The Influence of Mental Health on Job Satisfaction: Mediating Effect of Psychological Capital and Social Capital

Perceived precarious life: a SEM model for re-dimensioning of precarious work and its impact on mental health

Introduction

Precarious work is one of the most studied concepts related to work, and its effects have been analyzed in relation to variables such as mental health and wellbeing. However, there is a tendency to atomise the analysis of precarious work, without understanding that people's working life is intertwined with other areas of their life.

Objective

Faced with this situation, this paper presents the concept of perceived precarious life, which is aligned with contemporary models of social inclusion and exclusion. Thus, perceived precarious life comprises variables of labor precariousness, social support and hopelessness in the family economic situation.

Methods

To test this idea, a structural equation model (SEM) is presented, which tests the structure of the construct of perceived precarious life by relating it to mental health and coping strategies.

Results

After testing the fit of the model in both men and women, a SEM path analysis is designed between the variables, observing that perceived precarious life has an effect on mental health (β = 0.635, p < 0.01). This relationship is mediated by unproductive coping strategies (β = 0.142, p < 0.01).

Conclusion

This model exposes a broad and integrated conceptualization of precariousness, combining aspects of work, relationships and hopelessness, which allows for an understanding of the integral experience of precariousness.

Primary care pediatricians and job satisfaction: a cross sectional study in the Lazio region

BACKGROUND

The Order of Physicians and Dentists of the Province of Rome aims at focusing on the satisfaction of healthcare personnel as an essential factor for the quality of medical care in the health sector. The aim of this study is to assess and prioritize the factors that can be linked to a higher or lower degree of job satisfaction in Primary Care Pediatricians (PCPs).

METHODS

This study is a cross sectional survey. A questionnaire was administered to all primary care pediatricians registered to the Order, exploring in particular the work activity organization, the level of satisfaction in their professional life, and the level of perceived health. A pilot activity was conducted to validate the questionnaire. Fisher exact test and ordinal logistic regression (ologit) models were used for the univariate and multivariate analysis.

RESULTS

The highest level of job dissatisfaction, in both men and women, was found to be in the practice type without any form of association; among women, it reached an even higher level for those who had their own practice at a distance of 20-40 km from their home. Women, compared to men, maintained a lower level of job satisfaction also while working in Pediatric Primary Care Units (PPCUs). In PPCUs, for the same distance, females showed a more similar pattern to males. Men working in PPCUs, regardless of distance, declared a higher degree of job satisfaction. Both men and women, working as a group pediatrician or in PPCUs, did not show a significant difference in the level of job satisfaction.

CONCLUSIONS

The study contributes to a deeper understanding of the factors that may influence levels of career satisfaction in female and male PCPs. Therefore, research and interventions regarding job satisfaction should foster an organizational network connection among PCPs for their job and individual well-being, from a perspective of enhancing patient care. A major effort to improve work-life balance and career satisfaction among women is important, suggesting that interventions for improving job satisfaction could benefit from a gender-specific approach.

Network connectivity between anxiety, depressive symptoms and psychological capital in Chinese university students during the COVID-19 campus closure

BACKGROUND

In the context of the outbreak of COVID-19 within mainland China, to understand the mental health status of university students during campus closure, this study analyzes the relationship between anxiety, depressive symptoms, and psychological capital and to reveals their central symptoms.

METHODS

A total of 12,945 university students were included in this study from April 10 to 19, 2022. Anxiety and depressive symptoms were measured by the seven-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) and two-item Patient Health Questionnaires (PHQ-2). Psychological capital was measured using the Psychological Capital Questionnaire (PCQ-24). The centrality and bridge centrality indexes were used to identify central and bridge symptoms, respectively. Network Comparison Test (NCT) was also administered to check whether network traits differed by gender and place of residence.

RESULTS

The most influential node in this study was Trouble relaxing (GAD4), followed by Uncontrollable worry (GAD2) and Excessive worry (GAD3). The main bridging symptoms were Depressed mood (PHQ2), Psychological capital. There are no differences in the network structure of students by place of residence, while there are more significant differences in the network structure of students by gender.

CONCLUSION

Central and bridging symptoms may be the core symptoms that trigger or maintain the development of anxiety and depression among university students during the COVID-19 campus closure. Timely and reasonable interventions targeting these symptoms may help reduce depression and anxiety in this population. In addition, improving university students' psychological capital may likewise contribute to the development of their good mental health.

The Relationship between Job Satisfaction and Depressive Symptoms among Chinese Adults Aged 35-60 Years: The Mediating Role of Subjective Well-Being and Life Satisfaction

The purpose of this study was to assess the serial multiple mediating effects of subjective well-being and life satisfaction between job satisfaction and depressive symptoms among Chinese adults aged 35-60 years. According to the 2018 China Family Panel Study (CFPS), we finally selected 10,609 respondents (5202 females, and 5407 males) aged 35-60 years old as samples for the study. Correlation analysis was carried out to examine the relationship among job satisfaction, subjective well-being, life satisfaction, and depressive symptoms. Linear regression models were established to analyze the relationship between job satisfaction and depressive symptoms. Serial multiple mediation analysis was conducted by the SPSS macro PROCESS program. The results suggested that job satisfaction was negatively correlated with depressive symptoms among Chinese adults aged 35-60 years. Subjective well-being and life satisfaction mediated the relationships between them, respectively. Furthermore, job satisfaction also had indirect impacts on depressive symptoms through the serial mediating effects of subjective well-being and life satisfaction. The findings revealed that increasing job satisfaction could decrease depressive symptoms through promoting subjective well-being and life satisfaction. The study may offer some meaningful implications for improving the mental health and reducing the risk of depressive symptoms among Chinese adults aged 35-60 years.

How individual social capital affects residents' satisfaction with medical services: Based on the evidence from urban residents in China

Introduction

Residents' satisfaction with medical services has commonly been treated as both a medical and psychosocial process. The influence of psychosocial factors on residents' satisfaction with medical treatment is generally considered as important as that of medical factors. However, the effect of individual social capital on residents' satisfaction after medical treatment-an important psychosocial variable that may influence health status and access to medical services-has not received sufficient attention.

Methods

This study used the questionnaire survey data of urban residents in eight Chinese cities in 2014 to investigate how individual social capital affects residents' satisfaction with medical services over the past year.

Results

The results revealed a negative impact of individual social capital on residents' overall satisfaction with medical services. In addition, the use of individual social capital significantly improved residents' satisfaction with medical resources and significantly reduced residents' satisfaction with the medical system. Moreover, the negative impact of individual social capital on residents' overall satisfaction with medical services was greater for individuals with a lower likelihood of using this capital, which may lead to unequal allocation of medical resources and long-term life satisfaction.

Discussion

The heterogeneous impact and mechanism of individual social capital on residents' satisfaction with medical services was confirmed under the premise of self-selection bias.

Latent transition analysis in organizational psychology: A simplified “how to” guide by using an applied example

Demands for more robust designs in organizational research have led to a steady increase in the number of longitudinal studies in organizational psychology (OP) journals. Similarly, the number and ways to analyze longitudinal data have also increased. In this paper, we adopt a relatively new and promising approach to help researchers analyze their longitudinal data in OP, namely latent transition analysis (LTA). We present a simplified guideline on LTA and discuss its role for OP researchers. Moreover, we demonstrate how organizational scholars can use this method with a practical example. In this example, we investigate (a) if there are qualitatively distinct subgroups of employees based on particular patterns of psychological capital (PsyCap) dimensions (i.e., efficacy, hope, resilience, and optimism), (b) if employees stay in these subgroups or transition to other groups over time, and finally, (c) if leader-member exchange (LMX) is associated with this transition. We use LTA to examine these steps in a German sample (N = 180).

Relationship between Employee Mental Health and Job Performance: Mediation Role of Innovative Behavior and Work Engagement

The relationship between employee mental health and job performance has been one of the key concerns in workplace. However, extant studies suffer from incomplete results due to their focus on developed economies’ contexts and the unclear path of employee mental health’s impact on performance. In this paper, we investigate the mechanism of employee mental health influencing job performance. We use the data of Chinese firms to test these hypotheses. Drawing on a sample of 239 firms from China, we find that employee mental health positively impacts job performance, and such relationship is mediated by innovative behavior and work engagement. The findings not only enrich the discipline’s knowledge on mental health in an emerging economy setting but also extend the implications of mental health, innovative behavior, and work engagement to job performance.