The endless pursuit for self-validation through attainment: An examination of self-esteem in relation to workaholism

Relationships among self-esteem, workaholism, and work stress were investigated. Data were collected from 414 faculty and staff members at a large Southeastern university and a large manufacturing organization. Workaholism and work stress were positively related to each other, while self-esteem was negatively related to workaholism. A serial mediation analysis revealed that all direct paths were statistically significant, with the exception of the direct path from self-esteem to work stress. Low self-esteem led to workaholism, workaholism led to working more hours and to greater work stress, and working more hours also led to increased stress. •Workaholism is positively related to work stress.•Self-esteem is negatively related workaholism.•A serial mediation model involving all study variables is proposed.•Low self-esteem leads to workaholism, and workaholism leads to greater work stress.•Workaholism leads to more hours worked, and more hours worked lead to more stress.