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In this article, we situate organizational cynicism at the nexus of the related constructs of burnout, stress, and antisocial behavior. We expand Dean, Brandes, and Dharwadkar's (1998) notion of behavioral cynicism to include cynical humor and cynical criticism. We also propose that cynical behavior has important, non-linear effects on employee work performance. Finally, we suggest that cynical behavior may act as a coping mechanism for employees and that such behavior moderates the stress–performance relationship.

Occupational stress and well-being continues to be an intriguing and exciting area for researchers. In our 5th volume of Research in Occupational Stress and Well Being, we offer outstanding papers that examine several key issues in occupational stress. The theme for this volume is employee health, coping, and methodologies. The first four chapters take an in-depth look at the role of stress in physiological reactions and health consequences. The last three chapters examine the role of control and cynicism in occupational stress and also call for some new methodologies and the examination of nonlinear relationships in the study of occupational stress and well-being.