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Burnout in learning organizations: the roles of organizational respect, job satisfaction and job insecurity

Sow Hup Joanne Chan (Department of Management and Marketing, Faculty of Business Administration, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China)
Kuan-Thye Chan (Department of Business Studies, Faculty of Accountancy, Management and Economics, New Era University College, Kajang, Malaysia)
Yiuwah Evan Chan (Department of Management and Marketing, Faculty of Business Administration, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China)

The Learning Organization

ISSN: 0969-6474

Article publication date: 18 August 2022

Issue publication date: 4 November 2022

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explain when and how organizational respect is related to job burnout syndromes. Using the stimulus–organism–response framework, the authors found that organizational respect is negatively related to burnout via job satisfaction, with job insecurity moderating the relationship. Drawing on conservation of resources theory, the authors proposed and found that job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion sequentially mediate the relationship between organizational respect and depersonalization, and this relationship is also moderated by job insecurity.

Design/methodology/approach

Data analysis was conducted using responses obtained from 280 anonymous employees in the postproduction film industry. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, AMOS and PROCESS macro was used for data analysis.

Findings

The research findings show job satisfaction mediates the effects of organizational respect for all three burnout syndromes. Organizational respect predicts depersonalization not only indirectly through job satisfaction but also through emotional exhaustion. Job insecurity moderates the relationship between job satisfaction and depersonalization and between emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. Organizational respect reduces depersonalization through job satisfaction, but this effect depends on how secure the employees feel about their jobs.

Research limitations/implications

Samples from one industry but from countries under different management cultures may not show the true scale of burnout levels for the industry. Cross-sectional data from one industry may limit the generalizability to other industries. The finding on the reverse effects of organizational respect on depersonalization for satisfied employees could be further investigated.

Practical implications

The findings provide insights for learning organizations on the importance of cultivating a respectful atmosphere and reducing job insecurity to mitigate aspects of burnout.

Originality/value

The authors clarified the moderating role of job insecurity and the mediating role of job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion in the organizational respect–depersonalization relationship.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

Funding: The completion of this work was supported by the University of Macau’s research grant MYRG2019-00092-FBA.

Citation

Chan, S.H.J., Chan, K.-T. and Chan, Y.E. (2022), "Burnout in learning organizations: the roles of organizational respect, job satisfaction and job insecurity", The Learning Organization, Vol. 29 No. 5, pp. 506-526. https://doi.org/10.1108/TLO-01-2022-0014

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited

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