Is Smart Working Beneficial for Workers' Wellbeing? A Longitudinal Investigation of Smart Working, Workload, and Hair Cortisol/Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Building on the job demands-resources (JD-R) and allostatic load (AL) models, in the present study we examined the role of smart working (SW) in the longitudinal association between workload/job autonomy (JA) and a possible biomarker of work-related stress (WRS) in the hair-namely, the cortisol-dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA(S)) ratio-during the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, 124 workers completed a self-report questionnaire (i.e., psychological data) at Time 1 (T1) and provided a strand of hair (i.e., biological data) three months later (Time 2, T2). Results from moderated multiple regression analysis showed that SW at T1 was negatively associated with the hair cortisol/DHEA(S) ratio at T2. Additionally, the interaction between workload and SW was significant, with workload at T1 being positively associated with the hair cortisol/DHEA(S) ratio at T2 among smart workers. Overall, this study indicates that SW is a double-edged sword, with both positive and negative consequences on employee wellbeing. Furthermore, our findings suggest that the hair cortisol/DHEA(S) ratio is a promising biomarker of WRS. Practical implications that organizations and practitioners can adopt to prevent WRS and promote organizational wellbeing are discussed

Work addiction among bank employees in Italy: A contribution to validation of the Bergen Work Addiction Scale with a focus on measurement invariance across gender and managerial status

This study contributes to the validation of the Bergen Work Addiction Scale (BWAS) in the Italian context, with a focus on measurement invariance across gender and managerial status. The BWAS is a consolidated measure of work addiction (WA) anchored in general addiction theory that comprises seven items representing the core addiction components. Participants were 8419 bank workers (37.7% women, 12.9% managers) who completed a self-report questionnaire including the Italian version of the BWAS (BWAS-I) and the Dutch Work Addiction Scale, as well as measures of work engagement, perfectionism, workload, psycho-physical symptoms, work–family conflict, and job satisfaction. Results confirmed the single-factor structure of the BWAS-I. Partial scalar invariance held across gender and managerial status, meaning that most—but not all—item intercepts were equivalent across different populations. Furthermore, the BWAS-I showed adequate convergent, discriminant, criterion-related, and incremental validity. This study showed that the BWAS-I is a valuable instrument that can be used by researchers and practitioners to assess WA in the Italian context.publishedVersio

Dalla prevenzione alla gestione dello stress lavoro-correlato

Scadenze, ritardi, pressioni dai capi, screzi con i colleghi possono portare a quello che viene definito stress da lavoro: pressione, agitazione, ansia da prestazione sono alcune delle sensazioni spiacevoli che possono manifestarsi nella vita quotidiana di un lavoratore. Il volume, a partire dalle indicazioni proposte dall\u2019Agenzia europea per la sicurezza e la salute sul lavoro, fornisce strumenti, esperienze e buone pratiche, per passare dagli esiti della valutazione del rischio alla concreta prevenzione e gestione dello stress lavoro-correlato

When Does Work Interfere With Teachers’ Private Life? An Application of the Job Demands-Resources Model

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between contextual work-related factors on the one hand, in terms of job demands (i.e., risk factors) and job resources (i.e., protective factors), and work-family conflict (WFC) in teachers on the other. Building on the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model, we hypothesized that job demands, namely qualitative, and quantitative workload, are positively associated with WFC in teachers. Moreover, in line with the buffer hypothesis of the JD-R, we expected job resources, in terms of support from supervisor (SS), job autonomy (JA), and participation in decision making (PDM), to affect this association, which is expected to be stronger when job resources are low. The study was conducted in an Italian secondary school. Overall, 122 teachers completed a self-report questionnaire aimed at determining WFC, as well as job demands and resources. The hypothesized relationships were tested using moderated multiple regression. The results of this study largely support our predictions. First, both aspects of workload were positively associated with WFC. Secondly, job resources, including SS and PDM, buffered this association, which was stronger when resources were low. On the contrary, JA did not buffer the association between workload and WFC. Overall, the results of this study are consistent with the JD-R model and contribute to the understanding of work–family conflict among teachers. More specifically, our study suggests that teachers with high levels of job resources, namely SS and PDM, can effectively cope with job demands, in terms of both qualitative and quantitative workload, thus preventing negative consequences such as conflict between work and family domains. Interventions aimed at preventing WFC among teachers should encourage organizations to optimize the balance between job demands and resources, as well as the identification and training of the workers at risk of WFC

Hair dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate as biomarker of employees’ well-being? A longitudinal investigation of support, resilience, and work engagement during COVID-19 pandemic

IntroductionBuilding on the motivational process of the job demands-resources (JD-R) theory, in the current research we investigated the longitudinal association between supervisor support/resilience as job/personal resources, work engagement (WE) and hair dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, or DHEA(S), as a possible biomarker of employees’ well-being.MethodsIn the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, 122 workers completed two self-report questionnaires (i.e., psychological data): the former at Time 1 (T1) and the latter three months afterwards, at Time 2 (T2). Participants also collected a strand of hair (i.e., biological data) at T2.ResultsResults from path analysis showed that both SS and resilience at T1 were positively related to WE at T2, which, in its turn, was positively related to hair DHEA(S) at T2. Both SS and resilience at T1 had a positive indirect effect on hair DHEA(S) at T2 through WE at T2, which fully mediated the association between job/personal resources and hair DHEA(S).DiscussionOverall, results are consistent with the motivational process of the JD-R. Furthermore, this study provides preliminary evidence for the role of hair DHEA(S) as a biomarker of WE, a type of work-related subjective well-being that plays a central role in the motivational process of the JD-R, leading to favorable personal and organizational outcomes. Finally, the article outlines practical implications for organizations and professionals to foster WE within the workplace

Higher resolution physical numerical model of the Mediterranean Sea in the Copernicus Marine Service

INGV is responsible for the operational production of the physical component of the Mediterranean Sea Monitoring and Forecasting Centre (Med-MFC) of the Copernicus Marine Service Monitoring System (CMEMS). The system was implemented in 2000 by the INGV National Group of Operational oceanography (GNOO) and has been developed in years thanks to a number of European projects. The Med-MFC is a coupled hydrodynamic-wave model with data assimilation component with a resolution of 1/16°. The model solutions are corrected by the variational assimilation (based on a 3DVAR scheme) of Temperature and Salinity vertical profiles (from ARGO, CTD, XBT and Gliders observations) and along track satellite Sea Level Anomaly (SLA) observations. In order to meet the requirements for Copernicus Marine Service Phase I the increase of the horizontal (to 1/24°) and vertical resolution of the hydrodynamic component of Med-MFC has been planned. The major improvements expected from this development are the following: 1) to better resolve the mesoscale processes in the Mediterranean region where the Rossby radius of deformation is about 12-15 km (1/24° is about 4-5 km); 2) to resolve the tidal forcing at Gibraltar, entering from the Atlantic into the Mediterranean, known to provide about 30% amplitude of the tidal signal in the Mediterranean; 3) to better resolve vertical mixing processes.UnpublishedIstituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia. Sede Centrale. Roma3SR. AMBIENTE - Servizi e ricerca per la Societ

First validation of the technical and administrative staff quality of life at work tool (TASQ@work) in academia

IntroductionBased on the job demands-resources (JD-R) model, the present study aimed to validate “The Technical and Administrative Staff Quality of Life At Work” (TASQ@work), a new tool to assess the quality of life at work in academia focused on technical and administrative staff.MethodsThis tool was developed by the QoL@Work research team, a group of expert academics in the field of work and organizational psychology affiliated with the Italian Association of Psychologists. The TASQ@work was elaborated in different steps. The first phase was aimed at the identification of the dimensions of the tool. The second phase was aimed to assess the psychometric properties of the tool. The validation process involved confirmatory analysis and measurement invariance of the various constructs selected. The analyses were performed in a convenience sample of two Italian universities in different regions (one in the Northwest and the second in Central Italy).ResultsThe sample was composed of 1820 Administrative Staff, comprising 69.4% from University 1 (N = 1,263) and 30.6% from University 2 (N = 557). The TASQ@work presented satisfactory psychometric properties (normality of the items, reliability and content, construct and nomological validity) and measurement invariance across gender, seniority, and Athenaeum.DiscussionThe results indicate that the tool can be considered a reliable and valid instrument to assess job demands, job resources, and outcomes in the working life of technical and administrative academic staff. In this perspective, the present study represents the first contribution to the debate on the psychosocial risks in academic contexts by presenting a new tool, the TASQ@work, aimed at contextualizing the JD-R model to understand the role played by psychosocial aspects in affecting the well-being of the academic employees

La valutazione del rischio stress lavoro-correlato: verso un approccio multi metodo

The main objective of the thesis is to propose a multi-method approach for the evaluation of work stress. Some authors consider it inappropriate to the exclusively use self-report measures in order to detect both the stressors and the psychological and/or physical strain within the same research (Grebner, Semmer, & Elfering, 2005). In particular, there are two issues that are most frequently reported. The first refers to common method bias and common method variance, the second to the role of negative affectivity in the process that leads to the formation of work stress. In order to minimize these issues, it is useful to integrate the self-assessments with the assessment of psycho-physical strain carried out by the physician (hetero-evaluation) and/or with objective indicators of disease such as sick leave. The thesis is divided into three studies. The first shows that the negative affectivity influences the perception of the psycho-social context in which the workers are and, indirectly, the psycho-physical strain. In the second study, the metric properties of an instrument designed to allow the evaluation of the psycho-physical strain by the physician were confirmed. The integrated use of self- and hetero-evaluations also allowed to identify some antecedents of psycho-physical strain. In the third study the integrated use of self-evaluations of stressors, the evaluation of the psycho-physical symptoms performed by the physician and the absences from work made it possible to understand, within the theoretical framework defined by the Effort-Recovery model, the various phases of the process that leads to the formation of work stress. Overall, the second and third studies testify the goodness of the multi method approach, which, supplementing but not replacing the self-assessments of workers, can help to have a complete and informational picture of the situation within the organizationL’obiettivo principale della tesi consiste nel proporre un approccio multi metodo per la valutazione dello stress lavorativo. Alcuni autori considerano infatti inappropriato il ricorso esclusivo a misure self report per rilevare sia gli stressors che lo strain psicologico e/o fisico nell’ambito della stessa ricerca (Grebner, Semmer, & Elfering, 2005). In particolare, due sono le problematiche che vengono segnalate con maggiore frequenza. La prima fa riferimento al common method bias ed alla varianza comune di metodo, il secondo al ruolo ricoperto dalla affettività negativa nel processo che porta alla formazione dello stress lavorativo. Al fine di contenere tali problematiche è opportuno integrare le auto valutazioni con la valutazione dello strain psico-fisico da parte dal medico (etero valutazione) e/o con indicatori oggettivi di disagio come le assenze per malattia. La tesi si articola in tre studi. Il primo ha evidenziato come l'affettività negativa influenzi la percezione del contesto psico-sociale in cui i lavoratori si vengono a trovare e, indirettamente, lo strain psico-fisico. Nel secondo studio sono state confermate le proprietà metriche di uno strumento finalizzato alla valutazione dello strain psico-fisico da parte dal medico. L’utilizzo integrato di auto ed etero valutazioni ha inoltre permesso di identificare alcuni antecedenti dello strain psico-fisico. Nel terzo studio l’utilizzo integrato di auto valutazioni degli stressors, della valutazione dei sintomi psico-fisici eseguita dal medico e delle assenze dal lavoro ha permesso di comprendere, all'interno della prospettiva teorica definita dal modello Effort-Recovery, le varie fasi in cui si articola il processo che porta alla formazione dello stress lavorativo. Complessivamente, il secondo ed il terzo studio testimoniamo la bontà dell’approccio multi metodo, il quale, integrando ma non sostituendo le auto valutazioni dei lavoratori, può aiutare ad avere un quadro completo e informativo della situazione all’interno della realtà organizzativ

La valutazione dello stress lavorativo: autovalutazioni, eterovalutazioni e indicatori oggettivi

Il contributo si propone di approfondire le metodologie e gli strumenti di valutazione del rischio stress lavoro-correlato, attraverso un costante riferimento alle prassi maggiormente consolidate nazionali ed internazionali

Il benessere organizzativo nel lavoro atipico

Il contributo si propone di approfondire la tematica del benessere organizzativo con particolare attenzione al suo significato per il lavoratore atipico. Ci\uf2 attraverso il contributo della letteratura e di un'indagine empirica volta a rilevare la percezone del benessere organizzativo in una popolazione di lavoratori atipici operanti nei servizi in un contesto territoriale omogeneo