Abstract:
This study adopted a humanist perspective, which is so far less favored in studies on meaningful work, in contrast to the managerial perspective. Herewith the question about the responsibility for meaningful work was examined, which is hitherto rather eluded. Thus, this study deals with the following research question: “Who is perceived as responsible for meaningful work from the perspective of the individual and what does this perceived responsibility constitute?” Data was collected among 14 participants with the use of semi-structured interviews and analyzed by the means of a qualitative content analysis. The results show that participants perceive responsibility among various parties such as the organization, themselves, and superior institutions which thus represent perceived areas of responsibility. The way responsibility is ascribed primarily refers to the perception of influence potentials that are then factored into perceived responsibilities of either of the parties. Additionally commonalities are recognized between how participants perceive meaningful work and how they perceive the responsibility for it, which is characterized by an entanglement of objective and subjective dimension of meaningful work in both perceptions. This suggests an inclusive understanding of the responsibility for meaningful work, which is a different consideration given the assumptions and arguments made so far.
