Indonesian Journal of Law and Economics Review
Vol. 21 No. 3 (2026): Agustus

Happiness and Its Impact on Employee Job Engagement at Diyala University

Kareem Sihoud Karam (Department of Public Administration, College of Administration and Economics, University of Diyala, 32001, Diyala)
Hamza Adnan Hashim (Presidency of University of Diyala, 32001, Diyala)



Article Info

Publish Date
22 Aug 2026

Abstract

General Background Modern academic institutions increasingly rely on psychological resources to foster active employee engagement and organizational performance. Specific Background Although happiness is recognized as a vital workplace asset, its structural dimensions require empirical evaluation within university environments. Knowledge Gap How distinct facets of happiness—specifically virtue, self-management, and eudaimonic well-being—differentially drive job engagement remains insufficiently operationalized. Aims This study investigates the predictive relationships between these three happiness dimensions and employee job engagement among higher education staff. Results Empirical analysis ($N = 100$) demonstrates that happiness dimensions explain $83\%$ of variance in engagement ($R^2 = 0.83$), with self-management ($\beta = 0.33, p < 0.01$) and eudaimonic well-being ($\beta = 0.34, p < 0.01$) serving as primary positive predictors. Novelty The findings uncover a structural paradox where virtue correlates strongly with engagement ($r = 0.87$) yet lacks a direct predictive effect in multivariate modeling. Implications Organizations must prioritize self-regulation practices and meaningful work design over abstract ethical statements. Keywords : Happiness Dimensions, Job Engagement, Self-Management, Eudaimonic Well-Being, Workplace Flourishing Key Findings Highlights Self-management and eudaimonic well-being directly predict higher workforce engagement levels. Combined happiness dimensions account for eighty-three percent of total engagement variance. Ethical virtue requires concrete operational management tools to generate direct behavioral involvement.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

ijler

Publisher

Subject

Economics, Econometrics & Finance Law, Crime, Criminology & Criminal Justice

Description

Indonesian Journal of Law and Economics Review (IJLER) is published by Universitas Muhammadiyah Sidoarjo four times a year. This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of ...