Os bons companheiros: a amizade no trabalho e suas contribuições para o engajamento de terceirizados de um banco público brasileiro

Abstract

Work engagement is a positive and fulfilling state of mind that an employee has in relation to their work, and its dimensions are: dedication, vigor, and absorption. One of the factors that contributes to the level of engagement within an organization is workplace friendship, a phenomenon in which two or more colleagues initiate a deeper relationship based on trust, companionship, affinity of tastes and values, and socioemotional support. In light of this, as a general objective, this study aimed to analyze the contributions of these friendship relations to work engagement, thus being a qualitative study, whose data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 11 outsourced employees from a center linked to one of the departments of the superintendence of logistics and patrimony of a Brazilian public bank. Regarding data analysis, the content analysis method was used with the aid of the ATLAS.ti software. Thus, it was analyzed that, according to the interviewees, friendship at work is defined by concepts such as time spent together, socio-emotional support, and affinity of tastes and values. Moving on to the contributions to work engagement, it was seen that for all dimensions of engagement there were both positive and negative contributions depending on the context. In the case of dedication, the recognition of work through feedback and praise from a friend was seen as a factor that makes the employee dedicate themselves more, but some interactions loaded with negative emotions and thoughts with these friends can have the opposite effect. As for vigor, something similar was seen, with emphasis on the socio-emotional support provided between friends in times of difficulty, which was reported as being a factor that motivates and gives the will to work, however interactions full of negative emotions have a demotivating power. Finally, as for absorption, more negative contributions were seen, with reports that friends are sources of distraction at work, but this same distraction in moments of complex or difficult activities might renew energies. In this way, this study is relevant for showing the details and nuances of this subject, which is normally studied quantitatively by academia.