Understanding Functional and Dysfunctional Types of Workaholic: an Investigation Based on Motivational Characteristics

The article has a two goals: first, investigation of the types of workaholic that exist, and second, examination of why they work too much, taking into consideration their motivational characteristics. We examined the differences in motivation between two types of workaholic identified among a sample of 137 Polish managers. Workaholism was evaluated using questionnaires that assessed behavioural, cognitive, and affective dimensions of workaholism. The criteria for the distinction between functional and dysfunctional types of workaholic were based on a subjective assessment of quality of life. On the basis of the Self Determination Theory of Deci and Ryan, and other conceptualizations that cover motivational variables, such as goals, values, and value crisis, we expected to discern differences between types of workaholics. We used ANOVA to compare the two types of workaholic. Contrary to expectations, the type of motivation (autonomous vs. controlled) did not differ between the two types of workaholic. However, functional and dysfunctional workaholics differed in their values (hierarchy of values and value crisis), and were driven by different goals. The present study emphasises the importance of differentiating between functional and dysfunctional workaholics. The present study has three main limitations. First, only self-report methods were applied. Ideally, information should be collected from other sources to supplement and verify the data from primary respondents. Second, the use of a cross-sectional approach made it difficult to take the developmental perspective that is encouraged strongly in the investigation of processes. Third, the ability to generalise the conclusions to different occupational groups is limited.