The Mediating Role of Playful Work Design in the Relationship between Quality of Work Life and Job Creativity among Employees of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in the Northern Borders Region
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37375/esj.v9i2.4395Abstract
This paper analyses the mediating role of Playful Work Design (PWD) in the relationship between Quality of Work Life (QWL) and Job Creativity (JC) among employees of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the Northern Borders Region of Saudi Arabia. A quantitative cross-sectional design was employed using a structured questionnaire consisting of 33 items, which was distributed via census sampling to 189 employees, yielding 148 valid responses (response rate = 78%). Data was analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) through SmartPLS 4. The findings indicated that QWL exerted a strong positive effect on PWD (β = 0.517, p < 0.001), and that PWD also exerted a strong positive effect on JC (β = 0.343, p < 0.001), whereas the direct effect of QWL on JC was weak (β = 0.187). Mediation analysis confirmed that PWD partially mediates the relationship between QWL and JC (indirect β = 0.345), accounting for 41.5% of the variance in job creativity. The results highlight the strategic importance of integrating playful design practices with quality-of-work-life initiatives to foster creativity in non-profit organizations, particularly within emerging institutional contexts aligned with Saudi Vision 2030.
References
أولاً: المراجع العربية
• أبو حشيش، علي السيد جمعة. (2021). نموذج مقترح لأثر التوافق بين الفرد وبيئة العمل على العلاقة بين الذكاء الثقافي والأداء الابتكاري للمنظمة (دراسة ميدانية) [رسالة دكتوراه غير منشورة، جامعة بورسعيد].
• البنا، مصطفى عبد الخالق مصطفى. (2024). تأثير جودة الحياة الوظيفية على الاستبقاء الوظيفي: دراسة مقارنة على قطاع الصناعات الدوائية المصرية. مجلة البحوث التجارية، 43(1)، 810–833.
• الشهري، مريم محمد فضل. (2021). جودة الحياة الوظيفية وعلاقتها بالإبداع الإداري لدى الموظفات الإداريات في جامعة الأمير سلطان بالرياض. مستقبل التربية العربية، 28(133)، 11-34.
• الفتلاوي، ميثاق هاتف عبد السادة، صالح، محمد علي محمد. (2020). تأثير جودة حياة العمل على الإبداع الوظيفي: بحث استطلاعي لآراء عينة من التدريسين في كلية الاقتصاد جامعة كربلاء. مجلة الاقتصاد والإدارة، 9(35)، 28-53.
• العربي، بن عبد الباسط محمد. (2023). تأثير جودة الحياة الوظيفية على الإبداع الوظيفي: دراسة ميدانية على عينة من أساتذة كلية العلوم التطبيقية بجامعة ورقلة [رسالة ماجستير غير منشورة، كلية العلوم الاقتصادية والعلوم التجارية وعلوم التيسير، جامعة قاصدي مرباح].
• اللامي، ايهاب زياد محمد، الشبلاوي، سعاد جبير سلطان، والشمري، أحمد عبد الله أمانة. (2023). جودة حياة العمل وتأثيرها في سلوك العمل الإبداعي للعاملين: دراسة استطلاعية تحليلية لآراء عينة من الموظفين في بعض كليات جامعة كربلاء. العدد الخاص بمؤتمر كلية الإدارة والاقتصاد، جامعة كربلاء، ج2، 599-642.
• سبع، سنية محمد أحمد سليمان، أبو العلا، رانيا محمد المرسي. (2024). تأثير جودة الحياة الوظيفية على تحسين جودة القرار الإداري: الدور الوسيط للإبداع الإداري (دراسة تطبيقية على العاملين بالإدارة المركزية بجمارك دمياط). مجلة الشروق للعلوم التجارية، 13(13)، 307–354.
• صياغ، سارة، بو جميل، أحمد. (2023). تأثير جودة الحياة الوظيفية على السلوك الإبداعي: دراسة حالة المعهد الجزائري للبترول ببومرداس. دفاتر الجامعية، 11(2)، 347-369.
• زيد، جمال درهم أحمد، العزيزي، محمود حسن محمد عبده. (2022). جودة الحياة الوظيفية وأثرها في الإبداع الإداري لدى موظفي جامعة العلوم والتكنولوجيا اليمنية. مجلة جامعة الأندلس للعلوم الإنسانية والاجتماعية، 9(31)، 31-73.
• حمادة، أحمد، حمد، صلاح الدين، وفاضل، إسماعيل، وحاج مصطفى، محمد سراج. (2023). جودة الحياة الوظيفية وأثرها على الإبداع الإداري: جامعة ماردين نموذجاً. مجلة ريحان للنشر العلمي، ع41، 272-296.
• جمعة، سليمان سالم. (2020). أثر أبعاد جودة الحياة الوظيفية على الإبداع الإداري لدى الموظفين بمستشفى المرج. مجلة الدراسات الاقتصادية، 3(1)، 25–51
ثانياً: المراجع الأجنبية
• Abdullah, N. A. C., Zakaria, N., & Zahoor, N. (2021). Developments in quality of work life research and directions for future research. SAGE Open, *11*(4), 1-18.
https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440211059177
• Amabile, T. M. (2012). Componential theory of creativity (Working Paper No. 12-093). Harvard Business School.
https://www.hbs.edu/ris/Publication%20Files/12-093.pdf
• Amabile, T. M. (2018). Creativity in context: Update to the social psychology of creativity. Routledge.
https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429501234
• Ammar, E. U. (2023). Hubungan antara playful work design dan quality of work life pada pekerja dengan emotional intelligence sebagai mediator [Doctoral dissertation, Universitas Mercu Buana-Menteng].
• Bai, Y., & Zhou, J. (2025). Coworker support, work-family conflict, job satisfaction, and turnover intention: Female employees in post-organizational socialization. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 1472977.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1472977
• Baig, U. (2024). Innovate playfully: Leading the employees to pursue innovative work behavior through playful work design. Global Management Journal for Academic & Corporate Studies, 14(2), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.59263/gmjacs.14.002.2024.403
• Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2017). Job demands-resources theory: Taking stock and looking forward. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 22(3), 273-285. https://doi.org/10.1037/ocp0000056
• Bakker, A. B., Hetland, J., Kjellevold Olsen, O., Espevik, R., & de Vries, J. D. (2020a). Job crafting and playful work design: Links with performance during busy and quiet days. Journal of Vocational Behavior, *122*, Article 103478. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2020.103478
• Bakker, A. B., Scharp, Y. S., Breevaart, K., & de Vries, J. D. (2020b). Playful work design: Introduction of a new concept. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 23, Article e19. https://doi.org/10.1017/SJP.2020.20
• Baruch, Y., & Holtom, B. C. (2008). Survey response rate levels and trends in organizational research. Human Relations, 61(8), 1139-1160.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726708094863
• Boada-Grau, J., Sánchez-García, J. C., Prizmic-Kuzmica, A. J., & Vigil-Colet, A. (2014). Spanish adaptation of the Creative Potential and Practised Creativity scale (CPPC-17) in the workplace and inside the organization. Psicothema, 23(1), 55-62.
https://doi.org/10.7334/psicothema2013.38
• Chen, G., & Li, S. (2021). Effect of employee-customer interaction quality on customers' prohibitive voice behaviors: Mediating roles of customer trust and identification. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, Article 773354. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.773354
• Cohen, J. (2013). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203771587
• Costantini, A., Bakker, A. B., & Scharp, Y. S. (2025). Playful study design: A novel approach to enhancing student well-being and academic performance. Educational Psychology Review, 37(2), Article 47.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-025-10022-6
• Cotič, L. P., Man, M. M. K., Soga, L. R., Konstantopoulou, A., & Lodorfos, G. (2025). Job characteristics for work engagement: Autonomy, feedback, skill variety, task identity, and task significance. Global Business and Organizational Excellence, *44*(5), 75-85. https://doi.org/10.1002/joe.22295
• Díaz, C., Underwood, N., Schønau-Fog, H., Bjørner, T., Kreyer, A., & Berle, K. (2025). Work voyage: A playful survey for evaluating quality of work life. In Proceedings of the 2025 International Conference on Information Technology for Social Good (pp. 237-259).
https://doi.org/10.1145/3748699.3749800
• Dishon-Berkovits, M., Bakker, A. B., & Peters, P. (2024). Playful work design, engagement and performance: The moderating roles of boredom and conscientiousness. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 35(2), 253-283.
https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2023.2227920
• Elsayed, A. M., Mahgoub, I. G., & Abdelaziz, M. A. A. (2025). Playful work design and thriving in academia: The mediating role of work-related flow. BMC Psychology, 13(1), Article 837.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-03161-6
• Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39-50.
https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104
• Hair, J. F., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2011). PLS-SEM: Indeed a silver bullet. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 19(2), 139-152.
https://doi.org/10.2753/MTP1069-6679190202
• Hair, J. F., Risher, J. J., Sarstedt, M., & Ringle, C. M. (2019). When to use and how to report the results of PLS-SEM. European Business Review, *31*(1), 2-24.
https://doi.org/10.1108/EBR-11-2018-0203
• Halawi, A. (2024). How fun at workplace impacts employee's job satisfaction. RGSA - Revista de Gestão Social e Ambiental, 18(2), Article e03598.
https://doi.org/10.24857/rgsa.v18n2-098
• Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, *43*(1), 115-135.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8
• Hongyu, M. (2025). Organizational socialization. In The ECPH encyclopedia of psychology (pp. 1043-1047). Springer Nature Singapore.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-7874-4_1319
• Hosen, S., Hamzah, S. R. A., Ismail, I. A., Alias, S. N., Abd Aziz, M. F., & Rahman, M. M. (2024). Training and development, career development, and organizational commitment as the predictor of work performance. Heliyon, 10(1), Article e23903.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e23903
• Kasa, M., Lim, S. L. O., Hassan, Z., & Yii, C. (2025). Playful work design (PWD) and flow: A critical review of theory, research gaps, and future directions. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 15(4), 134-173.
https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v15-i4/24913
• Keane, A., Kwon, K., & Kim, J. (2024). An integrative literature review of person-environment fit and employee engagement. Journal of Management & Organization, 30(3), 2149-2178.
https://doi.org/10.1017/jmo.2023.71
• Khan, N. A., & Khan, A. N. (2022). Exploring the impact of abusive supervision on employee voice behavior in Chinese construction industry: A moderated mediation analysis. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 29(8), 3051-3071.
https://doi.org/10.1108/ECAM-10-2020-0829
• King Khalid Foundation. (2025, April 24). Flagship report highlights growth trajectory of Saudi's nonprofit sector [Press release]. https://www.kkf.org.sa/en/news/flagship-report-highlights-growth-trajectory-of-saudi-s-nonprofit-sector
• Liu, W., Bakker, A. B., Tse, B. T., & Van der Linden, D. (2023). Does playful work design lead to more creativity? A diary study on the role of flow. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, *32*(1), 107-117.
https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2022.2104716
• National Center for Non-Profit Sector (NCNP). (2025, April 27). National Center for Non-Profit Sector showcases 2024 achievements in Saudi Vision 2030 report [Press release]. https://ncnp.gov.sa/en/node/4257
• Papachristopoulos, K., Gradito Dubord, M.-A., Jauvin, F., Forest, J., & Coulombe, P. (2023). Positive impact, creativity, and innovative behavior at work: The mediating role of basic needs satisfaction. Behavioral Sciences, 13(12), Article 984
https://doi.org/10.3390/bs13120984
• Peral, J., & Weitz, A. (2025). Empowering leadership, playful work design, and work engagement: A mediation analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management. Advance online publication.
https://doi.org/10.1177/00812463251365493
• Reiter-Palmon, R., Royston, R. P., & Mitchell, K. S. (2021). Improving creativity in organizational settings. In Creativity: An introduction (pp. 242-261). Cambridge University Press.
https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108776721.014
• Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68-78.
https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68
• Sabonete, S. D. R., Lopez, D. A. F., & de Paula, D. S. (2021). Quality of work life: A systematic review of the literature. Brazilian Journal of Business, 3(1), 239-255.
• Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., & Hair, J. F. (2022). Partial least squares structural equation modeling. In C. Homburg, M. Klarmann, & A. Vomberg (Eds.), Handbook of market research (pp. 587-632). Springer.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57413-4_15
• Scharp, Y. S., & Bakker, A. B. (2020). Playful job crafting: When employees design their work to be fun. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 41(8), 1159-1174.
• Scharp, Y. S., Bakker, A. B., & Breevaart, K. (2022a). Playful work design and employee work engagement: A self-determination perspective. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 134, Article 103693.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2022.103693
• Scharp, Y. S., Bakker, A. B., & Breevaart, K. (2022b). Playful work design to the rescue: A daily diary study on the role of playful work design in the relation between daily workload and proactive behavior. International Journal of Stress Management, 29(1), 1-12.
https://doi.org/10.1037/str0000238
• Scharp, Y. S., Bakker, A. B., Breevaart, K., Kruup, K., & Uusberg, A. (2023). Playful work design: Conceptualization, measurement, and validity. Human Relations, *76*(4), 509-550.
https://doi.org/10.1177/00187267211070996
• Scharp, Y. S., Breevaart, K., Bakker, A. B., & Van der Linden, D. (2019). Daily playful work design: A trait activation perspective. Journal of Research in Personality, 82, Article 103850.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2019.103850
• Shalley, C. E. (2021). The importance of the componential model of creativity. In Creativity at work: A festschrift in honor of Teresa Amabile (pp. 179-184). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61311-2_17
• Siao, H. C., & Sung, W. C. (2022). How and when does servant leadership promote employee creativity? The roles of playful work design and proactive personality. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 930180. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.930180
• Sirgy, M. J., Efraty, D., Siegel, P., & Lee, D. J. (2001). A new measure of quality of work life (QWL) based on need satisfaction and spillover theories. Social Indicators Research, 55(3), 241-302.
https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010986923468
• Sorn, M. K., Fienena, A. R., Ali, Y., Rafay, M., & Fu, G. (2023). The effectiveness of compensation in maintaining employee retention. Open Access Library Journal, 10(7), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.4236/oalib.1110394
• Suwal, R., & Uprety, P. (2023). Impact of recreational activities on employee productivity of Nepalese commercial banks. Journal of Business and Social Sciences Research, 8(1), 73-94.
https://doi.org/10.3126/jbssr.v8i1.56591
• Swamy, D. R., Nanjundeswaraswamy, T. S., & Rashmi, S. (2015). Quality of work life: Scale development and validation. International Journal of Caring Sciences, 8(2), 281-294.
• Tews, M. J., Michel, J. W., & Allen, D. G. (2014). Fun and friends: The impact of workplace fun and constituent attachment on turnover in a hospitality context. Human Relations, 67(8), 923-943.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726713508143
• Tews, M. J., Michel, J. W., & Noe, R. A. (2017). Does fun promote learning? The relationship between fun in the workplace and informal learning. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 98, 43-55.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2016.09.006
• Tews, M. J., Michel, J. W., Xu, S., & Drost, A. J. (2015). Workplace fun matters… but what else? Employee Relations, 37(2), 248-267. https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-10-2013-0152
• Tripp, P. W. (2024). How to encourage employee creativity: A preliminary systematic literature review of organizational resources. Muma Business Review, 8, 37-78.
• Tür, E., & Demir, Ş. Ş. (2022). The effect of the quality of working life of hotel employees on individual creativity performance. Journal of Tourism Theory and Research, 8(2), 31-53.
https://doi.org/10.24288/jttr.1101324
• Tzioti, E., Montgomery, A., Spiliou, M., Mouratidis, C., Chalili, V., Maliousis, I., & Lainidi, O. (2025). Fun at work, job engagement, and burnout: A meta-analysis and narrative synthesis. Cogent Psychology, 12(1), Article 2492453. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311908.2025.2492453
• Vision 2030. (n.d.). National Center for Non-Profit Sector strategy. https://www.vision2030.gov.sa/en/explore/strategies/national-center-for-non-profit-sector-strategy
• Zhang, J., Zhang, Y., & Zhang, M. (2023). Linking performance-avoidance goal orientation to innovative performance: The mediating role of playful work design and the moderating role of job autonomy. Current Psychology, *42*, 1-14.
• Zhou, J., & Hoever, I. J. (2014). Research on workplace creativity: A review and redirection. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 1(1), 333-359.
