| The problem addressed within this quantitative correlational study was employees in the manufacturing sector of the United States lack integration between their personal values and where they spend a majority of their waking hours; at work. Despite the fact that over 90% of people surveyed by Edison Media Research (2002) in the United States noted belief in god or a higher power and 87% considered religion an important part of their lives (Carballo, n.d.), spirituality is not endorsed and religiosity is avoided by organizations across the country. The Society for Human Resource Management & Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding (2001) reported a 20% increase in demand for religious accommodation by employees. Some authors claimed that there was a positive and causal relationship between spirituality and productivity (e.g., Braham, 1999; Enander, 2000; Thompson, 2000), but the validity of those claims were questionable since they were either theoretical or lacked supporting data. Results from the current study were analyzed in terms of associations between productivity and both spirituality and religiosity. Analysis of the data revealed a significant and positive correlation between productivity and both spirituality and religiosity. However, religious affiliation was revealed to be independent of productivity. In the past, research that directly linked productivity to the concepts of spirituality and religiosity was lacking. The current research provides the necessary link between productivity and spirituality that can allow the field of study to advance beyond the voluminous theoretical research to more quantitative, practical research. |
