Job control mediates change in a work reorganization intervention for stress reduction.

Abstract

This longitudinal, quasi-experiment tested whether a work reorganization intervention can improve stress-related outcomes by increasing people's job control. To this end, the authors used a participative action research (PAR) intervention that had the goal of reorganizing work to increase the extent to which people had discretion and choice in their work. Results indicated that the PAR intervention significantly improved people's mental health, sickness absence rates, and self-rated performance at a 1-year follow-up. Consistent with occupational health psychology theories, increase in job control served as the mechanism, or mediator, by which these improvements occurred. Discussion focuses on the need to understand the mechanisms by which work reorganization interventions affect change.

Cites (10)

1. Emotion And Adaptation
   Lazarus, Richard S · 1991
2. Job Demands, Job Decision Latitude, and Mental Strain: Implications for Job Redesign
   Karasek, Robert A. · 1979 · Administrative Science Quarterly
3. Development of the Job Diagnostic Survey.
   Hackman, J. Richard, Oldham, Greg R. · 1975 · Journal of Applied Psychology
4. Learned helplessness in humans: Critique and reformulation.
   Abramson, Lyn Y., Seligman, Martin E., Teasdale, John D. · 1978 · Journal of Abnormal Psychology
5. Statistical power analysis
   Cohen, Jacob · 1992 · Current Directions in Psychological Science
6. Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences
   1977
7. Employee reactions to job characteristics.
   Hackman, J. Richard, Lawler, Edward E. · 1971 · Journal of Applied Psychology
8. A Bio‐Informational Theory of Emotional Imagery
   Lang, Peter J. · 1979 · Psychophysiology
9. The Principles of Sociotechnical Design
   Cherns, Albert · 1976 · Human Relations
10. Mediators of change in emotion-focused and problem-focused worksite stress management interventions
    Bond, Frank W., Bunce, David · 2000 · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology

Show all 10 references

Cited by (22)

1. The relationship of age to ten dimensions of job performance.
   Ng, Thomas W. H., Feldman, Daniel C. · 2008 · Journal of Applied Psychology
2. A systematic review including meta-analysis of work environment and depressive symptoms
   Theorell, Töres, Hammarström, Anne, Aronsson, Gunnar, Träskman Bendz, Lil, Grape, Tom, Hogstedt, Christer, Marteinsdottir, Ina, Skoog, Ingmar, Hall, Charlotte · 2015 · BMC Public Health
3. Work Stress and Employee Health: A Multidisciplinary Review
   Ganster, Daniel C., Rosen, Christopher C. · 2013 · Journal of Management
4. The Role of Acceptance and Job Control in Mental Health, Job Satisfaction, and Work Performance
   Bond, Frank W., Bunce, David · 2003 · Journal of Applied Psychology
5. How rude! Emotional labor as a mediator between customer incivility and employee outcomes.
   Sliter, Michael, Jex, Steve, Wolford, Katherine, McInnerney, Joanne · 2010 · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology

See all 341