فتانه فروغی مقدم

Social adjustment functions as a connecting bridge in human interactions. High self-worth, by enhancing employees’ communication and interpersonal skills, provides a foundation for greater psychological well-being. In fact, a major portion of self-worth’s influence on mental well-being is realized through an individual’s capacity to establish constructive relationships with others in the workplace. The present study aimed to examine the mediating role of social adjustment in the relationship between self-worth and psychological well-being among employees. This research was applied in purpose and employed a descriptive-correlational design using structural equation modeling (SEM). The statistical population consisted of all 240 female employees of Zahedan Health Center in 2024, all of whom were included in the study through a census sampling method. Data were collected using Bell Adjustment Inventory (1961), Contingencies of Self-Worth Scale by Crocker et al. (2003), and Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being Scale (1995). Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 20 and LISREL software. Path analysis results revealed significant positive correlation between social adjustment and psychological well-being (r = 0.79, p < 0.01), between self-worth and social adjustment (r = 0.57, p < 0.01), and between self-worth and psychological well-being (r = 0.48, p < 0.01). The Sobel test yielded a Z-value of 12.45, which exceeded the critical value of 1.96. Therefore, at a 95% of confidence level, it can be concluded that social adjustment plays a significant mediating role in the relationship between self-worth and employees’ psychological well-being.