An integrated model of employee performance: Linking belongingness, spirituality, and satisfaction via organizational commitment

Abstract

Abstract

Employee performance is increasingly recognized as being influenced not only by structural conditions but also by employees' psychological and relational experiences in the workplace. However, few studies have concurrently examined the comparative and mediated effects of sense of belonging, workplace spirituality, and job satisfaction within a unified framework. This study explores how these factors impact performance both directly and indirectly through organizational commitment, employing a quantitative explanatory design with survey data from 213 employees selected via proportionate stratified random sampling and analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with validated and reliable measures. The results indicate that sense of belonging (β = 0.201, p = 0.043), workplace spirituality (β = 0.214, p = 0.007), job satisfaction (β = 0.357, p = 0.041), and organizational commitment (β = 0.276, p = 0.024) significantly predict performance. Additionally, sense of belonging (β = 0.297, p = 0.002), workplace spirituality (β = 0.211, p = 0.009), and job satisfaction (β = 0.725, p < 0.001) significantly predict organizational commitment, which mediates these relationships. Total effects reveal job satisfaction as the strongest predictor of performance (β = 0.312), followed by sense of belonging (β = 0.305) and workplace spirituality (β = 0.299). These findings demonstrate that employee performance is closely associated with affective and experiential workplace factors and highlight organizational commitment as a central explanatory mechanism. These findings underscore the importance of enhancing psychological attachment, meaningful work experiences, and satisfaction to support sustained performance, while providing an integrated empirical framework for future research.