Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES)

The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) is a nine-item questionnaire that assesses energy levels and psychological resilience at work, as well as feelings of importance, inspiration, pride, challenge and focus at work. These are aligned with three dimensions of work engagement: vigour (items 1, 2, 5), dedication (items 3, 4, 7) and absorption (items 6, 8, 9).

Length of completion

The entire questionnaire takes approximately 5 minutes to complete.

Individualized feedback for the respondent

The respondent will learn about themselves and the extent to which they are engaged in their work.

Keywords

Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, UWES, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, commitment, energy, dedication, absorption, work

Scoring and interpretation

It is possible to calculate a total score for each dimension separately by summing the items for that dimension and dividing by the number of those items, or a total score for the whole scale using a similar procedure. It therefore ranges from 0-6, with higher scores indicating higher levels of work engagement.

Response Scale

The respondent rates each statement on a Likert scale that reflects how often the person experiences these feelings at work: 0=never; 1=sometimes never/several times a year or less; 2=rarely/once a month or less; 3=sometimes/several times a month; 4=often/once a week; 5=very often/several times a week; 6=always/every day.

References

Domínguez-Salas, S., Rodríguez-Domínguez, C., Arcos-Romero, A. I., Allande-Cussó, R., García-Iglesias, J. J., & Gómez-Salgado, J. (2022). Psychometric Properties of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9) in a Sample of Active Health Care Professionals in Spain. Psychology research and behavior management, 15, 3461–3472. https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S387242

Mills, M. J., Culbertson, S. S., & Fullagar, C. J. (2012). Conceptualizing and measuring engagement: An analysis of the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale. Journal of Happiness Studies: An Interdisciplinary Forum on Subjective Well-Being, 13(3), 519–545. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-011-9277-3

Schaufeli, W. and Bakker, A. (2004) UWES Utrecht Work Engagement Scale Preliminary Manual. Occupational Health Psychology Unit Utrecht University, Utrecht. https://www.wilmarschaufeli.nl/publications/Schaufeli/Test%20Manuals/Test_manual_UWES_English.pdf

Schaufeli, W. B., Bakker, A. B., & Salanova, M. (2006). The Measurement of Work Engagement With a Short Questionnaire: A Cross-National Study. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 66(4), 701–716. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164405282471