Sense of Community at Work and Alignment with Organisational Values as Predictors of Adaptive Capacity Under Work Stress: Evidence from Nigerian Manufacturing Firms (Published)
This study investigates the influence of sense of community at work and alignment with organisational values on adaptive capacity under work stress among employees of: manufacturing firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. Grounded in Conservation of Resources Theory and anchored in a correlational survey research design, the study draws on empirical data from 386 respondents across five major manufacturing organizations selected through stratified random sampling. Primary data were collected via structured questionnaires adapted from validated instruments and analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression analysis. Results revealed that sense of community at work exerts a significant positive influence on adaptive capacity under work stress (β = 0.412, p < 0.01), and that alignment with organizational values independently and significantly predicts adaptive capacity under work stress (β = 0.387, p < 0.01). Together, the two workplace spirituality dimensions explain 54.3% of variance in adaptive capacity (R² = 0.543, F = 89.74, p < 0.001). These findings confirm that relational and value-based spiritual workplace dimensions constitute critical organizational resources that equip employees with the psychological reserves necessary for sustained functioning amid operational stressors endemic to Nigeria’s manufacturing environment. The study contributes to the growing literature on workplace spirituality in Sub-Saharan Africa and recommends that manufacturing organizations deliberately institutionalize community-building practices and value-congruence programs as strategic resilience investments.
Keywords: Nigerian manufacturing firms, Sense of community at work, Work Stress, adaptive capacity, alignment with organizational values, employee resilience, workplace spirituality