PSYCHOLOGICAL EMPOWERMENT AND EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE AMONG PRIVATE SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN BAYELSA STATE

Abstract

This research study probed the empirical link between psychological empowerment and employee performance. The aim was to ascertain the link between psychological empowerment and employee performance. The cross-sectional survey design was adopted for the study, and relevant data were gathered through a structured questionnaire. The respondents to the questionnaire comprised 269 private secondary school teachers drawn from 105 private secondary schools in Bayelsa State. Data collected were evaluated using descriptive and inferential statistical tools with the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) Version 23. The study found that all four dimensions of psychological empowerment are significantly related to employee  performance measured with employee innovativeness and Responsiveness. And as a predictor of performance, the impact dimension is the most essential followed by competence, meaningfulness and autonomy. Given these findings, it was concluded that psychological empowerment (meaningfulness, autonomy, competence and impact) is significantly related with employee performance (innovativeness and responsiveness). Based
on the outcomes and conclusions made, it was recommended among others that schools and school administrators should enable teachers to have a feel of all four components of psychological empowerment as a deficiency of feelings or experience of any of the four components will deflate overall felt empowerment and thus reduce performance. Also that schools should maintain and improve the impact perceptions of their employees (teachers) as this will continually improve the overall performance of the teachers since impact is the most important predictor of psychological empowerment.