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Ethics of care in action: Overview of holistic framework with application to employee engagement

Dr. Laura L. Lemon

Associate Professor

The University of Alabama

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Co-author: Dr. Courtney Boman

46th Annual CCI Research Symposium

ALUMNI CHAMPIONS

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Employee Engagement

Harnessing of organization members’ selves to their work roles; in engagement, people employ and express themselves physically, cognitively, and emotionally during role performances” (Kahn, 1990, p. 694).

Engagement is an iterative and dynamic process co-created through interactions rooted in dialogue (Johnston and Taylor, 2018).

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Value of Employee Engagement & Dialogue

A dialogic orientation plays a major role in cultivating employee engagement (Lemon, 2019a).

Dialogue requires repeated communication that encourages participation, where communicators take time to listen, reflect, and then respond (Lane & Kent, 2018).

Active listening + dialogue = Employee engagement

Sets the foundation to avoid the potential paradoxes that sometimes underpin employee engagement.

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Employee Engagement Paradox

The Paradox

  • Employees are often expected to do more with less, yet they want to be supported and understood (Francis & Keegan, 2020).
  • Being an engaged employee requires a higher level of discretionary effort (Lemon, 2019b).
  • Employee engagement is used as a means to control the work experience of employees to the extent that the organization monetizes employees for the sake of improving efficiency and productivity (Pieczka, 2018).
  • The processes are often favored over people (Heath, 2013).

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Ethics of Care Strategy

  • This paradox could be eradicated by adopting an ethics of care strategy that facilitates a supportive organizational culture.
  • Scholars have called for organizations to act more ethical and caring towards the lived experiences of internal audiences (e.g., Shen & Jiang, 2019).

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Defining Ethics of Care

Relationship-based ethics vs. character-based ethics

Ethics of care focuses on addressing gender, race, and class, through actions such as sustaining connections, listening and considering all voices, and supporting the community.

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Ethics of Care Applied to Employee Engagement

Ethics of Care (EoC) actional model

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Applied Model of Care Considerations (AMCC)

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Ethics of Care Applied to Employee Engagement (EOCAEE)

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Ethics of Care Applied to Employee Engagement

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Tips for Success

  • Read, read, and then read some more
  • Find your own organizational process
  • Embrace the experience, even the hard parts
  • Build intentional relationships with faculty

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Thank you!

Let's connect!

lemon@apr.ua.edu

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