Within-Person Dynamics of Job Boredom and Counterproductive Work Behavior: A Latent Change Score Modeling Approach

Area of Science:

• Organizational Psychology
• Workplace Behavior Research

Background:

• Job boredom is a prevalent negative workplace emotion.
• The relationship between job boredom and counterproductive work behaviors (CWB) is complex and not fully understood.
• Previous research has yielded conflicting findings regarding the directionality of the job boredom-CWB link.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the within-person, short-term reciprocal relationship between job boredom and CWB.
• To determine if job boredom predicts subsequent CWB, and if CWB predicts subsequent job boredom.

Main Methods:

• Utilized latent change score (LCS) modeling.
• Employed 10-day experience sampling with 120 participants (1,161 observations).

Main Results:

• Found a significant reciprocal relationship between job boredom and CWB.
• Daily job boredom predicted increased CWB on the subsequent day.
• Daily CWB predicted increased job boredom on the subsequent day.

Conclusions:

• Job boredom and CWB dynamically influence each other on a daily basis.
• The findings highlight the cyclical nature of negative workplace experiences and behaviors.
• Understanding this reciprocal relationship is crucial for developing targeted interventions.