Engaging leadership in the job demands-resources model

2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 446-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilmar B. Schaufeli

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to integrate leadership into the job demands-resources (JD-R) model. Based on self-determination theory, it was argued that engaging leaders who inspire, strengthen, and connect their followers would reduce employee’s levels of burnout and increase their levels of work engagement. Design/methodology/approach – An online survey was conducted among a representative sample of the Dutch workforce (n=1,213) and the research model was tested using structural equation modeling. Findings – It appeared that leadership only had an indirect effect on burnout and engagement – via job demands and job resources – but not a direct effect. Moreover, leadership also had a direct relationship with organizational outcomes such as employability, performance, and commitment. Research limitations/implications – The study used a cross-sectional design and all variables were based on self-reports. Hence, results should be replicated in a longitudinal study and using more objective measures (e.g. for work performance). Practical implications – Since engaged leaders, who inspire, strengthen, and connect their followers, provide a work context in which employees thrive, organizations are well advised to promote engaging leadership. Social implications – Leadership seems to be a crucial factor which has an indirect impact – via job demands and job resources – on employee well-being. Originality/value – The study demonstrates that engaging leadership can be integrated into the JD-R framework.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Auditya Purwandini Sutarto ◽  
Shanti Wardaningsih ◽  
Wika Harisa Putri

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore to what extent employees' mental well-being affects their productivity while working from home (WFH) during the COVID-19 crisis and whether mental well-being and productivity differ across some socio-demographic factors.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional study with online questionnaires was designed with 472 valid responses in Indonesia. Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and Individual Work Performance Questionnaire (IWPQ) were administered. Non-parametric tests and structural equation modeling were employed to analyze the data.FindingsThe prevalence of depression was 18.4%, anxiety 46.4% and stress 13.1%, with relatively good productivity. Gender, age, education level, job experiences, marital status, number of children and nature of the organization were associated with the employees' psychological health but not with their productivity, while the workspace availability influenced both outcomes. The study path model showed the negative correlation between WFH employees' psychological well-being and productivity.Research limitations/implicationsThis study may contribute to the implication of current mandatory WFH on mental well-being and productivity. Further studies need to address the representativeness and generalizability issues as well as incorporating potential stressors.Practical implicationsOrganizations may adopt WFH as a future working arrangement and identify the individual and occupational characteristics that provide the most impacts on productivity. It is also necessary for them to develop proper strategies to mitigate the psychological risks and overcome the WFH challenges.Originality/valueThere is still a lack of studies investigating the relationship between simultaneous effects of WFH on psychological well-being and productivity, and how they affect some socio-demographic variables in the context of COVID-19.


2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Albrecht ◽  
Emil Breidahl ◽  
Andrew Marty

Purpose The majority of job demands-resources (JD-R) research has focused on identifying the job demands, job resources, and personal resources that influence engagement. The purpose of this paper is to assess the significance of proposed associations between organizationally focused resources, organizational engagement climate, and engagement. Design/methodology/approach The authors tested a model proposing that six specific organizational resources would have positive associations with organizational engagement climate, and positive direct and indirect associations with job resources and employee engagement. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) were conducted on cross-sectional survey data provided by 1,578 employees working in a range of different organizations. Findings The CFA and SEM analyses yielded good fit to the data. As proposed, all six organizational resources were positively associated with organizational engagement climate. Four were positively associated with job resources, and two were positively associated with engagement. Organizational engagement climate was positively associated with job resources and employee engagement. Significant indirect relationships were also observed. Research limitations/implications Despite self-reported data and a cross-sectional design, tests of common method variance did not suggest substantive method effects. Overall, the results contribute new insights about what may influence engagement, and highlight the importance of organizational engagement climate as a motivational construct. Practical implications The research offers up potentially useful measures of six organizational resources and a measure of organizational engagement climate that can complement and broaden the current focus on job-level diagnostics. As such, targeted management action and survey feedback processes can be used to identify processes to build sustainable organizational engagement capability. Originality/value No previous research has identified a comprehensive set of organizational resources, operationalized organizational engagement climate, or examined their relationships within a JD-R context. The results suggest that the JD-R can perhaps usefully be extended to include more organizationally focused constructs.


2018 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 805-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huong Le ◽  
Zhou Jiang ◽  
Yuka Fujimoto ◽  
Ingrid Nielsen

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating roles of procedural justice and distributive justice in the organizational inclusion-affective well-being relationship. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 253 Australian employees using an online survey. The study used confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling to analyze the data. Findings Organizational inclusion was positively related to both distributive justice and procedural justice. The relationship between organizational inclusion and affective well-being was mediated by both distributive justice and procedural justice. Research limitations/implications The cross-sectional design may have limited the empirical inferences; however, the proposed model was based on robust theoretical contentions, thus mitigating the limitation of the design. Data were collected from a single organization, thus limiting generalizability. Practical implications Implementation of inclusion training activities at organizational, group, and individual levels is important to enhance perceptions of organizational inclusion and subsequently improve employee affective well-being. Originality/value Based on the group engagement model and group-value model of justice, this paper adds to the literature by demonstrating two mediating mechanisms driving the organizational inclusion-affective well-being relationship.


2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (12) ◽  
pp. 1295-1322 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Roberto Beraldin ◽  
Pamela Danese ◽  
Pietro Romano

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how just-in-time (JIT)-related job demands, problem-solving job demands and soft lean practices (SLPs) jointly influence employee well-being in terms of work engagement and exhaustion. Design/methodology/approach Based on the job demands-resources model, lean-related job characteristics were classified as resources or demands, and a set of hypotheses was developed to test their effect on work engagement and exhaustion, including the potential interaction between job resources and demands. The hypotheses were tested using moderated hierarchical regression and structural equation modelling, based on data from 138 workers. Findings SLPs act as job resources in a lean company, increasing work engagement and reducing exhaustion. Conversely, JIT-related job demands act as a hindrance, reducing work engagement and increasing exhaustion. However, SLPs can reduce the effect of JIT-related job demands on exhaustion, and JIT-related job demands may enhance the positive effects of SLPs on work engagement. Research limitations/implications The study provides no conclusive evidence on the hypothesized role of problem-solving as a challenge job demand. Practical implications The results can guide practitioners’ understanding of how to implement lean without harm to employee well-being. Originality/value By employing a well-grounded psychological model to test the link between lean and well-being, the study finds quantitative support for: the buffering effect of SLPs on exhaustion caused by JIT-related job demands, and for the role of JIT as a hindrance. These novel findings have no precedent in previous survey-based research. In addition, it reveals the importance of studying SLPs at an individual level, as what matters is the extent to which workers perceive SLPs as useful and supportive.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Talat Islam ◽  
Muhammad Ali ◽  
Saqib Jamil ◽  
Hafiz Fawad Ali

Purpose This study aims to investigate individual-related consequences of workplace bullying among the health-care section. Specifically, this study examined the mediating role of burnout between workplace bullying and nurses’ well-being. Moreover, passive avoidant leadership is examined as a conditional variable between workplace bullying and burnout. Design/methodology/approach This study collected data from 314 nurses working in various hospitals through a questionnaire-based survey using Google Form in two waves. Findings Structural equation modeling confirmed the negative effect of workplace bullying on nurses’ well-being, whereas burnout mediates this relationship. In addition, passive avoidant leadership was identified as a conditional variable that strengthens the positive association between workplace bullying and burnout. Research limitations/implications Although data for the study were collected in two waves, still cross-sectional design limits causality. Practical implications This study suggests management to focus on developing and implementing counter-bullying rules to avoid the adverse consequences of workplace bullying (e.g. capital loss, recruitment costs, burnout, well-being, etc.). In addition, leaders/supervisors must be trained to fulfill their responsibilities to reduce negative consequences. Originality/value Studies on workplace bullying in high-power distance cultures are scant. Therefore, drawing upon conservation of resource theory, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that has investigated the moderating role of passive avoidant leadership on the association between workplace bullying and burnout.


2010 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnold B. Bakker ◽  
Marc van Veldhoven ◽  
Despoina Xanthopoulou

This study among 12,359 employees working in 148 organizations tested the interaction hypothesis of the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model. Accordingly, employees endorse most positive work attitudes (task enjoyment and organizational commitment) when job demands and job resources are both high. Results of moderated structural equation modeling analyses provided strong support for the hypothesis: 15 of the 16 hypothesized interactions were significant for task enjoyment and 13 of the 16 interactions were significant for organizational commitment. Job resources (skill utilization, learning opportunities, autonomy, colleague support, leader support, performance feedback, participation in decision making, and career opportunities) predicted task enjoyment and organizational commitment particularly under conditions of high job demands (workload and emotional demands). These findings clearly expand the Demand-Control model and support the JD-R model. Moreover, the results illustrate what managers can do to secure employee well-being.


2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 477-497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philipp Wolfgang Lichtenthaler ◽  
Andrea Fischbach

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how promotion- and prevention-focussed job crafting impacts the motivation of older employees to continue working beyond retirement age. The authors hypothesized that promotion-focussed job crafting (i.e. increasing social and structural job resources, and challenging job demands) relates positively and prevention-focussed job crafting (i.e. decreasing hindering job demands) relates negatively with motivation to continue working after reaching the official retirement age, and that these relationships are sequential mediated by work sense of coherence and burnout. Design/methodology/approach Data from 229 older employees (mean age=55.77) were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Findings Promotion-focussed job crafting was positively and prevention-focussed job crafting was negatively related with employees’ work sense of coherence, which was predictive of employees’ burnout, which in turn was predictive of motivation to continue working beyond retirement age. Research limitations/implications Despite the cross-sectional study design, the results unfold how promotion- and prevention-focussed job crafting are related with motivation to continue working beyond retirement age through work sense of coherence and burnout. Practical implications Given today’s aging and shrinking workforce, older employees working beyond their official retirement age are a necessity for organizations’ functional capability. The results suggest that organizations should encourage employees’ promotion-focussed job crafting and limit prevention-focussed job crafting. Promotion-focussed job crafting facilitates employees’ work sense of coherence, which keeps them healthy and motivates older employees to continue working beyond retirement age. Originality/value This study adds to the literatures on job crafting and motivation to continue working beyond retirement age and explicates intervening processes in this relationship.


Author(s):  
Andra Cătălina Roșca ◽  
Alexandru Mateizer ◽  
Cristina-Ioana Dan ◽  
Evangelia Demerouti

Emotional exhaustion and other symptoms of burnout are often found among emergency services professions, such as firefighting. Given the social importance of this activity and the high responsibility it requires, prevention and alleviation of burnout symptoms become primary concerns in ensuring the well-being of firefighters. Although work meaning is one of the factors associated with a lower risk of developing burnout, its protective role has not been studied in firefighters. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the buffering role of work meaning in the health-impairment process of the Job Demands-Resources model, targeting the relationship between job demands and related emotional exhaustion. A cross-sectional survey design was used to collect data from a sample consisting of Romanian firefighters (n = 1096). Structural equation modeling indicated a positive link between job demands and exhaustion. In addition, deriving personal meaning from work was associated with lower levels of exhaustion in firefighters. A small but significant interaction effect between work meaning and job demands showed that higher levels of work meaning attenuated the positive relationship between job demands and exhaustion. In conclusion, our findings suggest that work meaning has a buffering effect on the impact of various job demands on job-related exhaustion. Nevertheless, the small effect sizes warrant further research on this topic.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Israel Sánchez-Cardona ◽  
María Vera ◽  
Jesús Marrero-Centeno

Abstract Based on the Job Demands Resources Model (JD-R), this study investigates the mediating role of meaningful work and work engagement in the association between job resources and employees' intention to stay. A cross-sectional study was conducted through an online survey of 217 employees from different organizations in Puerto Rico. We examined a serial mediation analysis through structural equation modeling. The results indicate that job resources are positively related to meaningful work, while meaningful work is positively associated with work engagement. Further, job resources are indirectly associated with the intention to stay through meaningful work and work engagement. This study contributes to understanding the role of meaningful work and engagement in the JD-R model's motivational-driven process and how these mechanisms promote positive work outcomes in terms of the retention of human capital. Designing jobs and strategies at the workplace to develop meaning and engagement seems crucial to retain employees.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Elida Eide ◽  
Øystein Moen ◽  
Tage Koed Madsen ◽  
Mohammad Javadinia Azari

PurposeThe main purpose of this study is to increase the scholarly understanding of managerial growth aspirations in small firms. Research has shown that managers' aspirations are important to ensure firms' growth, but researchers know less of where their aspirations come from and how variation in these aspirations shapes organizational outcomes. By focusing on two growth strategies of particular importance for small firms – innovation and internationalization – the authors map out how managers' ambitious aspirations may create negative organizational effects and also how they may counteract such effects.Design/methodology/approachThe study employs structural equation modeling (SEM) on a sample of 249 Norwegian small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).FindingsThe findings of this study suggest that managerial experience is associated with high aspirations as well as high change effectiveness on the managerial team. The authors find that ambitious growth aspirations are associated with exploration in the form of radical innovation but also lead to reduced employee well-being. Managers' level of perceived change effectiveness, on the other hand, is positively associated with radical innovation and also raises employee well-being.Research limitations/implicationsThis study highlights the positive and negative effects of managerial aspirations on different organizational outcomes. Further, it shows that managerial teams working effectively together in the face of change is important for the well-being of employees. Results confirm the positive relationship between aspirations for growth and applied growth strategies in organizations. The data sample is, however, extracted from one country only, and the authors cannot exclude the possibility that findings will be different elsewhere.Practical implicationsTo ensure successful growth, managers should combine ambitious aspirations with attention to the top management team's (TMT) experience levels and change effectiveness. Assessment of possible needs for development and adjustments could ensure growth processes with limited negative effects for employee well-being.Originality/valueBy distinguishing between growth through international sales (exploitation) and growth through a more change-intensive strategy of radical innovation (exploration), the authors investigate how variations in managerial aspirations and perceptions influence organizational growth processes. This paper paints a unique picture of how managers can be both the cause and cure of employee well-being in change-demanding situations.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document