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Article
Publication date: 14 September 2015

Christian Korunka, Bettina Kubicek, Matea Paškvan and Heike Ulferts

Increasing speed in many life domains is currently being discussed under the term “social acceleration” as a societal phenomenon which not only affects western societies, but may…

2506

Abstract

Purpose

Increasing speed in many life domains is currently being discussed under the term “social acceleration” as a societal phenomenon which not only affects western societies, but may also lead to job demands arising from accelerated change. Demands such as work intensification and intensified learning and their changes over time may increase emotional exhaustion, but may also induce positive effects. The purpose of this paper is to examine how increases in demands arising from accelerated change affect employee well-being.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 587 eldercare workers provided data on work intensification and intensified learning as well as on exhaustion and job satisfaction at two points in time.

Findings

Work intensification was negatively related to future job satisfaction and positively related to future emotional exhaustion, whereas intensified learning was positively associated with future job satisfaction and negatively with future emotional exhaustion.

Social implications

Intensified demands represents a growing social as well as work-specific challenge which needs to be addressed by practitioners.

Originality/value

Using a longitudinal perspective this study is the first to examine the relationship of increases in work intensification and intensified learning with job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion at work.

Details

Journal of Managerial Psychology, vol. 30 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0268-3946

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 April 2019

Saija Mauno, Bettina Kubicek, Jaana Minkkinen and Christian Korunka

In order to understand the driving forces behind intensified job demands (IJDs), the purpose of this paper is to examine demographic factors, structural work-related factors…

Abstract

Purpose

In order to understand the driving forces behind intensified job demands (IJDs), the purpose of this paper is to examine demographic factors, structural work-related factors, personal and job resources as antecedents of IJDs.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is based on cross-sectional (n=4,963) and longitudinal (n=2,055) quantitative data sets of Austrian employees. Data sets were analyzed via regression analyses.

Findings

The results showed that IJDs, as assessed through five sub-dimensions: work intensification, intensified job-related, career-related planning and decision-making demands, intensified demands for skills and for knowledge-related learning, remained fairly stable overtime. The most consistent antecedents of IJDs were personal initiative and ICT use at work. Job resources, e.g. variety of tasks and lacking support from supervisor, related to four sub-dimensions of IJDs.

Research limitations/implications

The findings suggest that personal (being initiative) and job resources (task variety) may have negative effects as they associated with IJDs. Moreover, supervisors’ support is crucial to counteract IJDs.

Practical implications

Employers should recognize that certain personal (e.g. personal initiative) and job-related resources (e.g. lacking supervisory support) might implicate higher IJDs, which, in turn, may cause more job strain as IJDs can be conceived as job stressors.

Originality/value

IJDs have received very little research attention because they are new job demands, which however, can be expected to increase in future due to faster technological acceleration in working life. The study has methodological value as longitudinal design was applied.

Details

Employee Relations: The International Journal, vol. 41 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 20 May 2024

Saija Mauno, Taru Feldt, Mari Herttalampi and Jaana Minkkinen

Intensified job demands (IJDs; work intensification, intensified job- and career-related planning and decision-making demands, and intensified learning demands) illustrate the…

Abstract

Purpose

Intensified job demands (IJDs; work intensification, intensified job- and career-related planning and decision-making demands, and intensified learning demands) illustrate the intensification of working life. This study examined relationships between IJDs and work engagement.

Design/methodology/approach

Nine diverse samples (n = 7,786) were analyzed separately via regression analysis by estimating linear and curvilinear relationships between IJDs and engagement.

Findings

The results showed that certain subdimensions of IJDs, i.e. intensified learning demands, related positively to engagement across several subsamples. Moreover, learning demands showed a curvilinear relationship with engagement in several subsamples; engagement was highest in a moderate level of learning demands whereas low and high levels of learning demands were associated with lower engagement. We also found that other subdimensions of IJDs did not show consistent positive relationships with engagement, and some of them were negatively associated with engagement.

Research limitations/implications

Cross-sectional design.

Practical implications

Organizations should consider what would be the optimal level of learning demands as excessive learning demands can be detrimental to employees’ engagement.

Originality/value

This is a first study focusing on different manifestations of the intensification of working life, operationalized via IJDs, and their curvilinear relationships with engagement by applying a multi-sample design.

Details

International Journal of Manpower, vol. 45 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-7720

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 31 July 2009

B. Kroon, K. van de Voorde and M. van Veldhoven

The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of management practices – specifically, high‐performance work practices (HPWPs) – on employee burnout. Two potential mediating…

5658

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of management practices – specifically, high‐performance work practices (HPWPs) – on employee burnout. Two potential mediating mechanisms that counterbalance each other in the development of burnout are compared: a critical mechanism that states that HPWPs intensify job demands (which increases burnout) and a positive mechanism that states that HPWPs increase fairness among employees (which reduces burnout).

Design/methodology/approach

Questionnaire data are gathered among 393 employees working in 86 Dutch organizations. Human resource managers provide information about HPWPs while employees were inquired about their perceptions of job demands, fairness, and burnout. Multilevel regression analyses were conducted to test the assumptions.

Findings

The analyses reveal a slightly positive relationship between HPWPs and burnout, which is completely mediated by job demands. Fairness was associated with the experience of less burnout, but the results do not sustain the idea that HPWPs contributed to procedural justice. Although the data do not support the idea that justice and intensified job demands counteract each other in the development of burnout under systems of HPWPs, the results do support a critical “employee exploitation” oriented perspective on HPWPs.

Originality/value

Most studies on HPWPs focus on mechanisms that explain positive employee well‐being outcomes. A more critical perspective, which predicts increased employee strain as a result of demanding work practices, is also valid. The results of this paper indicate that the critical perspective on HPWPs receives empirical justification and requires further elaboration in future research.

Details

Personnel Review, vol. 38 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0048-3486

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 January 2022

Leila Afshari, Aamir Hayat, K.K. Ramachandran, Timothy Bartram and Bamini K.P.D. Balakrishnan

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of accelerated job demands on employee outcomes during the COVID-19 crisis. An integrated model was developed to explore…

1196

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of accelerated job demands on employee outcomes during the COVID-19 crisis. An integrated model was developed to explore the relationships between different types of job demands (learning, decision-making, work intensification), employee turnover intention (TI) and burnout (BU).

Design/methodology/approach

Data were obtained from professionals whose work conditions were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. An online survey was distributed anonymously. A total of 566 questionnaires were included in the analysis. Structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the data.

Findings

The findings revealed that employees' perception of job demands impacts the significance and direction of the relationships between different forms of job demands and employee outcomes. Furthermore, the findings confirm that mediating role of perceived organizational support alleviates the adverse effects of job demands on employee outcomes. Finally, the present study supported the moderation effect of positive affectivity between work intensification and employee BU.

Practical implications

This study provides employers with insights about supporting employees to cope with increased job demands in conditions where rapid changes are inevitable.

Originality/value

The unique context of research (COVID-19) enabled this study to account for the acceleration of job demands that employees experience in rapidly changing situations. This study employed an instrument that allowed for the assessment of acceleration in job demands. Furthermore, the granular approach of the measurement model extended the perspectives of job demands and work intensification.

Details

Personnel Review, vol. 51 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0048-3486

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 30 November 2023

Cameron Hauseman

Several factors and forces in school-level leaders' work can heighten emotions and incite emotionally charged situations. Challenges that heighten school-level leaders' emotions…

Abstract

Several factors and forces in school-level leaders' work can heighten emotions and incite emotionally charged situations. Challenges that heighten school-level leaders' emotions are related to systemic factors, people factors and personal factors. The extent to which each of these different factors influence the emotional experiences of school-level leaders, and whether that influence ends up being positive, negative or neutral, is contextual in nature. The systemic factors include encountering barriers when advocating for students, managing an intensified and expanding workload, working within disorienting policy contexts, and receiving a lack of support from their employer. Changes in school-level leaders' work and workload due to the COVID-19 pandemic that heightened emotions and emotional labour are also considered when discussing the systemic factors. People factors evident in the literature include workplace conflict, gendered power relations and crises and tragedies in the school community. The emotional labour inherent in school-level leadership comes to the forefront when considering the impact of these people factors on emotions at work because school-level leaders are tasked with making decisions that can have an immense impact on peoples' lives. Personal factors discussed in this chapter surround a school-level leader's individual emotional intelligence abilities and media attention directed towards them.

Details

The Emotional Life of School-Level Leaders
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83753-137-0

Article
Publication date: 27 October 2022

Tehreem Fatima, Ahmad Raza Bilal, Muhammad Waqas and Muhammad Kashif Imran

A paradigm shift toward a corporate model of higher educational settings has led to complex and excess work demands, yet the potential long-run ramifications of work overload are…

516

Abstract

Purpose

A paradigm shift toward a corporate model of higher educational settings has led to complex and excess work demands, yet the potential long-run ramifications of work overload are still under-examined. Building the arguments on the “spiral of resource loss” corollary of the conservation of resources (COR) theory, the authors have bridged this gap by testing how work overload spills over into career resilience via reduced harmonious passion. In addition, the authors compare how the employees having standardized workloads differ in their harmonious passion and career resilience from those having excessive (non-standardized) workloads.

Design/methodology/approach

Through a longitudinal natural field experiment of 402 faculty members [N = 198 in the standardized group (optimal load) and N = 204 in the non-standardized group (overload)] working in higher educational institutions of Pakistan, data were collected in three waves (each six months apart). The group comparison, trend analysis and longitudinal mediation analysis done through SPSS and MPlus affirmed the hypothesized associations.

Findings

The results have shown that work overload impacts career resilience through the mediating role of harmonious passion. The faculty members in the standardized workload had more passion and career resilience as compared to the non-standardized workload group. In addition, these impacts intensified overtime for the overloaded faculty members while faculty members with optimal workload sustained their passion and resilience for the teaching profession.

Originality/value

Taking the COR perspective, this study sheds light on how faculty members' work overloads reduce their capability to retain their passion and resilience for teaching from a longitudinal and experimental perspective.

Article
Publication date: 4 May 2023

Peipei Bai, Hossein Heidarian Ghaleh, Huikun Chang, Longzhen Li and Jongwook Pak

The study aims to offer a nuanced, fine-grained understanding of how the relationship between high-performance work systems (HPWSs) and negative employee outcomes can be…

Abstract

Purpose

The study aims to offer a nuanced, fine-grained understanding of how the relationship between high-performance work systems (HPWSs) and negative employee outcomes can be attenuated under self-sacrificial leadership (SSL).

Design/methodology/approach

Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to test the proposed multilevel model on a sample of 37 first-line managers (FLMs) and 209 employees working in a large Chinese company.

Findings

The results showed that HPWS is positively related to emotional exhaustion and turnover intention. Most conspicuously, the authors found that such adverse effects of HPWS are mitigated with a high level of SSL.

Practical implications

The dark side of HPWS can be alleviated if practitioners complement their practices with sufficient support for employees. Particularly, FLMs who exhibit subordinate-serving attitudes consider followers' well-being and provide them with resources can lessen the high pressure of HPWS in pursuit of performance enhancement.

Originality/value

Prior studies on the relationships between HPWS and employee outcomes have produced somewhat mixed results. This study extended the current discourse by explicating instead why HPWS could potentially impair employee outcomes and how the negative effects of HPWS can be mitigated under positive leader behaviors.

Details

Employee Relations: The International Journal, vol. 45 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 23 November 2022

Nicolas Gillet, Stéphanie Austin, Tiphaine Huyghebaert-Zouaghi, Claude Fernet and Alexandre J.S. Morin

Research has shown that colleagues' norms promoting the need to respond quickly to work-related messages (CN) have a negative effect on work recovery experiences. In the present…

Abstract

Purpose

Research has shown that colleagues' norms promoting the need to respond quickly to work-related messages (CN) have a negative effect on work recovery experiences. In the present study, the authors examine the direct and indirect – through affective rumination and problem-solving pondering – effects of these norms on work–family conflict, family–work conflict and job satisfaction, and verify whether and how these associations differ between employees working onsite (n = 158) or remotely (n = 284).

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 442 employees completed an online survey that covered measures on CN, affective rumination, problem-solving pondering, work–family conflict, family–work conflict and job satisfaction.

Findings

As hypothesized, the study results revealed that CN were positively related to work–family conflict and family–work conflict, but not to job satisfaction. Moreover, the indirect effects of CN on work–family conflict and job satisfaction were significantly mediated by affective rumination and problem-solving pondering, whereas the indirect effects of these norms on family–work conflict were significantly mediated by affective rumination. Finally, the relations between CN and the mediators (affective rumination and problem-solving pondering) were stronger among employees working onsite than among employees working remotely.

Originality/value

These results revealed that working remotely buffered the detrimental effects of CN on affective rumination and problem-solving pondering.

Article
Publication date: 7 June 2022

Farid Jahantab, Smriti Anand and Prajya R. Vidyarthi

In the new post-COVID-19 work order, this study aims to examine whether and how individual-level social distancing interacts with workgroup-level socio-affective support to…

Abstract

Purpose

In the new post-COVID-19 work order, this study aims to examine whether and how individual-level social distancing interacts with workgroup-level socio-affective support to influence employee exhaustion and performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Multi-level analyses of time-lagged multi-source data from 231 employees nested in 34 workgroups were conducted to test our hypothesized relationships.

Findings

Analyses revealed a significant relationship between social distancing and employee performance via emotional exhaustion. Further, the positive relationship between social distancing and emotional exhaustion was attenuated by workgroup team orientation and support for innovation, and the indirect effect of social distancing on employee performance was weaker in workgroups with a high team orientation and high support for innovation.

Originality/value

This study extends the job demands-resources theory to the new work order and examines the impact of workplace social distancing on employee outcomes in the context of workgroup membership.

Details

Personnel Review, vol. 52 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0048-3486

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 9000