Drawing on the transactional theory of stress and the person–situation interactionist perspective, we theorize that the indirect effect of challenge stressors on affective commitment through work engagement is moderated by the joint effects of core self-evaluations and perceived organizational support. In a sample of 226 Chinese public servants, we tested a new moderated moderated (three-way) mediation model using structural equation modeling. Our results show that challenge stressors positively influence work engagement, which has a significant positive effect on affective commitment. Moreover, the indirect effect of challenge stressors is maximized when both perceived organizational support and core self-evaluations are high.
AbrahamR. (1998). Emotional dissonance in organizations: Antecedents, consequences, and moderators. Genetic, Social, and General Psychology Monographs, 124(2), 229–246.
2.
AllenN. J.MeyerJ. P. (1990). The measurement and antecedents of affective, continuance and normative commitment to the organization. Journal of Occupational Psychology, 63(1), 1–18.
3.
BakkerA. B.EmmerikH.EuwemaM. C. (2006). Crossover of burnout and engagement in work teams. Work and Occupations, 33(4), 464–489.
4.
BeehrT. A.GlaserK. M.CanaliK. G.WallweyD. A. (2001). Back to basics: Re-examination of demand-control theory of occupational stress. Work and Stress, 15(2), 115–130.
5.
BowlingN. A.WangQ.LiH. Y. (2012). The moderating effect of core self-evaluations on the relationships between job attitudes and organisational citizenship behavior. Applied Psychology, 61(1), 97–113.
6.
BrunettoY.TeoS. T. T.ShacklockK.Farr-WhartonR. (2012). Emotional intelligence, job satisfaction, well-being and engagement: Explaining organizational commitment and turnover intentions in policing. Human Resource Management Journal, 22(4), 428–441.
7.
CamachoS.HassaneinK.HeadM. (2018). Cyberbullying impacts on victims’ satisfaction with information and communication technologies: The role of perceived cyberbullying severity. Information and Management, 55(4), 494–507.
8.
CasperW. J.HarrisC.Taylor-BiancoA.WayneJ. H. (2011). Work-family conflict, perceived supervisor support and organizational commitment among Brazilian professionals. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 79(3), 640–652.
9.
CavanaughM. A.BoswellW. R.RoehlingM. V.BoudreauJ. W. (2000). An empirical examination of self-reported work stress among U.S. managers. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85(1), 65–74.
10.
ChenS.-Y.ScannapiecoM. (2010). The influence of job satisfaction on child welfare worker’s desire to stay: An examination of the interaction effect of self-efficacy and supportive supervision. Children and Youth Services Review, 32(4), 482–486.
11.
CheungG. W.LauR. S. (2017). Accuracy of parameter estimates and confidence intervals in moderated mediation models: A comparison of regression and latent moderated structural equations. Organizational Research Methods, 20(4), 746–769.
12.
ChristianM. S.GarzaA. S.SlaughterJ. E. (2011). Work engagement: A quantitative review and test of its relations with task and contextual performance. Personnel Psychology, 64(1), 89–136.
13.
ColeM. S.WalterF.BedeianA. G.O’BoyleE. H. (2012). Job burnout and employee engagement. Journal of Management, 38(5), 1550–1581.
14.
CraigheadC. W.KetchenD. J.DunnK. S.HultG. T. M. (2011). Addressing common method variance: Guidelines for survey research on information technology, operations, and supply chain management. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 58(3), 578–588.
15.
CrawfordE. R.LepineJ. A.RichB. L. (2010). Linking job demands and resources to employee engagement and burnout: A theoretical extension and meta-analytic test. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(5), 834–848.
16.
De JongeJ.MulderM. J. G. P.NijhuisF. J. N. (1999). The incorporation of different demand concepts in the job demand-control model: Effects on health care professionals. Social Science and Medicine, 48(9), 1149–1160.
17.
De SimoneS.CicottoG.PinnaR.GiustinianoL. (2016). Engaging public servants: Public service motivation, work engagement and work-related stress. Management Decision, 54(7), 1569–1594.
18.
DemeroutiE.BakkerA. B.NachreinerF.SchaufeliW. B. (2001). The job demands-resources model of burnout. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(3), 499–512.
19.
EisenbergerR.ArmeliS.RexwinkelB.LynchP. D.RhoadesL. (2001). Reciprocation of perceived organizational support. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(1), 42–51.
20.
EvansM. G. (1985). A Monte Carlo study of the effects of correlated method variance in moderated multiple regression analysis. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 36(3), 305–323.
21.
FornellC.LarckerD. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39–50.
22.
GaoY.ShiJ.NiuQ.WangL. (2013). Work-family conflict and job satisfaction: Emotional intelligence as a moderator. Stress and Health, 29(3), 222–228.
23.
González-MoralesM. G.NevesP. (2015). When stressors make you work: Mechanisms linking challenge stressors to performance. Work and Stress, 29(3), 213–229.
24.
HakanenJ. J.BakkerA. B.SchaufeliW. B. (2006). Burnout and work engagement among teachers. Journal of School Psychology, 43(6), 495–513.
25.
HakanenJ. J.SchaufeliW. B.AholaK. (2008). The job demands-resources model: A three-year cross-lagged study of burnout, depression, commitment, and work engagement. Work and Stress, 22(3), 224–241.
26.
HallbergU. E.SchaufeliW. B. (2006). “Same Same” but different?European Psychologist, 11(2), 119–127.
27.
HargroveM. B.NelsonD. L.CooperC. L. (2013). Generating eustress by challenging employees. Organizational Dynamics, 42(1), 61–69.
28.
HarrisK. J.HarveyP.KacmarK. M. (2009). Do social stressors impact everyone equally? An examination of the moderating impact of core self-evaluations. Journal of Business and Psychology, 24(2), 153–164.
29.
HayesA. F. (2013). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis. Guilford Press.
30.
HayesA. F. (2015). An index and test of linear moderated mediation. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 50(1), 1–22.
31.
HayesA. F. (2018). Partial, conditional, and moderated moderated mediation: Quantification, inference, and interpretation. Communication Monographs, 85(1), 4–40.
32.
HuQ.SchaufeliW. B.TarisT. W. (2011). The job demands-resources model: An analysis of additive and joint effects of demands and resources. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 79(1), 181–190.
33.
InoueA.KawakamiN.TsunoK.ShimazuA.TomiokaK.NakanishiM. (2013). Job demands, job resources, and work engagement of Japanese employee: A prospective cohort study. International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 86(4), 441–449.
34.
InoueA.KawakamiN.TsutsumiA.ShimazuA.MiyakiK.TakahashiM.. . . TotsuzakiT. (2014). Association of job demands with work engagement of Japanese employees: Comparison of challenges with hindrances (J-HOPE). PLOS ONE, 9(3), Article e91583.
35.
JiangW.GuQ. (2015). A moderated mediation examination of proactive personality on employee creativity. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 28(3), 393–410.
36.
JudgeT. A.BonoJ. E.LockeE. A. (2000). Personality and job satisfaction: The moderating role of job characteristics. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85(2), 237–249.
37.
JudgeT. A.ErezA.BonoJ. E.ThoresenC. J. (2003). The core self-evaluations scale: Development of a measure. Personnel Psychology, 56(2), 303–331.
38.
JungH. S.YoonH. H. (2016). What does work meaning to hospitality employees? The effects of meaningful work on employees’ organizational commitment: The mediating role of job engagement. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 53(10), 59–68.
39.
JungY.TakeuchiN. (2014). Relationships among leader-member exchange, person-organization fit and work attitudes in Japanese and Korean organizations: Testing a cross-cultural moderating effect. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 25(1), 23–46.
40.
KaratepeO. M. (2011). Procedural justice, work engagement, and job outcomes: Evidence from Nigeria. Journal of Hospitality Marketing and Management, 20(8), 855–878.
41.
KaratepeO. M.AgaM. (2012). Work engagement as a mediator of the effects of personality traits on job outcomes: A study of frontline employees. Services Marketing Quarterly, 33(4), 343–362.
42.
KaratepeO. M.BeiramiE.BouzariM.SafaviH. P. (2014). Does work engagement mediate the effects of challenge stressors on the job outcomes? Evidence from the hotel industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 36(1), 14–22.
43.
KickulJ.PosigM. (2001). Supervisory emotional support and burnout: An explanation of reverse buffering effects. Journal of Managerial Issues, 13(3), 328–342.
44.
KimT.LidenR. C.KimS.LeeD. (2015). The interplay between follower core self-evaluation and transformational leadership: Effects on employee outcomes. Journal of Business and Psychology, 30(2), 345–355.
45.
KittingerJ. D.WalkerA. G.CopeJ. G.WuenschK. L. (2009). The relationship between core self-evaluations and affective commitment. Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 11(1), 68–92.
46.
KleinA.MoosbruggerH. (2000). Maximum likelihood estimation of latent interaction effects with the LMS method. Psychometrika, 65(4), 457–474.
47.
KlineR. B. (2016). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (4th ed.). Guilford Press.
48.
KongF.ZhaoJ.YouX. (2013). Self-esteem as mediator and moderator of the relationship between social support and subjective well-being among Chinese University Students. Social Indicators Research, 112(1), 151–161.
49.
LazarusR. S.FolkmanS. (1984). Stress, appraisal and coping. Springer.
50.
LeeJ. H.OkC. (2015).). Drivers of work engagement: An examination of core self-evaluations and psychological climate among hotel employees. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 44, 84–98.
51.
LepineJ. A.PodsakoffN. P.LepineM. A. (2005). A meta-analytic test of the challenge stressor–hindrance stressor framework: An explanation for inconsistent relationships among stressors and performance. Academy of Management Journal, 48(5), 764–775.
52.
LiL.ZhongJ.ChenY.XieY.MaoS. (2014). Moderating effects of proactive personality on factors influencing work engagement based on the job demands-resources model. Social Behavior and Personality, 42(1), 7–15.
53.
LiangJ.GongY. (2013). Capitalizing on proactivity for informal mentoring received during early career: The moderating role of core self-evaluations. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 34(8), 1182–1201.
54.
LiaoF.YangL.WangM.DrownD.ShiJ. (2013). Team–member exchange and work engagement: Does personality make a difference?Journal of Business and Psychology, 28(1), 63–77.
55.
LinM.LingQ. (2018). Is role stress always harmful? Differentiating role overload and role ambiguity in the challenge-hindrance stressors framework. Tourism Management, 68, 355–366.
56.
LiuB.TangT. L.YangK. (2015). When does public service motivation fuel the job satisfaction fire? The joint moderation of person–organization fit and needs–supplies fit. Public Management Review, 17(6), 876–900.
57.
LiuB.YangK.JuW. (2014). Work-related stressors and health-related outcomes in public service: Examining the role of public service motivation. American Review of Public Administration, 45(6), 653–673.
58.
MaceyW. H.SchneiderB. (2008). The meaning of employee engagement. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 1(1), 3–30.
59.
MarquesA. M.ChambelM. J.PintoI. (2015). The exchange relationship between work-family enrichment and affective commitment: The moderating role of gender. Spanish Journal of Psychology, 18, Article e35.
60.
MarshH. W.WenZ.HauK. T. (2004). Structural equation models of latent interactions: Evaluation of alternative estimation strategies and indicator construction. Psychological Methods, 9(3), 275–300.
61.
MaunoS.KinnunenU.RuokolainenM. (2007). Job demands and resources as antecedents of work engagement: A longitudinal study. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 70(1), 149–171.
62.
MazzolaJ. J.DisselhorstR. (2019). Should we be “challenging” employees?: A critical review and meta-analysis of the challenge-hindrance model of stress. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 2019(3), 949–961.
63.
MinH.KimH. J.LeeS. (2015). Extending the challenge-hindrance stressor framework: The role of psychological capital. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 50(1), 105–114.
64.
NahrgangJ. D.MorgesonF. P.HofmannD. A. (2011). Safety at work: A meta-analytic investigation of the link between job demands, job resources, burnout, engagement, and safety outcomes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 96(1), 71–94.
65.
NoorN. M. (1995). Job-role quality and women’s psychological well-being: Locus of control and social support as moderators. Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, 5(4), 259–272.
66.
PearsallM. J.EllisA. P. J.SteinJ. H. (2009). Coping with challenge and hindrance stressors in teams: Behavioral, cognitive, and affective outcomes. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 109(1), 18–28.
67.
PodsakoffN. P.LepineJ. A.LepineM. A. (2007). Differential challenge stressor-hindrance stressor relationships with job attitudes, turnover intentions, and withdrawal behavior: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92(2), 438–454.
68.
PodsakoffP. M.MacKenzieS. B.LeeJ. Y.PodsakoffN. P. (2003). Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5), 879–903.
69.
PodsakoffP. M.MacKenzieS. B.PodsakoffN. P. (2012). Sources of method bias in social science research and recommendations on how to control it. Annual Review of Psychology, 63(1), 539–569.
70.
PomakiG.DeLongisA.FreyD.ShortK.WoehrleT. (2010). When the going gets tough: Direct, buffering and indirect effects of social support on turnover intention. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(6), 1340–1346.
71.
RhoadesL.EisenbergerR. (2002). Perceived organizational support: A review of the literature. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(4), 698–714.
72.
RichB. L.LepineJ. A.CrawfordE. R. (2010). Job engagement: Antecedents and effects on job performance. Academy of Management Journal, 53(3), 617–635.
73.
Ruiz-PalominoP.Linuesa-LangreoJ. (2018). Implications of person-situation interactions for Machiavellians’ unethical tendencies: The buffering role of managerial ethical leadership. European Management Journal, 36(2), 243–253.
74.
SchaufeliW. B.BakkerA. B. (2004). Job demands, job resources, and their relationship with burnout and engagement: A multi-sample study. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 25(3), 293–315.
75.
SchaufeliW. B.BakkerA. B.SalanovaM. (2006). The measurement of work engagement with a short questionnaire. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 66(4), 701–716.
76.
SchaufeliW. B.SalanovaM.González-RomáV.BakkerA. B. (2002). The measurement of engagement and burnout: A two sample confirmatory factor analytic approach. Journal of Happiness Studies, 3(1), 71–92.
77.
ScrimaF.LoritoL.ParryG.FalgaresG. (2014). The mediating role of work engagement involvement and affective commitment. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 25(15), 2159–2173.
78.
SelvarajanT. T.SinghB.CloningerP. A. (2016). Role of personality and affect on the social support and work family conflict relationship. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 94, 39–56.
79.
SimonC. A.NiceD. C. (1997). Stoicism. American Review of Public Administration, 27(2), 168–180.
80.
SrivastavaS.JohnO. P.GoslingS. D.PotterJ. (2003). Development of personality in early and middle adulthood: Set like plaster or persistent change?Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(5), 1041–1053.
81.
StamperC. L.JohlkeM. C. (2003). The impact of perceived organizational support on the relationship between boundary spanner role stress and work outcomes. Journal of Management, 29(4), 569–588.
82.
StetzT. A.StetzM. C.BlieseP. D. (2006). The importance of self-efficacy in the moderating effects of social support on stressor-strain relationships. Work and Stress, 20(1), 49–59.
83.
TaipaleS.SelanderK.AnttilaT.NättiJ. (2011). Work engagement in eight European countries. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 31(7–8), 486–504.
84.
TengF.ChenZ. (2012). Does social support reduce distress caused by ostracism? It depends on the level of one’s self-esteem. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48(5), 1192–1195.
85.
TettR. P.BurnettD. D. (2003). A personality trait-based interactionist model of job performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(3), 500–517.
86.
Van DyneL.PierceJ. L. (2004). Psychological ownership and feelings of possession: Three field studies predicting employee attitudes and organizational citizenship behavior. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 25(4), 439–459.
87.
VoilsC. I.SteffensD. C.FlintE. P.BosworthH. B. (2005). Social support and locus of control as predictors of adherence to antidepressant medication in an elderly population. American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 13(2), 157–165.
88.
WallT. D.JacksonP. R.MullarkeyS.ParkerS. K. (1996). The demand-control model of job strain: A more specific test. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 69(2), 153–166.
89.
WallaceJ. E. (2005). Job stress, depression and work-to-family conflict: A test of the strain and buffer hypotheses. Industrial Relations, 60(3), 510–539.
WebsterJ. R.BeehrT. A.LoveK. (2011). Extending the challenge-hindrance model of occupational stress: The role of appraisal. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 79(2), 505–516.
92.
WestJ. P.WestC. M. (1989). Job Stress and public sector occupations. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 9(3), 46–65.
93.
WidmerP. S.SemmerN. K.KälinW.JacobshagenN.MeierL. L. (2012). The ambivalence of challenge stressors: Time pressure associated with both negative and positive well-being. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(2), 422–433.
94.
WilliamsL. J.CoteJ. A.BuckleyM. R. (1989). Lack of method variance in self-reported affect and perceptions at work: Reality or artifact?Journal of Applied Psychology, 74(3), 462–468.
95.
WittL. A.CarlsonD. S. (2006). The work-family interface and job performance: Moderating effects of conscientiousness and perceived organizational support. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 11(4), 343–357.
96.
ZacherH.WinterG. (2011). Eldercare demands, strain, and work engagement: The moderating role of perceived organizational support. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 79(3), 667–680.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
