Psychological Empowerment, Quality of Work Life, and Employee Performance: Dual Mediation of Commitment and Satisfaction in Indonesia's Manufacturing Sector

Abstract

Although empowerment and quality of work life have been widely examined in global HRM literature, empirical studies that simultaneously test their dual mediation effects through organizational commitment and job satisfaction remain scarce, particularly in Indonesia's labor-intensive manufacturing sector. This study addresses this gap by investigating how psychological empowerment and quality of work life shape employee performance through these two mediators in Central Java. Grounded in Social Exchange Theory, the research explores how employees in a collectivist and hierarchical work culture reciprocate organizational support with affective attachment and evaluative judgments that drive performance outcomes. Using data from 211 manufacturing employees and analyzed through partial least squares structural equation modeling, the findings reveal that psychological empowerment significantly enhances both organizational commitment and job satisfaction, with commitment emerging as the most influential predictor of performance. Job satisfaction positively mediates the link between empowerment and performance, but unexpectedly exerts a negative mediation between quality of work life and performance. Theoretically, this study advances Social Exchange Theory by clarifying the differentiated roles of affective and evaluative mechanisms in collectivist industrial contexts. Practically, the results provide actionable guidance for HR managers in manufacturing firms to prioritize empowerment initiatives and commitment-building strategies—such as autonomy in decision-making, recognition systems, and trust-based cultures—to sustain employee loyalty, stability, and productivity in highly competitive labor-intensive environments.