Deriving benefits from stressful events: the role of engagement in meaningful work and hardiness

Stress, hardiness and eating disorder symptoms in military academy cadets

Eating disorders are a persistent and debilitating problem, especially among college age men and women. This problem is exacerbated in occupations such as the military, where maintenance of strict standards regarding weight, fitness and appearance is important for job retention and promotion. Also, previous research confirms that stress is a contributing element to eating disorders. It is thus important to identify factors that may assist individuals to remain resilient and avoid stress-related health and eating difficulties. The present study utilizes historical data to examine the impact of stress on health and eating disorder symptoms in a representative sample of West Point military academy cadets, while testing the role of gender and hardiness as stress moderators in this relation. A survey containing measures of stress, hardiness and eating disorders symptoms was completed by 387 cadets in the fall and spring of 2000-2001. Moderation effects were tested with advanced conditional process analysis procedures developed recently by Hayes (2022). Results show that hardiness was a significant moderator, with cadets low in hardiness showing increased eating disorder symptoms and more general health symptoms. While gender was not a significant moderator with respect to eating disorder symptoms, it was significant for general health symptoms; female cadets showed more stress-related health symptoms than their male counterparts. These results suggest that eating disorder symptoms in military academy cadets and college students more generally may be reduced through programs aimed at developing hardiness attitudes and stress coping approaches.

UN peacekeeper health and risk factors --- a systematic scoping review

BACKGROUND

Conflicts, natural disasters, and complex emergencies present substantial health challenges to United Nations (UN) peacekeepers deployed in mission areas. This scoping review aims at summarizing previous research on the health of UN peacekeepers and identifies issues for further investigation.

METHODS

Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) extension for Scoping Reviews, we systematically searched Web of Science, PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) for English and Chinese literature published from April 1997 to November 2023. A data charting form was developed by two reviewers to extract relevant themes and provided narrative descriptions.

RESULTS

We screened 1079 de-duplicated records and included 143 studies in this scoping review. There were 112 studies on the health status of UN peacekeepers, with more than half on mental health problems such as stress and anxiety. Many studies explored the health status of UN peacekeepers in African countries deployed from mainly U.S., Canada, U.K., China, Australia and Norway. There were 39 studies on the health risk factors of UN peacekeepers, including natural environmental, social environmental, psychological, behavioral lifestyle, biological factors and health service factors. There were 62 articles on the health protection of UN peacekeepers, mainly based on previous deployment experience, with a lack of theoretical guidance from global health perspectives. This scoping review found that health problems of UN peacekeepers are complicated, and whose impacts are cross-border. Social environmental factors were explored the most among health risk factors. Disease prevention measures, medical and health measures, and psychosocial measures were the main health protection for UN peacekeepers.

CONCLUSIONS

This scoping review highlighted that health problems of UN peacekeepers were typical global health issues with complicated and cross-border health risk factors. Therefore, comprehensive strategies could be taken from global health perspectives, including multi-phases (before-deployment, during-deployment, and post-deployment), multi-disciplines (public health, medicine, politics, health diplomacy, and others), and multi-levels (the UN, host countries, troop-contributing countries, the UN peacekeeping team, and UN peacekeepers).

Transformational leadership, well-being, morale, and readiness: The mediating role of empowerment

Transformational leadership is embedded in the value system of the Canadian military ethos. Research suggests that transformational leadership can be viewed as a form of empowering leadership facilitating empowered psychological states among their followers, which in turn, enhances their performance, wellbeing, and engagement. The current study examined the associations between transformational leadership and Canadian Armed Forces members' psychological distress, morale, and pre-deployment readiness and the mediating role of psychological empowerment in these relationships. A path analysis model of the data collected through a pre-deployment survey completed by Canadian Armed Force (CAF) members (N = 2,391) revealed that transformational leadership was associated with lower psychological distress and greater morale and these relationships were partly explained by increased feelings of empowerment, namely higher levels of autonomy, competence, and meaning. Furthermore, transformational leadership was also associated with higher perceptions of pre-deployment readiness, and this was partly explained by increased feelings of meaning and competence. The results of this research suggest that transformational leadership is an effective strategy to bolster psychological resources and readiness in the CAF.

Healthcare professionals' voice as a road to burnout and work engagement? The role of relational outcomes: An exploratory study of European countries

PURPOSE

Healthcare professionals are key in healthcare organisations but are subject to long working hours and may have to make complex life-and-death decisions. As frontline agents dealing with human lives, giving them a voice is paramount. This study explores the impact of employee voice (assessed based on employee perceptions on how much they are consulted and how much influence they have on task-related decisions) on health professionals' work engagement and burnout when mediated by relational outcomes (perceived organisational support, workplace trust, workplace recognition and meaningful work).

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH

A sample of 3,266 health professionals retrieved from the European Working Condition Survey was used. The quantitative analysis was performed using the partial least square structural equation modelling and multiple regression analyses.

FINDINGS

The results indicate that employee voice has a direct positive impact on work engagement, but employee voice's direct effects on burnout still need to be confirmed. Relational outcomes are found to mediate the relationship between employee voice and burnout (decreasing it) and between employee voice and work engagement (increasing it).

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

Practices of employee voice in the workplace are fundamental to promoting health professionals' well-being. Trust, recognition, support and the feeling of doing meaningful work increase the influence of employee voice, especially in reducing the levels of burnout.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE

This is the first study that assesses, at a European level, the importance that 'giving health professionals a voice' has on crucial employee outcomes: work engagement, burnout and relational outcomes.

Coaching leaders toward favorable trajectories of burnout and engagement

Existing literature on executive coaching has shown beneficial outcomes for leaders. Indeed, executive coaching can positively affect an individual's psychological well-being and quality of work life. However, while burnout among leaders is on the rise, to our knowledge no prior study has investigated the influence of executive coaching on the dimensions of burnout and engagement concurrently. Therefore, the aim of the current study is to examine if an executive coaching intervention has positive effects on managerial burnout and engagement. We implemented a ten-week coaching intervention for leaders, where questionnaire data were collected at two time points. Participants (N = 92; Mage = 42; 64% male) were randomly assigned to an intervention or a wait-list control group. Self-reported levels of engagement and burnout were collected at the start of the study protocol (T1) and at the end (T2). Coaching sessions for the intervention group were one hour once per week. The control group did not receive coaching. Repeated measures ANOVAs examined the extent to which the intervention influences the leader's engagement and burnout. Analyses revealed that all three dimensions of burnout significantly decreased for the intervention group over time while vigor increased. Findings did not reveal an increase in dedication and absorption. Consistent with prior literature, this study supports that executive coaching can improve a leader's well-being. Specifically, this study shows that an executive coaching intervention can decrease burnout symptoms and increase vigor in leaders. Adding a follow-up survey to the design would allow for further exploration of the intervention on engagement.

Limitations of benefit finding as a coping mechanism for combat-related PTSD symptoms

Benefit finding has been identified as a buffer of the combat exposure-PTSD symptom link in soldiers. However, benefit finding may have a limited buffering capacity on the combat-PTSD symptom link over the course of a soldier's post-deployment recovery period. In the present study, soldiers returning from Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) were surveyed at two different time periods post-deployment: Time 1 was 4 months post-deployment (n = 1,510), and Time 2 was at 9 months post-deployment (n = 783). The surveys assessed benefit finding, PTSD symptoms, and combat exposure. Benefit finding was a successful buffer of the cross-sectional relationship between combat exposure and PTSD reexperiencing symptoms at Time 1, but not at Time 2. In addition, the benefit finding by combat interaction at time 1 revealed that greater benefit finding was associated with higher symptoms under high combat exposure at Time 2 after controlling for PTSD arousal symptoms at Time 1. The results of the present study indicate that benefit finding may have a buffering capacity in the immediate months following a combat deployment, but also indicates that more time than is allotted during the post-deployment adjustment period is needed to enable recovery from PTSD. Theoretical implications are discussed.

Improving hardiness among university students: A meta-analysis of intervention studies

Introduction

Increasing the hardiness of students is a crucial objective in higher education. Universities and colleges have created a variety of interventions to improve students' overall hardiness.

Methods

In terms of the effects of such interventions, empirical research has shown inconclusive results. This meta-analysis applies 12 effect sizes from 12 independent empirical studies, with a total of 640 participants, to assess the overall impact of interventions on students' hardiness and to test for moderators, in light of the contradictory findings in prior work. The current meta-analysis calculates the standardized mean differences (SMD) of pre-post interventions. The level of study heterogeneity, represented by I ², was interpreted as small (I ² ≤ 25%), moderate (25% < I ² ≤ 50%), substantial (50% < I ² ≤ 75%), or considerable (I ² > 75%). Twelve studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the meta-analysis.

Results

The results show that the interventions had a significant positive overall effect on students' hardiness (g = 0.998, k = 12) and show significant heterogeneity among effect sizes. Among the interventions, cognitive-based intervention yielded the largest mean effect size (g = 2.015, k = 5). Furthermore, moderator analyses suggest that the effects of the interventions on students' hardiness are moderated by respondent type, culture, intervention type, research design, years, and duration of intervention.

Discussion

We conclude that interventions that promote students' hardiness are officious. Despite the low homogeneity of the results and limitations of this meta-analysis (e.g., a small number of included studies) which might have influenced the findings, the large fail-safe N suggests that these findings are robust. The study examined potential causes of heterogeneity and emphasized the importance of further research in this area.

Can public service motivation increase work engagement?-A meta-analysis across cultures

Civil servants' work engagement is an essential topic in human resource management research of public sector. To explore the effects of public service motivation on civil service engagement as well as its mechanisms of action, and boundary conditions, this paper utilizes a meta-analytic approach to analyze 31 independent samples from 10 countries through literature search, screening, and coding. The result shows a significant positive relationship between public service motivation and work engagement with no possibility of publication bias. The regulatory effect test through Hofstede's model reveals that the dimensions of Power Distance Index, Individualism/Collectivism, Long-Term Orientation/Short-Term Orientation, and Indulgence/Restraint can significantly moderate the relationship between public service motivation and work engagement. This study provides a clear explanation for understanding the relationship between public service motivation and work engagement from a cross-cultural perspective, meanwhile it offers some theoretical implications for improving public servants' work engagement in the future.

Proactive personality and organizational support in television industry: Their roles in creativity

Employee creativity is important for TV companies because it can improve organizational performance and increase success and survival based on the ability to create innovations. In response to this, field reporters who work for TV companies also need high creativity in facing the challenges of their work and in creating innovations. This research aims to test the roles of perceived organizational support, proactive personality, the meaning of work, and work engagement in affecting employee creativity. The total numbers of respondents were 119 selected from 14 private television companies in Indonesia. The method in this study is a quantitative approach using the Partial Least Square (PLS) analysis tool with the SmartPls 3.0 application. Most of the hypotheses of this study show significant results. However, there is one finding that a proactive personality is not able to strengthen employee creativity. This indicates that employees' behavior at work is sometimes different from the personality. This study is the first to look at news reporters' employee creativity using the suggested model. As a result, organizations can use the study's findings as a starting point to determine the best strategy for fostering creativity within their workforce.

Hardiness moderates the effects of COVID-19 stress on anxiety and depression

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to sharp increases in mental health problems around the world, most notably in anxiety and depression. The present study examines hardiness and age as potential protective factors against the mental health effects of COVID-related stress. A sample of Canadians balanced across age and gender, completed an online survey including measures of COVID related stressors, hardiness, depression, and anxiety, along with age, gender, and other demographics. Conditional PROCESS analysis showed that COVID stressors led to significant increases in anxiety and depression. Hardiness moderated these relations, with those high in hardiness showing less anxiety and depression. Age was negatively related to anxiety and depression, with highest levels observed among the younger respondents. At the same time, a moderating effect of age was found with respect to depression, with older people showing sharper increases in depression as COVID-related stress goes up. Gender was not a significant factor in any of these relations, meaning that the results apply equally well to both women and men. This study provides evidence that younger people who are also low in hardiness are most vulnerable to developing anxiety and depression while under COVID stress, and so would likely benefit from preventive intervention strategies. While anxiety and depression symptoms are highest among the young, older age groups appear more vulnerable to increasing rates of depression symptoms related to COVID stress. Clinicians and practitioners should thus be especially vigilant for COVID related increases in depression among older people, and those low in psychological hardiness.

The effect of employee mindfulness in the new media industry on innovative behavior: The chain mediating role of positive emotion and work engagement

Mindfulness has long been concerned and emphasized by scholars in the field of psychology, but there is still a lack of research on mindfulness in management in China. In this study, a questionnaire survey was conducted among 483 employees in the new media industry in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Hangzhou, China. After modeling and analysis, it was found that employee mindfulness has a positive influence on innovative behavior. Employee mindfulness and innovative behavior are mediated by positive emotions. Employee mindfulness and innovative behavior are mediated by work engagement. Employee mindfulness and innovative behavior are mediated by a chain of positive emotions and work engagement. Enterprise managers should improve the level of mindfulness of employees in the new media industry through mindfulness training and courses for mindfulness training, create an organizational environment that can arouse positive emotions and improve the positive emotions of employees, pay attention to arousing the enthusiasm of the staff, and promote the innovative behavior of staff while enhancing work engagement.

Contributing Factors to Israeli Soldiers' Adaptation to Military Noncombat Positions

OBJECTIVE

Adjusting to a military environment is a complex process, with unique demands and various stressors placed on conscripts. In this study, we examined the unique and combined contribution of the independent variables that constitute an individual soldier's personal resources-the meaningfulness of the military role and the match between expectations and the job itself; cognitive flexibility; social support; and seeking help from a mental health officer (MHO)-to the adaptation (dependent variable) of noncombat soldiers to military service.

METHOD

The study group comprised 200 Israel Defense Forces noncombat soldiers aged 18-23 years (Meanage = 20.046 years, SD = 0.951). Of them, 107 (53.3%) had consulted a MHO. The remaining soldiers who had not consulted an MHO (n = 93, 46.5%) served as the comparison group. Research tools included the work and meaning questionnaire, the Cognitive Flexibility Scale, the Medical Outcomes Study (social support) questionnaire, and adaptation to the army questionnaire.

RESULTS

Adaptation to service was found to relate positively to the meaningfulness of the military role, cognitive flexibility, and social support. Social support partially mediated the relation between cognitive flexibility and adaptation to service. Additionally, soldiers who had consulted an MHO had lower levels of cognitive flexibility and social support, and they adapted less well to service compared to the comparison group.

CONCLUSIONS

The study indicates that soldiers who seek help have lower resources. Additional personal and environmental variables that contribute to the adjustment of soldiers in noncombat positions were also identified.

Research on the relationship between environmental corporate social responsibility and green innovative behavior: the moderating effect of moral identity

There are extensive studies of environmental corporate social responsibility at the macro level. However, the study of the impact of environmental corporate social responsibility on employees' work-related outcomes is inchoate. Drawing on social identity theory and signaling theory, this paper investigates the impact of environmental corporate social responsibility on employees' green innovative behaviors. The mediating role of perceived meaningfulness at work and the moderating role of moral identity are also investigated. Data were collected via a time-lagged and multisource survey. The study analyzed the responses of 271 employees of Chinese enterprises. Hypotheses were examined using hierarchical regression analysis and bootstrapping. The results indicated environmental corporate social responsibility to be positively related to employees' green innovative behaviors. Perceived meaningfulness at work mediates the link between environmental corporate social responsibility and employees' green innovative behaviors. Moreover, moral identity moderates the relationship between environmental corporate social responsibility and perceived meaningfulness at work. The indirect effect of environmental corporate social responsibility on employees' green innovative behaviors via perceived meaningfulness at work is also moderated by moral identity. Theoretical contributions and practical implications of the study are discussed.

An Investigation of the Factors that Influence Job Performance During Extreme Events: The Role of Information Security Policies

Diligent compliance with Information security Policies (ISP) can effectively deter threats but can also adversely impact organizational productivity, impeding organizational task completion during extreme events. This paper examines employees' job performance during extreme events. We use the conservation of resources (COR) theory to examine how psychological resources (individual resilience, job meaningfulness, self-efficacy) and organizational resources (incident command leadership, information availability, and perceived effectiveness of security and privacy controls) influence ISP compliance decisions and job performance during extreme events. The results show that a one-size-fits-all approach to ISP is not ideal during extreme events; ISP can distract employees from critical job tasks. We also observed that under certain conditions, psychological resources, such as individual resilience, are reserved for job performance, while others, such as self-efficacy, are reserved for ISP compliance. A post hoc analysis of data from respondents who experienced strain during a real extreme event while at work was conducted. Our discussion provides recommendations on how security and privacy policies can be designed to reflect disaster conditions by relaxing some policy provisions.

Software professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey: Factors affecting their mental well-being and work engagement in the home-based work setting

With the COVID-19 pandemic, strict measures have been taken to slow down the spread of the virus, and consequently, software professionals have been forced to work from home. However, home-based working entails many challenges, as the home environment is shared by the whole family simultaneously under pandemic conditions. The aim of this study is to explore software professionals' mental well-being and work engagement and the relationships of these variables with job strain and resource-related factors in the forced home-based work setting during the COVID-19 pandemic. An online cross-sectional survey based on primarily well-known, validated scales was conducted with software professionals in Turkey. The analysis of the results was performed through hierarchical multivariate regression. The results suggest that despite the negative effect of job strain, the resource-related protective factors, namely, sleep quality, decision latitude, work-life balance, exercise predict mental well-being. Additionally, work engagement is predicted by job strain, sleep quality, and decision latitude. The results of the study will provide valuable insights to management of the software companies and professionals about the precautions that can be taken to have a better home-based working experience such as allowing greater autonomy and enhancing the quality of sleep and hence mitigating the negative effects of pandemic emergency situations on software professionals' mental well-being and work engagement.

Organizational affective commitment effects on militaries’ well-being during a deployment: A study of a peacekeeping mission

Based on the Conservation of Resources Theory, this longitudinal study analyzes the contribution of organizational affective commitment during the preparation phase of a peacekeeping mission (T1) to explain the well-being of soldiers during that mission (T2). A sample of 409 Brazilian army participants in the MINUSTAH (United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti) was used in two waves - preparation of the troops in Brazil, and their deployment in Haitian territory. The data analysis was performed using structural equation modeling. The results supported organizational affective commitment during the preparation phase (T1) positively predicting the general well-being (perception of health and general satisfaction with life) of these soldiers during the deployment phase (T2). The workplace well-being (i.e. work engagement) of these peacekeepers was also found to mediate this relationship. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed, and limitations and suggestions for future research are presented.

Development and Validation of an Improved Hardiness Measure

Abstract. Previous research shows that psychological hardiness is an important factor contributing to stress resilience in individuals. Of the various instruments available to measure hardiness, the most commonly used is the Dispositional Resilience Scale (DRS). Despite its demonstrated utility, the DRS-15 still has a number of serious limitations, including low subscale reliability and limited construct validity. The present work aims to create a new hardiness scale that addresses these limitations. A pool of new items plus the original DRS item set was administered to a census-matched stratified sample of N = 2,021 men and women across the United States. Items for the new scale were selected based on item distribution characteristics, item response theory plots, scale reliabilities, item-total correlations, and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). CFA results showed the best fitting model reflected a hierarchical structure with three factors (commitment, control, and challenge) nested under a broad hardiness factor. This factor structure is replicated in two independent validation samples and also holds invariant across gender and age. The new scale shows much improved reliability coefficients (e.g., Cronbach’s α of .93, .85, .84, and .89 for total hardiness, challenge, control, and commitment, respectively), as well as structural equivalence across gender and age. Validity is demonstrated in multiple samples via predictive associations of hardiness scores with theoretically relevant outcome measures, including coping, life satisfaction, anxiety, and depression. The Hardiness Resilience Gauge (HRG) possesses excellent reliability and validity and appears to be a more effective tool for measuring hardiness in adult populations.

Benefits of workplace spirituality on real estate agents’ work outcomes: the mediating role of person-Job fit

Purpose

This study aims to apply the person-environment fit theory to examine the effect of workplace spirituality on real estate agents’ person-job (P-J) fit. Moreover, P-J was proposed as a mediator to explain the effect of workplace spirituality on customer-oriented organizational citizenship behavior (CO-OCB) and job performance that real estate agents demonstrate.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of 398 agents was obtained from 60 brokerage firms in Bangkok, Thailand. The data were collected through an online questionnaire survey. Data analysis was performed using partial least squares structural equation modeling.

Findings

The analysis supported the positive association between workplace spirituality and P-J fit. In addition, the mediating effect analysis showed that P-J fit mediated the association between workplace spirituality and CO-OCB in part, but mediated the association between workplace spirituality and job performance fully.

Originality/value

The findings overall clarify the theoretical mechanism by which workplace spirituality motivates real estate agents to demonstrate positive work behavior and enhanced performance.

Hardiness and Burnout in Adult U.S. Workers

OBJECTIVE

Burnout is a costly problem, and it appears to be getting worse due to COVID-related stressors. It is thus important for organizations to find better tools to prevent and mitigate worker burnout.

METHODS

Conditional PROCESS path analysis was used to assess the relation of hardiness to burnout in a representative sample of U.S. workers, with sex and age as potential moderators.

RESULTS

Hardiness is associated with reduced burnout symptoms. Sex did not moderate this relation. A moderating effect for age was observed, with more burnout appearing in younger, less hardy workers.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings suggest hardiness operates similarly for men and women as a buffer against burnout, and that older workers are less vulnerable to burnout. Training programs to increase stress appraisals and coping skills used by more experienced, hardy workers may be beneficial in reducing burnout.

Does meaningful work encompass support towards supervisory, worker and engagement relationship?

Purpose

This study aimed at examining the influence of two important elements of social supports, namely supervisor support and coworker support, on work engagement among employees in the university setting. The study also further examined the mediating potentials of meaningful work on the relationships between the former and the latter.

Design/methodology/approach

The sample study comprised academic and managerial staff members from a public-sector university in Malaysia. Out of the 420 distributed questionnaires, 216 were received back from which 177 were found useable and hence were taken further for final data analysis. Statistical software of SPSS and Smart PLS 2.0 M3 were used to perform data analysis.

Findings

Supervisor support and coworker support were found to be significant predictors of work engagement. Further, meaningful work was found mediating these relationships.

Originality/value

The findings enrich literature of social support, work engagement, and meaningful work. The study is one of the foremost empirical works examining the mediating potential of meaningful work on the relationships between two social resources (supervisor support and coworker support) and work engagement. The issue of work engagement is evident in several mainstream work sectors alongside the education sector. Hence, the research findings are worthy to help understand work engagement issues and how to tackle it in the education setting.

My meaning is my engagement: exploring the mediating role of meaning between servant leadership and work engagement

Purpose

The purpose of the study is to ascertain the mediating role of meaning between servant leadership and work engagement. The study also explores the relationship between servant leadership and work engagement.

Design/methodology/approach

The data were collected from 704 service sector employees working in Pakistan through survey design. The data analysis was done through structural equation modeling using PLS-Smart and hierarchical regression using SPSS.

Findings

The results revealed that servant leadership was related to meaning and work engagement. Moreover, meaning was found to be related to work engagement. Finally, meaning was found to mediate the relationship between servant leadership and work engagement.

Originality/value

The research has ascertained the previously unexplored mediating role of meaning between servant leadership and work engagement.

Meaningful military engagement among male and female post-9/11 veterans: An examination of correlates and implications for resilience

OBJECTIVE

Post-9/11 military deployment is commonly reported as stressful and is often followed by psychological distress after returning home. Yet veterans also frequently report experiencing meaningful military engagement (MME) that may buffer detrimental effects of military stressors. Focusing on the under-investigated topic of association of MME with post-deployment psychological adjustment, this study tests gender differences in MME and post-deployment outcomes.

METHOD

This cross-sectional study examined the relationship of MME with deployment stressors, subsequent psychological distress (posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and depression), and gender among 850 recent-era U.S. veterans (41.4% female).

RESULTS

On average, both male and female veterans reported high MME. Greater MME was associated with less PTSS and depression following combat and general harassment, and more depression after sexual harassment. For men only, MME associated with less PTSS after sexual harassment.

CONCLUSIONS

MME is high among post-9/11 veterans, but its stress-buffering effects depend on gender and specific stressor exposure.

Factor Structure and Validation of the Undergraduate Teaching Faculty Investment Questionnaire

Undergraduate education is very important for higher education. Among the factors affecting the quality of undergraduate education, teaching quality is the most important factor. At present, an important issue that affects teaching quality is insufficient teaching investment. An open-ended questionnaire survey was conducted on 62 faculty members and 65 university students in China. Results found that the undergraduate teaching investment of faculty members mainly consists of four parts: workload investment, ability investment, energy investment, and teaching emotional investment. A preliminary test was conducted on 342 faculty members, and the results of an exploratory factor analysis supported the proposed four-dimensional teaching investment model. The test involved 293 faculty members and confirmatory factor analysis showed that the four-dimensional model had a good degree of fit. A further criterion-related test showed that the four-dimensional teaching investment of faculty members has a significant positive correlation with classroom management, clarity of teaching materials, teacher-student interaction, teaching strategies, and skills application, and work engagement. These results show that the proposed four dimensions of teaching investment effectively measure the teaching investment of faculty members, specifically the indicators of teaching investment and that they promote the development of faculty teaching investment research.

Workplace bullying, psychological hardiness, and accidents and injuries in nursing: A moderated mediation model

Workplace bullying are prevalent among the nursing workforce. Consequences of workplace bullying include psychological stress and workplace accidents and injuries. Psychological hardiness is proposed as a buffer for workplace bullying and psychological stress on workplace accidents and injuries. This study adopted the Affective Events Theory and Conservation of Resources Theory to develop and test a moderated mediated model in two field studies. Study 1 (N = 286, Australian nurses) found support for the direct negative effect of workplace bullying on workplace accidents and injuries with psychological stress acting as the mediator. The mediation findings from Study 1 were replicated in Study 2 (N = 201, New Zealand nurses). In addition, Study 2 supplemented Study 1 by providing empirical support for using psychological hardiness as the buffer for the association between psychological stress and workplace accidents and injuries. This study offers theoretical and empirical insights into the research and practice on psychological hardiness for improving the psychological well-being of employees who faced workplace mistreatments.

Positive Psychology in Context of Peacekeeping Militaries: A Mediation Model of Work-Family Enrichment

Based on the work-family enrichment theory, this study analyzes the contribution of work-family and family-work enrichment to explain the military’s well-being during a peacekeeping mission. The data used were collected in a sample of 306 Brazilian soldiers, who were married and/or had children, during the phase named “employment of troops” (i.e., when peacekeepers had been in the Haitian territory and, as a result, away from their families, for between three to five months). Data analysis was performed using the Structural Equations Model. It was observed that the military’s perception of their spouses’ support for their participation during the mission had a positive relationship with both family-to-work enrichment and work-to-family enrichment, and the work-to-family enrichment mediated the relationship between the perception of the spouses’ support and the military’s health perception and general satisfaction with life. Theoretical and practical implications were discussed and limitations and suggestions for future research were presented.

Job Demands and Resources among Healthcare Professionals during Virus Pandemics: A Review and Examination of Fluctuations in Mental Health Strain during COVID-19

The present article examines how job demands and resources are related to indices of strain among healthcare professionals during virus pandemics. The article also presents the results of a study examining the relationships between COVID‐19 demands (e.g., lack of personal protective equipment, concerns about infecting family members), resources (meaningful work, social support), and mental health strain within a sample of emergency medicine personnel over six consecutive weeks. COVID‐19‐related demands and hours worked were hypothesized to be positively related to mental health strain, whereas meaningful work and social support were hypothesized to be negatively related to mental health strain. Hours worked the prior week were hypothesized to exacerbate the positive relationships between COVID‐19 demands and mental health strain, whereas the resources of meaningful work and social support were expected to buffer the relationships. Multilevel models controlling for mental health strain the prior week revealed that COVID‐19 demands, along with hours worked, were each related to higher mental health strain during the week. Hours worked magnified the within‐person relationship between personal COVID‐19 demands and mental health strain. In contrast to the hypotheses, social support and meaningful work were not related to mental health strain. Discussion focuses on the implications of the findings for healthcare professionals.

Chronic and Traumatic Stress Among Emergency Medical Services Personnel

Abstract. Background: Emergency medical services (EMS) personnel are frequently confronted with multiple stressful and potentially traumatic events as well as adverse working conditions. Objective: This narrative review provides an overview of the impact of adverse mission experiences and working conditions on the mental and physical health of EMS personnel. Methods: We summarize the empirical findings on prevalence rates as well as individual vulnerability factors and resilience. Results: EMS personnel show the highest prevalence rates of stress-related health problems among first responders. The article outlines prevention and intervention approaches that contribute to maintaining and improving the mental and physical health of EMS personnel. Conclusion: In the future, further evidence-based intervention measures should be developed to adequately support this professional group.

The meaning of service questionnaire and its association with psychological growth among Veterans

Few studies have investigated what soldiers find meaningful after being exposed to highly stressful events and what positive effects they might have in the aftermath. This study reports the psychometric properties of a newly developed questionnaire, Meaning of Service (MoS), and its application to the study of how strongly meaning-making processes are associated with psychological growth. One hundred eighty-four Norwegian Air Force Veterans who have participated in various missions abroad in different branches of the military completed the MoS questionnaire along with other scales reflecting psychological growth, hardiness, resilience, stress, and exposure, as well as personal and mission characteristics. The principal component analysis mainly identified three major meaning themes as expected from previous qualitative research (Confirmation of ability, Cohesion of peers, and Significance of effort). The hierarchical regression analysis showed that all three meaning themes and two coping strategies were associated with psychological growth, and that Confirmation of ability (coping and recognition of coping) seems particularly important to enhance Veterans' prospects of psychological growth. Future research directions are proposed including suggestions for minor modifications of the questionnaire.

Finding meaning in times of family stress: A mixed methods study of benefits and challenges amongst home-front parents in military families

Family stress theory explains how demands placed on the family system interact with capabilities to influence family adaptation. One capability that some military families may use naturalistically is that of benefit-finding, the recognition of value and benefit after a stressful or traumatic experience. In this mixed methods study, authors explore the perception of benefits associated with military service amongst 26 home-front mothers. Methods incorporate a self-report questionnaire adapted for this population and a qualitative interview aimed at understanding challenges and benefits associated with these women's experiences as members of a military family. Results revealed that more women than not endorsed meaningful changes that they have experienced as a result of their family's military service, despite a wide range of challenges and negative experiences. Four themes of benefits emerged from analyses: (a) financial, educational and career benefits; (b) cultivating strength; (c) friendships and community; and (d) pride. These findings illuminate the diverse ways in which women find meaning in their family's military service and upon replication and elaboration of these results, have clinical implications for the development of future prevention and intervention work with military families.

Human resource management training of supervisors for improving health and well-being of employees

BACKGROUND

Many workers suffer from work-related stress and are at increased risk of work-related cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, or mental disorders. In the European Union the prevalence of work-related stress was estimated at about 22%. There is consensus that stress, absenteeism, and well-being of employees can be influenced by leadership behaviour. Existing reviews predominantly included cross-sectional and non-experimental studies, which have limited informative value in deducing causal relationships between leadership interventions and health outcomes.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the effect of four types of human resource management (HRM) training for supervisors on employees' psychomental stress, absenteeism, and well-being. We included training aimed at improving supervisor-employee interaction, either off-the-job or on-the-job training, and training aimed at improving supervisors' capability of designing the work environment, either off-the-job or on-the-job training.

SEARCH METHODS

In May 2019 we searched CENTRAL, MEDLINE, four other databases, and most relevant trials registers (ICTRP, TroPHI, ClinicalTrials.gov). We did not impose any language restrictions on the searches.

SELECTION CRITERIA

We included randomised controlled trials (RCT), cluster-randomised controlled trials (cRCT), and controlled before-after studies (CBA) with at least two intervention and control sites, which examined the effects of supervisor training on psychomental stress, absenteeism, and well-being of employees within natural settings of organisations by means of validated measures.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

At least two authors independently screened abstracts and full texts, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of included studies. We analysed study data from intervention and control groups with respect to different comparisons, outcomes, follow-up time, study designs, and intervention types. We pooled study results by use of standardised mean differences (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals when possible. We assessed the quality of evidence for each outcome using the GRADE approach.

MAIN RESULTS

We included 25 studies of which 4 are awaiting assessment. The 21 studies that could be analysed were 1 RCT, 14 cRCTs and 6 CBAs with a total of at least 3479 employees in intervention and control groups. We judged 12 studies to have an unclear risk of bias and the remaining nine studies to have a high risk of bias. Sixteen studies focused on improving supervisor-employee interaction, whereas five studies aimed at improving the design of working environments by means of supervisor training.Training versus no interventionWe found very low-quality evidence that supervisor training does not reduce employees' stress levels (6 studies) or absenteeism (1 study) when compared to no intervention, regardless of intervention type or follow-up. We found inconsistent, very low-quality evidence that supervisor training aimed at employee interaction may (2 studies) or may not (7 studies) improve employees' well-being when compared to no intervention. Effects from two studies were not estimable due to missing data.Training versus placeboWe found moderate-quality evidence (2 studies) that supervisor training off the job aimed at employee interaction does not reduce employees' stress levels more than a placebo training at mid-term follow-up. We found low-quality evidence in one study that supervisor training on the job aimed at employee interaction does not reduce employees' absenteeism more than placebo training at long-term follow-up. Effects from one study were not estimable due to insufficient data.Training versus other trainingOne study compared the effects of supervisor training off the job aimed at employee interaction on employees' stress levels to training off the job aimed at working conditions at long-term follow-up but due to insufficient data, effects were not estimable.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

Based on a small and heterogeneous sample of controlled intervention studies and in contrast to prevailing consensus that supervisor behaviour influences employees' health and well-being, we found inconsistent evidence that supervisor training may or may not improve employees' well-being when compared to no intervention. For all other types of interventions and outcomes, there was no evidence of a considerable effect. However, due to the very low- to moderate-quality of the evidence base, clear conclusions are currently unwarranted. Well-designed studies are needed to clarify effects of supervisor training on employees' stress, absenteeism, and well-being.

Perceived Organizational Politics, Engagement, and Stress: The Mediating Influence of Meaningful Work

The research aimed to assess proposed associations between organizational politics and employee engagement, employee stress (or more correctly 'strain'), and work meaningfulness. Very few studies have examined these associations. Confirmatory factor analyses established the dimensionality and reliability of the full measurement model across two independent samples (N = 303, N = 373). Structural equation modeling supported the proposed direct associations between organizational politics, operationalized as a higher order construct, and employee stress and employee engagement. These relationships were shown to be partially mediated by meaningful work. As such, politics had significant indirect effects on engagement and stress through meaningful work. The results also showed a significant and direct association between stress and engagement. Overall, the results shed important new light on the factors that influence engagement, and identify work meaningfulness as an important psychological mechanism that can help explain the adverse impact of organizational politics on employee engagement and stress. The results also support the dimensionality and validity of a new set of measures of perceived organizational politics focused on generalized perceptions about the use and abuse of relationships, resources, reputation, decisions, and communication channels. More generally, the results serve as a platform for further research regarding the negative influence of organizational politics on a range of individual and organizational outcomes.

Service Leadership, Work Engagement, and Service Performance: The Moderating Role of Leader Skills

Using social learning theory, the job demands-resources model and idiosyncrasy credit theory, the present study casts additional light on the explanatory mechanisms underlying the effects of service leadership on service performance. We examine employee work engagement as an important mediator of this relationship and explore the moderating role of leader task-based professional and managerial skills on the indirect relationship between service leadership and service performance via work engagement. Drawing upon 903 leader–follower dyads nested in 187 teams, with data collected from two sources, we find that after controlling for transformational leadership, follower work engagement mediates the relationship between service leadership and follower service performance. Furthermore, the results support the moderating role of leader task-based professional skills, but not of managerial skills. Specifically, the indirect effect of service leadership on service performance via work engagement is stronger when leaders display high levels of task-based professional skills. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

From Psychological Theoretical Assumptions to New Research Perspectives in Sustainability and Sustainable Development: Motivation in the Workplace

This article proposes a framework that indicates opportunities for integrating psychology into research on sustainability and sustainable development. The central issue proposed is motivation in the workplace with a strong focus on employee health and optimal functioning. The main methodological issues are formulated in four assumptions: (1) Health from the perspective of health per se; (2) an individual seen as an agent; (3) an agent in the situation and context; (4) the life-span development perspective. The article refers in the narrative review to the most influential conceptualizations and research. This proposition shows a way forward and offers new opportunities to formulate challenging and important research questions in the psychology of sustainability and sustainable development.

Resources Matter: Combined Influence of Job Demands and Job Control on Creative Process Engagement

Considerable research has been conducted on employee creativity, but it has generally focused on creative outcomes and rarely paid attention to employees' engagement in creative processes, that is, creative process engagement. Further, job characteristics as antecedents are little understood. Drawing on the job demands-resources model and the conservation of resources theory, this study examines the relationship between challenge-hindrance demands and creative process engagement at different levels of job control. In total, 572 questionnaires from China were used to test our proposed model through hierarchical regression analysis. The results show that when job control is high, the effect of challenge demands on creative process engagement is U-shaped, while that of hindrance demands is negative. When job control is low, both challenge and hindrance demands are not related to creative process engagement.

Alcohol Use Among Never-Deployed U.S. Army Reserve and National Guard Soldiers: The Effects of Nondeployment Emotions and Sex

BACKGROUND

Limited research shows that mental health problems are prevalent among never-deployed soldiers and many experience negative emotions related to their nondeployment. U.S. Army Reserve/National Guard (USAR/NG) soldiers are also at high risk for alcohol misuse. However, it is not known if nondeployment emotions contribute to an increased risk of alcohol misuse among never-deployed USAR/NG soldiers.

METHODS

Data are from Operation: SAFETY (Soldiers and Families Excelling Through the Years), an ongoing study of USAR/NG soldiers. We used regression models to examine the relations between nondeployment emotions, assessed by the Non-Deployment Emotions (NDE) Questionnaire, and a range of alcohol use outcomes, assessed by the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test and standard quantity and frequency questions, among a sample of never-deployed soldiers who were partnered at baseline (N = 174). Final models controlled for years of military service, current number of close military friends in the social network, marital satisfaction, and depression. We also tested for potential differences in these associations by sex.

RESULTS

Nondeployment emotions were associated with frequency of getting drunk (adjusted risk ratio [aRR] = 1.02, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.04; p < 0.05) and typical number of drinks consumed during a drinking episode (aRR = 1.03, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.04; p < 0.01). Nondeployment emotions had a trend-level association with percent of days drinking (adjusted odds ratio = 1.05, 95% CI: 1.00, 1.11; p = 0.055). Nondeployment emotions had a significant interaction with sex (p < 0.05) on the likelihood of alcohol problems, such that only male soldiers experienced a greater likelihood of alcohol problems when they had highly negative nondeployment emotions. There was no relation between nondeployment emotions and alcohol problems among female soldiers.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings demonstrate that greater nondeployment emotions are associated with increased alcohol use among never-deployed USAR/NG soldiers. The NDE Questionnaire may assist in identifying those at highest risk for alcohol problems.

Depression among military spouses: Demographic, military, and service member psychological health risk factors

BACKGROUND

More than a decade of war has strained service members and their families and the psychological health of military spouses is a concern. This study uses data from the largest study of military families in the United States to examine the demographic, military-specific, and service member mental health correlates of probable diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD) among military spouses.

METHODS

Data were from service member-spouse dyads from all branches of the U.S. military. Demographic and military-specific factors were assessed using administrative personnel records and survey data.

RESULTS

Of the 9,038 spouses, 4.9% had a probable diagnosis of MDD. In unadjusted models, spouses of service members who deployed and experiencecd combat-related events, were enlisted, had a probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis, or screened positive for alcohol misuse were more likely to screen positive for MDD. In adjusted models, only spouses married to enlisted service members or those with PTSD had increased risk for MDD. Other demographic and military-related factors associated with MDD in spouses included less educational attainment, unemployment, having four or more children, and having prior military service (although not currently serving in the military) in the adjusted models.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings characterize demographic, military, and service member psychological health factors that are associated with depression among military spouses. These findings imply that deployment alone may not negatively affect military spouses, but rather it may be the mental health impact on the service member, especially PTSD that increases the odds for MDD among military spouses.

Challenges for Research into Military Investigations

In cases of suspected violations of rules, regulations or the law by armed forces personnel, investigations are invariably mandatory. Military investigations differ from well-researched civilian criminal investigations. Differing from civilian police detectives, most military investigators - as disciplinary supervisors and military police personnel - have a number of tasks to accomplish, which include leading in combat and ensuring military readiness. Military investigations can lead to substantive negative or positive consequences for military readiness, including mental health, unit cohesion and subjective legal certainty. This impact on unit cohesion and mental health is influenced by any prior history of distress or trauma; military investigations are often preceded by contravention of internal disciplinary acts, complaints and traumatic events. This study explores factors in the differing military and legal systems of Germany and the United Kingdom (UK) that might help military personnel to successfully conduct investigations while ensuring deployment readiness and maintaining human rights.

Autonomy, Competence, Relatedness, and Beneficence: A Multicultural Comparison of the Four Pathways to Meaningful Work

Meaningful work is a key element of positive functioning of employees, but what makes work meaningful? Based on research on self-determination theory, basic psychological needs, and prosocial impact, we suggest that there are four psychological satisfactions that substantially influence work meaningfulness across cultures: autonomy (sense of volition), competence (sense of efficacy), relatedness (sense of caring relationships), and beneficence (sense of making a positive contribution). We test the relationships between these satisfactions and perceived meaningful work in Finland (n = 594, employees of several organizations), India (n = 342, collected through Mturk), and the United States (n = 373, collected through Mturk). Regression analyses show that - except for competence in United States - all four satisfactions are significantly and independently associated with meaningful work. Moreover, structural equation modeling shows that they fully mediated the relationship between occupational position and work meaningfulness in India and in the United States. In sum, the results support the importance of these four satisfactions in explaining the psychological underpinnings of meaningful work.

Significant Work Is About Self-Realization and Broader Purpose: Defining the Key Dimensions of Meaningful Work

Research on meaningful work has proliferated in recent years, with an increasing understanding of the centrality of meaningfulness for work-related motivation, commitment, and well-being. However, ambiguity around the main construct, “meaningful work,” has hindered this progress as various researchers have used partly overlapping, partly differing conceptualizations. To bring clarity to this issue, we examine a broad range of various definitions of meaningful work and come to argue that meaningfulness in the broadest sense is about work significance as an overall evaluation of work as regards whether it is intrinsically valuable and worth doing. Furthermore, we argue that there are two key sub-dimensions to this work significance: Broader purpose as work serving some greater good or prosocial goals (the intrinsic value of work beyond the person in question). And self-realization as a sense of autonomy, authenticity and self-expression at work (the intrinsic value of work for the person in question). Previous definitions of meaningful work feature typically one or two of these elements—significance, broader purpose, self-realization –, but in the future it would be beneficial to clearly acknowledge all three elements in both definitions and operationalizations of meaningful work.