The Effects of Workplace Friendship on Innovative Work Behavior in a Telecommunication Company in Bangkok: The Role of Psychological Safety and Thriving at Work as Mediators
Keywords:
Workplace friendship, Psychological safety, Thriving at work, Innovative work behaviorAbstract
The aims of this research were as follows: (1) to analyze the level of workplace friendship, psychological safety, thriving at work, and innovative work behaviors among staff at a telecommunication service provider in Bangkok; (2) to analyze the effect of workplace friendships on innovative work behavior, the role of psychological safety and thriving at work as a mediator. The samples were full-time employees who had been working for more than two years. The data were collected by simple random sampling from 240 staff members. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Path analysis. The research results could be summarized as follows: (1) the staff had workplace friendships, psychological safety, thriving at work, and innovative work behavior at a high level; (2) this model could together explain the variance of the innovative work behavior at 66.2%; and (3) the model analysis had an overall effect on innovative work behavior and statistically significant (β = .64, p < .05). Workplace friendships had a direct effect on innovative work behavior and statistically significant (β = .18, p < .05). In addition, workplace friendships affected innovative work behaviors with the role of psychological safety and thriving at work as a mediator was statistically significant (β = .46, p < .05). This research can be applied in policy formulation, planning, and staff development of organizations to have more innovative work behaviors. Increasing the level of workplace friendship among personnel within the organization creates psychological safety and thriving at work.
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