The Job Demands–Resources Model: Overview and Suggestions for Future Research

The new normal of remote work: exploring individual and organizational factors affecting work-related outcomes and well-being in academia

Background

Flexible work arrangements have become increasingly popular, driven by the widespread adoption of digital technologies in the workplace because of the pandemic. However, there is a scarcity of studies concerning remote work, especially related to technical-administrative staff (TAS) in academia. Therefore, the current study, adopting the Job Demands-Resources model, aimed to investigate the relationships between remote working self-efficacy, organizational support, techno-complexity, mental well-being, and job performance among TAS during remote working.

Methods

A total of 373 individuals from TAS of a large Italian university participated in this study by completing a self-report questionnaire.

Results

The findings showed positive and significant relationships between remote self-efficacy and job satisfaction as well as between such a perceived efficacy and mental well-being. Perceived support from supervisors acted as a protective factor against techno-complexity. In contrast, perceived support from colleagues emerged as able to promote well-being and job satisfaction. In addition, the latter was positively associated with well-being. Finally, individual job performance was positively affected by job satisfaction and negatively by techno-complexity.

Conclusion

This study highlights the need for interventions to support TAS in remote working environments by leveraging employees' self-efficacy as a key factor in reducing stress related to new technologies as well as enhancing well-being, job satisfaction, and, in turn, their performance.

Depression, professional self-efficacy, and job performance as predictors of life satisfaction: the mediating role of work engagement in nurses

Background

The life satisfaction and job performance of nursing professionals are affected by a multitude of factors, including work engagement, self-efficacy, and depression. The Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model provides a theoretical framework to explore these relationships.

Objective

Our study aimed to analyze the primary goal of this research, which is to examine the mediating role of work engagement in the relationship between depression, professional self-efficacy, job performance, and their impact on life satisfaction in nurses, using the JD-R theory as a guide.

Methods

This cross-sectional study involved 579 participants aged between 21 to 57 years (M = 39, SD = 9.95). Mediation analysis was used to examine the influence of depression, self-efficacy, and job performance on work engagement, and in turn, its effect on life satisfaction.

Results

Findings indicated that work engagement plays a crucial mediating role between depression, self-efficacy, job performance, and life satisfaction. Interventions to increase work engagement could assist nurses in better managing depression and improving their performance and life satisfaction.

Conclusions

Our study highlights the need for workplace policies and strategies that foster work engagement and self-efficacy among nurses while effectively managing job demands to prevent depression. Moreover, these findings underscore the importance of the JD-R theory to understand and improve nurses' job satisfaction and performance, and suggest areas for future research, including exploring other potential factors and applying these findings across different contexts and cultures.

The roles of adaptability and school climate in first-year teachers' developing perceptions of themselves, their classroom relationships, and the career

The teaching career, and especially the transition from pre-service to in-service teaching, is uniquely characterized by change. Adaptability is an internal characteristic that has been shown to benefit teachers and may be especially relevant as they begin developing initial perceptions of themselves as educators, of their relationships with students, and of the teaching career at large. Importantly though, it is likely that the impacts of adaptability depend in part on the broader context. One such contextual factor that is highly relevant to teachers is their school's climate. The present study explored direct and indirect (moderated) relations among first-year teachers' (N = 133) adaptability and perceived school climate and their teaching self-efficacy, perceptions of the classroom relational climate, and career optimism. Path analysis revealed positive main effects of adaptability on self-efficacy and perceptions of classroom relational climate, as well as positive main effects of school climate on self-efficacy and career optimism. In addition, an interaction effect was detected whereby relations among adaptability and self-efficacy were strongest among participants who reported high and average levels of school climate. Results can inform future research on teacher adaptability and can also be used to inform interventions and supports provided to new teachers by school psychologists and other school personnel.

Perceived psychosocial safety climate, psychological distress, and work engagement in Japanese employees: A cross-sectional mediation analysis of job demands and job resources

OBJECTIVES

We examined the associations of perceived psychosocial safety climate (PSC) with psychological distress and work engagement in Japanese employees. We also examined the mediation effects of job demands (i.e., psychological demands) and job resources (i.e., job control, worksite support, and extrinsic reward) in these associations.

METHODS

A total of 2200 employees (1100 men and 1100 women) registered with a Japanese online survey company were surveyed using a self-administered web-based questionnaire containing the scales on PSC (12-item PSC scale), job demands and job resources (Job Content Questionnaire and Effort-Reward Imbalance Questionnaire), psychological distress (K6 scale), and work engagement (9-item Utrecht Work Engagement Scale), and items on demographic and occupational characteristics (i.e., age, sex, education, occupation, work form, and working hours per week). A multiple mediation analysis with a bootstrap method was conducted.

RESULTS

After adjusting for demographic and occupational characteristics, significant negative and positive total effects of perceived PSC were observed on psychological distress and work engagement, respectively (c = -0.258 [95% confidence interval (CI): -0.298 to -0.219] and 0.383 [95% CI: 0.344-0.421], respectively). When we included job demands and job resources as mediators in the model, significant total mediation effects in these associations were observed (c - c' = -0.181 [95% CI: -0.221 to -0.143] and 0.269 [95% CI: 0.234-0.304], respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that perceived PSC is negatively associated with psychological distress and positively associated with work engagement, and that these associations are partially mediated (or explained) by job demands and job resources.

Authentic leadership and personal and job demands/resources: A person-centered approach and links with work-related subjective well-being

The job demands-resources theory considers an open group of personal and job demands and resources. Thus, it allows us to include personal resources not yet covered (i.e., vigor at work) or less explored (i.e., emotional abilities), as well as personal demands not yet explored (i.e., overcommitment). Additionally, from this theory, it is proposed that leaders may influence employee wellbeing. Therefore, of particular interest is to analyze positive leadership styles, such as authentic leadership (AL). This study addresses three research objectives: 1) to identify profiles of employees from a person-centered approach, combining personal resources (self-perception of emotional abilities, vigor at work and self-efficacy) and personal demands (overcommitment) with job resources and demands; 2) to analyze the relation of the identified profiles with indicators of work-related subjective well-being; and 3) to acknowledge whether the AL style determines the pertaining to a profile probability. A large heterogeneous sample of Spanish employees (N = 968) responded to a questionnaire. Data were analyzed by adopting a person-centered approach using latent profile analysis. The results revealed five patterns of job and individual characteristics: Profile 5 (very low personal resources, and low job resources and demands); Profile 4 (low resources and high demands); Profile 3 (mid-level personal resources, high job resources and low demands); Profile 2 (high personal resources, mid-level job resources and high demands); and Profile 1 (high resources and low demands). Analyses showed that workers differed significantly in well-being depending on their profile membership, with Profile 1 having the highest well-being. Profiles that yielded the worst outcomes were Profile 4 and Profile 5, especially the latter. Finally, the results indicated that AL increased the probability that a profile would show a high well-being level.

Positive psychology in the working environment. Job demands-resources theory, work engagement and burnout: A systematic literature review

The purpose of the present systematic review is to examine the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model in order to pinpoint how applicable and relevant is the present theoretical framework in the 21st Century workplace environment. Initially, there will be an examination of the key concepts of the theory, followed by a brief investigation of the empirical validity and importance of the theory in the workplace environment. Then, there will be an empirical investigation of various studies of both cross-sectional and longitudinal nature in the form of a methodology, offering substantial empirical evidence that attests to the validity and effectiveness of the JD-R model in predicting work engagement and burnout-two independent and contrasting states of employee wellbeing, covering the entire spectrum from employee wellness to employee ill-health. We hope this review contributes to the advancement of the JD-R model, aiding researchers and practitioners to obtain a better understanding of the current state of the JD-R model, whilst also offering avenues for future development of the theory, ultimately resulting in a better prediction of employee wellbeing.

New insights into self-initiated work design: the role of job crafting, self-undermining and five types of job satisfaction for employee’s health and work ability

The present study provides evidence for the important role of job crafting and self-undermining behaviors at work, two new concepts that were recently integrated into the well-known job demands-resources (JD-R) theory (Bakker and Demerouti, 2017). We investigate how these behaviors are associated with work engagement, emotional exhaustion, and work ability as a long-term indicator of employee’s well-being. Furthermore, we examine the moderating role of personal resources in the stress-strain process by comparing groups of employees representing the five types of job satisfaction defined by Bruggemann (1974). Data was collected in a cross-sectional study within a German DAX company’s manufacturing plant from 1145 blue- and white-collar workers. Results of structural equation modeling provided, as expected, support for an indirect effect of job demands and job resources on emotional exhaustion and work engagement through job crafting and self-undermining. Work ability, on the other hand, was mainly affected by emotional exhaustion, but not by work engagement. Most important, we found significant differences between path coefficients across the five types of job satisfaction indicating that these types represent important constellations of personal resources and job demands that should be considered both for analyzing stress at work and for offering tailored stress interventions in organizations.

Association Between Job Stress and Organizational Commitment in Three Types of Chinese University Teachers: Mediating Effects of Job Burnout and Job Satisfaction

Utilizing the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model as the theoretical framework, this study examines the relationship between job stress, job burnout, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment among 1,906 university teachers in China, and investigates teachers’ differences across groups. The result of SEM indicates that job burnout and job satisfaction could play mediating roles between job stress and organizational commitment. The result of multi-group analysis shows that for national university teachers, the positive effect of job stress on job burnout is the highest among three types of university teachers, the negative effect of job burnout on organizational commitment is lower compared with provincial university teachers and the negative effect of job burnout on job satisfaction is lower compared with provincial university teachers. Only for provincial university teachers, the job stress can significantly positively predict organizational commitment, and the independent mediating effect of job burnout is significantly greater than job satisfaction. The practical advice to enhance Chinese university teachers’ organizational commitment was provided in the end.

When and why do negative organization-related career shocks impair career optimism? A conditional indirect effect model

Purpose

This study investigates when and why negative organization-related career shocks affect career optimism, which is a positive career-planning attitude. The indirect effect of negative organization-related career shocks on career optimism via job insecurity and the role of perceived organizational career support as a first-stage moderator were investigated.

Design/methodology/approach

Three-wave time-lagged data from a sample of 728 employees in Switzerland was used. Time-lagged correlations, an indirect effect model and a conditional indirect effect model with bootstrapping were used to test the hypotheses.

Findings

First, this study showed a significant negative correlation between negative organization-related career shocks (T1) and career optimism (T3), a positive correlation between negative organization-related career shocks (T1) and job insecurity (T2) and a negative correlation between job insecurity (T2) and career optimism (T3). Second, findings revealed that negative organization-related career shocks (T1) have a negative indirect effect on career optimism (T3) via job insecurity (T2). Third, perceived organizational career support (T1) buffers the indirect effect of negative organization-related career shocks (T1) on career optimism (T3).

Originality/value

This study provides an initial examination of the relationship between negative organization-related career shocks and career optimism by applying assumptions from the JD-R model and Conservation of Resources theory. Implications about how to deal with negative career shocks in HRM and career counseling are discussed.

Who is more susceptible to job stressors and resources? Sensory-processing sensitivity as a personal resource and vulnerability factor

This study aimed to investigate whether people scoring higher (compared to lower) on sensory-processing sensitivity respond differently to the work environment. Specifically, based on the literature on sensory-processing sensitivity and the Job Demands-Resources model, we predicted that the three components of sensory-processing sensitivity (i.e. ease of excitation, aesthetic sensitivity and low sensory threshold) amplify the relationship between job demands (i.e. workload and emotional demands) and emotional exhaustion as well as the relationship between job resources (i.e. task autonomy and social support) and helping behaviour. Survey data from 1019 Belgian employees were analysed using structural equation modelling analysis. The results showed that ease of excitation and low sensory threshold amplified the relationship between job demands and emotional exhaustion. Low sensory threshold also strengthened the job resources-helping behaviour relationship. This study offered first evidence on the greater susceptibility among highly sensitive persons to the work environment and demonstrated that the moderating role might differ for the three components of sensory-processing sensitivity. Additionally, it adds sensory-processing sensitivity to the Job Demands-Resources model and highlights the idea that personal factors may act both as a personal vulnerability factor and a personal resource, depending on the nature of the perceived work environment.

In flight again with wings that were once broken; effects of post-traumatic growth and personal resources on burnout recovery

Purpose

Adequate recovery from burnout is important to understand. The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether post-traumatic growth (PTG) contributes to higher engagement and reduced symptoms of burnout and whether this process is mediated by personal resources.

Design/methodology/approach

In a cross-sectional survey, 166 Dutch workers who had fully recovered from burnout were questioned on their level of PTG, their personal resources (optimism, resilience and self-efficacy), and their levels of engagement and burnout.

Findings

Fully recovered workers scored somewhat higher on current burnout level, but did not differ from norm group workers in their engagement level. Moreover, PTG appeared to positively affect both higher engagement and lower burnout levels, which is fully mediated by personal resources.

Research limitations/implications

Post-traumatic growth (PTG) impacts on engagement and burnout levels amongst workers who have recovered from burnout by enhancing personal resources. The role of personal resources and the impact of PTG on engagement and burnout complaints following (recovery from) burnout deserve further investigation.

Practical implications

Management can support workers who have (recovered from a) burnout, by being aware of their (higher) engagement, and facilitate the enhancement of PTG and personal resources.

Originality/value

This study is one of the first to study the role of PTG after (recovery from) burnout and reveals valuable findings for both research and practice.

Live to Work or Work to Live? An Age-Moderated Mediation Model on the Simultaneous Mechanisms Prompted by Workaholism Among Healthcare Professionals

The "aging population" implies an increased proportion of older professionals and a growing demand for healthcare services. Healthcare professionals are often highly committed to their work which can be reflected in high levels of workaholism, being a double-edged sword that can prompt both positive and negative mechanisms, differently affecting younger and older healthcare workers. The present study aims to gain insights into the relationships between healthcare professionals' age, workaholism and job satisfaction, by estimating the sequential mediating roles of workload perceptions and emotional exhaustion. We used original survey data, including information on 750 healthcare professionals. Overall, the negative relationship between workaholism and job satisfaction was shown to be sequentially (and partially) mediated by workload perceptions and emotional exhaustion. Multi-Group SEM analyses revealed differences across three age groups (under 35; between 35 and 50; over 50). Only in the two younger age groups, we found a direct and positive relationship between workaholism and job satisfaction. In all age groups, we found the negative relationship between workaholism and job satisfaction to be sequentially (and partially) mediated by workload perceptions and emotional exhaustion. The indirect effects were relatively stronger in the younger age group. Workaholism can prompt both a "gain spiral" and "a loss spiral" among healthcare professionals. The first reflects workaholism to function as a job resource fostering job satisfaction (only for the two younger age groups). The second reflects workaholism to function as a job demand reducing job satisfaction. This mechanism was shown to be stronger with an increasing age.

Relations Between Psychosocial Job Characteristics and Work Ability in Employees with Chronic Headaches

Purpose The aim of the study was to determine (a) to which extent job demands and job resources predict work ability in employees with chronic headaches, and (b) whether work ability in these employees is more hampered by high demands and more enhanced by resources than in employees without chronic disease. Methods All employees with chronic headaches (n = 593) and without chronic disease (n = 13,742) were selected from The Netherlands Working Conditions Survey conducted in 2013. This survey assessed amongst others job characteristics and various indicators of work ability, i.e. sick leave, employability, work engagement, and emotional exhaustion. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted for employees with chronic headaches and compared to employees without chronic disease, controlling for age, gender and educational level. Results In employees with chronic headaches higher quantitative and emotional demands contributed to higher emotional exhaustion, and higher emotional demands to higher sick leave. Higher cognitive demands were however associated with higher work engagement. Higher autonomy was related to higher employability and lower emotional exhaustion. Higher supervisor and colleague support was associated with higher employability, higher engagement and lower emotional exhaustion. Higher supervisor support was associated with lower sick leave. Supervisor support emerged as a stronger predictor for emotional exhaustion in the employees with chronic headaches than in the employees without chronic disease. Conclusions Job demands and job resources are important for work ability in employees with chronic headaches. Furthermore, results suggest that these employees benefit more strongly from supervisor support than employees without chronic disease.

Burning Rubber or Burning out? The Influence of Role Stressors on Burnout among Truck Drivers

Professional truck drivers are prone to both physical and psychological stress. Such stress can lead to burnout. Drawing on Job Demands Resources literature and stress research, we investigate the relationship between job related role stressors and three components of burnout, among professional truck drivers who are based in the Netherlands. They were surveyed with a time-lagged design (interval of two months). In the first wave, the different potential causes of burnout were measured (role conflict, role ambiguity, quality of sleep, and the perceived emotional intelligence of the dispatcher). In the second wave, the three elements of burnout were measured: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and low personal accomplishment. The results of our study indicate that role conflict relates positively to all three components of a burnout. The emotional intelligence of the dispatcher—as perceived by the truck drivers—was negatively related with the three components of a burnout. Finally, the quality of sleep had an impact on depersonalization and emotional exhaustion. Theoretically, several job specific role stressors are confirmed to play a role in truck driver burnout. However, the top three role stressors all appeared to be related to the trucking industry, instead of a particular employer, and they may therefore require national policy measures.

Challenge accepted! Distinguishing between challenge- and hindrance demands

Purpose

The purpose of this paper was to test a model that differentiated between two types of job demands in relation to basic psychological need satisfaction, work motivation, and, in turn, employee well-being. In particular, job challenges and job hindrances were hypothesized to relate to this motivational process in different ways.

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data from a sample of 160 entrepreneurs were used in path analyses to test the hypothesized relations.

Findings

The results showed that job challenges related positively to autonomy- and competence need satisfaction as well as to autonomous work motivation, while job hindrances related negatively to satisfaction of the needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness. Further, satisfaction of the need for autonomy, competence and relatedness related positively to autonomous work motivation. Finally, all of the three basic psychological needs as well as autonomous work motivation related directly and positively to vitality.

Originality/value

These results support a view on job challenges and job hindrances as distinct within the job demands-resources model by showing how they are differently related to basic psychological needs, autonomous work motivation and, subsequently, worker well-being.

The Dark and Bright Sides of Personal Use of Technology at Work: A Job Demands–Resources Model

As employees increasingly use technology for personal purposes in the workplace, tensions between proponents of control versus flexibility are rising. Proponents of control emphasize negative consequences and argue for employee restrictions and monitoring, whereas those for flexibility highlight positive consequences and advocate for employee discretion. We build consensus between these two approaches by adopting the job demands–resources model to show why the personal use of technology at work has both negative and positive effects on organizational outcomes, and then, we theorize about several boundary conditions that mitigate or strengthen these effects. We discuss implications for human resource development (HRD) scholars and professionals.

Job demands-resources predicting burnout and work engagement among Belgian home health care nurses: A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

A better knowledge of the job aspects that may predict home health care nurses' burnout and work engagement is important in view of stress prevention and health promotion. The Job Demands-Resources model predicts that job demands and resources relate to burnout and work engagement but has not previously been tested in the specific context of home health care nursing.

PURPOSE

The present study offers a comprehensive test of the Job-Demands Resources model in home health care nursing. We investigate the main and interaction effects of distinctive job demands (workload, emotional demands and aggression) and resources (autonomy, social support and learning opportunities) on burnout and work engagement.

METHODS

Analyses were conducted using cross-sectional data from 675 Belgian home health care nurses, who participated in a voluntary and anonymous survey.

RESULTS

The results show that workload and emotional demands were positively associated with burnout, whereas aggression was unrelated to burnout. All job resources were associated with higher levels of work engagement and lower levels of burnout. In addition, social support buffered the positive relationship between workload and burnout.

CONCLUSIONS

Home health care organizations should invest in dealing with workload and emotional demands and stimulating the job resources under study to reduce the risk of burnout and increase their nurses' work engagement.

Individual Characteristics Influencing Physicians' Perceptions of Job Demands and Control: The Role of Affectivity, Work Engagement and Workaholism

The first purpose of the present study was to investigate the role of individual characteristics, i.e., positive and negative affectivity, in explaining the different perception of job control and job demands in a particularly demanding environment such as the healthcare setting. In addition, we aimed to explore the mediational role of work engagement and workaholism using the Job Demands-Resources Model as a theoretical framework. Data were collected using a sample of 269 Italian head physicians working in nine general hospitals. To test our hypotheses, the collected data were analyzed with structural equation modeling. Moreover, Sobel Test and bootstrapping were employed to assess the mediating hypotheses. Our results indicated that positive affectivity is related to work engagement, which, in its turn, showed a positive association with job control. In addition, workaholism mediated the relationship between negative affectivity and job demands. All in all, this study represents a first attempt to explore the role of trait affectivity as a dispositional characteristic able to foster the level of work engagement and workaholism exhibited by employees and, in turn, to increase the perceived levels of job control and job demands.

Older employees’ desired retirement age: a JD-R perspective

Purpose

– Using the job demands-resources (JD-R) model as a theoretical framework, the purpose of this paper is to investigate how job demands and job resources affect older employees’ desired retirement age, through an energy-depletion and a motivational process. Furthermore, the importance of gain and loss cycles (i.e. recursive effects) for the desired retirement age was investigated.

Design/methodology/approach

– A two wave full panel design with 2,897 older employees ( > 50) served to test the hypotheses. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were used to test the measurement and research model. Cross-lagged analyses tested the presence of gain and loss cycles.

Findings

– Results from cross-lagged analyses based on two waves over a one-year period indicated the presence of both a gain and a loss cycle that affected the desired retirement age.

Research limitations/implications

– This is the first longitudinal study applying the JD-R model to a retirement context. Limitations relate to employing only two waves for establishing mediation, and using self-reports.

Practical implications

– Because work conditions can create a cycle of motivation as well as a cycle of depletion, organizations should pay special attention to the job resources and demands of older workers. The findings can inspire organizations when developing active aging policies, and contribute to interventions aimed at maintaining older employees within the workforce until – or even beyond – their official retirement age in a motivated and healthy way.

Originality/value

– This is the first longitudinal study applying the JD-R model to a retirement context and finding evidence for gain and loss cycles.

Engaging leadership in the job demands-resources model

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.