Longitudinal studies in organizational stress research: a review of the literature with reference to methodological issues
Abstract
Demonstrating causal relationships has been of particular importance in organizational stress research. Longitudinal studies are typically suggested to overcome problems of reversed causation and third variables (e.g., social desirability and negative affectivity). This article reviews the empirical longitudinal literature and discusses designs and statistical methods used in these studies. Forty-three longitudinal field reports on organizational stress were identified. Most of the investigations used a 2-wave panel design and a hierarchical multiple regression approach. Six studies with 3 and more waves were found. About 50% of the studies analyzed potential strain-stressor (reversed causation) relationships. In about 33% of the studies there was some evidence of reverse causation. The power of longitudinal studies to rule out third variable explanations was not realized in many studies. Procedures of how to analyze longitudinal data are suggested.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Longitudinal designs are prone to residual confounding and other forms of bias that limit causal inference.
“Longitudinal designs provide stronger evidence, but are prone to residual confounding [[36], [37], [38]] and other forms of bias that limit causal inference [[39], [40], [41], [42], [43]].”
From Improving sleep quality leads to better mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials (2021) · cites this paper as [38]
Cited by
Sorted by citations
The Job Demands‐Resources model: state of the art
Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2007) · Journal of Managerial Psychology · doi:10.1108/02683940710733115 · Cited by 12,996 · see citing works
“Second, job demands and resources may also be affected by employees' perceptions of the working environment (Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundInfluentialUsing the job demands-resources model to predict burnout and performance
Bakker, A. B., Demerouti, E., & Verbeke, W. (2004) · Human Resource Management · doi:10.1002/hrm.20004 · Cited by 2,565 · see citing works
“Indeed, evidence for such reversed causal effects has been found in some previous longitudinal studies (see Zapf et al., 1996, for an overview).”
How changes in job demands and resources predict burnout, work engagement, and sickness absenteeism.
Schaufeli, W. B., Bakker, A. B., & Van Rhenen, W. (2009) · Journal of Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1002/job.595 · Cited by 2,059 · see citing works
“It should be noted that observing reversed causation is the exception rather than the rule in longitudinal research, as is illustrated by the review of Zapf, Dormann, and Frese (1996).”
BackgroundResultInfluentialNo security: A meta-analysis and review of job insecurity and its consequences.
Sverke, M., Hellgren, J., & Näswall, K. (2002) · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/1076-8998.7.3.242 · Cited by 1,939 · see citing works
“As noted by Zapf et al. (1996), certain strains are immediately experienced following the exposure to a stressor, whereas other stress reactions are seen some time after the onset of the stressor.”
Background4. Personal initiative: An active performance concept for work in the 21st century
Frese, M., & Fay, D. (2001) · Research in Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1016/s0191-3085(01)23005-6 · Cited by 1,453 · see citing works
Self-citationBakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2014) · Well Being · doi:10.1002/9781118539415.wbwell019 · Cited by 1,539 · see citing works
“Another explanation is that job demands may also be affected by employees’ perceptions of the working environment (Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundHakanen, J. J., Schaufeli, W. B., & Ahola, K. (2008) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678370802379432 · Cited by 1,432 · see citing works
“In a review on longitudinal studies on organizational stress, Zapf, Dormann, and Frese (1996) found at least some indications for reverse causal effects in approximately half of the studies testing reversed relationships.”
BackgroundDo Not Cross Me: Optimizing the Use of Cross-Sectional Designs
Spector, P. E. (2019) · Journal of Business and Psychology · doi:10.1007/s10869-018-09613-8 · Cited by 1,382 · see citing works
Emotion work and psychological well-being
Zapf, D. (2002) · Human Resource Management Review · doi:10.1016/s1053-4822(02)00048-7 · Cited by 1,246 · see citing works
Self-citationA longitudinal study of teacher burnout and perceived self-efficacy in classroom management
Brouwers, A., & Tomic, W. (2000) · Teaching and Teacher Education · doi:10.1016/s0742-051x(99)00057-8 · Cited by 1,129 · see citing works
“The SEM procedure provides tests that allow for directional conclusions and can include reciprocal relationships between variables ( Zapf, Dormann & Frese, 1996; Kessler & Greenberg, 1981).”
BackgroundDiary Studies in Organizational Research
Ohly, S., Sonnentag, S., Niessen, C., & Zapf, D. (2010) · Journal of Personnel Psychology · doi:10.1027/1866-5888/a000009 · Cited by 1,111 · see citing works
Self-citationHäusser, J. A., Mojzisch, A., Niesel, M., & Schulz‐Hardt, S. (2010) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678371003683747 · Cited by 1,082 · see citing works
“de Lange et al, 2003 ; Zapf, Dormann, & Frese, 1996 ).”
Scott, A. J., Webb, T. L., Martyn-St James, M., Rowse, G., & Weich, S. (2021) · Sleep Medicine Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.smrv.2021.101556 · Cited by 1,094 · see citing works
"The very best of the millennium": Longitudinal research and the demand-control-(support) model.
de Lange, A., Taris, T. W., Kompier, M. A. J., Houtman, I. L. D., & Bongers, P. M. (2003) · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/1076-8998.8.4.282 · Cited by 1,059 · see citing works
“Zapf et al. (1996) investigated 43 longitudinal tudies and found that three main methods of statis- tical analysis were used: correlational research (e.g., the comparison of cross-lagged correlations), multiple regression, and structural equation modeling (SEM).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialOutcomes of exposure to workplace bullying: A meta-analytic review
Nielsen, M. B., & Einarsen, S. V. (2012) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678373.2012.734709 · Cited by 908 · see citing works
Hakanen, J. J., Perhoniemi, R., & Toppinen-Tanner, S. (2008) · Journal of Vocational Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2008.01.003 · Cited by 812 · see citing works
“Supporting the possibility of reciprocal relationships, Zapf, Dormann, and Frese (1996) found in their review on longitudinal studies on organizational stress at least some indications for a reverse causal effect in approximately half of the studies that tested reversed relationships.”
BackgroundOrganisational, work group related and personal causes of mobbing/bullying at work.
Zapf, D. (1999) · International Journal of Manpower · doi:10.1108/01437729910268669 · Cited by 790 · see citing works
Self-citationZapf, D., Knorz, C., & Kulla, M. (1996) · European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology · doi:10.1080/13594329608414856 · Cited by 777 · see citing works
Self-citationWood, A. M., Maltby, J., Gillett, R., Linley, P. A., & Joseph, S. (2008) · Journal of Research in Personality · doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2007.11.003 · Cited by 761 · see citing works
“Of these approaches, SEM is to be preferred, as CLPC is unable to deal satisfactorily with the stability of variables (Feldman, 1975), regression based approaches are very susceptible to factors that occur on the day of testing, and only SEM can test the reciprocal causality suggested by Model 4 (Zapf et al., 1996).”
InfluentialWork, recovery activities, and individual well-being: A diary study.
Sonnentag, S. (2001) · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/1076-8998.6.3.196 · Cited by 731 · see citing works
Epitropaki, O., & Martin, R. (2005) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/0021-9010.90.4.659 · Cited by 697 · see citing works
Demerouti, E., Bakker, A. B., & Bulters, A. J. (2003) · Journal of Vocational Behavior · doi:10.1016/s0001-8791(03)00030-7 · Cited by 684 · see citing works
“Third, job stressors also may be affected by employees perceptions of these stressors (Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundCustomer-Related Social Stressors and Burnout.
Dormann, C., & Zapf, D. (2003) · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/1076-8998.9.1.61 · Cited by 656 · see citing works
Self-citationDoes a positive gain spiral of resources, efficacy beliefs and engagement exist?
Llorens, S., Schaufeli, W. B., Bakker, A. B., & Salanova, M. (2004) · Computers in Human Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.chb.2004.11.012 · Cited by 665 · see citing works
“For instance, Zapf, Dormann, and Frese (1996) reviewed 16 longitudinal studies on job stress, of which six provide evidence for reversed causation.”
BackgroundWood, A. M., & Joseph, S. (2010) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2009.06.032 · Cited by 624 · see citing works
“This rules out the possibility that any relationship between T1 PWB and T2 depression is simply due to shared variance between PWB and depression (or similar explanations such as overlapping item content) (see Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundFernet, C., Guay, F., Senécal, C. B., & Austin, S. (2012) · Teaching and Teacher Education · doi:10.1016/j.tate.2011.11.013 · Cited by 649 · see citing works
Emotion Work as a Source of Stress: The Concept and Development of an Instrument
Zapf, D., Vogt, C., Seifert, C., Mertini, H., & Isic, A. (1999) · European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology · doi:10.1080/135943299398230 · Cited by 610 · see citing works
Self-citationWork-related stress and depressive disorders
Tennant, C. (2001) · Journal of Psychosomatic Research · doi:10.1016/s0022-3999(01)00255-0 · Cited by 602 · see citing works
“It is argued that multipanel prospective studies with ‘‘objective’’ work stressor indices, preferably using structural equation approaches, can best address this issue [93].”
BackgroundWood, A. M., Linley, P. A., Maltby, J., Kashdan, T. B., & Hurling, R. (2010) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2010.08.004 · Cited by 582 · see citing works
“Cook and Cambell (1979) and Zapf, Dormann, and Frese (1996) consider longitudinal designs as showing A causes B when (a) there is covariation between A and B, (b) A temporally precedes B, and (c) plausible other explanations can be ruled out.”
BackgroundDyne, L. V., Vandewalle, D., Kostova, T., Latham, M. E., & Cummings, L. L. (2000) · Journal of Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1002/(sici)1099-1379(200002)21:1 · Cited by 340 · see citing works
Self-citationPresent but sick: a three‐wave study on job demands, presenteeism and burnout
Demerouti, E., Blanc, P. M. L., Bakker, A. B., Schaufeli, W. B., & Hox, J. J. (2009) · Career Development International · doi:10.1108/13620430910933574 · Cited by 574 · see citing works
“Secondly, we show that in addition to the “conventional” causal effects (job characteristics lead to employee (un)well-being) also reversed causal effects may take place over time, in which employee well-being influences (perceived) working conditions (see Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundInfluentialDe Lange *, A. H., Taris, T. W., Kompier, M. A. J., Houtman, I. L. D., & Bongers, P. M. (2004) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678370412331270860 · Cited by 534 · see citing works
The contribution of health behaviors to socioeconomic inequalities in health: A systematic review
Petrović, D., de Mestral, C., Bochud, M., Bartley, M., Mika Kivimaki, B., Vineis, P., Mackenbach, J. P., & Stringhini, S. (2018) · Preventive Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.ypmed.2018.05.003 · Cited by 506 · see citing works
Côté, S., & Morgan, L. M. (2002) · Journal of Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1002/job.174 · Cited by 540 · see citing works
“Another advantage of the design of the present study is that concerns about third variables producing spurious associations (Cook & Campbell, 1979) were alleviated by (a) collecting data longitudinally and conducting hierarchical regression analyses with lagged effects (Pedhazur, 1982; Zapf, Dormann, & Frese, 1996 ) a…”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialTaris, T. W., Blanc, P. M. L., Schaufeli, W. B., & Schreurs, P. J. G. (2005) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678370500270453 · Cited by 483 · see citing works
Psychological contract breach and job attitudes: A meta-analysis of age as a moderator
Bal, P. M., de Lange, A. H., Jansen, P. G. W., & van der Velde, M. E. G. (2007) · Journal of Vocational Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2007.10.005 · Cited by 479 · see citing works
“In line with the findings of Zhao et al. (2007), psychological contract breach is related to work behaviors, and it may be expected that age also moderates these relations.”
BackgroundResultFresé, M., Garst, H., & Fay, D. (2007) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/0021-9010.92.4.1084 · Cited by 474 · see citing works
Self-citationChronic job burnout and daily functioning: A theoretical analysis
Bakker, A. B., & Costa, P. L. (2014) · Burnout Research · doi:10.1016/j.burn.2014.04.003 · Cited by 468 · see citing works
The experience of bullying in Great Britain: The impact of organizational status
Hoel, H., Cooper, C. L., & Faragher, B. E. (2001) · European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology · doi:10.1080/13594320143000780 · Cited by 466 · see citing works
On the positive and negative effects of emotion work in organizations
Zapf, D., & Holz, M. (2006) · European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology · doi:10.1080/13594320500412199 · Cited by 452 · see citing works
“A review of the literature shows that effects of psychological strain on psychological stressors are not infrequent (Zapf, Dormann, & Frese, 1996 ).”
BackgroundSelf-citationOccupational Stress, Burnout, and Health in Teachers: A Methodological and Theoretical Analysis
Guglielmi, R., & Tatrow, K. (1998) · Review of Educational Research · doi:10.3102/00346543068001061 · Cited by 547 · see citing works
“Useful suggestions for methodological refinements that might mitigate, if not eliminate, obstacles to the establishment of causal links in longitudinal studies can be found in Contrada and Krantz (1987), Frese and Zapf (1988), Leventhal and Tomarken (1987), and Zapf et al. (1996).”
BackgroundMethodJob satisfaction: a meta‐analysis of stabilities
Dormann, C., & Zapf, D. (2001) · Journal of Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1002/job.98 · Cited by 421 · see citing works
Self-citationPredicting Perceived Employability: Human Capital or Labour Market Opportunities?
Berntson, E., Sverke, M., & Marklund, S. (2006) · Economic and Industrial Democracy · doi:10.1177/0143831x06063098 · Cited by 411 · see citing works
Obrenovic, B., Du, J., Khudaykulov, A., & Khan, M. A. S. (2020) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00475 · Cited by 488 · see citing works
Sonnentag, S., & Fresé, M. (2003) · Handbook of Psychology · doi:10.1002/0471264385.wei1218 · Cited by 489 · see citing works
“These studies addressed the question whether strains lead to an increase in stressors as suggested in the ‘drift hypothesis’ (cf., Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundSelf-citationSonnentag, S. (2018) · Research in Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.riob.2018.11.002 · Cited by 405 · see citing works
Hellgren, J., & Sverke, M. (2003) · Journal of Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1002/job.184 · Cited by 364 · see citing works
Jimmieson, N. L., Terry, D. J., & Callan, V. J. (2003) · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/1076-8998.9.1.11 · Cited by 370 · see citing works
Underemployment: Consequences for the Health and Well‐Being of Workers
Friedland, D. S., & Price, R. H. (2003) · American Journal of Community Psychology · doi:10.1023/a:1025638705649 · Cited by 357 · see citing works
“Given the stability of health over time and the large number of stressors known to affect health, the size of the relationship between any one stressor and health is usually small (Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundLeadership Behavior and Subordinate Well-Being.
van Dierendonck, D., Haynes, C., Borrill, C., & Stride, C. (2004) · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/1076-8998.9.2.165 · Cited by 353 · see citing works
“In such a case, a model with synchronous effects will represent the longitudinal data more adequately than a model with a longitudinal effect in the same direction (Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundCheng, Y. (2000) · BMJ · doi:10.1136/bmj.320.7247.1432 · Cited by 343 · see citing works
Reducing reality shock: The effects of classroom management skills training on beginning teachers
Dicke, T., Elling, J., Schmeck, A., & Leutner, D. (2015) · Teaching and Teacher Education · doi:10.1016/j.tate.2015.01.013 · Cited by 338 · see citing works
Bullying is detrimental to health, but all bullying behaviours are not necessarily equally damaging
Cooper, C. L., Hoel, H., & Faragher, B. (2004) · British Journal of Guidance and Counselling · doi:10.1080/03069880410001723594 · Cited by 338 · see citing works
“However, in this respect, the interest in observers or third-parties has been has been particularly linked to their potential role in the victimisation process (e.g. Leymann, 1987; Zapf et al ., 1996b).”
BackgroundInfluentialOuweneel, E., Blanc, P. M. L., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2011) · The Journal of Positive Psychology · doi:10.1080/17439760.2011.558847 · Cited by 342 · see citing works
“Namely, Zapf et al. (1996) state that when all study variables are incorporated at both time points, it is justified to verify causal, reversed, and reciprocal relationships between study variables (when using SEM) (see ‘Method’ section).”
BackgroundInfluentialThe correlation between stress and economic crisis: a systematic review
Mucci, N., Giorgi, G., Roncaioli, M., Pérez, J. F., & Arcangeli, G. (2016) · Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment · doi:10.2147/ndt.s98525 · Cited by 341 · see citing works
“20 In fact, studies presenting a longer follow-up of the outcomes allow a better assessment of the change in the health state of the population over time.”
Lang, J., Ochsmann, E., Kraus, T., & Lang, J. W. B. (2012) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.04.015 · Cited by 328 · see citing works
Ford, M. T., Matthews, R. A., Wooldridge, J. D., Mishra, V., Kakar, U. M., & Strahan, S. R. (2014) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678373.2013.877096 · Cited by 321 · see citing works
Causes and consequences of occupational stress in emergency nurses, a longitudinal study
Adriaenssens, J., Gucht, V. D., & Stan Maes, A. (2013) · Journal of Nursing Management · doi:10.1111/jonm.12138 · Cited by 322 · see citing works
“The mean interval between the first and the second assessment was 18 months, which is sufficient to allow for research on the impact of organisational changes (Zapf et al. 1996) (Figure 1).”
BackgroundAartsen, M. J., Smits, C. H. M., van Tilburg, T., Knipscheer, K. C. P. M., & Deeg, D. J. H. (2002) · The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences · doi:10.1093/geronb/57.2.p153 · Cited by 303 · see citing works
Job Insecurity and Well-Being: Moderation by Employability
Silla, I., Cuyper, N. D., Gracia, F. J., Silla, J. M. P., & Witte, H. D. (2008) · Journal of Happiness Studies · doi:10.1007/s10902-008-9119-0 · Cited by 306 · see citing works
“Second, the way stressors affect psychological and psychosomatic dysfunction over the course of time may differ depending on both the nature of the stressor and the criterion variable (Zapf et al. 1996).”
BackgroundResultInfluentialLeadership Styles as Predictors of Self‐reported and Observed Workplace Bullying
Hoel, H., Glasø, L., Hetland, J., Cooper, C. L., & Einarsen, S. V. (2009) · British Journal of Management · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8551.2009.00664.x · Cited by 304 · see citing works
de Lange, A. H., Witte, H. D., & Notelaers, G. (2008) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678370802390132 · Cited by 297 · see citing works
“However, in contrast to the ‘‘loss spiral’’ (Hobfoll, 2001) or ‘‘drift hypothesis’’ (Zapf et al., 1996), workers with less strong resource pools can also successfully strive to obtain more resources (as demonstrated by the external movers in this study).”
BackgroundKinnunen, U. M., Geurts, S. A. E., & Mauno, S. (2004) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678370410001682005 · Cited by 287 · see citing works
“Second, we also tested the reverse causality between work-to-family conflict and satisfaction and well-being, which is often ignored in longitudinal studies (Zapf et al ., 1996).”
MethodCONFLICT AT WORK AND INDIVIDUAL WELL‐BEING
Dreu, C. K. W. D., van Dierendonck, D., & Dijkstra, M. T. M. (2004) · International Journal of Conflict Management · doi:10.1108/eb022905 · Cited by 289 · see citing works
The relative impact of workplace bullying as a social stressor at work
Hauge, L. J., Skogstad, A., & Einarsen, S. V. (2010) · Scandinavian Journal of Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9450.2010.00813.x · Cited by 287 · see citing works
Baillien, E., Cuyper, N. D., & Witte, H. D. (2010) · Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology · doi:10.1348/096317910x508371 · Cited by 280 · see citing works
A three-wave study of job resources, self-efficacy, and work engagement among Italian schoolteachers
Simbula, S., Guglielmi, D., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2010) · European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology · doi:10.1080/13594320903513916 · Cited by 281 · see citing works
“According to Zapf, Dormann, and Frese (1996), it is common practice in longitudinal research to choose the particular time lag for organizational reasons rather than theoretical considerations.”
BackgroundBurnout and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes: A Prospective Study of Apparently Healthy Employed Persons
Melamed, S., Shirom, A., Toker, S., & Shapira, I. (2006) · Psychosomatic Medicine · doi:10.1097/01.psy.0000242860.24009.f0 · Cited by 248 · see citing works
“(72), to confirm the inference of causality in the stressor–strain relationship in longitudinal studies, one needs not only to ensure the stressor existed before ill health developed (as indeed we did by selecting workers not having diabetes at T1), but also to demonstrate that the stressor persisted during the follow…”
BackgroundSense of coherence and health: evidence from two cross-lagged longitudinal samples
Kivimäki, M., Feldt, T., Vahtera, J., & Nurmi, J.-E. (2000) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/s0277-9536(99)00326-3 · Cited by 262 · see citing works
Spector, P. E., Chen, P. Y., & O’Connell, B. J. (2000) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/0021-9010.85.2.211 · Cited by 265 · see citing works
Hall, G. B., Dollard, M. F., Tuckey, M. R., Winefield, A. H., & Thompson, B. M. (2009) · Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology · doi:10.1348/096317908x401723 · Cited by 259 · see citing works
“…nature of the work–family interface longitudinally (Casper, Eby, Bordeaux, & Lambert, 2007; Demerouti et al., 2004; Eby, Casper, Lockwood, Bordeaux, & Brinley, 2005; Frese, Fay, & Garst, 2007; Ford, Heinen, & Langkamer, 2007; Peeters, de Jonge, Janssen, & Linden, 2004; Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialAn epidemiological approach to study fatigue in the working population: the Maastricht Cohort Study
Kant, I., Bültmann, U., Schröer, K. A. P., Beurskens, A. J. H. M., van Amelsvoort, L. G. P. M., & Swaen, G. M. H. (2003) · Occupational and Environmental Medicine · doi:10.1136/oem.60.suppl_1.i32 · Cited by 256 · see citing works
“27 28 The literature on long term health effects implicitly presumes a certain exposure time effect : the longer a stressor impacts on a person and/or the higher the exposure intensity, the higher the incidence of health effects.”
The impact of psychological distress on absence from work
Hardy, G. E., Woods, D., & Wall, T. D. (2003) · Journal of Applied Psychology · doi:10.1037/0021-9010.88.2.306 · Cited by 253 · see citing works
Veldhoven, M. V., Jonge, J. D., Broersen, S., Kompier, M., & Meijman, T. (2002) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678370210166399 · Cited by 246 · see citing works
“In the literature at least ® ve reasons are reported why stressor-strain correlations would not be higher than .30 (Koslowsky, 1998; Payne et al., 1999; Semmer et al., 1996; Zapf et al., 1996).”
BackgroundNiedhammer, I., Tek, M.-L., Starke, D., & Siegrist, J. (2003) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/s0277-9536(03)00346-0 · Cited by 240 · see citing works
The Importance of Definitional and Temporal Issues in the Study of Resilience
Fisher, D. M., Ragsdale, J. M., & Fisher, E. C. S. (2019) · Applied Psychology · doi:10.1111/apps.12162 · Cited by 241 · see citing works
Cause and effect: Optimizing the designs of longitudinal studies in occupational health psychology
Taris, T. W., & Kompier, M. A. J. (2014) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678373.2014.878494 · Cited by 239 · see citing works
“Inspired by the seminal work of Zapf et al. (1996), De Lange et al. (2004) discussed a number of mechanisms that could account for reversed effects.”
MethodA longitudinal test of the job demands-resources model among Australian university academics
Boyd, C. M., Bakker, A. B., Pignata, S., Winefield, A. H., Gillespie, N., & Stough, C. (2011) · Applied Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1464-0597.2010.00429.x · Cited by 240 · see citing works
“Generally speaking, shorter time frames are recommended (e.g. 1 or 2 years; de Lange et al., 2004; Zapf et al., 1996); however, researchers need to give careful consideration to the optimal time interval, given the focus and context of their research.”
BackgroundPersonal Resources and Work Engagement in the Face of Change
van den Heuvel, M., Demerouti, E., Bakker, A. B., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2010) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9780470661550.ch7 · Cited by 240 · see citing works
Innstrand, S. T., Langballe, E. M., Espnes, G. A., Falkum, E., & Aasland, O. G. (2008) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678370801975842 · Cited by 231 · see citing works
“These results show the importance of analysing reversed causal effects in longitudinal studies when this is theoretically justified, as underlined by Zapf et al. (1996).”
BackgroundInfluentialThe Thin Line Between Empowering and Laissez-Faire Leadership: An Expectancy-Match Perspective
Wong, S. I., & Giessner, S. R. (2015) · Journal of Management · doi:10.1177/0149206315574597 · Cited by 232 · see citing works
“Moreover, the two-wave panel design employed in the present study can examine only normal relationships with a single direction (i.e., X → Y), such as the hypothesized model of this study, but not reverse or reciprocal relationships (e.g., X → Y → X; Zapf et al., 1996).”
MethodIndividual difference predictors of change in career adaptability over time
Zacher, H. (2014) · Journal of Vocational Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2014.01.001 · Cited by 220 · see citing works
Hulsheger, U. R., Lang, J. W. B., & Maier, G. W. (2010) · Journal of Occupational Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0021003 · Cited by 221 · see citing works
Bond, F. W., & Flaxman, P. E. (2006) · Journal of Organizational Behavior Management · doi:10.1300/j075v26n01_05 · Cited by 221 · see citing works
Nielsen, M. B., & Knardahl, S. (2014) · Scandinavian Journal of Psychology · doi:10.1111/sjop.12103 · Cited by 220 · see citing works
Different mechanisms to explain the reversed effects of mental health on work characteristics
de Lange, A., Taris, T. W., Kompier, M. A. J., Houtman, I. L. D., & Bongers, P. M. (2005) · Scandinavian Journal of Work Environment & Health · doi:10.5271/sjweh.843 · Cited by 218 · see citing works
“Zapf et al (9) labeled the negative re-interpretation effect for unhealthy workers as the “true strain–stressor process”, whereas Spector et al (25) spoke of the “stressor creation hypothesis” (in the context of negative affectivity).”
BackgroundInfluentialMindfulness as a personal resource to reduce work stress in the job demands‐resources model
Grover, S. L., Teo, S., Pick, D., & Roche, M. (2016) · Stress and Health · doi:10.1002/smi.2726 · Cited by 226 · see citing works
The Body and the Brain: Measuring Skin Conductance Responses to Understand the Emotional Experience
Christopoulos, G. I., Uy, M. A., & Yap, W. (2019) · Organizational Research Methods · doi:10.1177/1094428116681073 · Cited by 204 · see citing works
The consequences of job crafting: a three-wave study
Vogt, K., Hakanen, J., Brauchli, R., Jenny, G. J., & Bauer, G. F. (2015) · European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology · doi:10.1080/1359432x.2015.1072170 · Cited by 216 · see citing works
Grzywacz, J. G., Carlson, D. S., & Shulkin, S. (2008) · Community Work & Family · doi:10.1080/13668800802024652 · Cited by 213 · see citing works
“Nonetheless, even small effects are meaningful given the multifactorial etiology of stress and burnout (Zapf, Dormann, & Frese, 1996 ), and even small effects can have meaningful implications for large employers or government policies for whom reductions in stress and burnout may a ffect sizeable numbers of workers.”
BackgroundAssociations between overtime and psychological health in high and low reward jobs
Van Der Hulst, M., & Geurts, S. (2001) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/026783701110.1080/02678370110066580 · Cited by 213 · see citing works
“Longitudinal designs or quasiexperimental studies such as the one by Rissler (1977) reported in Section 1 (see also Frese, and Zapf, 1988; Zapf, Dormann, and Frese, 1996) are necessary in order to shed light on the direction of causation with respect to the relationships found in this study.”
BackgroundHoukes, I., Winants, Y., Twellaar, M., & Verdonk, P. (2011) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/1471-2458-11-240 · Cited by 212 · see citing works
“Nevertheless, a misfit between the time lag used in the study and the actual causal lag, results in an underestimation of the true causal effects [ 32 ].”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialInformation and communication technology: Implications for job stress and employee well-being
Day, A., Scott, N., & Kevin Kelloway, E. (2010) · Research in Occupational Stress and Well-being · doi:10.1108/s1479-3555(2010)0000008011 · Cited by 218 · see citing works
JONGE, J. D., Mulder, M. J. G. P., & Nijhuis, F. J. N. (1999) · Social Science & Medicine · doi:10.1016/s0277-9536(98)00429-8 · Cited by 212 · see citing works
Dicke, T., Parker, P. D., Holzberger, D., Kunina-Habenicht, O., Kunter, M., & Leutner, D. (2015) · Contemporary Educational Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.cedpsych.2014.11.003 · Cited by 208 · see citing works
Psychological capital as a personal resource in the JD-R model
Grover, S. L., Teo, S., Pick, D., Roche, M., & Newton, C. J. (2018) · Personnel Review · doi:10.1108/pr-08-2016-0213 · Cited by 207 · see citing works
A review on health and well‐being at work: More than stressors and strains
Sonnentag, S., Tay, L., & Nesher Shoshan, H. (2023) · Personnel Psychology · doi:10.1111/peps.12572 · Cited by 212 · see citing works
Airila, A., Hakanen, J., Schaufeli, W. B., Luukkonen, R. A., Punakallio, A., & Lusa, S. (2014) · Work & Stress · doi:10.1080/02678373.2013.872208 · Cited by 208 · see citing works
den Brande, W. V., Baillien, E., Witte, H. D., Elst, T. V., & Godderis, L. (2016) · Aggression and Violent Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.avb.2016.06.004 · Cited by 205 · see citing works
Individual Differences, Work Stress and Health
Semmer, N. K., & Meier, L. L. (2009) · doi:10.1002/9780470682357.ch6 · Cited by 201 · see citing works
- Authors
- Zapf, D., Dormann, C., & Frese, M.
- Affiliations
- University of Konstanz (DE)
- Venue
- Journal of Occupational Health Psychology
- Published
- 1996
- Volume
- 1
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 145-169
- ISSN
- 1076-8998 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1307
- OpenAlex
- W2121908317
- Cited by
- 1,174
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 30 · 2024: 25 · 2023: 30 · 2022: 48 · 2021: 40 · 2020: 47 · 2019: 52 · 2018: 45 · 2017: 57 · 2016: 66 · 2015: 55 · 2014: 61 · 2013: 57 · 2012: 62
- FWCI
- 24.48
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Occupational Health Psychology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UvA-DARE (University of Amsterdam) (publishedVersion)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Workplace Health and Well-being
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Stress and Burnout Research
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Job Satisfaction and Organizational Behavior
- Keywords
- organizational stress, longitudinal study, reverse causality, social desirability, negative affectivity, panel design, longitudinal analysis, causal inference
- MeSH terms
- Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Psychology, Industrial, Research Design, Stress, Psychological, Occupational Health, Workload
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
