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Original Article

Self-Regulation

Women’s Key to Unlocking the Resources in the Self-Domain

Published Online:April 22, 2016https://doi.org/10.1027/2151-2604/a000237

Abstract

Abstract. In this study we examined in organizational contexts in which women have a minority position whether women’s daily in-role performance benefits from spent time on personal interests that provide motivation, energy, and intention necessary to remain motivated and productive at work (i.e., self-work facilitation). We suggest that particularly women can benefit from self-work facilitation by using self-regulation strategies (i.e., mastery approach, daily self-goal setting, daily self-rewarding) to increase their in-role performance. Sixty-three employees (61.7% women) filled out a questionnaire during five consecutive workdays. The results showed that a mastery approach and daily self-rewarding were positively associated with women’s daily self-work facilitation, but not men’s self-work facilitation. These self-regulation strategies had an indirect effect on daily in-role performance via self-work facilitation. An important implication of this study is that the investigated self-regulation strategies are trainable and they provide an excellent opportunity for women in minority positions to increase their functioning at work.

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