Work addiction has increasingly been recognized as a potential risk in contemporary work environments, yet its motivational antecedents remain insufficiently understood. For many people, work is an important source of meaning and purpose, a dimension closely tied to the spiritual aspects of working life and to the experience of work as a calling. Meaning in work is typically associated with positive work outcomes; however, when work becomes central to an individual’s identity and a primary source of existential significance, it may also contribute to compulsive work investment.
The present study examines the relationship between meaning in work and work addiction and investigates whether this association depends on the level of work engagement. Specifically, we hypothesize that work engagement moderates this relationship, such that meaning in work is positively related to work addiction among individuals with low levels of work engagement, but not among those with high levels of work engagement.
The study draws on a large cross-cultural dataset including over 30,000 participants from 91 cultures. Participants completed validated self-report measures assessing meaning in work, work engagement, and work addiction. The results revealed a significant interaction between meaning in work and work engagement. Meaning in work was positively associated with work addiction at low levels of work engagement, whereas this association was non-significant at high levels of work engagement.
These findings suggest that work engagement may function as a protective factor, differentiating healthy, meaningful involvement in work from compulsive work patterns. At the same time, they point to the ambivalent role of meaning in work and its potential spiritual underpinnings: while meaning can make work fulfilling, without genuine engagement it may also increase vulnerability to work addiction.