When and Why Demands Reveal Their Challenging Potential during Change
Charlotte Blum1, Thomas Rigotti1,2
1Work, Organizational and Business Psychology, Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, 55122 Mainz, Germany.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
|December 24, 2021
Summary
Organizational change demands like workload and job impact can be challenging or hindering. Trust and autonomy can buffer these effects, improving employee engagement during transitions.
Area of Science:
- Organizational Psychology
- Management Science
Background:
- Organizational change presents complex demands impacting employee well-being and engagement.
- Understanding these demands within established frameworks is crucial for effective change management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate classic and change-specific demands (workload, individual job impact) in relation to emotional exhaustion and work engagement.
- To test trust and autonomy as moderators within the challenge-hindrance framework during organizational change.
- To integrate the challenge-hindrance framework into the job demands-resources model for organizational change.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional online questionnaire administered to 388 employees undergoing organizational change.
- Regression analyses were employed to assess direct and moderating effects of job demands and resources.
- Focus on workload and individual job impact as key demands, with trust and autonomy as potential moderators.
Main Results:
- Workload and individual job impact were identified as possessing both challenge and hindrance qualities.
- Trust and autonomy demonstrated significant moderating effects on individual job impact.
- The study supports the integration of the challenge-hindrance framework within the job demands-resources model.
Conclusions:
- Workload and individual job impact are critical factors influencing employee outcomes during organizational change.
- Trust and autonomy play a vital role in mitigating the negative impacts of change demands.
- Findings offer new perspectives on buffering change demands through psychological resources.
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