Negative affect and psychotic-like experiences in social workers: mechanisms and the buffering role of mindfulness

Occupational mental health is critical in the high-emotional-labor field of social work. Grounded in the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, this study investigates the underlying mechanisms linking occupational stress to subclinical psychopathology. Specifically, we propose and test an integrative moderated serial mediation model to explore how Psychotic-like Experiences (PLEs) are statistically associated with Negative Emotion through dual cognitive-affective pathways, and how Mindfulness serves as a vital buffering boundary condition in such associations.

A nationwide cross-sectional survey was conducted among frontline social workers in China. Data were collected from 580 valid respondents utilizing established measurement instruments. The hypothesized theoretical model was rigorously evaluated employing Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modeling (CB-SEM) and bias-corrected bootstrapping techniques (5,000 resamples) via Mplus 8.3 and SPSS 26.0.

The empirical results fully supported all 12 proposed hypotheses. Negative Emotion is associated with a cascading "loss spiral" and shows direct statistical correlations with Psychotic-like Experiences. Additionally, Negative Emotion is indirectly linked to PLEs via initial psychological loads (Cognitive Exhaustion and Rumination). These resource-consuming states are further associated with heightened Ego Depletion and interpersonal Loneliness, which are statistically mediated factors in the relationship between negative emotion and psychotic-like experiences. Furthermore, Mindfulness functions as a robust protective resource; it significantly weakens the associative relationships of Ego Depletion, Loneliness, and Negative Emotion with Psychotic-like Experiences in this sample.

This study theoretically extends the COR framework into the realm of occupational subclinical psychopathology by delineating a complex, multi-stage resource depletion model based on statistical associations. Practically, the findings underscore the imperative for social work agencies and policymakers to implement systemic emotional support and proactively cultivate practitioners' trait Mindfulness (e.g., via Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction programs) to alleviate resource loss risks, thereby sustaining high-quality social services and practitioners' well-being.