Effect of Personal Anxiety on Work Engagement: Empirical Evidence from Vietnam

The COVID-19 pandemic has been identified as one of the significant factors contributing to high levels of mental health problems among employees. Our research examined the relationship between the mental health approach and the impact of anxiety on employee engagement. In Vietnam, employee engagement topics are increasingly being researched, but they are principally conducted by individual companies, which tend to consider the situational factors surrounding the engagement process. In our study, we have continuously contributed to employee engagement theory. We used the term work engagement, considered an individual factor as significant as situational factors. Besides, we investigated the relevance of personal anxiety to work engagement and informal workplace learning. The sample size included 238 employees of Vietnamese organizations. According to the findings, people with high trait anxiety have difficulty engaging in their work, and informal workplace learning behavior positively impacts work engagement. The result is presented in the discussion section, and implications for researchers and practitioners to develop appropriate interventions for personal anxiety to increase positive effects on work engagement.