Leveraging Spirituality and Religion in European For-profit-organizations: a Systematic Review

Lydia Maidl (), Ann-Kathrin Seemann, Eckhard Frick, Harald Gündel and Piret Paal
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Lydia Maidl: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität
Ann-Kathrin Seemann: Lucerne University of Applied Sciences of Arts
Eckhard Frick: University Hospital rechts der Isar, Technical University of Munich
Harald Gündel: University Hospital Ulm
Piret Paal: Paracelsus Medical University Salzburg

Humanistic Management Journal, 2022, vol. 7, issue 1, No 2, 23-53

Abstract: Abstract This systematic review synthesises the available evidence regarding the European understanding of workplace spirituality (definitions), the importance of spirituality and religion (evidence) as well as spiritual leadership (meaning and practice) in for-profitorganizations. The search for eligible studies was conducted in OPAC Plus, SCOPUS, Science Direct, JSTOR, EBSCO, and Google Scholar from 2007/01 to 2017/07. Three independent scholars extracted the data. Twenty studies were included (two mixed-methods, eight quantitative, ten qualitative) for the final quality assessment. A study quality assessment and thematic analysis was conducted. This review gives suggestions for study quality improvement and reporting. Thematically, two different approaches to religion and spirituality (R/S) were detected: a) work has a spiritual dimension and b) religious and spiritual orientation as “spiritual capital”. Studies demonstrated positive effect on job satisfaction, health, commitment, company productivity and sustainability; Christian leadership does not address personal religious orientation; the spiritual dimension may lead to a change of perspective; workplace spirituality may exploit people for profit-oriented business goals; non-white Muslims experience discrimination. This systematic review provides robust evidence and findings for evidence-informed policymaking and encourages a more rigorous research in this field of study.

Keywords: Spiritual leadership; Workplace spirituality; Quality of work life; Sustainability; Human resource management; European for-profit organizations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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DOI: 10.1007/s41463-021-00110-4

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