Work engagement is defined as a positive, affective-motivational state of work-related well-being characterized by vigor, dedication and absorption. The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) is the most frequently used measure of work engagement. The aim of this study was to analyze the psychometric properties of the Serbian versions of the UWES-17 and UWES-9. The sample consisted of 860 employees from a number of organizations and jobs across Serbia. Based on the UWES-17 findings, the data confirm both the three-factor and one-factor solutions by giving a slight advantage to the three-factor solution. As for the UWES-9, based on the PCFA and CFA, the one-factor solution was obtained as the preferred one. Taking into account the UWES-9 reliability and correlation patterns of its subscales with other well-being variables, both one- and three-factor solutions of the UWES-9 are suggested for future research. Serbian versions of both the UWES-17 and UWES-9 have satisfactory psychometric properties with high reliability, factorial structure in line with the theoretical model, and good predictive validity. The study contributes to enhanced understanding of work engagement by offering an insight from the Serbian cultural and economic context, significantly different from the UWES originating setting. There is still a need for exploring how employees from Serbia conceptualize work engagement, as well as for further, more stringent investigating of the cultural invariance of the UWES factorial structure.

Workplace bullying has been identified as a widespread problem in contemporary organizational research. The aim of the paper was to acquire theoretically based and comparable findings about workplace bullying in Serbia: to explore the behavioral experience and self-labeling approaches (applying the Negative Acts Questionnaire - Revised, NAQ-R) and their relationship with job-related behaviors. The sample comprised 1,998 employees. Prevalence rates of workplace bullying based on self-labeling and behavior experience approaches overlap significantly (70% of employees operationally identified as bullied had also labeled themselves as bullied). Both the self-labeling and behavioral experience approach showed significant correlations with job-related behaviors (perceived threat to a total job, absenteeism, intention to leave, and perceived productivity). Previously bullied, presently bullied and non-bullied employees differed significantly on all four job-related behaviors, with large effect size for the intention to leave and medium effect size for the perceived threat to a total job. The findings support combining self-labeling and behavioral experience approaches in workplace bullying research. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 179018]

Previous research explored workplace climate as a factor of workplace bullying and coping with workplace bullying, but these concepts were not closely related to workplace bullying behaviors (WBBs). To examine whether the perceived exposure to bullying mediates the relationship between the climate of accepting WBBs and job satisfaction under the condition of different levels of WBBs coping self-efficacy beliefs, we performed moderated mediation analysis. The Negative Acts Questionnaire - Revised was given to 329 employees from Serbia for assessing perceived exposure to bullying. Leaving the original scale items, the instruction of the original Negative Acts Questionnaire - Revised was modified for assessing (1) the climate of accepting WBBs and (2) WBBs coping self-efficacy beliefs. There was a significant negative relationship between exposure to bullying and job satisfaction. WBB acceptance climate was positively related to exposure to workplace bullying and negatively related to job satisfaction. WBB acceptance climate had an indirect relationship with job satisfaction through bullying exposure, and the relationship between WBB acceptance and exposure to bullying was weaker among those who believed that they were more efficient in coping with workplace bullying. Workplace bullying could be sustained by WBB acceptance climate which threatens the job-related outcomes. WBBs coping self-efficacy beliefs have some buffering effects.

Researchers are still searching for the ways to identify different categories of employees according to their exposure to negative acts and psychological experience of workplace bullying. We followed Notelaers and Einarsen’s application of the ROC analysis to determine the NAQ-R cut-off scores applying a “lower” and “higher” threshold. The main goal of this research was to develop and test different gold standards of personal and organizational relevance in determining the NAQ-R cut-off scores in a specific cultural and economic context of Serbia. Apart from combining self-labeling as a victim with self-perceived health, the objectives were to test the gold standards developed as a combination of self-labeling with life satisfaction, self-labeling with intention to leave and a complex gold standard based on self-labeling, self-perceived health, life satisfaction and intention to leave taken together. The ROC analysis on Serbian workforce data supports applying of different gold standards. For identifying employees in a preliminary stage of bullying, the most applicable was the gold standard based on self-labeling and intention to leave (score 34 and higher). The most accurate identification of victims could be based on the most complex gold standard (score 81 and higher). This research encourages further investigation of gold standards in different cultures.

The Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R), together with its earlier version, The Negative Acts Questionnaire (NAQ), is one of the most utilized instruments for exploring workplace bullying, both in applied and scientific research. Contrary to its widespread use, there are a few published NAQ-R validation studies. In this paper we wanted to support developing grounds for future cultural analysis, comparison and development of the NAQ-R which was created as an instrument primarily for measuring workplace bullying in Anglo- American cultural settings. The aim of this study was to analyze the psychometric properties of the Serbian translation of the Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R) by exploring its factor structure, internal consistency and criterion validity. The sample comprised 1710 employees from both private and public sector in Serbia. Principal component analysis revealed one component that explained almost 60% of the total variance. The Confirmatory factor analysis was carried out in order to test the one, two and three factor solutions suggested by the authors of the NAQ. The results of CFA confirmed all three solutions, but only fairly, as some of the fit indicators did not reach the expected values. Reliability analysis showed excellent internal consistency of the NAQ-R (Cronbach?s alpha=0.96). The significant correlations of the NAQ-R with job and organization related measures, and subjective health and well-being measures provided evidence of its construct validity. Higher correlations of the NAQ-R with a set of work related behaviors than the correlations with health related measures were in accordance with the nature of the phenomenon that is primarily focused on work-disabling behaviors. The results of this study showed acceptable psychometric properties of the Serbian translation of the NAQ-R. Obtained findings indicate that the future development of the Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised could follow two streams: one would be a further refinement of the uniform NAQ as a true cross-cultural measure that would generate comparable findings and the second one the development of separate national and/ or regional forms. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 179018]