Investigation of the relationship between time perspective, work engagement and organizational trust: A research in Adana Organized Industrial Zone

Employees has an undeniable importance for succeeding and outperforming in this competitive environment that todays organizations face with. Considering that time perspective has an impact on many organizational outcomes, work engagement – an organizational outcome that is known to have an impact on business performance, financial results and customer satisfaction, and organizational trust – an organizational outcome that is known to have an impact on organizational commitment, long term profitability and productivity, is investigated in the scope of this research. Thus, main purpose of this research is to investigate time perspective which is also considered a personality trait, and investigate the effect of time perspective on work engagement and mediating role of organizational trust on this effect. Another purpose of this study is bringing into light the relationship between time perspective and demographic variables. Because of important contributions to country economy, universe of our study is determined as manifacturing companies in Adana Organized Industrial Zone. A survey is run on 238 employees in this area. Data obtained from survey is analysed by appropriate analysis methods, and Turkish adaptation of negatif future and positive future sub dimensions of time perspective inventory is done. For investigating the effect of time perspective on other research variables, and mediation effect, regression analysis is done and for investigating differentiation in time perspectives according to demographic variables, t-test and anova analysis is done. According to research results, four sub dimensions of time perspective (past negative, present hedonistic, future negative and future positive) has an effect on work engagement and organizational trust has a mediating effect on this relationship. Accoring to analysis results on demographic variables; past negative time perspective is differentiated according to level of education, title in the workplace, gender and department; present hedonistic time perspective is differentiated according to level of education and gender; future negative time perspective is differentiated according to level of education, title and department and finally future positive time perspective is differentiated according to age. Considering the contributions of employee perceptions, cognitive and emotional states to business results, it is for the sake of both the employees and organizations to support employees to gain a balanced time perspective through coaching and similar practices, mindfulness exercises and trainings.