Job Insecurity and Work Engagement of Deposit Money Banks’ Employees in the North-West Nigeria: The Mediating Role of Cyberloafing
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56919/jbam.2621.004Keywords:
Job insecurity, Cyberloafing, Work engagement, Conservation of Resources Theory, Deposit Money BankAbstract
Work engagement remains a critical determinant of organizational productivity and service quality, particularly in the banking sector where employees face increasing job demands and uncertainty. This study examines the effect of job insecurity on work engagement in deposit money banks in Nigeria, with cyberloafing serving as a mediating mechanism. The study was anchored on the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, which explains how employees respond to perceived threats to valued resources such as job stability. A cross-sectional and survey research designs were adopted for the study. Due to the inability to obtain the exact population of bank employees across North-West geopolitical zone of Nigeria, Cochran’s formula for an infinite population was used to determine a sample size of 384, which was increased by 15% to 442 to account for possible non-response. Data were collected using a structured online questionnaire administered through Google Forms, employing the snowball sampling technique over a nine-week period. A total of 394 valid responses were retrieved and used for analysis. The findings revealed that job insecurity has a negative and significant effect on work engagement among employees of deposit money banks. The results also showed that cyberloafing negatively and significantly influences work engagement. Furthermore, the study established that cyberloafing partially mediated the relationship between job insecurity and work engagement; indicating that employees experiencing job insecurity may engage in cyberloafing as a coping mechanism, which ultimately reduces their engagement at work. The study concludes that addressing job insecurity and regulating cyberloafing behaviour are essential for sustaining employee engagement in Nigeria’s banking sector. The study recommends that the management of deposit money banks should implement strategies that reduce employees’ perception of job insecurity in order to enhance work engagement.
References
Akpobire, U. O., Izims, T., & Odor, H. O. (2025). Employee engagement and service delivery effectiveness in the hospitality industry in Asaba, Delta State.AKSUJournal of Management Sciences, 10(4), 144-155. DOI: https://doi.org/10.61090/aksujomas.10414
Aladwana, M. A., Muala, I. A. & Salleh, H. S. (2020). Cyberloafing as a mediating variable in the relationship between workload and organizationalcommitment. Management Science Letters, 11, 1013–1022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5267/j.msl.2020.9.041
Ametepe, P. K., Banwo, A. O., &Arilesere, M. S. (2023). Amoral behavior, control climate, job insecurity and fraudulent intentions among bank employees. International Journal of Ethics and Systems, 39(4), 781-803. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOES-06-2022-0146
Azolibe, B. C. (2022). Banking sector intermediation development and economic growth: Evidence from Nigeria. Journal of African Business, 23(3), 757-774. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15228916.2021.1926857
Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2008). Towards a model of work engagement. Career Development International, 13(3), 209-223. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/13620430810870476
Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(6), 1173. Retrieved from https://psycnet.apa.org/journals/0022-3514/51/6/1173/ DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-3514.51.6.1173
Batabyal, S. K., & Bhal, K. T. (2020). Traditional cyberloafing, mobile cyberloafing and personal mobile-internet loafing in business organizations: exploring cognitive ethical logics. Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics in Society, 18(4), 631-647. Retrieved from https://www.emerald.com/jices/article/18/4/631/227709 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JICES-07-2019-0081
Bickerton, G. R., & Miner, M. (2023). Conservation of resources theory and spirituality at work: When a resource is not always a resource. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 15(2), 241. Retrieved from https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2021-32188-001 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/rel0000416
Blanchard, A. L., & Henle, C. A. (2008). Correlates of different forms of cyberloafing: The role of norms and external locus of control. Computers in Human Behavior, 24(3), 1067-1084. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563207000805 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2007.03.008
Chirumbolo, A., Callea, A., &Urbini, F. (2022). Living in liquid times: the relationships among job insecurity, life uncertainty, and psychosocial well-being. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(22), 15225. Retrieved from https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/22/15225 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192215225
Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences (2rd ed.). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.
Davy, J. A., Kinicki, A. J., & Scheck, C. L. (1997). A test of job security's direct and mediated effects on withdrawal cognitions. Journal of Organizational Behavior: The International Journal of Industrial, Occupational and Organizational Psychology and Behavior, 18(4), 323-349. Retrieved from DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-1379(199707)18:4<323::AID-JOB801>3.0.CO;2-#
De Witte, H. (2000). Work ethic and job insecurity: measurement and consequences for well-being, satisfaction, and commitment at work. In From group to community. liber amicorum prof. dr. leolagrou (pp. 325-350). Garant. Retrieved from https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/132844
Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research., 18(1), 39–50. Retrieved from DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104
Gallup Report (2025) Gallup State of the Global Workplace Report. Retrieved from https://www.gallup.com/workplace/697904/state-of-the-global-workplace-global-data.aspx
Ghani, B., Memon, K. R., Han, H., Ariza-Montes, A., & Arjona-Fuentes, J. M. (2022). Work stress, technological changes, and job insecurity in the retail organization context. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 918065. Retrieved from https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.918065/full DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.918065
Greenhalgh, L., & Rosenblatt, Z. (1984). Job insecurity: Toward conceptual clarity. Academy of Management Review, 9(3), 438-448. Retrieved from https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/amr.1984.4279673 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/258284
Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2022). A Primer on Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) (3rd ed.). Sage. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80519-7
Halbesleben, J. R., Neveu, J. P., Paustian-Underdahl, S. C., & Westman, M. (2014). Getting to the “COR” understanding the role of resources in conservation of resources theory. Journal of Management, 40(5), 1334-1364. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206314527130
Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43, 115–135. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8
Hobfoll, S. E., Halbesleben, J., Neveu, J. P., & Westman, M. (2018). Conservation of resources in the organizational context: The reality of resources and their consequences. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 5, 103-128. Retrieved from https://www.annualreviews.org/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-032117-104640 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-032117-104640
Hong, Y., Xu, M., & Furnell, S. (2024). Situational support and information security behavioural intention: a comparative study using conservation of resources theory. Behaviour & Information Technology, 43(3), 523-539. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2023.2177825
Hulland, J. (1999). Use of partial least squares (PLS) in strategic management research: a review of four recent studies. Strategic Management Journal, 20, 195–204. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199902)20:2<195::AID-SMJ13>3.0.CO;2-7
Israel, G. D. (2013). Determining sample size. Journal of Business Research, 1, 1–5. https://www.psycholosphere.com/Determining
Kahn, W. A. (1990). Psychological conditions of personal engagement and disengagement at work. Academy of management journal, 33(4), 692-724. Retrieved from https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/256287 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/256287
Khudaykulov, A., Changjun, Z., Obrenovic, B., Godinic, D., Alsharif, H. Z. H., &Jakhongirov, I. (2024). The fear of COVID-19 and job insecurity impact on depression and anxiety: An empirical study in China in the COVID-19 pandemic aftermath. Current Psychology, 43(9), 8471-8484. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-02883-9
Kline, R. B. (2011). Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling (3rd ed.). The Guilford Press.
Koay, K. Y. (2018). Workplace ostracism and cyberloafing: a moderated–mediation model. Internet Research, 28(4), 1122-1141. Retrieved from https://www.emerald.com/intr/article/28/4/1122/187254 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IntR-07-2017-0268
Kusmuni, K., Suhermin, S., &Kuswanto, K. (2024). The impact of job insecurity on employee engagement and job performance: Mediating role of engagement. Frontiers in Business and Economics, 3(3), 170–181. DOI: https://doi.org/10.56225/finbe.v3i3.404
Kwala, A. F., &Agoyi, M. (2024). The nexus between cyberloafing and employee well-being: Role of creativity in the Nigerian service sector. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 11(1), 1673. Retrieved from https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-024-03928-z DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03928-z
Lee, M. C. C., Sim, B. Y. H., & Tuckey, M. R. (2024). Comparing effects of toxic leadership and team social support on job insecurity, role ambiguity, work engagement, and job performance: A multilevel mediational perspective. Asia Pacific Management Review, 29(1), 115-126. Retrieved from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1029313223000775 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmrv.2023.09.002
Lim, P. K., Koay, K. Y., & Chong, W. Y. (2021). The effects of abusive supervision, emotional exhaustion and organizational commitment on cyberloafing: a moderated-mediation examination. Internet Research, 31(2), 497-518. Retrieved from https://www.emerald.com/intr/article/31/2/497/514112 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/INTR-03-2020-0165
Lim, V. K. (2002). The IT way of loafing on the job: Cyberloafing, neutralizing and organizational justice. Journal of organizational behavior: the international journal of industrial, occupational and Organizational Psychology and Behavior, 23(5), 675-694. Retrieved from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/job.161
Lim, V. K. G. (2002). The IT way of loafing on the job: cyberloafing, neutralizing and organizational justice. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 23(5), 675–694. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/job.161
Lim, V. K., & Teo, T. S. (2024). Cyberloafing: A review and research agenda. Applied Psychology, 73(1), 441-484. Retrieved from https://iaap-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/apps.12452 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/apps.12452
Maalouf, E., & Maalouf, G. (2025). The impact of job insecurity on job performance.International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development,12(1), 44-50. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Georges-Maalouf-2/publication/388146819
Macey, W. H., & Schneider, B. (2008). The meaning of employee engagement. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 1(1), 3-30. Retrieved from https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/industrial-and-organizational-psychology/article/meaning-of-employee-engagement/0517A938DBEDA2E0BE2FBE27A9DDC4DB DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1754-9434.2007.0002.x
Masykur, M., Adam, M., & Mukhlis, M. (2025). The effect of creativity and job stress on employee performance with cyberloafing behaviour as mediation at Banda Aceh Tax Office. International Journal of Scientific Research and Management (IJSRM), 13(04), 8669–8680. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18535/ijsrm/v13i04.em04
Mokhtar, R., Nabila, S., Ambad, A., Nurafizah, S., & Annuar, S. (2019). The effect of perceived organizational supports towards employee engagement: A study of Malaysia’s oil and gas offshore operations. The Business and Management Review, 10(3), 8-9. Retrieved from https://cberuk.com/cdn/conference_proceedings/2019-07-30-23-45-53-PM.pdf
Mustapha, H. A., Ojeleye, Y. C., & Shaibu, B. O. (2024). Workplace boredom, cyberloafing and work engagement of insurance companies in Nigeria: moderating role of mindfulness. African Journal of Social and Behavioural Sciences (AJSBS), 14(6), 3621-3641. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Yinka-Ojeleye/publication/384564348
Mustapha, Hauwa Abdullahi, Ojeleye, Y. C., & Shaibu, B. O. (2024). Workplace boredom and employee engagement of Civil Servants in Nigeria: Mediating role of cyberloafing. Global Challenges on Inclusive Leadership, Environmental Sustainability and Digital Transformation in Management Sciences, 1–18. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/386223191
Mvana, S. W. (2024). Constructing a psychosocial model for teacher retention: Insights from the conservation of resource theory. Social Sciences and Education Research Review, 11(1), 79-87. Retrieved from https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=1341092
Nikmah, U., &Martdianty, F. (2021). Job insecurity, work engagement and job performance of employees in flexible working arrangement: exploring the mediating role of psychological well-being.Advances in Economics, Business and Management Research, 179. 458-463 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2991/aebmr.k.210616.071
Ojeleye, C. Y., Abdullahi, M., & Salami, A. O. (2023). Co-worker support and work engagement of staff of federal colleges of education in Nigeria: moderating role of role clarity. Management and Entrepreneurship: Trends of Development, 3(25), 40-59. Retrieved From https://management.znu.edu.ua/index.php/journal/article/view/452 DOI: https://doi.org/10.26661/2522-1566/2023-3/25-04
Ojeleye, Y. C. & Bakare, M. (2025). Workplace bullying and work engagement of deposit money banks in Nigeria: Cyberloafing as a mediator. FULafia Journal of Management Sciences, 1(2), 25-36.
Ojeleye, Y. C. & Ojeleye, C. I (2024). Workplace Civility, Workplace Harmony and Employee Engagement: Mediating Role of Employee Voice in Nigeria. 1st International Conference on Research and Innovation in Multidisciplinary Domains. NOBCON-2024, Noble University Campus, Junagadh, India. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/387477659_Workplace_Civility_Workplace_Harmony_and_Employee_Engagement_Mediating_Role_of_Employee_Voice_in_Nigeria
Ojeleye, Y. C., Mustapha, A. H., Shaibu, B. O., &Sahnun, L. (2024). Workplace civility, employees ‘inclusiveness and performance of public sector in Nigeria: Role of workplace harmony. Management Science Review, 16(1), 174-195. Retrieved from https://articles.msreview.com.ng/msr-vol-16(1)-pg174-195.pdf
Ojeleye, Y. C., Mustapha, H. A., & Abdulmumini, S. R. (2025). Insecurity, workload and employee turnover intentions in government owned hospitals in Nigeria: Moderating role of institutional distrust. FUDMA Journal of Business Management, 3(1), 99-122. Retrieved from https://fjbm.fudutsinma.edu.ng/index.php/fjbm/article/view/20
Oladimeji, S. B., &Olanitori, I. P. (2022). Organizational change and performance of employees in some selected banks in Ondo state.Innovare Journal of Social Sciences, 10(5), 16-27. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22159/ijss.2022.v10i5.43596
Oosthuizen, A., Rabie, G. H., & De Beer, L. T. (2018). Investigating cyberloafing, organisational justice, work engagement and organisational trust of South African retail and manufacturing employees. SA Journal of Human Resource Management, 16(1), 1-11. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC-ef4c1c2b5 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/sajhrm.v16i0.1001
Peng, B., &Potipiroon, W. (2022). Fear of losing jobs during COVID-19: can psychological capital alleviate job insecurity and job stress?. Behavioral Sciences, 12(6), 168. Retrieved from https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/12/6/168 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/bs12060168
Putrie, N. R., & Rahayu, E. (2024). The role of cyberloafing and procrastination behaviour on employee engagement and their impact on employee performance. In BIO Web of Conferences (Vol. 90, p. 03001). EDP Sciences. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1051/bioconf/20249003001
Rich, B. L., Lepine, J. A., & Crawford, E. R. (2010). Job engagement: Antecedents and effects on job performance. Academy of Management Journal, 53(3), 617-635. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2010.51468988
Saks, A. M. (2006). Antecedents and consequences of employee engagement. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 21(7), 600-619. https://journal.untar.ac.id/index.php/jmishumsen/article/view/981 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/02683940610690169
Sao, R., Chandak, S., Patel, B., &Bhadade, P. (2020). Cyberloafing: effects on employee job performance and behavior. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering, 8(5), 509-1515. DOI: https://doi.org/10.35940/ijrte.E4832.018520
Schaufeli, W. B., Bakker, A. B., & Salanova, M. (2006). The measurement of short questionnaire with a cross-national study. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 66(4), 701–716. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164405282471
Schaufeli, W. B., Salanova, M., González-Romá, V., & Bakker, A. B. (2002). The measurement of engagement and burnout: A two sample confirmatory factor analytic approach. Journal of Happiness studies, 3(1), 71-92. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1015630930326
Shaikh, Z. A., & Kumar, D. (2024). The investigation of moderating impact of cyberloafing on burnout and work engagement of private college faculty working in India.African Journal of Biological Sciences, 6(Si4). DOI: https://doi.org/10.48047/AFJBS.6.Si4.2024.3031-3041
Spurk, D., Hofer, A., Hirschi, A., De Cuyper, N., & De Witte, H. (2022). Conceptualizing career insecurity: Toward a better understanding and measurement of a multidimensional construct. Personnel Psychology, 75(2), 253-294. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/peps.12493
Stankevičiūtė, Ž., Staniškienė, E., &Ramanauskaitė, J. (2021). The impact of job insecurity on employee happiness at work: a case of robotised production line operators in furniture industry in Lithuania. Sustainability, 13(3), 1563. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su13031563
Yasami, M., Phetvaroon, K., Dewan, M., & Stosic, K. (2024). Does employee resilience work? The effects of job insecurity on psychological withdrawal behavior and work engagement. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights, 7(5), 2862-2882. Retrieved from https://www.emerald.com/jhti/article/7/5/2862/1225100 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JHTI-06-2023-0423
Yu, S., Gong, X., & Wu, N. (2020). Job insecurity and employee engagement: A moderated dual path model. Sustainability, 12(23), 10081. Retrieved from https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/23/10081 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su122310081
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
