The mediating role of job engagement in the relationship of psychological capital and organizational justice perception on flow: A research in Turkish defense industry

The aim of this research is to find out whether there is a relation between organizational justice perception and psychological capital with flow, and the possible effect of job engagement that mediates this relation within the Turkish Defense Industry. For this purpose, data were collected from 533 employees from corporate private enterprises representing the Turkish Defense Industry within the scope of their turnover. As a result of analyzes, it was found that the engagement is a significant antecedent of flow and also mediates the relationship of psychological capital and organizational justice perception on the flow. It is determined that there is a close relationship with organizational justice perception and job engagement, but no significant relation was resulted between organizational justice perception and flow but it was found that organizational justice perception affects the flow through the mediation of job engagement. The relationship of job engagement and flow, which has been discussed frequently in the literature and has not been concluded yet, is also examined. In this context, it is seen that these two concepts are very close to each other within this sample but they are also differentiated. It has been also determined that job engagement is the antecedent of the flow. Although it was hypothesized otherwise, considering the literature, it was predicted that the perception of organizational justice may not have a significant relationship with the flow and the results supported it. It was suggested that, despite the perception of injustice of the personnel of the defense industry, although they are highly qualified and likely to work in other companies under similar conditions, they work with dedication in their work. As far as is known, the theoretical model of this research is tested for the first time with this study. Therefore, it is believed that findings will fill an important theoretical gap in the field of management and will be useful for both researchers, leaders, employees and practitioners. Keywords: Organizational justice perception, psychological capital, job engagement, flow, Turkish Defense Industry.