Does Psychological Detachment From Work Protect Employees under High Intensified Job Demands?

Jaana Minkkinen; Ulla Kinnunen; Saija Mauno

doi:10.16993/sjwop.97

Does Psychological Detachment From Work Protect Employees under High Intensified Job Demands?

Scandinavian Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology

Volume 6 (2021): Issue 1

By: Jaana Minkkinen , Ulla Kinnunen and Saija Mauno

Open Access

|Oct 2021

Abstract

Technological acceleration is intensifying job demands (IJDs), referring to work intensification, intensified job- and career-related planning and decision-making demands, and intensified learning demands at work. IJDs mean new challenges for workers but recovery from work during off-job time through psychological detachment from work may help employees to maintain their well-being in the context of IJDs. The present study examined the associations between IJDs and emotional exhaustion and the buffering role of psychological detachment in these relationships. Cross-sectional data were collected from four Finnish trade unions in 2018 (N = 3,181). Data were analyzed by structural equation modeling (SEM). Higher IJDs were related to greater emotional exhaustion, and greater psychological detachment from work to lower emotional exhaustion. Of IJDs, work intensification had the strongest relationship with higher emotional exhaustion. As expected, psychological detachment attenuated the positive relationship between IJDs and emotional exhaustion. In general, the group-specific findings for blue-collar and white-collar workers were in line with the results found for the data as a whole. The results underline the beneficial role of psychological detachment from work as a strategy for replenishing resources that protects employees’ occupational well-being in the presence of high IJDs. The potential risks of IJDs in today’s workplaces should be recognized and employees’ opportunities to mentally detach from work during free time should be supported.

References

Ahola, K., Honkonen, T., Isometsä, E., Kalimo, R., Nykyri, E., Koskinen, S., Aromaa, A., & Lönnqvist, J. (2006). Burnout in the general population – Results from the Finnish Health 2000 Study. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 41, 11–17. DOI: 10.1007/s00127-005-0011-5
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2017). Job Demands-Resources theory: Taking stock and looking forward. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 22, 273–285. DOI: 10.1037/ocp0000056
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Bennett, A., Bakker, A. B., & Field, J. G. (2018). Recovery from work-related effort: A meta-analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 39, 262–275. DOI: 10.1002/job.2217
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Cavanaugh, M. A., Boswell, W. R., Roehling, M. V., & Boudreau, J. W. (2000). An empirical examination of self-reported work stress among U.S. managers. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85(1), 65–74. DOI: 10.1037/0021-9010.85.1.65
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Chesley, N. (2014). Information and communication technology use, work intensification and employee strain and stress. Work, Employment and Society, 28(4), 589–610. DOI: 10.1177/0950017013500112
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Cohen, S., & Wills, T. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98(2), 310–357. DOI: 10.1037/0033-2909.98.2.310
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Crawford, E. R., LePine, J. A., & Rich, B. L. (2010). Linking job demands and resources to employee engagement and burnout: A theoretical extension and meta-analytic test. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(5), 834–848. DOI: 10.1037/a0019364
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Demerouti, E., Bakker, A. B., Geurts, S. A. E., & Taris, T. W. (2009). Daily recovery from work-related effort during non-work time. In S. Sonnnentag, P. L. Perrewé & D. C. Ganster (Eds.), Current perspectives on job-stress recovery (pp. 85–124). (Research in Occupational Stress and Well Being; Vol. 7). Bingley, UK: JAI Press. DOI: 10.1108/S1479-3555(2009)0000007006
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Demerouti, E., Bakker, A. B., Nachreiner, F., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2001). The job demands-resources model of burnout. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(3), 499–512. DOI: 10.1037/0021-9010.86.3.499
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Gagné, M., & Deci, E. L. (2005). Self-determination theory and work motivation. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 26(4), 331–362. DOI: 10.1002/job.322
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Fein, E. C., Skinner, N., & Machin, M. A. (2017). Work intensification, work–life interference, stress, and well-being in Australian workers. International Studies of Management & Organization, 47(4), 360–371. DOI: 10.1080/00208825.2017.1382271
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Feldt, T., Rantanen, J., Hyvönen, K., Mäkikangas, A., Huhtala, M., Pihlajasaari, P., & Kinnunen, U. (2014). The 9-item Bergen Burnout Inventory: Factorial validity across organizations and measurements of longitudinal data. Industrial Health, 52(2), 102–112. DOI: 10.2486/indhealth.2013-0059
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Franke, F. (2015). Is work intensification extra stress? Journal of Personnel Psychology, 14(1), 17–27. DOI: 10.1027/1866-5888/a000120
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Green, F. (2004a). Why has work effort become more intense? Industrial Relations, 3(4), 709–741. DOI: 10.1111/j.0019-8676.2004.00359.x
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Green, F. (2004b). Work intensification, discretion, and the decline in well-being at work. Eastern Economic Journal, 30(4), 615–625.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Hahn, V. C., Binnewies, C., Sonnentag, S., & Mojza, E. J. (2011). Learning how to recover from job stress: Effects of a recovery training program on recovery, recovery-related self-efficacy and well-being. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 16, 202–216. DOI: 10.1037/a0022169
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Herpen, D. (2017). Work intensification: A clarification and exploration into causes, consequences and conditions. A literary review. Bachelor Thesis.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indices in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55. DOI: 10.1080/10705519909540118
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
James, G., Witten, D., Hastie, T., & Tibshirani, R. (2013). An Introduction to Statistical Learning: With Applications in R. Springer. DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4614-7138-7
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
De Jonge, J., & Dormann, C. (2006). Stressors, resources, and strain at work: A longitudinal test of the triple-match principle. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(6), 1359–1374. DOI: 10.1037/0021-9010.91.5.1359
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kinnunen, U., Feldt, T., Siltaloppi, U., & Sonnentag, S. (2011). Job demands-resources model in the context of recovery: Testing recovery experiences as mediators. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 20, 805–832. DOI: 10.1080/1359432X.2010.524411
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kinnunen, U., Rantanen, J., de Bloom, J., Mauno, S., Feldt, T., & Korpela, K. (2016). The role of work-nonwork boundary management in work stress recovery. International Journal of Stress Management, 23, 99–123. DOI: 10.1037/a0039730
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kline, R. B. (2011). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (3nd ed.) New York, NY: Guilford.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Korunka, C., Kubicek, B., Paškvan, M., & Ulferts, M. (2015). Changes in work intensification and intensified learning: challenge or hindrance demands? Journal of Managerial Psychology, 30(7), 786–800. DOI: 10.1108/JMP-02-2013-0065
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Korunka, C., Kubicek, B., Prem, R., & Cvitan, A. (2012). Recovery and detachment between shifts, and fatigue during a twelve-hour shift. Work, 41(Supplement 1), 3227–3233. DOI: 10.3233/WOR-2012-0587-3227
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kubicek, B., Korunka, C., Paskvan, M., Prem, R., & Gerdenitsch, C. (2014). Changing working conditions at the onset of the twentyfirst century: Facts from international datasets. In C. Korunka & P. Hoonakker (Eds.), The impact of ICT on quality of working life (pp. 25–41). Dordrecht: Springer Science Business Media. DOI: 10.1007/978-94-017-8854-0_3
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Kubicek, B, Paškvan, M., & Korunka, C. (2015). Development and validation of an instrument for assessing job demands arising from accelerated change: The intensification of job demands scale (IDS). European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 24(6), 898–913. DOI: 10.1080/1359432X.2014.979160
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Lazarus, R., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York, NY: Springer.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Maslach, C., Schaufeli, W. B., & Leiter, M. P. (2001). Job burnout. Annual Review of Psychology, 52(1), 397–422. DOI: 10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.397
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Maslowsky, J., Jager, J., & Hemken, D. (2015). Estimating and interpreting latent variable interactions: A tutorial for applying the latent moderated structural equations method. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 39(1), 87–96. DOI: 10.1177/0165025414552301
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Mauno, S., Kubicek, B., Minkkinen, J., & Korunka, C. (2019). Antecedents of intensified job demands: evidence from Austria. Employee Relations, 41(4), 694–707. DOI: 10.1108/ER-04-2018-0094
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Meijman, T. F., & Mulder, G. (1998). Psychological aspects of workload. In P. J. D. Drenth & H. Thierry (Eds.), Handbook of work and organizational psychology, 2, 5–33. Hove: Psychology Press.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Ministry of Employment and the Economy. (2018). Työolobarometrit https://findikaattori.fi/fi/table/36
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Minkkinen, J., Mauno, S., Feldt, T., Tsupari, H., Auvinen, E., & Huhtala, M. (2019). Uhkaako työn intensiivistyminen työhyvinvointia? Intensiivistymisen yhteys työuupumukseen opetus- ja tutkimustyössä. Psykologia, 54(04), 255–301.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Muthén, B. (2012). Latent variable interactions. Sep 20. Retrieved from D//www.statmodel.com/download/LV%20Interaction.pdf
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Muthén, L., & Muthén, B. (1998–2012). Mplus user’s guide (7th edition). Muthén and Muthén: Los Angeles, CA.
Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Peugh, L. (2010). A practical guide to multilevel modeling. Journal of School Psychology, 48, 85–112. DOI: 10.1016/j.jsp.2009.09.002
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Rosa, H. (2003). Social acceleration: Ethical and political consequences of a desynhcronized high-speed society. Constellations, 10, 3–33. DOI: 10.1111/1467-8675.00309
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Rosa, H. (2013). Social Acceleration. A New Theory of Modernity. Columbia University Press. DOI: 10.7312/rosa14834
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Salmela-Aro, K., Rantanen, J., Hyvönen, K., Tilleman, K., & Feldt, T. (2011). Bergen Burnout Inventory: Reliability and validity among Finnish and Estonian managers. International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 84(6), 635–645. DOI: 10.1007/s00420-010-0594-3
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Satorra, A., & Bentler, P. M. (2010). Ensuring positiveness of the scaled difference chi-square test statistic. Psychometrika, 75, 243. DOI: 10.1007/s11336-009-9135-y
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sianoja, M., Kinnunen, U., Mäkikangas, A., & Tolvanen, A. (2018). Testing the direct and moderator effects of the stressor-detachment model over one year: A latent change perspective. Work & Stress, 32(4), 357–378. DOI: 10.1080/02678373.2018.1437232
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Siltaloppi, M., Kinnunen, U., & Feldt, T. (2009). Recovery experiences as moderators between psychological work characteristics and occupational well-being. Work & Stress, 23, 330–348. DOI: 10.1080/02678370903415572
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sonnentag, S., Arbeus, H., Mahn, C., & Fritz, C. (2014). Exhaustion and lack of psychological detachment from work during off-job time: Moderator effects of time pressure and leisure experiences. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 19, 206–216. DOI: 10.1037/a0035760
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sonnentag, S., & Bayer, U.-V. (2005). Switching off mentally: Predictors and consequences of psychological detachment from work during off-job time. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 10, 393–414. DOI: 10.1037/1076-8998.10.4.393
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sonnentag, S., Binnewies, C., & Mojza, E. J. (2010). Stay well and engaged when demands are high: The role of psychological detachment. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95, 965–976. DOI: 10.1037/a0020032
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sonnentag, S., & Fritz, C. (2007). The Recovery Experience Questionnaire: Development and validation of a measure for assessing recuperation and unwinding from work. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 12(3), 204. DOI: 10.1037/1076-8998.12.3.204
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Sonnentag, S., & Fritz, C. (2015). Recovery from job stress: The stressor-detachment model as an integrative framework. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36, S72–S103. DOI: 10.1002/job.1924
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Wendsche, J., & Lohmann-Haislah, A. (2017). A meta-analysis on antecedents and outcomes of detachment from work. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 2072. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.02072
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Zeytinoglu, I. U., Denton, M., Davies, S., Baumann, A., Blythe, J., & Boos L. (2007) Associations between work intensification, stress and job satisfaction: The case of nurses in Ontario. Relations industrielles/Industrial Relations, 62(2), 201–222. DOI: 10.7202/016086ar
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article
Zijlstra, F. R. H., & Sonnentag, S. (2006). After work is done: Psychological perspectives on recovery from work. European Journal of Work & Organizational Psychology, 15, 129–138. DOI: 10.1080/13594320500513855
Open DOI Search in Google Scholar Back to article

Articles in this issue

DOI: https://doi.org/10.16993/sjwop.97 | Journal eISSN: 2002-2867

Journal RSS Feed

Language: English

Page range: 9 - 9

Submitted on: Aug 8, 2019

Accepted on: Aug 20, 2021

Published on: Oct 14, 2021

Published by: Stockholm University Press

In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services

Keywords:

intensified job demands,

emotional exhaustion,

psychological detachment,

job burnout,

work strain,

buffering hypothesis

© 2021 Jaana Minkkinen, Ulla Kinnunen, Saija Mauno, published by Stockholm University Press
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Volume 6 (2021): Issue 1