Matching job demands and job resources as linear and non-linear predictors of employee vigor and sustainable performance

The present study studied two prominent job stress models as predictors of employee vigor and employee sustainable performance. First, based on the matching principle of the Demand-Induced Strain Compensation (DISC) Model, we predicted that job resources moderate (i.e. strengthen) the linear relation of job demands with employee vigor and sustainable performance, particularly when the type of demands corresponds well with the type of resources. Second, based on the non-linearity principle of the Vitamin Model, we predicted that non-linear (i.e. curvilinear) relations between job demands or job resources with employee vigor and sustainable performance exist, particularly when the type of demands or resources matches well with the outcome. An online cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,175 Chinese employees working in different industries. Multivariate regression analyses revealed that (1) although we did not find moderating effects of job resources, “conceptual matches” were found in line with the matching principle of the DISC Model, and (2) curvilinear patterns were detected (although with a non-expected shape) in which so-called “non-linear matching” relations between either demands or resources and outcomes were present. This study highlights the importance of matching demands and resources in both linear and non-linear ways to predict employee vigor and employee sustainable performance. Finally, theoretical and practical implications of the findings were addressed

In the Eye of the Beholder: Challenge and Hindrance Appraisals of Work Characteristics and Their Implications for Employee’s Well-Being

Previous research on the association between job characteristics and employee well-being has returned mixed results. In particular, the possible impact of individual appraisal of these job characteristics has not been well-acknowledged. To address this limitation, we drew on appraisal theory and examined: (a) how workers appraise particular job characteristics, and (b) how these appraisals affect the relationships between these job characteristics and well-being (i.e., work engagement and burnout). We tested our hypotheses across two studies. In a cross-occupation sample (Study 1, n = 514), we found that job demands and resources can be appraised as both challenges and hindrances. In addition, challenge appraisals can mitigate the detrimental impact of job demands on engagement and burnout; and hindrance appraisals can strengthen the detrimental effects of job demands on burnout. Further, hindrance appraisals of job resources reduce their beneficial effects on engagement and burnout. Study 2 (n = 316 nurses in a hospital) further showed that challenge appraisals of job demands can reduce their impact on burnout while challenge appraisals of job resources will strengthen their positive effect on employee engagement and burnout. We discuss study implications as well as future research directions

Quality of mother-child interaction, differences in sexual attitudes, and inter-generational disagreement on sexuality.

The current paper examines the frequency of inter-generational disagreement reported by mothers and adolescents as a function of the quality of their interaction, and the match between their sexual attitudes. We expected that the quality of family interaction would act as a "family asset" that would enable members of families to manage and control the tensions caused by differences in (sexual) attitudes. Data on 319 British adolescent-mother pairs were analysed using structural equation modelling, revealing good support for these expectations: differences in sexual attitudes were more strongly linked to inter-family disagreement in low quality of mother-child interaction families than in high quality of motherchild interaction families. Implications of the study are discussed. © 1997 OPA (Overseas Publishers Association)

Effects of parenting style upon psychological well-being of young adults: Exploring the relations among parental care, locus of control, and depression.

The current study explores the relations among parenting styles and depression among a representative longitudinal sample of 642 young Dutch adults. We assumed that if parents show their involvement during the first sixteen years of the lives of their children, these children are more likely to develop an internal locus of control. In turn, children with an internal locus of control would be less likely to experience feelings of depression later in life. Additionally, we examined the reverse relation, namely that depression leads to a shift away from the internal pole of the locus of control dimension. These notions were tested using structural equation models. The results indicated that our expectations were largely tenable. However, while the effects of mother's and father's involvement upon the development of an internal locus of control seemed to differ, for depression feelings we did not find much difference. Implications of the study are discussed. © 1997 OPA(Overseas Publishers Association)

The cross-cultural generalizability of the theory of planned behavior: A study on jobseeking in the Netherlands

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Job loss-related complicated grief symptoms: A cognitive-behavioral framework

In a significant minority of people, involuntarily job loss can result in symptoms of job loss-related complicated grief (JLCG). The present cognitive-behavioral framework is introduced to explain the underlying processes that may lead to the development and maintenance of JLCG symptoms. Three core processes play a central role, namely (1) negative cognitions related to the job loss and misinterpretation of one's grief reactions; (2) anxious and depressive avoidance strategies to cope with the job loss and its consequences; and (3) insufficient integration of the job loss into the autobiographical memory. These core processes are assumed to interact and reinforce each other, leading to JLCG symptoms. The three core processes can be influenced by certain risk factors, including circumstances surrounding the loss, personality traits, and characteristics of the social environment. JLCG symptoms can lead to additional psychological and practical problems, such as anxiety and depressive symptoms, lower employability, and reduced likelihood of re-employment. This paper explains and illustrates the three core processes with vignettes. Implications of the model for preventive measures and psychological interventions are introduced. It concludes with suggestions for future research on JLCG symptoms

Resource Crafting: Is It Really ‘Resource’ Crafting—Or Just Crafting?

This study aims to provide an integrated perspective on job crafting and its antecedents through the exploration of the joint effects of individual-level and team-level job crafting on employee work engagement. Drawing on conservation of resources (COR) theory, we propose that engaging in job crafting behaviors is promoted by the presence of job-related resources. In turn, job crafting is expected to result in higher levels of work engagement. We expect this reasoning to hold for the individual as well as the team/collective levels. The hypotheses were tested using data from 287 medical professionals from 21 hospital units of a Chinese public hospital. Findings from two-level Bayesian structural equation modeling supported the idea that at the individual level, individual job crafting behaviors partially mediated the relationship from individual resources to individual work engagement. Further, collective crafting mediated the relationship from team resources to individual work engagement. In addition, a positive cross-level relation between collective crafting and individual crafting was found. We conclude that stimulated by resources, both job crafting processes at the individual-level and team-level can promote individual work engagement in Chinese employees

Investigating the Associations among Overtime Work, Health Behaviors, and Health: A Longitudinal Study among Full-time Employees

# The Author(s) 2010. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com Background It has often been suggested that high levels of overtime lead to adverse health outcomes. One mechanism that may account for this association is that working overtime leads to elevated levels of stress, which could affect worker’s behavioral decisions or habits (such as smoking and lack of physical activity). In turn, this could lead to adverse health. Purpose The present study examined this reasoning in a prospective longitudinal design. Data from the prospective 2-year Study on Health at Work (N=649) were used to test our hypotheses. Methods Structural equation analysis was used to examine the relationships among overtime, beneficial (exercising, intake of fruit and vegetables) and risky (smoking and drinking) health behaviors, and health indicators (BMI and subjective health). Results Working overtime was longitudinally related with adverse subjective health, but not with body mass

Workdays, in-between workdays and the weekend: a diary study on effort and recovery

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