Educational professionals are expected to be able to deal with diverse societal challenges and are closely scrutinized in their daily work. As a consequence, teachers are increasingly subject to public pressure, that is, a demand from the public for improved services, increased responsiveness, and better information provision. Given the dynamic working environment of teachers, dealing with this demand requires teachers to behave proactively. Grounded in job demands–resources theory, this study explores how human resource management (HRM) can support teachers in portraying proactive behavior in the context of public pressure. More specifically, regular feedback is investigated as a tool to empower employees in this demanding working environment. Findings reveal that the relationship between regular feedback and proactive behavior through psychological empowerment is moderated by public pressure, which highlights the relevance of considering public sector contextual demands in the motivational process of HRM practices. The results furthermore support the call for further integration of a multilevel perspective in HRM research.
AguinisH.PierceC. A. (2008). Enhancing the relevance of organizational behavior by embracing performance management research. Journal of Organizational Behavior: The International Journal of Industrial, Occupational and Organizational Psychology and Behavior, 29(1), 139–145. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.493
BakkerA. B. (2015). Towards a multilevel approach of employee well-being. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 24(6), 839–843. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432x.2015.1071423
4.
BakkerA. B.DemeroutiE.VerbekeW. (2004). Using the job demands-resources model to predict burnout and performance. Human Resource Management, 43(1), 83–104. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.20004
5.
BakkerA. B.DemeroutiE. (2007). The job demands-resources model: State of the art. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 22(3), 309–328. https://doi.org/10.1108/02683940710733115
BakkerA. B.Van VeldhovenM.XanthopoulouD. (2010). Beyond the demand-control model. Journal of Personnel Psychology, 9(1), 3–16. https://doi.org/10.1027/1866-5888/a000006
8.
BakkerA. B.DemeroutiE.Sanz-VergelA. (2023). Job demands-resources theory: Ten years later. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 10(1), 25–53. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-120920-053933
9.
BauwensR.DecramerA.AudenaertM. (2021). Challenged by great expectations? Examining cross-level moderations and curvilinearity in the public sector job demands–resources model. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 41(2), 319–337. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371x19884102
10.
BelschakF. D.HartogD. N. D. (2010). Pro-self, prosocial, and pro-organizational foci of proactive behaviour: Differential antecedents and consequences. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 83(2), 475–498. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317909x439208
11.
BernerthJ. B.AguinisH. (2016). A critical review and best-practice recommendations for control variable usage. Personnel Psychology, 69(1), 229–283. https://doi.org/10.1111/peps.12103
12.
BindlU. K.ParkerS. K. (2011). Proactive work behavior: Forward-thinking and change-oriented action in organizations. In ZedeckS. (Ed.), APA handbook of industrial and organizational psychology, Vol. 2. Selecting and developing members for the organization (pp. 567–598). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/12170-019
13.
BlieseP. D.MaltarichM. A.HendricksJ. L. (2018). Back to basics with mixed-effects models: Nine take-away points. Journal of Business and Psychology, 33, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-017-9491-z
14.
BorstR. T. (2018). Comparing work engagement in people-changing and people-processing service providers: A mediation model with red tape, autonomy, dimensions of PSM, and performance. Public Personnel Management, 47(3), 287–313. https://doi.org/10.1177/0091026018770225
15.
BorstR. T.KruyenP. M.LakoC. J. (2019). Exploring the job demands–resources model of work engagement in government: Bringing in a psychological perspective. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 39(3), 372–397. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X17729870
16.
BorstR. T.KniesE. (2023). Well-being of public servants under pressure: The roles of job demands and personality traits in the health-impairment process. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 43(1), 159–184. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X211052674
17.
BoselieP.Van HartenJ.VeldM. (2021). A human resource management review on public management and public administration research: Stop right there. . . before we go any further. . .. Public Management Review, 23(4), 483–500. https://doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2019.1695880
18.
BothaR. (2004). Excellence in leadership: Demands on the professional school principal. South African Journal of Education, 24(3), 239–243. https://doi.org/10.4314/saje.v24i3.24995
19.
CeritY. (2017). The mediating effect of LMX in the relationship between school bureaucratic structure and teachers’ proactive behavior. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 38(6), 780–793. https://doi.org/10.1108/lodj-01-2016-0005
20.
CoburnC. E. (2005). Shaping teacher sensemaking: School leaders and the enactment of reading policy. Educational Policy, 19(3), 476–509. https://doi.org/10.1177/0895904805276143
CrosswellL.BeutelD. (2017). 21st century teachers: How non-traditional pre-service teachers navigate their initial experiences of contemporary classrooms. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 45(4), 416–431. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2017.1312281
23.
DeciE. L.RyanR. M. (1985). The general causality orientations scale: Self-determination in personality. Journal of Research in Personality, 19(2), 109–134. https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-6566(85)90023-6
24.
DecramerA.SmoldersC.VanderstraetenA. (2013). Employee performance management culture and system features in higher education: Relationship with employee performance management satisfaction. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 24(2), 352–371. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2012.680602
25.
DemeroutiE.BakkerA. B.NachreinerF.SchaufeliW. B. (2001). The job demands-resources model of burnout. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(3), 499–512. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.86.3.499
DollardM. F.BakkerA. B. (2010). Psychosocial safety climate as a precursor to conducive work environments, psychological health problems, and employee engagement. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 83(3), 579–599. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317909X470690
28.
EndersC. K.TofighiD. (2007). Centering predictor variables in cross-sectional multilevel models: A new look at an old issue. Psychological Methods, 12(2), 121–138. https://doi.org/10.1037/1082-989x.12.2.121
FernandezS.MoldogazievT. (2013). Employee empowerment, employee attitudes, and performance: Testing a causal model. Public Administration Review, 73(3), 490–506. https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.12049
31.
FirestoneW. A. (2014). Teacher evaluation policy and conflicting theories of motivation. Educational Researcher, 43(2), 100–107. https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189x14521864
32.
FishbachA.EyalT.FinkelsteinS. R. (2010). How positive and negative feedback motivate goal pursuit. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 4(8), 517–530. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2010.00285.x
33.
FornellC.LarckerD. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39–50. https://doi.org/10.2307/3151312
34.
GaravanT.McCarthyA.LaiY.MurphyK.SheehanM.CarberyR. (2021). Training and organisational performance: A meta-analysis of temporal, institutional and organisational context moderators. Human Resource Management Journal, 31(1), 93–119. https://doi.org/10.1111/1748-8583.12284
35.
García-JuanB.Escrig-TenaA. B.Roca-PuigV. (2019). Empowerment in the public sector: Testing the influence of goal orientation. Public Personnel Management, 48(4), 443–470. https://doi.org/10.1177/0091026018819020
36.
García-JuanB.Escrig-TenaA. B.Roca-PuigV. (2020). Psychological empowerment: Antecedents from goal orientation and consequences in public sector employees. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 40(2), 297–326. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X18814590
37.
GeorgeB.PandeyS. K. (2017). We know the yin—but where is the yang? Toward a balanced approach on common source bias in public administration scholarship. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 37(2), 245–270. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371x17698189
38.
GuestD. E.Bos-NehlesA. C. (2013). HRM and performance: The role of effective implementation. In PaauweJ.GuestD. E.WrightP. M. (Eds.), HRM and performance: Achievements and challenges (pp. 79–96). Wiley-Blackwell.
39.
HairJ. F.BlackW. C.BabinB. J.AndersonR. E.TathamR. L. (2006). Multivariate data analysis (6th ed.). Pearson Prentice Hall.
40.
HairJ. F.BlackW. C.BabinB. J.AndersonR. E. (2019). Multivariate data analysis (8th ed.). Cengage Learning.
41.
HobfollS. E.HalbeslebenJ.NeveuJ. P.WestmanM. (2018). Conservation of resources in the organizational context: The reality of resources and their consequences. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 5(1), 103–128. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-032117-104640
42.
HofmannD. A.GavinM. B. (1998). Centering decisions in hierarchical linear models: Implications for research in organizations. Journal of Management, 24(5), 623–641. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0149-2063(99)80077-4
43.
HoxJ. J.MoerbeekM.Van de SchootR. (2017) Multilevel analysis: Techniques and applications. Routledge.
44.
HuangJ. (2017). The relationship between employee psychological empowerment and proactive behavior: Self-efficacy as mediator. Social Behavior and Personality, 45(7), 1157–1166. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.6609
45.
IdrisM. A.DollardM. F.Yulita. (2014). Psychosocial safety climate, emotional demands, burnout, and depression: A longitudinal multilevel study in the Malaysian private sector. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 19(3), 291–302. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036599
46.
KangM. M.ParkS.SorensenL. C. (2022). Empowering the frontline: Internal and external organizational antecedents of teacher empowerment. Public Management Review, 24(11), 1705–1726. https://doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2021.1919185
47.
KelchtermansG.PiotL.BalletK. (2011). The lucid loneliness of the gatekeeper: Exploring the emotional dimension in principals’ work lives. Oxford Review of Education, 37(1), 93–108. https://doi.org/10.1080/03054985.2010.545192
48.
KniesE.BoselieP.Gould-WilliamsJ.VandenabeeleW. (2024). Strategic human resource management and public sector performance: Context matters. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 35(14), 2432–2444. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2017.1407088
49.
KniesE.DecramerA.AudenaertM. (2022). Line managers in the public sector. In TownsendK.Bos-NehlesA.JiangK. (Eds.), Research handbook on line managers (pp. 169–183). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781839102745.00017
50.
KrammerS. M. (2022). Human resource policies and firm innovation: The moderating effects of economic and institutional context. Technovation, 110, 102366. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2021.102366
51.
KubiakJ. (2022). Increasing perceived work meaningfulness by implementing psychological need-satisfying performance management practices. Human Resource Management Review, 32(3), 100875. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2020.100792
52.
KuvaasB. (2011). The interactive role of performance appraisal reactions and regular feedback. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 26(2), 123–137. https://doi.org/10.1108/02683941111102164
53.
LontiZ.VermaA. (2003). The determinants of flexibility and innovation in the government workplace: Recent evidence from Canada. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 13(3), 283–309. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpart/mug025
54.
MertensS.SchollaertE.AnseelF. (2021). How much feedback do employees need? A field study of absolute feedback frequency reports and performance. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 29(3–4), 326–335. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijsa.12352
55.
MullerD.JuddC. M.YzerbytV. Y. (2005). When moderation is mediated and mediation is moderated. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 89(6), 852–863. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.89.6.852
56.
MuylaertJ.DecramerA.AudenaertM. (2023). How leader’s red tape interacts with employees’ red tape from the lens of the job demands-resources model. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 43(3), 430–455. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X221087420
57.
NuwagabaB.HanS. H.KimS. (2025). Exploring the dual effects of employee empowerment on innovative behavior: Encouraging and discouraging pathways. Public Personnel Management. Advance online pubication. https://doi.org/10.1177/00910260251340741
OsborneJ. W.CostelloA. B.KellowJ. (2008). Best practices in exploratory factor analysis. In OsborneJ. W. (Ed.), Best practices in quantitative methods (pp. 86–99). Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412995627
62.
PaauweJ.FarndaleE. (2017). Strategy, HRM, and performance: A contextual approach. Oxford University Press.
63.
ParkerS. K.WilliamsH. M.TurnerN. (2006). Modeling the antecedents of proactive behavior at work. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(3), 636–652. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.3.636
64.
PodsakoffP. M.OrganD. W. (1986). Self-reports in organizational research: Problems and prospects. Journal of Management, 12(4), 531–544. https://doi.org/10.1177/014920638601200408
65.
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. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-120710-100452
66.
SeibertS. E.WangG.CourtrightS. H. (2011). Antecedents and consequences of psychological and team empowerment in organizations: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Applied Psychology, 96(5), 981. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022676
67.
SiemsenE.RothA.OliveiraP. (2010). Common method bias in regression models with linear, quadratic, and interaction effects. Organizational Research Methods, 13(3), 456–476. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428109351241
SpreitzerG. M. (1995). Psychological empowerment in the workplace: Dimensions, measurement, and validation. Academy of Management Journal, 38(5), 1442–1465. https://doi.org/10.5465/256865
70.
SpreitzerG. M. (2008). Taking stock: A review of more than twenty years of research on empowerment at work. In BarlingJ.CooperC. L. (Eds.), The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Behavior: Volume 1 – Micro Approaches (pp. 54–72). SAGE Publications Ltd. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781849200448
StrongeJ. H.TuckerP. D. (2003). Handbook on teacher evaluation: Assessing and improving performance. Eye on Education.
73.
TadićM.BakkerA. B.OerlemansW. G. (2015). Challenge versus hindrance job demands and well-being: A diary study on the moderating role of job resources. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 88(4), 702–725. https://doi.org/10.1111/joop.12094
74.
TingleyD.YamamotoT.HiroseK.KeeleL.ImaiK. (2014). Mediation: R package for causal mediation analysis. Journal of Statistical Software, 59(5), 1–38. https://doi.org/10.18637/jss.v059.i05
75.
TintoréM.CunhaR. S.CabralI.AlvesJ. J. M. (2022). A scoping review of problems and challenges faced by school leaders (2003–2019). Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 50(4), 536–573. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143220942527
76.
TummersL.SteijnB.NevickaB.HeeremaM. (2018). The effects of leadership and job autonomy on vitality: Survey and experimental evidence. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 38(3), 355–377. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371x16671980
77.
TuytensM.DevosG. (2017). The role of feedback from the school leader during teacher evaluation for teacher and school improvement. Teachers and Teaching, 23(1), 6–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2016.1203770
78.
Van Den BroeckA.VansteenkisteM.De WitteH.LensW. (2008). Explaining the relationships between job characteristics, burnout, and engagement: The role of basic psychological need satisfaction. Work & Stress, 22(3), 277–294. https://doi.org/10.1080/02678370802393672
79.
Van StrydonckI.DecramerA.AudenaertM. (2025). Linking leaders’ learning goal orientation to employees’ innovative work behaviour, job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion: Leaders’ provision of learning-oriented goals and feedback and coaching accuracy. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 34(1), 109–127. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2024.2423433
80.
Van StrydonckI.DecramerA.PecceiR.AudenaertM. (2025). Process and content in performance management: How consistency and supervisor developmental feedback decrease emotional exhaustion via high-quality LMX. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 45(2), 365–398. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734371X231220938
81.
Van WaeyenbergT.PecceiR.DecramerA. (2022). Performance management and teacher performance: The role of affective organizational commitment and exhaustion. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(4), 623–646. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2020.1754881
