ISSN 1671-3710
CN 11-4766/R
主办:中国科学院心理研究所
出版:科学出版社

Advances in Psychological Science ›› 2025, Vol. 33 ›› Issue (4): 647-672.doi: 10.3724/SP.J.1042.2025.0647

• Meta-Analysis • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Effects of empolyee mindfulness on job performance and the mediating mechanisms: A meta-analysis

ZHANG Jing1,2, MENG Yu1, ZHANG Meng1(), CHEN Huiya1   

  1. 1School of Business Administration, Hebei University of Economics and Business, Shijiazhuang 050061, China
    2Research Center for Organizational Behavior and Human Resources Development, Hebei University of Economics and Business, Shijiazhuang 050061, China
  • Received:2024-09-05 Online:2025-04-15 Published:2025-03-05
  • Contact: ZHANG Meng E-mail:mengzhang_001@163.com

Abstract:

The rapid advancement of digital technology has heightened the complexity and competitiveness of the social environment, profoundly affecting employees' work patterns. While effectively helping enterprise employees improve work efficiency, it also brings more psychological anxiety, lack of concentration and other problems to employees, further reducing work performance. In this context, employee mindfulness—characterized by attention, awareness, and non-judgmental acceptance —has garnered significant attention. Numerous studies have examined the relationship between employee mindfulness and job performance. However, there remain notable inconsistencies and divergences in the research findings that merit further exploration. This meta-analysis examined the relationship between employee mindfulness and job performance based on self-regulation theory, and investigated the mediating mechanisms and moderating factors that influence this relationship.

This paper meta-analyzed both Chinese and English primary studies on the topic of employee mindfulness and job performance. Based on the reference to existing research to clarify the search keywords for job performance, work engagement, and job burnout, mindfulness was combined with the keywords for job performance, work engagement, and job burnout respectively, and searches were conducted in domestic and international databases to search and screen relevant studies. Finally, 220 independent samples from 188 empirical studies (with a total sample N = 73899) were included. Based on these studies, we conducted heterogeneity and publication bias analysis, main effects analysis, meta-analytic structural equation modeling (MASEM) and moderating effect analysis. Specifically, this study first employed a comprehensive approach by using funnel plots, fail-safe numbers, Egger's regression coefficients, and Begg's intercept to assess publication bias. Secondly, Hunter and Schmidt’s method were used to analyze the main effect between employee mindfulness and job performance. Thirdly, the meta-analytic structural equation modeling was used to test the mediating effect of work engagement and job burnout. Finally, the moderating effect of cultural differences (individualism-collectivism) on the relationship between employee mindfulness, work engagement, and job burnout were tested through Hunter and Schmidt’s subgroup analysis method.

The results of heterogeneity analysis show a high level of heterogeneity among the variables and the publication bias test revealed that there was no substantial publication bias in the studies. The main effects analysis revealed that employee mindfulness is positively associated with job performance, task performance, contextual performance, and work engagement, while it is negatively associated with job burnout. The result of MASEM showed that: Work engagement and job burnout play a significant mediating role in the relationship between employee mindfulness and both task performance and contextual performance. Furthermore, the mediating effect of work engagement is more pronounced between mindfulness and task performance compared to its role in the relationship between mindfulness and contextual performance. The results of subgroup analysis show that: The relationship between employee mindfulness and work engagement is moderated by individualism-collectivism culture. In the context of collectivism, the relationship between employee mindfulness and work engagement is stronger.

The research findings based on meta-analysis offer comprehensive and reliable conclusions that clarify the relationship between employee mindfulness and job performance, addressing the discrepancies in existing research regarding the outcomes of employee mindfulness and work performance. These insights not only have certain reference significance for future theoretical explorations in the field of employee mindfulness and job performance, but also provide valuable references for cultivating a mindful workforce in the process of organizational practice, thereby improving employees' work status and performance levels. This ensures that enterprises can maintain long-term, stable development in the current increasingly complex and rapidly changing environment. Moreover, this study also explored whether individualism-collectivism plays a moderating role in the relationship between employee mindfulness and work engagement, as well as between employee mindfulness and job burnout. It not only provides a reference for a deeper understanding of the boundary conditions under which employee mindfulness affects individual work engagement and job burnout, but also offers a reasonable explanation for the differences in the effects of mindfulness across various cultural contexts.

Key words: employee mindfulness, work engagement, job burnout, task performance, contextual performance

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