The Buffering Effects of Critical Life Event, Organizational Climate and Social Support on Subjective Well-being of Bank Workers in Southwest Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigates the buffering effects of critical life event, organizational climate and social support on Subjective Well-Being (SWB) of Bank workers. Five hundred and forty bank workers participants (mean age 35.4) selected from 108 banks through stratified and simple random sampling techniques from the 18 senatorial districts in the six states (Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Lagos) of Southwest Nigeria. Four instruments, subjective happiness scale, impact of event scale, organizational climate descriptive questionnaire and Duke-UNC functional social support questionnaire, were utilized for data generation. The data collected were analyzed using multiple regressions (stepwise) and t-test statistics. Findings showed that the three predictor variables (critical life event, organizational climate and social support) combined and individually, predicted the criterion variable (SWB). Finding also indicated that critical life event was the most potent contributor to the prediction of SWB of bank workers. The implications of these findings for the government, policy makers and employers of labour, who may be interested in effective functioning and general well-being of workers, were discussed.

Keywords: critical life event, organizational climate, social support, subjective well-being, bank workers.