his s udy, educa ional le el and wo k senio i y appea o in luence
engagemen le els. College g adua es, o example, show a highe endency (86.7%) o ind
i di icul o de ach om hei wo k compa ed o high school g adua e (59.5%) (p= 0.045).
Addi ionally, he da a sugges ha younge wo ke s, pa icula ly hose wi h less ime spen
in he company, a e mo e capable o concen a ing and losing hemsel es in hei wo k. In
con as , wo ke s wi h g ea e senio i y demons a e highe pe se e ance (p= 0.048), likely
due o hei ex ensi e expe ience in handling wo kplace challenges.
Cynicism was also iden i ied as a key ac o in his analysis, wi h wo ke s who
ha e child en displaying highe le els o cynicism (p= 0.066). Age was also co ela ed
wi h cynicism, sugges ing ha olde employees may eel less alued by he company.
This aligns wi h he li e a u e ha shows a nega i e ela ionship be ween o ganiza ional
cynicism and wo k pe o mance, media ed by employee engagemen and wo k aliena ion
(A slan,2018;Saeed,2018;Filiz e al.,2024). Mo eo e , esea ch in he heal hca e sec o
has indica ed ha o ganiza ional cynicism can exace ba e bu nou and educe o e all job
pe o mance (Mohammad e al.,2022;Salama e al.,2025;D’Al e io e al.,2019). Despi e
hese conce ns, nea ly all pa icipan s exp essed he belie ha hei sugges ions would be
aken se iously by managemen , indica ing a ounda ion o us ha can be buil upon o
enhance engagemen u he .
Recen s udies ha e emphasized he mul i ace ed impac o o ganiza ional cynicism,
e ealing i s cogni i e, a ec i e, and beha io al dimensions as well as hei signi ican
de imen al e ec s on pe o mance (A slan,2018;Mohammad e al.,2022). Fo ins ance,
wo k–li e balance p ac ices ha e been shown o educe o ganiza ional cynicism by enhanc-
ing pe son–job i , wi h posi i e ou comes o bo h engagemen and p oduc i i y (Kaka
e al.,2022). Addi ionally, emo ional in elligence and g a i ude can se e as p o ec i e
ac o s, especially in he ace o wo kplace os acism o pe cei ed o e quali ica ion, bo h o
which a e known o os e cynicism, pa icula ly among new hi es (Liu e al.,2024;Sahoo
e al.,2023). Gi en he a ia ion in engagemen le els ac oss di e en demog aphic g oups,
i is clea ha a “on-size- i s-all” app oach is inadequa e. The company would bene i om
ailo ing i s s a egies o di e en segmen s o he wo k o ce. Fo example, he younge ,
mo e engaged wo ke s could se e as ambassado s o posi i e wo k cul u e, in luencing
olde colleagues who may be mo e disengaged. Likewise, enhancing he wo k–li e balance,
os e ing a pa icipa o y managemen s yle, and imp o ing communica ion be ween em-
ployees and leade ship could mi iga e some o he cynicism and disconnec ion obse ed,
pa icula ly in he 41–50 age g oup. Fu he mo e, he s udy highligh s he need o o e
a ge ed aining and de elopmen oppo uni ies, especially o less educa ed wo ke s who
end o epo lowe engagemen . Redesigning job oles o align wi h pe sonal in e es s and
p o iding angible incen i es o he olde wo k o ce, such as lexibili y and sus ainable
wo k models o he younge gene a ions, could enhance us and engagemen (Huang
e al.,2016;Cab e a e al.,2003;Fo cella e al.,2010).
The e o e, om his de ailed analysis, he e is a need o pu measu es in place o
inc ease wo ke s’ sense o belonging and us in he company by implemen ing wo ke s’
passi e and ac i e in ol emen in wo k, imp o ing in en ional communica ion and ain-
