ORIENTATION: Boredom at work has been shown to be a concern for individuals and organisations. At the time of this research, no validated scale was available to measure and investigate workplace boredom within the South African context. RESEARCH PURPOSE: To determine the psychometric properties of the Dutch Boredom Scale (DUBS) within the South African context. MOTIVATION FOR THE STUDY: No reliable and valid scale for workplace boredom was available in South Africa at the time of the current research. Boredom at work has been found to affect organisations negatively in other countries. Insights are needed into workplace boredom and how it affects the outcomes of organisations in South Africa. RESEARCH DESIGN, APPROACH AND METHOD: A cross-sectional research approach was utilised. A random convenience sample (N = 490) was obtained from organisations within the manufacturing and logistics sector. In order to validate the DUBS, the factor structure, construct validity (convergent and discriminant validity) and scale reliability were investigated. A mediation model was also tested with structural equation modelling to ascertain predictive validity. MAIN FINDINGS: The results showed that the one-factor structure of the DUBS could be confirmed and that this factor had acceptable reliability. In terms of convergent validity, all of the item indicators loaded significantly on the workplace boredom construct, and the relationship between workplace boredom and work underload revealed that they were positively correlated with medium effect size. Furthermore, work engagement and organisational commitment were correlated negatively in terms of practical significance with workplace boredom. A structural mediation model showed that work underload was significantly and positively associated with boredom, which in turn had significant negative relations to both work engagement and organisational commitment. No significant direct relations were found from work underload to either work engagement or organisational commitment. Instead, bootstrapping showed that there was an indirect-only relationship from work underload to work engagement and organisational commitment through workplace boredom - indicating full mediation. PRACTICAL/MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS: Management should not neglect workplace boredom, as results indicate that it may adversely impact work engagement and organisational commitment. Therefore, workplace boredom should be a concern not only for individuals, but also for the organisation at large. CONTRIBUTION/VALUE-ADD: This study contributes to the limited research available on workplace boredom in South Africa by providing evidence of acceptable psychometric properties for a workplace boredom scale.

<p>Engajamento no trabalho é um estado mental e disposicional positivo caracterizado por Vigor, Dedicação e Concentração. O objetivo desse estudo foi adaptar e obter evidências de validade da versão brasileira da <italic>Utrecht Work Engagement Scale</italic> (UWES). Participaram da pesquisa 1167 trabalhadores, entre 18 e 70 anos (<italic>M</italic>= 36,8, DP = 10,3) nas 5 regiões do Brasil. Foram realizados estudos para estabelecer validade de conteúdo e validade de construto com os 17 itens da escala e os 9 itens da versão reduzida. Análises fatoriais exploratória e confirmatória demonstraram que a melhor solução seria unifatorial. A consistência interna foi elevada. Foram encontradas diferenças de engajamento em relação à idade. Os resultados indicam que a versão brasileira da UWES é válida e reforçam a ideia de que o engajamento no trabalho é um construto universal. Porém, algumas diferenças culturais foram detectadas e são discutidas no presente trabalho.</p>

<p>Engagement at work is a positive mental and dispositional state characterized by Vigor, Dedication and Concentration. The aim of this study was to adapt and get evidence of validity for the Brazilian version of the utrecht work engagement scale (UWES). Participated in the study 1167 workers between 18 and 70 years (M = 36.8, SD = 10.3) in the Brazilian regions. Studies to establish content and construct validity with the 17- item and the 9- item scales were performed. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyzes showed that the best solution is unifactorial. Internal consistency was high. Age differences in engagement were found. The results also indicate that the present version of UWES is valid for use in Brazil and reinforce the idea that engagement at work is a universal construct. Although most of the results agree with the findings reported in the literature, some cultural differences appeared and they are discussed in this paper.</p>

<p>Compromiso en el trabajo es un estado mental y de disposición positiva que se caracteriza por Vigor, Dedicación y Concentración. El objetivo de este estudio fue adaptar y obtener evidencias de validez de la versión brasileña del utrecht work engagement scale (UWES). Participaron del estudio 1167 trabajadores entre 18 y 70 años (<italic>M</italic> = 36.8, <italic>DP</italic> = 10.3) en las 5 regiones de Brasil. Fueron realizados estudios para establecer la validez de contenido y la validez del constructo con los 17 ítems de la escala y los 9 ítems de la versión reducida. Análisis factoriales exploratorio y confirmatorio demostraron que la mejor solución sería unifactorial. La consistencia interna fue alta. Fueron encontradas diferencias de compromiso con relación a la edad. Los resultados indican que la versión brasileña del UWES es válida y corroboran la idea de que el compromiso en el trabajo es un constructo universal. Sin embargo, se encontraron algunas diferencias culturales que son analizadas en este documento.</p>