Master s thesis. The Job Demands-Resources model: Distinguishing threatening and challenging job demands

Transcription

1 Master s thesis The Job Demands-Resources model: Distinguishing threatening and challenging job demands Writer: Lisanne de Gram ANR: Study: Work and Organizational Psychology Supervisor: Dr. Marieke van den Tooren Second reader: Dr. Wendy de Waal-Andrews June 2014, Tilburg

2 Abstract Based on the Job Demands-Resources model, a study was conducted to examine the relationships between a threatening job demand (job insecurity) and a challenging job demand (quantitative workload) on the one hand, and emotional exhaustion and work engagement on the other hand. The job resources work autonomy and emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors were included to examine whether they moderate the relationships. Data were collected by means of an online questionnaire among 346 Dutch employees of the Province of Noord-Brabant. The hypotheses are partly supported. In line with the hypotheses, the results show that job insecurity is positively related to emotional exhaustion and negatively to work engagement. While quantitative workload is related positively to emotional exhaustion, it is also positively related to work engagement. It thus seems important to differentiate between threatening and challenging job demands. Unexpectedly, the results further show that emotional social support from coworkers moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion, such that the relationship is stronger for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers. Lastly, as expected, it was found that work autonomy moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion, such that the relationship is weaker for people who score high on work autonomy. This latter finding confirms the Job Demands-Resources model by showing that job resources can buffer the relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. Organizations could use this information to improve the well-being and work engagement of their employees. 2

3 Table of contents Abstract... 2 Table of contents... 3 Introduction... 4 Research on working conditions... 4 The Job Demands-Resources model... 4 Scientific and societal relevance... 6 Overview of the current study... 7 Hypotheses Method Respondents Procedure Materials Data-analysis Results Descriptive statistics Results of the hierarchical regression analyses Discussion Theoretical and practical implications Study limitations and recommendations for future research Conclusion References Appendix 1: Invitation to participate in the study Appendix 2: Questionnaire

4 Introduction Research on working conditions Recent research by the Federation Dutch Labour Movement (Dutch: Federatie Nederlandse Vakbeweging) has shown that more than 40 percent of employees are insecure about the future of their job (FNV, 2013). More than Dutch employees participated in this research. It was also found that almost 50 percent of the employees regularly work under high pressure. As a result, many people complain that they cannot do their work properly anymore (FNV, 2013). This research thus points out some serious problems. What are the consequences of these findings? Are there only negative consequences? And how can employees maintain their psychological well-being and stay engaged in their job? The Job Demands-Resources model One way to investigate these questions is by using the Job Demands-Resources model (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). The aim of this model is to explain both employees well-being and ill-health (Van den Broeck, De Cuyper, De Witte, & Vansteenkiste, 2010). In this model there are two general categories: Job demands and job resources. Job demands are those physical, psychological, social, or organizational aspects of the job that require sustained physical and/or psychological (i.e. cognitive or emotional) effort (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007, p. 312). In contrast, job resources refer to those aspects of the job that are functional in achieving work goals, reduce job demands and the associated physiological and psychological costs, or stimulate personal growth, learning, and development (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007, p. 312). The Job Demands-Resources model can be applied to various occupational settings, no matter what particular job demands and job resources involved (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). This makes it a very suitable model for research in the field of work and organizational psychology. 4

5 According to the model, two simultaneous processes can be distinguished (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). The first process is the motivational process. Through this process, job resources play a motivational role and may lead to work engagement. The other process is the health impairment process. Through this process, high job demands exhaust employees physical and mental resources. This may lead to the depletion of energy and health problems. Unexpectedly, some studies have found that some job demands are also positively related to positive outcomes. For example, one study investigated the relationship between quantitative workload and work engagement (Bakker, Demerouti, & Schaufeli, 2005). Quantitative workload in this study was defined as the amount of work that needs to be done, work engagement was defined as a positive, fulfilling, work-related state of mind (Schaufeli, Salanova, Gonza lez-roma, & Bakker, 2002, p. 74). This study found that quantitative workload was positively related to work engagement (Bakker et al., 2005). Therefore, it has been argued that a distinction should be made between two types of job demands. These are threatening and challenging job demands (Van den Broeck et al., 2010). Threatening job demands require energy and are health-impairing job demands. People tend to perceive these job demands as possibly constraining their personal growth and achievement (Podsakoff, LePine, & LePine, 2007). An example of a threatening job demand is job insecurity, which can be defined as the potential involuntary loss of continuity in a job situation (Greenhalgh & Rosenblatt, 1984). For example, this could be the permanent loss of the job itself or the loss of a job feature that is important to the individual. Job insecurity is a threatening job demand because it is a threat to one s job and the individual is not able to counteract this threat (Greenhalgh & Rosenblatt, 1984). Challenging job demands also require energy, but people tend to perceive challenging job demands as possibly promoting their personal growth and achievement (Podsakoff et al., 2007). Therefore, these job demands are health impairing, but also play a motivational role. An example of a challenging job demand 5

6 is quantitative workload, which is the amount of work that needs to be done (Bakker et al., 2005). Quantitative workload requires energy, but it could also promote personal growth and achievement when you succeed to finish all the work that had to be done (Podsakoff et al., 2007). Scientific and societal relevance In the previous section I explained why it might be important to make a distinction between threatening and challenging job demands. Much research does not make this distinction, this study does. Further, research that did focus on the distinction between threatening and challenging job demands rarely considered the moderating roles of job resources, while these may have an impact on the relationships between job demands and outcomes. In this study, I will examine the moderating effects of two different job resources. As mentioned before, the FNV (2013) has shown that more than 40 percent of Dutch employees are insecure about the future of their job. Also, it was found that almost 50 percent of the employees regularly work under high pressure. These findings might have serious consequences. For example, many employees complain that they cannot do their work properly anymore (FNV, 2013). This might have an adverse impact on the psychological well-being and work engagement of the employees. It is thus important to investigate the effects of job demands on employees psychological well-being and work engagement. The current study could be a starting point for further research in this area. I will focus on the effects of two types of job demands on emotional exhaustion and work engagement. Also, I will examine whether two types of job resources help employees to stay engaged in their job and maintain their psychological well-being. 6

7 Overview of the current study The model that is used for the current study is the Job Demands-Resources model. Building on the previous research findings, this study will focus on the relationships between quantitative workload and job insecurity on the one hand, and emotional exhaustion and work engagement on the other hand. Also, I will investigate whether two types of job resources moderate these relationships. These two job resources are work autonomy and emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors. The negative outcome, emotional exhaustion, can be defined as a chronic state of emotional depletion, resulting from excessive job demands and constant stress (Wright & Cropanzano, 1998). I have chosen emotional exhaustion as the negative outcome because job demands are strongly and positively related to feelings of emotional exhaustion (Bakker et al., 2005). The positive outcome, work engagement, can be defined as a positive, fulfilling, work-related state of mind that is characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption (Schaufeli et al., 2002, p. 74). Vigor is characterized by high levels of energy and mental resilience while being at work, persistence when things get difficult, and the willingness to put effort in the job (Bakker et al., 2005). Dedication is characterized by being strongly involved in one s work and experiencing a sense of significance. And absorption refers to being entirely concentrated and joyfully engrossed in the work (Bakker et al., 2005). I have chosen work engagement as the positive outcome because I expect that challenging job demands do not only have adverse effects through the health impairment process, but also have favorable effects. Job resources may bolster one s ability to cope with imposed demands (Cohen & Wills, 1985). Therefore, I expect moderating effects of the job resources. The job resources might weaken the impact of the health impairment process, resulting in less emotional exhaustion. It might also weaken the negative effect of job insecurity on work engagement, 7

8 resulting in more work engagement. And lastly, the positive effect of quantitative workload on work engagement might be strengthened by the job resources. The job resources that I will measure are work autonomy and emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors. Work autonomy can be defined as the degree to which the job provides substantial freedom, independence, and discretion to the individual in scheduling the work and in determining the procedures to be used in carrying it out (Hackman & Oldham, 1975, p. 162). On the other hand, emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors involves the provision of empathy, caring, love, and trust (House, 1981, p. 24). Emotional social support gives individuals the feeling that they are cared for. Work autonomy and emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors have been included as job resources in almost all Job Demands-Resources studies (e.g. Mauno, Kinnunen, & Ruokolainen, 2007). They are regarded as the main resources in different job design models (Van den Broeck et al., 2010). It is thus likely that these job resources show moderating effects. Therefore, I will focus on these two job resources in the current study. They are also relevant, because all respondents have a certain amount of work autonomy and receive a certain amount of emotional social support from their coworkers and supervisors. Consequently, my research question is: What are the relationships between job insecurity and quantitative workload on the one hand, and emotional exhaustion and work engagement on the other hand? And are these relationships moderated by work autonomy and/or emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors? First, I expect that higher job insecurity and quantitative workload will lead to more emotional exhaustion. This stems from the fact that both challenging and threatening job demands exhaust employees mental resources, which may lead to the depletion of energy (Podsakoff et al., 2007). Further, people tend to see challenging job demands as possibly promoting their personal growth and achievement, which is motivating (Podsakoff et al., 2007). Therefore, I expect that higher 8

9 quantitative workload will lead to more work engagement. In contrast, people tend to see threatening job demands as possibly constraining their personal growth and achievement. I therefore expect that higher job insecurity will lead to lower work engagement. Further, I expect that these relationships are moderated by work autonomy and emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors. Job resources may bolster one s ability to cope with imposed demands (Cohen & Wills, 1985). For work autonomy, I expect that it will moderate the relationships between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion/work engagement. Work autonomy can help individuals to cope better with the quantitative workload, because more work autonomy is associated with more opportunities to cope with stressful situations (Karasek, 1998). Therefore, I expect that work autonomy weakens the positive effect of quantitative workload on emotional exhaustion and strengthens the positive effect of quantitative workload on work engagement. I do not expect that work autonomy will moderate the relationships between job insecurity and emotional exhaustion/work engagement. Work autonomy does not lower the threat to one s job and does not help individuals to cope better with a threatened job situation. Emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors strengthens an individual s feelings of self-worth and belonging, which can affirm or bolster the individual s coping efforts (Schaefer, Coyne, & Lazarus, 1981). As a result, individuals who receive emotional social support might be better able to cope with the quantitative workload/job insecurity. This, in turn, weakens the positive effects of quantitative workload/job insecurity on emotional exhaustion, strengthens the positive effect of quantitative workload on work engagement, and weakens the negative effect of job insecurity on work engagement. I thus expect that emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors will moderate all the relationships between quantitative workload and job insecurity on the one hand, and emotional exhaustion and work engagement on the other hand. 9

10 Hypotheses H1a: Job insecurity is positively related to emotional exhaustion. H1b: Job insecurity is negatively related to work engagement. H1c: Emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors moderates the positive relationship between job insecurity and emotional exhaustion, such that the relationship will be weaker for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors. H1d: Emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors moderates the negative relationship between job insecurity and work engagement, such that the relationship will be weaker for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors. H2a: Quantitative workload is positively related to emotional exhaustion. H2b: Quantitative workload is positively related to work engagement. H2c: Emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion, such that the relationship will be weaker for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors. H2d: Work autonomy moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion, such that the relationship will be weaker for people who score high on work autonomy. H2e: Emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and work engagement, such that the relationship 10

11 will be stronger for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors. H2f: Work autonomy moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and work engagement, such that the relationship will be stronger for people who score high on work autonomy. Method Respondents The respondents were Dutch employees of the Province of Noord-Brabant. The core tasks of this organization are accessibility and mobility for the region, spatial development, culture and regional identity, and regional economic policy (Provincie Noord-Brabant, n.d.). Two respondents were excluded from the dataset. One of them was no longer an employee of the Province of Noord-Brabant, and the other one was not working because of a burnout. The sample consists of 346 employees (response rate was 24.9%), of which 194 males and 152 females. The age of the respondents ranges between 17 and 64 (M = 47.7, SD = 10.7). Procedure Data were collected by means of an online survey employees received an that included a short explanation of the study and a link to the online questionnaire (see appendix 1). The employees were asked to fill out the questionnaire (see appendix 2). Anonymity and confidentiality were guaranteed. The also made them aware of the opportunity to receive the results at the end of the study. The program used for the online questionnaire was Qualtrics. Before filling out the online questionnaire, the employees had to agree with the informed consent statements. It took approximately ten minutes to fill out the questionnaire. At the end of the study, I delivered the Province of Noord-Brabant a report that 11

12 included the results of the study and my general advice. A report was also sent to the employees who wanted to receive the results. Materials The online questionnaire included demographic questions about gender, age, province, education, marital status, children, cluster, function, working hours, tenure, and type of contract. The working hours and years of tenure were rounded off downwards, no matter what the dropped digit was. The other questions measured job insecurity, quantitative workload, work autonomy, emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors, emotional exhaustion, and work engagement. These variables were measured with the following scales: 1) The Job Insecurity Scale (De Witte, 1999). This is a four-item scale that measures the level of job insecurity. A sample item is: I feel insecure about the future of my job. Answers are given on a scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Higher mean scores are indicative of a higher level of job insecurity. The reliability of this scale has previously proven to be good. For example, one study found a Cronbach s alpha coefficient of.87 (Vander Elst, De Witte, & De Cuyper, 2014). In the current study, the Cronbach s alpha coefficient was.83. 2) The Quantitative Workload Inventory (Spector & Jex, 1998). This is a five-item scale that measures the level of quantitative workload. A sample question is: How often does your job require you to work very fast? Answers are given on a scale from 1 (less than once per month or never) to 5 (several times a day). Higher mean scores are indicative of a higher quantitative workload. The reliability of this scale has previously proven to be good. For example, one study found a Cronbach s alpha coefficient of.82 (Spector & Jex, 1998). In the current study, the Cronbach s alpha coefficient was

13 3) The Work Autonomy Scale (Van Veldhoven, Meijman, Broersen, & Fortuin, 2002). This is an eleven-item scale that measures the level of work autonomy. A sample question is: Can you determine the content of your activities by yourself? Answers are given on a scale from 1 (never) to 4 (always). Higher mean scores are indicative of a higher level of work autonomy. The reliability of this scale has previously proven to be good. For example, one study found a Cronbach s alpha coefficient of.90 (Van Veldhoven et al., 2002). In the current study, the Cronbach s alpha coefficient was.87. 4) The Emotional Social Support Measure (Raphael, 2005). This is a nine-item scale that measures the level of emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors. It consists of two subscales, one measures the emotional social support from coworkers and the other measures the emotional social support from supervisors. A sample item is: Your (coworker, supervisor) really cares about you. Answers are given on a scale from 1 (not at all) to 4 (very much). Higher mean scores are indicative of a higher level of emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors. The reliability of this scale has previously proven to be good. A study found the scale to be reliable for both the emotional social support from coworkers (Cronbach s alpha.88) and supervisors (Cronbach s alpha.94) (Raphael, 2005). The current study also found the scale to be reliable for both the emotional social support from coworkers (Cronbach s alpha.91) and supervisors (Cronbach s alpha.93). 5) The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, UWES (Schaufeli, Bakker, & Salanova, 2006). This is a nine-item scale that measures the level of work engagement. A sample item is: I am enthusiastic about my job. Answers are given on a scale from 1 (never) to 7 (every day). Higher mean scores are indicative of a higher level of work engagement. The reliability of this scale has previously proven to be good. For example, in a study the Cronbach s alpha coefficient varied between.85 and.92 across ten countries (Schaufeli et al., 2006). In the current study, the Cronbach s alpha coefficient was

14 6) The Utrecht Burnout Scale, UBOS (Schaufeli & Van Dierendonck, 2000). There are three different versions of the UBOS. One version is intended for teachers (UBOS-L), one version for employees that have contactual jobs (UBOS-C), and the third version can be used for all types of jobs (UBOS-A). Given the different jobs of the participants in this study, I have chosen to use the UBOS-A. I used the five-item subscale of the UBOS-A which measures the level of emotional exhaustion. A sample item is: I feel mentally exhausted by my job. Answers are given on a scale from 1 (never) to 7 (every day). Higher mean scores are indicative of a higher level of emotional exhaustion. The reliability of this scale has previously proven to be good, the Cronbach s alpha coefficient of this subscale is 0.89 (Van Ruysseveldt, Smulders, & Taverniers, 2008). In the current study, the Cronbach s alpha coefficient was.94. Data-analysis To determine whether the demographic variables should be entered in the hierarchical regression analysis, the correlations between the demographic variables (age, gender, working hours, tenure, and type of contract) and the dependent variables (emotional exhaustion and work engagement) were examined. Table 1 presents these correlations. The correlations in the table are all below.30, therefore these demographic variables were omitted from further analyses. Dummy variables were created for the variables province, education, marital status, children, cluster, and function, because these are nominal variables with more than two categories. By entering these variables in the regression analyses and examining their effects, it was determined whether or not they should be included as control variables in further analyses. When one of the dummy variables had a significant effect, the sheaf coefficient (Heise, 1972) was computed for that variable. The sheaf coefficient provides a summary term for the total effect of a set of dummy variables on the outcome variable (Birkelund, 2013). It 14

15 is computed by multiplying the dummy variables with their regression coefficients and adding up the outcomes. The collected data were analyzed with hierarchical regression analyses in SPSS. This method was chosen because it is a good method to trace relationships between variables. The sheaf coefficients were entered in the first blocks of the regression analyses, instead of the dummy variables. For the hypotheses about the main effects of a threatening and challenging job demand, job insecurity and quantitative workload were included in the second block as independent variables. Emotional exhaustion and work engagement were included as the dependent variables. For the hypotheses about the interaction effects between emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors and job insecurity, emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors and quantitative workload, and work autonomy and quantitative workload, the main effects were included in the second block (job insecurity, quantitative workload, emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors, and work autonomy). Further, the interaction terms were added in the third block (emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors x job insecurity, emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors x quantitative workload, and work autonomy x quantitative workload). Again, emotional exhaustion was included as the dependent variable. Also work engagement was included as the dependent variable, for this analysis there were no control variables included. Therefore, job insecurity and quantitative workload were included in the first block as independent variables, and the interaction terms were included in the second block. 15

16 Results Descriptive statistics Table 2 shows the means, standard deviations, and correlations between the main study variables. Job insecurity and quantitative workload are not correlated with each other (r = -.07; p =.188). There are small significant correlations (below.30) between most of the other variables. Based on these significant correlations, it is possible to already say something about a few of the hypotheses. As expected, job insecurity is positively related to emotional exhaustion (r =.15; p <.01) and negatively to work engagement (r = -.20; p <.01). Quantitative workload is positively related to both emotional exhaustion (r =.29; p <.01) and work engagement (r =.12; p <.05). Further, emotional social support from coworkers and emotional social support from supervisors are moderately correlated (r =.48; p <.01). People who score higher on emotional social support from their coworkers, also score higher on emotional social support from their supervisors, and vice versa. Another moderate correlation is found between work engagement and emotional social support from coworkers (r =.33; p <.01). People who score higher on work engagement, also score higher on emotional social support from their coworkers, and vice versa. Lastly, a moderate correlation is found between emotional exhaustion and work engagement (r = -.36; p <.01). As the value of emotional exhaustion increases, the value of work engagement decreases, and vice versa. 16

17 Results of the hierarchical regression analyses To test the hypotheses, hierarchical regression analyses were performed. The hypotheses concerning the main effects were tested first (hypotheses 1a, 1b, 2a, and 2b). Hypotheses 1a and 2a concerned the relationships between job insecurity/quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. After controlling for function, the results show that job insecurity has a significant positive relationship with emotional exhaustion (b =.27; p <.01). Further, quantitative workload also has a significant positive relationship with emotional exhaustion (b =.48; p <.01). Hypotheses 1a and 2a are thus confirmed. The proportion of variance that is explained by the inclusion of job insecurity and quantitative workload is 12%, which is significant (R 2 change =.12; p <.01). 17

18 Hypotheses 1b and 2b concerned the relationships between job insecurity/quantitative workload and work engagement. After controlling for marital status, children, and function, the results show that job insecurity has a significant negative relationship with work engagement (b = -.18; p <.01). Further, quantitative workload has a significant positive relationship with work engagement (b =.11; p <.05). Hypotheses 1b and 2b are thus confirmed. The proportion of variance that is explained by the inclusion of job insecurity and quantitative workload is 4%, which is significant (R 2 change =.04; p <.01). 18

19 Next, the hypotheses concerning the interaction effects were tested (hypotheses 1c, 1d, 2c, 2d, 2e, and 2f). Hypotheses 1c and 2c concerned the moderating effect of emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors on the relationship between job insecurity/quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. Hypothesis 2d concerned the moderating effect of work autonomy on the relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. The results show that emotional social support from coworkers does not moderate the relationship between job insecurity and emotional exhaustion (b =.09; p =.280). Emotional social support from supervisors also does not moderate the relationship between job insecurity and emotional exhaustion (b = -.04; p =.600). This means that hypothesis 1c is rejected. Further, emotional social support from coworkers has a significant moderating effect on the relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion (b =.19; p <.05). However, this moderation effect is not as expected. Emotional social support from coworkers moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion, such that the relationship is stronger for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers than for people who score low on emotional social support from coworkers. It was expected that the relationship would be weaker, not stronger. Figure 1 shows the interaction effect. Emotional social support from supervisors does not moderate the relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion (b =.05; p =.575). This means that hypothesis 2c is rejected. 19

20 Lastly, the results show that work autonomy has a significant moderating effect on the relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion (b = -.19; p <.05). Work autonomy moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion, such that the relationship is weaker for people who score high on work autonomy than for people who score low on work autonomy. This means that hypothesis 2d is confirmed. Figure 2 shows the interaction effect. The proportion of variance that is explained by the inclusion of the interaction effects is 3%, which is not significant (R 2 change =.03; p =.052). 20

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22 Hypotheses 1d and 2e concerned the moderating effect of emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors on the relationship between job insecurity/quantitative workload and work engagement. Hypothesis 2f concerned the moderating effect of work autonomy on the relationship between quantitative workload and work engagement. After controlling for marital status and children, the results show that emotional social support from coworkers does not moderate the relationship between job insecurity and work engagement (b = -.01; p =.896). Emotional social support from supervisors also does not moderate the relationship between job insecurity and work engagement (b = -.08; p =.131). This means that hypothesis 1d is rejected. Further, emotional social support from coworkers does not moderate the relationship between quantitative workload and work engagement (b = -.04; p =.480). Emotional social support from supervisors also does not moderate the relationship between quantitative workload and work engagement (b = -.11; p =.071). This means that hypothesis 2e is rejected. Lastly, the results show that work autonomy does not moderate the relationship between quantitative workload and work engagement (b =.08; p =.117). This means that hypothesis 2f is rejected. The proportion of variance that is explained by the inclusion of the interaction effects is 2%, which is not significant (R 2 change =.02; p =.168). 22

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24 Discussion The current study was conducted to investigate the relationship between job insecurity and quantitative workload on the one hand, and emotional exhaustion and work engagement on the other hand. Also investigated was the extent to which emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors and work autonomy moderate these relationships. Data were collected by means of an online questionnaire. The sample consisted of 346 Dutch employees of the Province of Noord-Brabant. The collected data were analyzed with hierarchical regression analysis, which partly supported the hypotheses. In line with hypotheses 1a and 2a, the findings show that both job insecurity and quantitative workload are positively related to emotional exhaustion. This supports the health impairment process of the Job Demands-Resources model (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). According to this model, job demands exhaust employees mental resources, which may lead to the depletion of energy (Podsakoff et al., 2007). This results in emotional exhaustion. As was mentioned in the introduction, some studies have unexpectedly found that some job demands are also positively related to positive outcomes. The current study also shows a positive relationship between a job demand and a positive outcome. Quantitative workload is positively related to work engagement. In contrast, job insecurity is negatively related to work engagement. These findings are in line with hypotheses 1b and 2b. The results therefore support the notion that a distinction should be made between two types of job demands, namely threatening and challenging job demands. Hypothesis 1c is not supported. Emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors does not moderate the positive relationship between job insecurity and emotional exhaustion. This could be explained by the fact that emotional social support does not lower the possibility that an individual loses his/her job. The positive effect of job insecurity on emotional exhaustion therefore remains. 24

25 Hypothesis 2c is also not supported. Emotional social support from supervisors does not moderate the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. This could possibly be explained by respondents self-efficacy. This refers to the belief in one s own ability to reach goals and complete tasks (Ormrod, 2006). It could be the case that the respondents have a strong sense of self-efficacy. The strongest source of selfefficacy beliefs is often considered to be mastery experience (Bandura, 1997). This mastery experience results from being successful in accomplishing tasks in the past. Most of the respondents started working for the Province of Noord-Brabant many years ago. Therefore, most of them have years of experience and have likely been successful in accomplishing tasks in the past. This leads to a stronger sense of self-efficacy. When the respondents have a strong sense of self-efficacy, they do not need the support of their supervisors in order to do their job. This would explain why emotional social support from supervisors does not moderate the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. Further, it was found that emotional social support from coworkers does moderate the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. The relationship is stronger for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers than for people who score low on emotional social support from coworkers. This finding is not in line with hypothesis 2c. The expectation was that the relationship would be weaker for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers, not stronger. This unexpected finding could also possibly be explained by respondents self-efficacy (Ormrod, 2006). It could be the case that the respondents have a strong belief in their own ability to reach goals and complete tasks. When the level of quantitative workload is high, they prefer to be left alone in order to be able to do all their work. They do not want their coworkers to intervene. When coworkers keep intervening with one s work, it does not lower the impact of quantitative workload on emotional exhaustion. However, when an individual s quantitative 25

26 workload is low, he/she has more time to do his/her work. Emotional social support from coworkers is then seen as pleasant, because there is enough time to finish the work. In this case, emotional social support from coworkers lowers the level of emotional exhaustion. Emotional social support from coworkers thus has an adverse impact when the level of quantitative workload is high, while emotional social support from supervisors does not have an impact at all. This could possibly be explained by the fact that the employees work in the same room as their coworkers. Therefore, the coworkers are more likely to intervene with one s work than supervisors. In line with hypothesis 2d, work autonomy moderates the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. The relationship is weaker for people who score high on work autonomy than for people who score low on work autonomy. It seems that work autonomy helps individuals to cope better with the quantitative workload, which weakens the positive effect of quantitative workload on emotional exhaustion. Hypotheses 1d and 2e are not supported. Emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors does not moderate the positive relationships between job insecurity/quantitative workload and work engagement. For these relationships it does not matter whether an individual receives a lot of emotional social support or less emotional social support. This could possibly be explained by the fact that emotional social support does not lower the possibility that an individual loses his/her job. It also does not lower the amount of work that needs to be done. The impact of job insecurity/quantitative workload remains. Hypothesis 2f is also not supported. Work autonomy does not moderate the positive relationship between quantitative workload and work engagement. For this relationship it does not matter whether an individual has a lot of work autonomy or less work autonomy. It could be the case that quantitative workload by itself is already so challenging that it leads to much work engagement. Adding work autonomy does not really make a difference then. 26

27 Theoretical and practical implications The current study contributes to the already existing literature. First, much research on the relationships between job demands and outcomes does not make a distinction between different types of job demands. However, some studies have found that some job demands are not only positively related to negative outcomes, they are also positively related to positive outcomes. Therefore, it has been argued that a distinction should be made between two types of job demands, namely threatening and challenging job demands. In the current study, it was found that quantitative workload does not only have a positive effect on emotional exhaustion, it also has a positive effect on work engagement. In contrast, job insecurity has a positive effect on emotional exhaustion and a negative effect on work engagement. The results thus support the notion that a distinction should be made. Secondly, research that did focus on the distinction between threatening and challenging job demands rarely considered the moderating roles of job resources, while these may have an impact on the relationships between job demands and outcomes. In the current study, the moderating effects of emotional social support from coworkers/supervisors and work autonomy were investigated. Unexpectedly, the results show that emotional social support from coworkers has a significant adverse impact on the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. It was expected that the relationship would be weaker for people who score high on emotional social support from coworkers than for people who score low on emotional social support from coworkers, not stronger. It is interesting that emotional social support from coworkers has a significant adverse impact, while emotional social support from supervisors has no impact at all. This difference might be due to the fact that one s coworkers work in the same room. Coworkers are therefore more likely to intervene with one s work. Work autonomy also moderated the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. This finding is in line with the 27

28 hypothesis. The relationship is weaker for people who score high on work autonomy than for people who score low on work autonomy. It is thus worthwhile to consider the moderating roles of emotional social support from coworkers and work autonomy when investigating the relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. From a practical point of view, we may conclude that both job insecurity and quantitative workload have a significant impact on employees level of emotional exhaustion and work engagement. Organizations could use this information to improve the well-being of their employees and increase work engagement. They should pay attention to the job demands that their employees are experiencing. The results of this study show that job insecurity is positively related to emotional exhaustion and negatively to work engagement. It is thus important that employees do not experience much job insecurity. Earlier research has found that access to information and the quality of organizational communication are related to lower levels of job insecurity (Parker, Axtell, & Turner, 2001). Further, another study found that greater amounts of organizational communication (in frequency and accuracy) are also associated with lower levels of job insecurity (Keim, Landis, Pierce, Earnest, 2014). Organizations should thus make sure that their employees have enough access to information, and that the quality, frequency, and accuracy of the communication are sufficient. Organizations might further be able to do something about the quantitative workload. The results show that quantitative workload can lead to work engagement. When quantitative workload is low, organizations could create a higher level of quantitative workload for their employees and increase work engagement in this way. Since quantitative workload is also positively related to emotional exhaustion, it is important that organizations provide their employees with good job resources. In the current study, work autonomy weakened the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. Organizations should thus provide their employees with enough work autonomy. 28

29 Study limitations and recommendations for future research There were a few limitations in the current study that might have influenced the (interpretation of the) results. The first limitation concerns the cross-sectional design of the study. Data were collected at one single point in time. Therefore, no causal effects can be drawn from the data. The direction of the effects is based on theoretical frameworks and previous research. A second potential limitation concerns the scale that measures emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors (Raphael, 2005). The answers were given on a scale from 1 (not at all) to 4 (very much). A few respondents remarked that it was sometimes difficult for them to choose between the categories 3 (a little bit) and 4 (very much). In their opinion, there is a gap between a little bit and very much. They missed the answer category mostly. Therefore, it might be better to use a 5-point scale. This would lead to a better differentiation. Some recommendations for future research can be made. First, it is advisable to use a longitudinal design. When data is collected over a longer period of time it is possible to say something about the direction of the effects. Second, future research in this area should also make a distinction between threatening and challenging job demands. Differences in stress perceptions should be taken into account, since individuals can differ in how they interpret job demands, especially when job demands are relatively mild (Edwards, Franco-Watkins, Cullen, Howell, & Acuff, 2013). Furthermore, the moderating roles of emotional social support from coworkers and work autonomy should be considered when investigating the relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. 29

30 Conclusion The introduction of this paper started with the outcomes of recent research by the Federation Dutch Labour Movement. According to this research, more than 40 percent of employees are insecure about the future of their job (FNV, 2013). Furthermore, almost 50 percent of the employees regularly work under high pressure. What are the consequences of these findings? The current study was conducted to examine the relationships between a threatening job demand (job insecurity) and a challenging job demand (quantitative workload) on the one hand, and emotional exhaustion and work engagement on the other hand. The job resources work autonomy and emotional social support from coworkers and supervisors were included to examine whether they moderate the relationships. The results show that both job insecurity and quantitative workload have a significant adverse impact on employees experience of emotional exhaustion. While job insecurity is negatively related to work engagement, quantitative workload is positively related to work engagement. This shows that challenging job demands can also be positively related to positive outcomes. The findings further show that work autonomy can moderate the positive relationship between quantitative workload and emotional exhaustion. The relationship is weaker for people who score high on work autonomy than for people who score low on work autonomy. Organizations could use this information to improve the well-being of their employees and increase work engagement. This would not only benefit the employee, it would benefit the whole organization! 30

31 References Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2007). The Job Demands-Resources model: State of the art. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 22, Bakker, A. B., Demerouti, E., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2005). The crossover of burnout and engagement among working couples. Human Relations, 58, Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of self-control. Gordonsville, VA: WH Freeman & Co. Birkelund, G. E. (2013). Class and Stratification Analysis. Bingley, UK: Emerald Group Publishing. Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98(2), De Witte, H. (1999). Job insecurity and psychological well-being: Review of the literature and exploration of some unresolved issues. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 8(2), Edwards, B. D., Franco-Watkins, A. M., Cullen, K. L., Howell, J. W., & Acuff Jr, R. E. (2013). Unifying the challenge-hindrance and sociocognitive models of stress. International Journal of Stress Management, 21(2), FNV. (2013). Ruim 40 procent werknemers onzeker over toekomst baan. Retrieved from Greenhalgh, L., & Rosenblatt, Z. (1984). Job Insecurity: Toward conceptual clarity. Academy of Management Review, 9, Hackman, J. R., & Oldham, G. R. (1975). Development of the job diagnostic survey. Journal of Applied Psychology, 60, Heise, D. R. (1972). Employing nominal variables, induced variables, and block variables in path analysis. Sociological Methods and Research, 1(2),

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35 Appendix 1: Invitation to participate in the study Beste collega, Lisanne de Gram, studente Arbeids- en Organisatiepsychologie aan de Universiteit van Tilburg, heeft van ons toestemming gekregen om in het kader van haar masteropleiding een online vragenlijstonderzoek uit te zetten binnen de Provincie Noord-Brabant. Hierbij onderzoekt zij de relaties tussen werkeisen en gezondheid/bevlogenheid. Met werkeisen bedoelt ze de aspecten van de baan die fysieke en/of mentale inspanning vereisen. Na afloop van het onderzoek levert zij een rapport aan de Provincie Noord-Brabant met daarin de bevindingen op hoofdlijnen en haar algemeen advies. Open de volgende link om de vragenlijst te starten: We vragen u 10 minuten van uw tijd om de vragenlijst in te vullen. Uw antwoorden worden anoniem verwerkt en vertrouwelijk en zorgvuldig behandeld. U kunt aangeven de bevindingen te willen ontvangen. Voor vragen over het onderzoek kunt u mailen naar: L.degram@uvt.nl Met vriendelijke groet, Edith van Nispen Hoofd P&O 35

36 Appendix 2: Questionnaire 36

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