Relationship Between Wellbeing and Organizational Commitment Among Teachers: A Quantitative Study in Sabah, Malaysia

  • Fung Lan Yong Postgraduate Studies, Jesselton University College, 88300 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
  • Florence Chuah Inclusive GEMS Consultancy, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
  • Loreta Ling Ling Uie Business Studies, Jesselton University College, 88300 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
  • Lesley Pien Chong Postgraduate Studies, Jesselton University College, 88300 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
  • Nahiyan Al-Azad Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Sabah, Malaysia
Keywords: Teachers’ Perceptions, Organizational Commitment, Wellbeing, Sabah, Malaysia

Abstract

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate teacher wellbeing and organizational commitment in Sabah, Malaysia. The sample comprised 102 secondary school teachers from Sabah, Malaysia, who completed two questionnaires on Google Forms, and data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0. Nonparametric tests showed significant differences in teachers’ perceptions of their wellbeing by way of age job experience at p < 0.05. Significant age differences were also found in terms of teacher qualifications at p < 0.05. Wilcoxon signed rank test revealed that 11 of the wellbeing items were significantly different from the median value at p < .001. Only one item was significantly different from the median value at p < .05. Additionally, Wilcoxon signed rank test revealed that none of the organizational commitment items was significantly different from the median value at p < .001; only one item was significantly different from the median value at p < .05. Percentages of agreement showed that a low-average to average proportion of teachers tends to demonstrate high wellbeing. Spearman’s rank correlation indicated that the coefficient between wellbeing and organizational commitment was 0.456, which was significant at p < .01. Lastly, in light of the findings, some recommendations were made on ways to enhance teacher wellbeing and organizational commitment in Sabah, Malaysia.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Abdullah, S., & Taat, M. S. (2025). Administrator support, motivation, and commitment among secondary school teachers in Sabah, Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development, 14(1), 2026-2035. 10.6007/IJARPED/v14-i1/24943

Alzahari, N., Ahmad, Y., & Bahari, N. (2025). Promoting mental health awareness among teachers in Malaysia: Assessing the role of sustainable development goals in enhancing well-being. Journal of Lifestyle and SDG’s Review, 5, 1-16, e04855. https://doi.org/10.47172/2965-730X.SDGsReview.v5.n03.pe04855

Avola, P., Soini‐Ikonen, T., Jyrkiäinen, A., & Pentikäinen, V. (2025). Interventions to teacher well‐being and burnout a scoping review. Educational Psychology Review, 37(11), 1-38. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-025-09986-2

Avolio, B. J. (1999). Full leadership development: Building the vital forces in organizations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. https://www.scirp.org/reference/referencespapers?referenceid=975517

Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2017). Job demands–resources theory: Taking stock and looking forward. Journal of occupational health psychology, 22(3), 273. 10.1037/ocp0000056

Bass, B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (Eds.). (1994). Improving organizational effectiveness through transformational leadership. Sage Publications, Inc. https://books.google.com.my/books/about/Improving_Organizational_Effectiveness_T.html?id=_z3_BOVYK-IC&redir_esc=y

Efthymiopoulos, A., & Goula, A. (2024). Measuring the reliability and validity of Allen and Meyer’s organizational commitment scale in the public sector. Corporate Governance and Organizational Behavior Review, 8(2),113-123. 10.22495/cgobrv8i2p11

Goldberg, D., & Williams, P. (1988). A user’s guide to the General Health Questionnaire. Windsor, UK: NFER-Nelson. https://books.google.com.my/books/about/A_User_s_Guide_to_the_General_Health_Que.html?id=LpSuGQAACAAJ&redir_esc=y

Grego-Planer, D. (2019). The relationship between organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behaviors in the public and private sectors. Sustainability, 11(22), 6395. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11226395

Hemanthakumara, V. (2024). Exploring the impact of psychological well-being on organizational commitment and job satisfaction in the IT workplace Ushus-Journal of Business Management, 23(1), 15-30. https://doi.org/10.12725/ujbm.66.215

Hobfoll, S. E. (2002). Social and psychological resources and adaptation. Review of general psychology, 6(4), 307-324. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.6.4.307

Hobfoll, S. E., Stevens, N. R., & Zalta, A. K. (2015). Expanding the science of resilience: Conserving resources in the aid of adaptation. Psychological inquiry, 26(2), 174-180. 10.1080/1047840X.2015.1002377

Isa, K., & Palpanadan, S. T. (2020). Prevalence causes of stress and coping strategies among Malaysian university lecturers. International Journal of Higher Education, 9(5), 312-321. 10.5430/ijhe.v9n5p312

Islaha, S., Kadiyono, A. L., & Islaha, S. (2023). The effect of organizational well-being on organizational commitment in telecommunication employees. Psikostudia Jurnal Psikologi,12(2), 224-230. http://dx.doi.org/10.30872/psikostudia.v12i2

Jain, A. K., Giga, S. I., & Cooper, C. L. (2008). Employee wellbeing, control and organizational commitment. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 30(3), 256-273. 10.1108/01437730910949535

Jain, A. K., Giga, S. I., & Cooper, C. L. (2013). Stress, health and well-being: The mediating role of employee and organizational commitment. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 10(10), 4907-4924. 10.3390/ijerph10104907

Khalaf, D. A., & Adam, S. S. (2018). Relationship between organizational commitment, burnout and psychological wellbeing among staff nurses. Egyptian Journal of Health Care, 9(1), 349-364. https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?tab=wm#inbox?projector=1

Lee, M., & Kim, B. (2023). Effect of the employees’ mental toughness on organizational commitment and job satisfaction: Mediating psychological well-being. Administrative Sciences, 13(5), 133. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci13050133

Mebarki, B., Bendaho, S., Mokdad, M., & Bouabdellah, L. (2019). Psychological wellbeing and organizational commitment: A predictive study in Algeria. The European Conference on Psychology & the Behavioral Sciences 2019. The International Academic Forum. www.iafor.org

Meyer, J. P., & Allen, N. (2012). Commitment in the workplace: Theory, research, and Application. Sage Publications. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781452231556

Meyer, J. P., & Maltin, E. R.. (2010). Employee commitment and well-being: A critical review, theoretical framework and research agenda. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 77(2), 323-337. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2010.04.007

Meyer, J. P., Stanley, D. J., Herscovitch, L., & Topolnytsky, L. (2002). Affective, continuance, and normative commitment to the organization: A meta-analysis of antecedents, correlates, and consequences. Journal of vocational behavior, 61(1), 20-52. https://doi.org/10.1006/jvbe.2001.1842

Musa, K. (2014). The study of transformational leadership and teacher commitment in public school reform. International Business Education Journal, 7, 1-15.

Nazeer, I., Gopinath, C. B., Asija, J., Burbure, P., & Mishra, S. (2025). Employee well-being programs and their effect on organizational commitment: An analytical study with special reference to private bank employees. Journal of Informatics Education and Research, 5(1), 1571-1577.

Noman, M., Koo, A. C., Tee, S. H., & Krishnan, M. (2020). Web elements for health promotion in Malaysia. Health Promotion International, 35(3), 458-469. 10.1093/heapro/daz040

Noordin, F., Rashid, R, M., Ghani, R., Aripin, R., & Darus, Z. (2010). Teacher professionalisation and organisational commitment: Evidence from Malaysia. International Business & Economics Research Journal, 9(2), 49-58. 10.19030/iber.v9i2.52

Pan, T-H., & Lin, Y-N (2022). Organizational commitment impact on job well-being of SMEs employees in Taiwan in post-COVID-19 era. Education Quarterly Reviews, 5(1), 97-112. https://ssrn.com/abstract=4058950

Pau, K., Ahmad, A. B., Tang, H.-Y., Jusoh, A. J. B., Perveen, A., & Tat. K. K. (2022). Mental health and wellbeing of secondary school teachers in Malaysia. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 21(6), 50-70. https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.21.6.4

Panaccio, A., & Vandenberghe, C. (2009). Perceived organizational support, organizational commitment and psychological well-being: A longitudinal study. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 75(2), 224–236. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2009.06.002

Rahmawati, A., & Herachwati, N. (2024). The effect of psychological wellbeing and employee integrity on organizational commitment by mediating organizational change in employees BNI Surabaya Commercial Business Center. Daengku: Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Innovation, 4(1), 26-40. https://doi.org/10.35877/454RI.daengku2246

Rani, S., Agustiani, H., Ardiwinata, M. R., & Purwono, R. U. (2019). The role of organizational well-being to increase orgniazational commitment and work engagmeent for university. DLSU Business & Economics Review, 29(1), 207-213. https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?tab=wm#inbox?projector=1

Rathi, N. (2008). Relationship between quality of work life, organizational commitment, & employee wellbeing. Shodhbhagirathi, Humanities and Social Science. http://localhost:8081/xmlui/handle/123456789/238

Roscoe, J. T. (1975). Fundamental research statistics for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). New York: Holt Rinehart and Winston. https://www.amazon.com/Fundamental-Statistics Behavioral-International-processes/dp/0030919347

RUBIKTOP. (2023, September 14). The magic number 30: Why a sample size of 30 is

often considered sufficient for statistical significance. Linkedin. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/magic-number-30-why-sample-size-often-considered-sufficient/

Sabah Tourism Board (n. d.-a). District of Kota Kinabalu. https://sabahtourism.com/district/kota-kinabalu/

Sabah Tourism Board (n. d.-b). District of Kudat. https://sabahtourism.com/district/kudat/

Sagar, S. N. (2021). The relationship between well-being, mental health, and happiness

among primary school teachers in Johor Bahru. [Unpublished master’s thesis].

Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.

https://eprints.utm.my/99788/1/SattiyanNayarMPP2021.pdf

Sánchez-López, M. D. P, & Dresch, V. (2008). The 12-Item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12): Reliability, external validity and factor structure in the Spanish population. Psicothema, 20(4), 839-843. https://www.psicothema.com/pdf/3564.pdf

Seligman, M. (2018): PERMA and the building blocks of well-being. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 13(4), 333-335. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2018.1437466

Sitheravellu, C. S. (2022, April 23). Need to address issue of early retirement of teachers. Straits Times Online. https://www.nst.com.my/opinion/letters/2022/04/791119/needaddress-issue-early-retirement-teachers

Stark, H.P., Smith, R.W. & Carter, N.T. (2025). Organizational commitment profiles and employee well-being: Exploratory and confirmatory latent profile analyses. Occupational Health Science, 1-35. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41542-025-00225-2

Symonds, C. (June 30, 2025). HR guide: Increasing organizational commitment. Factorial. https://factorialhr.com/organizational-commitment/

Taylor, M. J. (2017). Using CALMERSS to enhance teacher well-being: A pilot study. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 65(3), 243–261. https://doi.org/10.1080/1034912X.2017.1394985

The School of Positive Psychology. (2024, July 25). PERMAH explained: The foundations of wellbeing and positive psychology. https://www.positivepsych.edu.sg/what-is-permah/

Thomas, N. S., Ahmad, N. A., & Mohd Fakhruddin, F. (2024). Exploring the issue of teacher burnout in Malaysian educational settings. ANP Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (ANP-JSSH), 5(1), 25-35. https://doi.org/10.53797/anp.jssh.v5i1.4.2024

Vadean, F. (2018). Job-related wellbeing and organizational commitment among long-term care and (non-medical) health care employees. Personal Social Services Research Unit, University of Kent. www.pssru.ac.uk

Wang, P., Chu, P., Wang, J., Pan, R., Sun, Y., Yan, M., Jiao, L., Zhan, X., & Zhang, D. (2020). Association between job stress and organizational commitment in three types of Chinese university teachers: Mediating effects of job burnout and job satisfaction. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1-12.

Yalcin, S., Akan, D., & Yildirim, I. (2021). Investigation of the organizational commitment and psychological well-being levels of academicians. International Journal of Research in Education and Science, 7(2), 525-544. https://doi.org/10.46328/ijres.1346

Yahya, N., Ishak, H. S., Rahim, N. A., & Usuldin, H. S. (2020). Kesejahteraan psikologi dan keperluan perkhidmatan kaunseling dalam kalangan guru di Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia. Jurnal Psikologi dan Kaunseling, 11, 1-32. https://www.scribd.com/document/604350564/Kesejahteraan-Psikologi-Dan-Keperluan-Perkhidmatan-Kaunseling

Yusoff, S. M., & Tengku-Ariffin, T. F. (2020). Looking after teacher wellbeing: Does teacher empowerment matter? Malaysian Online Journal of Educational Management (MOJEM), 8(4), 43-56. file:///C:/Users/Marketing_JC02/Downloads/12186%20(1).pdf

Zainuddin, A. (2025, January 17). Workplaces can consider mandating health screenings for staff. CodeBlue. https://codeblue.galencentre.org/2025/01/workplaces-can-consider-mandating-health-screenings-for-staff/

Zhao, T., Li, H., Zheng, L., & Zhang, Y. (2023). How dispositional gratitude shapes employee well-being and organizational commitment: The mediating roles of leader-member exchange and coworker exchange. Journal of Career Assessment, 31(1), 149-171. https://doi.org/10.1177/10690727221099867

Zhong, Y. (2024). Organizational commitment strategies to improve employees. Advances in Economics Management and Political Sciences, 119(1), 93-98. 10.54254/2754-1169/119/20242358

Published
2025-08-28
Section
Articles

Most read articles by the same author(s)

1 2 > >>