A new method to measure flow in professional tasks – A FLOW-W questionnaire (FLOW at Work)

Abstract

The aim of the article is to present a new Polish tool for measuring the flow experience in professional tasks - a FLOW-W Questionnaire. The questionnaire was inspired by Csikszentmihalyi’s (1990) flow theory and flow in Bakker’s work (2008). On its basis a set of positions was established, on which subsequently an exploratory (study 1, N = 101) and confirmatory (study 2, N = 275) factor analysis was conducted. The analysis showed the possibility of a uni- or bifactorial solution. After checking the theoretical and empirical validity of both solutions, the unifactorial solution was adopted. The validity of the questionnaire was examined, i.a. by correlations with theoretically related variables: work engagement with the UWES questionnaire (Szabowska-Walaszczyk, Zawadzka, Wojtaś, 2011) and affect at work (Zalewska, 2002). The studies showed a significant positive correlation between flow at work and work engagement (0.84) and between flow and positive affect (0.74). The reliability of the questionnaire is very high; α = 0.96. The tool has very good psychometric properties.

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Original Papers
* University of Silesia, Faculty of Social Sciences, Katowice
** University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Faculty in Poznań
Corresponding author: Beata Wolfigiel
Beata Wolfigiel*
Agnieszka Czerw**
A new method to measure flow in professional tasks
– A FLOW-W questionnaire (FLOW at Work)
Abstract: The aim of the article is to present a new Polish tool for measuring the flow experience in professional tasks –
a FLOW-W Questionnaire. The questionnaire was inspired by Csikszentmihalyi’s (1990) flow theory and flow in Bakker’s
work (2008). On its basis a set of positions was established, on which subsequently an exploratory (study 1, N = 101) and
confirmatory (study 2, N = 275) factor analysis was conducted. The analysis showed the possibility of a uni- or bifactorial
solution. After checking the theoretical and empirical validity of both solutions, the unifactorial solution was adopted.
The validity of the questionnaire was examined, i.a. by correlations with theoretically related variables: work engagement
with the UWES questionnaire (Szabowska-Walaszczyk, Zawadzka, Wojtaś, 2011) and affect at work (Zalewska, 2002). The
studies showed a significant positive correlation between flow at work and work engagement (0.84) and between flow
and positive affect (0.74). The reliability of the questionnaire is very high; α = 0.96. The tool has very good psychometric
properties.
Key words: job satisfaction, motivation, questionnaire, engagement, flow
Polish Psychological Bulletin
2017, vol. 48(2) 220–228
DOI - 10.1515/ppb-2017-0025
Introduction
The flow denoting a very specific subjective feeling
which is experienced during the execution of various
activities, has been for years the research objective in many
countries all over the world (Csikszentmihalyi, 1988, 1990,
2000; Csikszentmihalyi and LeFevre, 1989; Rheinberg,
2006; Engeser, Schiepe-Tiska, 2012; Harmat, Andersen
et al., 2016). Unfortunately, in Poland flow still remains
outside the scope of scientific interest. It is interesting for
practitioners (e.g. coaches), but almost completely ignored
by researchers. It seems to be worthwhile to change that.
Therefore, the aim of this article is to present an originally
developed tool for measuring the flow experience in
professional tasks.
According to the definition developed by Mihaly
Csikszentmihalyi (1990) who is the author of the
concept – flow is an optimal autotelic experience, deep
satisfaction or elation when the body or mind undertakes
a large voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult
and worthwhile. The flow experience is autotelic, which
means it is rewarding on its own and associated with the
occurrence of internal motivation. It is worth noting that
flow appears in different areas of life and, as presented by
numerous studies, occurs most often while doing sports,
hobbies and when learning and working (Csikszentmihalyi,
1990, 2000; Csikszentmihalyi and LeFevre, 1989; Engeser,
Schiepe-Tiska, 2012; Harmat, Andersen et al., 2016).
The flow concept also contributed to the creation
of experimental curricula, it is used in training business
people, designing services and products related to spending
leisure time (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). It has found
application in: clinical psychotherapy, rehabilitation of
juvenile offenders, organising classes in retirement homes,
in occupational therapy for the intellectually disabled
(Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) and in professional coaching
(Ochinowski, 2009).
The author of the flow concept, as mentioned earlier,
is Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi who has been studying flow
experiences since 1965, along with scientists around the
world, i.a. in Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea and Australia
(list of studies: Csikszentmihalyi, 1988, 1990, 2000;
Csikszentmihalyi and LeFevre, 1989; Rheinberg, 2006;
Engeser, Schiepe-Tiska, 2012; Harmat, Andersen et al.,
2016). Interestingly, despite the worldwide popularity of
flow studies, there are no researchers absorbed with this
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A new method to measure flow in professional tasks – A FLOW-W questionnaire (FLOW at Work) 221
topic in Poland. After analysing the available literature
and research reports, only one Polish scientific study
concerning the research in flow among swimmers,
conducted by M. Mikicin (2007), was found. Also,
Porczyńska made reference to this idea in her doctoral
thesis, she did not use the term of flow directly, but used
the notion of happiness (Porczyńska, 2006). It seems that
in the face of so many research projects and practical
implementations of this concept throughout the world
(Csikszentmihalyi, 1988, 1990; Engeser and Schiepe-Tiska,
2012, Harmat, Andersen et al., 2016) it is worth trying to
verify it in studies which are conducted in our country.
Flow experienced in a work situation
The knowledge of flow is also used in a work
situation, and the best-known person in the scientific
community who deals with this is professor Arnold Bakker.
He defines (Bakker, 2008) flow in professional tasks as
a short-lasting peak experience happening during work and
characterised by: absorption – a state of total concentration
where employees are preoccupied with work; work
enjoyment – an effect of cognitive and affective evaluation
of experienced flow at work; intrinsic work motivation –
performing a professional task in order to experience the
pleasure and satisfaction that comes from this activity.
Bakker’s research results (2008) indicate that work
enjoyment is the most important predictor of an employee
performance in their standard occupational duties. On the other
hand, the intrinsic motivation (but not absorption) is the most
important predictor of an employee performance in tasks that
go beyond the standard duties, which increase the efficiency
of the organisation. Other studies conducted among secondary
school teachers (Salanova, Bakker, Llorens, 2006) indicate that
organisational resources such as social support, innovation or
clear goals have a positive impact on flow occurrence, as well
as personal resources understood as a self-efficacy at work.
Interestingly, the flow experience has positive impact on
personal and organisational resources. So we are dealing here
with the feedback between flow and personal or organisational
resources.
One of the practical applications of the knowledge
about the optimal experience in human resources
management is an example of the Ericsson company and
its vice-president Stefan Falk who was influenced by the
book “Flow” (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) and implemented
into his organisation a special system to increase the
efficiency and work engagement (Pink, 2012). Following
the recommendations of M. Csikszentmihalyi some
attempts were made to create the conditions conducive to
concentration, precise matching of the employees’ tasks
to their abilities and to maintaining constant, close contact
with the manager. It turned out that this motivational method
proved to be very effective, and the staff felt very satisfied
with it. Falk moved then to a Swedish company Green
Cargo, where he developed a method of training managers,
which acquainted them with the functioning of the flow
theory. After 2 years the Green Cargo company became
profitable for the first time in 125 years, and the management
gives the newly discovered “flowcentrism” as the main
reason for it. Following this example, other companies such
as Microsoft, Patagonia and Toyota are trying to create an
environment encouraging flow (Pink, 2012).
It is worth noting that so far the conducted research
has shown mainly positive consequences of experiencing
flow. On the other hand, it can be also assumed that flow
experiences at work are so rewarding that they can lead
to an excessive and thus probably harmful involvement
in work, which can be a significant problem. Nowadays
it is increasingly more common to pay attention to the
‘dark side’ of flow, which can be manifested as addiction,
antisocial behaviour and willingness to take too much risk
(Schuler, 2012). So far, however, insufficient research has
been conducted on this subject to draw any unequivocal
conclusions. Nevertheless, the preliminary reports indicate
that flow can be associated for example with addiction to
computer games and the internet. Sometimes, the desire
to experience flow leads to antisocial behaviours such as
fights and thefts, especially when someone is suffering
from the lack of flow in other areas of life. It can also
provoke neglecting other tasks that do not lead to flow, but
are equally important (e.g. the lack of time for the family,
ignoring the need for sleep). Therefore, to prevent negative
consequences of flow, it is worth to strike the balance – to
broaden the spectrum of the flow experience onto various
spheres of life, without focusing excessively on one of them
(Schuler, 2012).
Flow is not easy to be operationalized because the
definitions of this phenomenon often describe various
constructs which accompany experiencing flow, are its
cause or its consequence. However, the most frequently
recurring constituent components of flow are skills and
challenge. According to Csikszentmihalyi (1990) these
are the most important conditions for achieving flow. In
addition, test results reviewed by Csikszentmihalyi (1990,
2005), referring to components of experiencing flow
(regardless of situation) point to the importance of such
elements like:
• Difficult tasks which are nonetheless suited to high
skills levels of a subject,
• Clearly defined objectives – in activities where there
is no pre-determined objective, one needs to develop
a strong sense of what he or she is going to achieve,
• Feedback – the ability to recognise them is important
here because such information provides us with the
knowledge about the progress in performing an activity,
• Concentration – which means focusing attention
exclusively on the performed action,
• A sense of control over the activity performed, which
can be very subjective in nature, it is often only the
impression of control e.g. the sense of the possibility
to control the danger in risky activities,
• Loss of self-consciousness – that is, the loss of
perceiving oneself as something separated from the
rest of the world, the feeling of oneness with the
environment,
• Transformation of time – the sense of time often has
no connection with its real passage, time either stops
or flows faster.
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Whereas, among the factors that condition the
occurrence of flow at work, Csikszentmihalyi (2004)
indicates the freedom to choose the method of achieving
an objective, tailoring tasks both to skills and the value
of the employee and his actual psychophysical condition,
setting clear and understandable organizational goals
and the employee themselves. He also stresses that the
feedback from other people or from the employee’s internal
standards, as well as visible work effects are very important
for the flow experience.
Methods of measuring flow
Initially, the flow experience was investigated by
conducting interviews, but other measurement tools
gradually developed over time. Nowadays, four main ways
of measurement can be distinguished: narrative, active,
experience sampling and questionnaires.
In the narrative method respondents describe the
flow experience from the past and then evaluate it using
a research tool e.g. Privette’s “Experience questionnaire”
(Privett, Bundrick, 1987). It seems that narrative methods
are among the easiest ones to use. However, the information
obtained through them may be distorted because of the
difficulties in extracting them from memory.
On the other hand, in active methods respondents first
perform a specific type of activity (e.g. a group computer
exercise), then they are asked to assess these experiences
(Novak, Hoffman, 1997). Active methods can picture
the flow experience better, especially when a person
completes the test method immediately after its experience,
memories are not distorted then. The active method is
particularly useful for measurements referring to specific
actions that can be performed in laboratory conditions
(Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). In other cases, unfortunately, it
is very difficult.
Another type of method is the Experience Sampling
Method. The method stipulates that respondents carry
a pager which signals them each day during a week-long
period when they have to assess an action which is being
currently performed. They have to evaluate a particular
activity using a tool, that they carry, that serves to assess
the flow (Novak, Hoffman, 1997; Csikszentmihalyi, 2000).
Csikszentmihalyi (1990) recommends the method of
experience sampling as the one that allows you to obtain
the most precise data about the shape and the quality of
everyday life. In contrast, S. Jackson and H. Marsh (1996)
pointed out that more research is required to verify its
reliability and validity and emphasised practical problems
associated with its use – difficulty in application and
incomplete results (Kimiecik and Stein, 1992). In addition,
the signal of the pager can interrupt flow and cause
difficulties in a reliable reconstruction of this experience
(Engeser, Schiepe-Tiska, 2012).
Currently, questionnaires are used more and more
often to study flow because of their reliability and
validity and ease of use. An example of this method is
a questionnaire to study the flow at work – The Work-
reLated Flow inventory (WOLF) by A.B. Bakker (2008).
The questionnaire measures flow components which are:
absorption, work enjoyment and intrinsic work motivation.
A.B. Bakker’s questionnaire was based on a study of
seven professional groups with a total of 1346 people.
High scores in each of the scales simultaneously indicate
the flow experience. Another tool is Die-Flow Kurzskala
FKS – a scale to study flow created by F. Rheinberg (2003).
The Flow State Scale created by S. Jackson (Tenenbaum,
Fogarty, Jackson, 1999) is also popular – a questionnaire
used to study the flow experience primarily among athletes.
Of course, each method has its strengths and
weaknesses, and its choice should be dependent primarily
on the purpose of the study. However, one should be first
of all aware that many tools being in use examine the
conditions of experiencing flow, its characteristics and
consequences at the same time. One such example is The
Flow State Scale (Tenenbaum, Fogarty, Jackson, 1999).
It seems that for the benefit of the measurement these
components should be clearly distinguished. In this respect
the WOLF questionnaire by Bakker (2008) is a good
example of such a method.
The FLOW-W Questionnaire
– stages of formation
The original questionnaire, presented here, for studying
the frequency of experiencing flow in the performance of
professional tasks was inspired by the theory of flow in
Bakker’s work (2008), by his questionnaire, The Flow State
Scale (Tenenbaum, Fogarty, Jackson, 1999), and also by the
Scale of Experiencing Happiness (Porczyńska, 2006) and
Die-Flow Kurzskala FKS (Rheinberg, 2003). Proprietary
items were formed on the basis of descriptions of flow from
literature and proprietary research (Wolfigiel, 2003), using the
procedure of paraphrase, for example: “My consciousness
was completely absorbed by the performed action”, “I would
like to still relive those moments, which professional activity
gave me.” On their basis a set of 24 items subjected to further
analysis was created. A Polish philologist made an assessment
of the linguistic correctness of questionnaire items.
The analysis of the FLOW-W Questionnaire
content relevance
The content relevance was determined with the method
of competent judges. The experts were five psychologists
with PhD titles and specialization in occupational psychology
or social psychology, who assessed their knowledge of
the concept of flow at a very good or good level. Four
psychologists have worked in the profession for between 20
and 33 years, one has worked for 6 years.
The competent judges were instructed to assess to
what extent the presented items of the questionnaire are
useful (on a scale from 1 to 5) to evaluate the experience
of the flow state. The content validity ratio by Lawshe
(Lawshe, 1975 in: Hornowska, 2003) was used for
calculation of compliance with the ratings of the judges.
In the questionnaire the items which received a positive
value greater than zero were retained, which means that
more than half of the judges assessed them highly. Nine of
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A new method to measure flow in professional tasks – A FLOW-W questionnaire (FLOW at Work) 223
them obtained the value of 1 so all the judges agreed that
items are very useful. The Content Validity Index for the
entire tool amounts to 0.76.
Study I – the constructional study
The study was conducted in 20111 on a sample of
101 people in different occupations (M = 34, SD = 8.9).
The group consisted of 64 women and 37 men. Types of
employment: 69 people were bound by an employment
contract and 32 had other forms of employment (self-
employment, entrepreneurship, freelancing). The job
seniority in the current profession varied greatly from
1 month to 23 years. Education: from secondary to
higher education with a PhD degree. The subjects were
recruited through personal channels and by e-mail. They
received an invitation with an explanation as to the course
and purpose of the study and a link to the electronically
prepared research form. The participation in the research
was undertaken by people who expressed willingness to
do so. The participants had their anonymity guaranteed and
were informed about scientific purposes of the research.
At this stage of the research the exploratory factor
analysis was conducted using the principal component
analysis method with the Oblimin rotation. First of all, the
compatibility of the received data with the assumptions
of the analysis was checked. The value of KMO = 0.945
and the result of the Barlett’s test of sphericity was at
a p = 0.001 level proved satisfactory. Three factors of
eigenvalue equal to 1 or higher, which explain a total
of 72.31% of variance, were identified in the course of
exploratory factor analysis. While analysing the scree plot
(Figure 1) one can notice that its steepness suggests rather
2 factors. Therefore, a bifactorial solution, which explains
67.46% of variance, was adopted.
The final version of the assignment of questionnaire
items to two separate factors (Table 1) was created after
elimination of items with factor loads of less than 0.70. The
final questionnaire consists of 15 items.
Factor 1 – ABSORPTION (7 items, α = 0.94)
– complete preoccupation with the performed task to
the point where the world around ceases to exist. This
preoccupation is associated with absolute concentration on
the currently performed activity.
Example items: “When I was working I forgot about
the world around me,” “My mind was completely focused
on the performed activity.”
Factor 2 – POSITIVE EMOTIONS (8 items,
α = 0.95) – denotes an experience giving profound
satisfaction, sense of purpose, one which is satisfying in
itself. Due to the presence of positive emotions, a person is
willing repeat such experiences even though they require
a significant effort. Examples items: “I carried out the task
in my job with enthusiasm,” “I would like to constantly
experience moments which my professional activity has
brought me.”
Study II – the confirmatory study
As five years have passed since the first study, it
seemed sensible to confirm whether the structure of the
questionnaire obtained back then is still relevant. The
next study was conducted in 2016 on a slightly larger
sample (N = 275). The subjects were aged between 20
to 68, the average age was 35.5 years, SD = 7.8. The
group consisted of 194 women and 91 men. Types of
employment: 180 people were bound by an employment
contract and 95 had other forms of employment (self-
employment, entrepreneurship, freelancing). The job
Figure 1. The scree plot of the 24-item version of FLOW-W – graphic interpretation of exploration factor analysis
1 The results of this research have not been published yet.
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seniority in the current profession was 8 years, SD = 6.8
years, and the average job seniority was 13 years, SD = 7.7
years. Education: from primary to higher education with
a PhD or higher academic title. The subjects were recruited
through social media. They received an invitation with an
explanation as to the course and purpose of the study and
a link to the electronically prepared research form. The
participation in the research was undertaken by people who
expressed willingness to do so. The participants had their
anonymity guaranteed and were informed about scientific
purposes of the research.
The collected data was subjected to factor analysis.
The aim of this analysis was to assess whether the
bifactorial structure obtained in the first study would be
confirmed. For this reason, another factor analysis was
conducted using the principal component analysis method
with the Oblimin rotation and the assumption of the
existence of 2 factors.
The value of KMO = 0.945 and the Barlett’s test of
sphericity at a p = 0.001 level were satisfactory.
The results of the factorial analysis showed that the
bifactorial solution is possible to sustain. The scree plot
(Fig. 2) suggests a uni- or bifactorial solution and the factor
loading matrix (table 2) confirms the distribution of the
positions in both factors analogously to the original one.
While analysing both the scree plot and factor loading
matrix data one can observe that the obtained data may
well suggest the adoption of a unifactorial solution. First of
all, there is a very steep line on the first and second scree
plot. Secondly, the factor loads of questionnaire items in
Table 1. FLOW-W exploratory factor analysis using Oblimin rotation with Kaiser normalization
Items 1 2
My work gave me many positive emotions. 0.910 0.081
I enjoyed what I was doing, even if it was a difficult task. 0.813 0.123
I carried out my professional tasks with enthusiasm 0.809 0.099
I experienced a lot of fun during the performance of the chosen professional task. 0.807 0.091
The performed work gave me a sense of fulfilment. 0.768 0.145
I was fascinated with my professional task. 0.708 0.220
The work that I was busy with was a reward in itself. 0.707 0.234
I would like to constantly relive the moments that professional activity gave me. 0.701 0.131
I was passionate about the task I performed at work. 0.677 0.239
The performance of a professional activity alone was highly rewarding for me. 0.663 0.243
My motivation emerged from the work itself and not from external rewards associated with it. 0.662 0.110
I was full of energy while performing the task. 0.654 0.304
When I dealt with the chosen professional task, I experienced the moments of maximum
satisfaction. 0.639 0.245
External benefits of my work were more important for me than the activity at work itself. 0.619 0.326
I could get excited about the work despite unfavourable external conditions 0.570 0.338
I felt that even if I did not have to work at all I would still be doing this job. 0.556 0.252
I was completely absorbed in the work. 0.147 0.817
When I was working, I forgot about everything else around. 0.061 0.816
When I was involved in a professional task, nothing else mattered. 0.060 0.799
I was “completely immersed” in performing a professional task. 0.182 0.779
When I was working, I did not think about anything else. 0.001 0.725
My consciousness was completely absorbed by the activity I performed. 0.246 0.725
I was obsessed with what I was doing. 0.244 0.706
I worked so intensively that I lost the track of time. 0.169 0.635
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A new method to measure flow in professional tasks – A FLOW-W questionnaire (FLOW at Work) 225
both dimensions reach fairly high values, which in the
majority of cases are greater than 0.5. For this reason, the
connection between two separate factors was examined. It
turned out the correlation between the two questionnaire
scales is r = 0.72; p ≤ 0.01, which indicates a very strong
relationship. Taking all these indications into consideration,
it was ultimately decided that the most reasonable solution
is to adopt a unifactorial solution. The reliability of the
questionnaire measured with the Cronbach’s coefficient was
very high: α = 0.96.
The FLOW-W Questionnaire validity analysis
During the analysis of the FLOW-W questionnaire
structure, the analysis of the validity of flow measurement
in professional tasks was also conducted on the same
sample. Due to the lack of other tools to study flow at
work in Poland, the validity of the FLOW-W questionnaire
was analysed by examining the relationship between flow
and variables theoretically associated with it. The chosen
variables were: work engagement according to Schaufeli
and Bakker (Schaufeli and Bakker, 2003; 2010) diagnosed
with the UWES-PL questionnaire (Szabowska-Walaszczyk,
2010; Szabowska-Walaszczyk, Zawadzka, Wojtaś, 2011),
and positive affect at work measured with one of the Job
Affect Scale dimensions (Burke, Brief, George Robinson
and Webster, 1989) as adapted by Zalewska – SAP (2002).
The choice of these tools is justified by the similarity of
the definitions of tested variables. Schaufeli and Bakker
in their definition of engagement distinguish three factors:
vigour, dedication, and absorption, which are understood
as full concentration and involvement in the performed
task, associated with the sense of the rapid passage of time,
and difficulties in discontinuing the work (2003). Such
absorption occurs while experiencing flow, as understood
by Csikszentmihalyi (1990). Moreover, as described above,
Bakker characterises flow at work also by absorption, work
enjoyment, and intrinsic work motivation (2008). One can
therefore assume that preoccupation is the connecting factor
of flow and commitment to work.
In turn, the positive affect analysed through SAP
denotes pleasant commitment, desire to live and enthusiasm
(Zalewska, 2002), which is also consistent with the feelings
declared by people experiencing flow (Csikszentmihalyi,
Figure 2. The scree plot of 15-item version of FLOW-W – graphic interpretation of confirmation factor analysis
Table 2. FLOW-W exploratory factor analysis
using Oblimin rotation with Kaiser normalization
The component
12
item10 0.910 0.642
item7 0.883 0.545
item4 0.865 0.607
item12 0.863 0.576
item15 0.862 0.622
item8 0.852 0.630
item2 0.849 0.485
item13 0.848 0.620
item5 0.630 0.871
item3 0.534 0.863
item11 0.716 0.858
item9 0.668 0.853
item1 0.494 0.848
item6 0.522 0.819
item14 0.601 0.813
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1990). On these grounds it was assumed that flow at work
should be positively associated with involvement in work
and positive affect at work.
The results of the analysis indicate that the correlation
between flow during professional tasks and professional
work engagement was r = 0.84; p ≤ 0.001. A similarly high
correlation between flow during professional tasks and
positive affect at work: r = 0.74; p ≤ 0.001. Moreover, the
relationship between flow and the second dimension of the
SAP questionnaire, the negative affect, was examined. In
this case the correlation was slightly lower and negative:
r = -0.46; p ≤ 0.001. These results are consistent with the
assumptions and allow for recognising the questionnaire as
accurate.
Apart from the examination of the relation of flow
to other psychological variables, the validity of the
questionnaire was examined by applying the FLOW-W
result to questions directly related to the experience of flow
at work, just as A.B. Bakker did (2008). For this purpose,
we presented the respondents the following statement:
“I immerse in work, I lose the track of time, I am absolutely
obsessed with what I do. I have the feeling that at this
moment nothing else is important. I work at full speed,
and I trust myself more than in any other situation. It is
a fascinating and exciting experience that gives me the
feeling of fulfilment and a deep sense of purpose in my work.
I would like to constantly relive such moments.”
Then the respondents were asked to assess whether they
had ever had a similar experience in their work (yes
/ no) and how often it happened (from 1 – very seldom,
to 5 – very often). It was assumed that there will be
a difference in the result of the FLOW-W questionnaire
between the groups of people experiencing and not
experiencing flow at work, as well as a positive correlation
between the result of the FLOW-W and the frequency of
experiencing the feelings described in the text.
Analysis of responses to the first question about
the fact that the experience of flow at work indicated
that indeed people (N = 162) who have ever experienced
the flow of work have significantly higher scores on the
FLOW-W questionnaire than the people (N = 113), who did
not have such experience. The difference is t(273) = 10.95;
p = 0.001 between groups of people who responded
affirmatively (M = 54.98, SD = 10.40) and negatively
(M = 40.71, SD = 10.95).
As regards the second question – about the frequency
of experiencing the described state – correlation was
counted only in the group of people who responded
affirmatively to the first question. In this way the people
who stated that they had never experienced flow in their
work were eliminated. It turned out that the correlation
between the result of the FLOW-W questionnaire with
the answer to the second question is strong and positive
(r = 0.663; p ≤ 0.001).
As can be seen both analyses of additional questions
confirm the validity of the new questionnaire.
Discussion of results and conclusions
Adopting the subject of diagnosing flow experience
at work in Polish conditions seems to be particularly
important due to the lack of research tools applied in
Poland in this area, as well as due to the almost total
absence of scientific literature on flow in the Polish
language. Given the extraordinary popularity of research
in flow conducted worldwide, it would be unfortunate for
Polish researchers to overlook this field of knowledge. That
is why a Polish diagnostic tool based on theories recognised
worldwide is an important contribution to the development
of science.
The questionnaire for studying the frequency of
experiencing flow, presented in this article, has good
psychometric properties and it seems that it can be
successfully used for scientific purposes. Due to the
relatively small size of the groups in both studies, it
should be concluded that the questionnaire is presently
still an initial version. Nevertheless, this research
tool will allow researchers to collect more data. After
collecting a sufficiently large number of subjects (e.g. over
500 people) confirmatory factor analysis using adjustment
indicators of theoretical model to the empirical data can be
performed. For this reason, the publication of the article
about the questionnaire is an important step in conducting
research to verify its psychometric properties and the
preparation of standards.
The limitations of these studies certainly lie in unequal
sizes of the respondent groups of men and women. In the
first study, women accounted for 63%, men for 37% of the
sample, in the second study, there were 70.5% women and
only 29.5% men. It is therefore important to collect more
data from working men. Then it would be possible to assess
if gender is important for flow experiencing. This study
verified whether there is a difference with relation to the
gender, but the result was not statistically significant.
Another issue, which in this study was only controlled
was the matter related to the education level, company
size and form of employment. Unfortunately, in this
case as well, the uneven distribution of the respondents
in the groups does not give reliable results (it was found
that there were no significant differences) concerning
the possible impact of these employment parameters on
the incidence of experiencing flow at work. Moreover,
the type of profession seems significant for experiencing
flow and it was not controlled here. Csikszentmihalyi
(1990) argues that flow can be experienced in any type
of situation, but still there are research results showing
that there are activities that are particularly conducive to
such experiences (Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). Of course,
after collecting a sufficiently large and much more diverse
sample group, the validity of unifactorial solutions should
also be reassessed.
In addition, it is also important to bear in mind the
difficulty of capturing the experience of flow in the
survey questionnaire. Therefore, alternative methods of
flow testing should be considered, as well as combining
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A new method to measure flow in professional tasks – A FLOW-W questionnaire (FLOW at Work) 227
several methods in the full diagnosis of this phenomenon.
On account of this, in further studies it is planned to more
carefully consider the aforementioned environmental
factors (related to employment characteristics) and
subjective factors conditioning the experience of flow.
Owing to this it will probably be possible to identify factors
that increase the probability of flow experience in a work
situation. In further research it is also worth taking a closer
look at the possible consequences of experiencing flow in
a work situation. This is a highly significant issue for the
employee and for the organization in which they work.
Since there are indications of the relationship between flow
and the experience of well-being (high correlation between
flow during professional tasks and positive affect at work:
r = 0.74; p ≤ 0.001), the research in this area should be
extended e.g. by verification whether all types of well-
being (hedonistic, eudaimonistic) have the same sensitivity
to the flow experienced by an employee.
Earlier in this article the probable negative
consequences of experiencing flow at work were also
mentioned. Therefore, in future studies it would be also
useful to address this problem – for example, excessive
involvement in work leading to distorting the balance
between personal life and professional life.
Investigating not only the frequency of experiencing
flow, but also its depth, would be an interesting
complement to the research. It turns out that flow has
many facets, and in our daily lives we encounter less
intensive experiences. The research in the depth of flow
was conducted by Giovanni Moneta (2012), who also
draws attention to another way of approaching flow. The
author argues that flow can have a purely hedonistic tone
(pleasure) when the subject is characterised by high skills
in situations perceived as a medium challenge. On the
other hand, flow can bring about cognitive efficiency if we
estimate the challenge as high, and have medium skills.
As can be seen, there are many areas of research
related to the problems of flow at work, and the new
questionnaire presented here may help in the development
of this area of knowledge2.
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2 If you are interested in knowing the current version of the questionnaire please contact the author at the following address: entuzja@entuzja.pl.
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