Work Intensification and Psychological Detachment: The Mediating Role of Job Resources in Health Service Workers.

Psychological detachment is the central experience of recovery from work-related stress that allows individuals to reduce burnout symptoms. The stressor-detachment model (SDM) contends that job resources moderate the relationship between job stressors and psychological detachment. We designed an instrument to measure job resources from a multidimensional perspective. A sample of n = 394 individuals from the health service industry participated in the study. Data indicate that job resources comprise a four-factor structure underlying a formative model. Consistent with the SDM, a partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis suggests a moderating effect of job resources (e.g., control over working conditions, leaders' emotional support), between work intensification and psychological detachment. In addition; results indicate that workers who perceive high levels of support from their organization achieved higher levels of detachment compared with those who perceived low levels of support. Theoretical as well as practical implications for stress management practices, occupational health, and well-being are discussed.

Remote Work, Work Stress, and Work-Life during Pandemic Times: A Latin America Situation.

The COVID-19 pandemic affected the relationship between work and life almost everywhere on the planet. Suddenly, remote work became the mainstream way of working for millions of workers. In this context, we explore how the relationship between remote work, work stress, and work-life developed during pandemic times in a Latin America context. In a sample of 1285 responses collected between April and May 2020, through a PLS-SEM model, we found that remote work in pandemic times increased perceived stress (ß = 0.269; p < 0.01), reduced work-life balance (ß = -0.225; p < 0.01) and work satisfaction (ß = -0.190; p < 0.01), and increased productivity (ß = 0.120; p < 0.01) and engagement (ß = 0.120; p < 0.01). We also found a partial moderating effect, competitive and complementary, of perceived stress, and one significant gender difference: when working remotely, perceived stress affects men's productivity more acutely than women's productivity.

Propiedades psicométricas de la escala de intensificación de demandas del trabajo a partir de una muestra colombiana / Propiedades psicométricas de la escala de intensificación de demandas del trabajo a partir de una muestra colombiana

Abstract The acceleration of the pace of organizational management poses new challenges that can be expressed as an intensification of job demands, and people express it as an increase in the intensity levels of their task development, and a feeling of a greater time pressure in their work context. The objective of this study was to examine, in a sample of Colombian workers, the evidence of construct validity and reliability of the Spanish version of the Intensification of Job Demands Scale (IDS) developed by Kubicek, Paškvan and Korunka in 2015, which evaluates five job demands subject to intensification. The sample consisted of 420 healthcare professionals located in Bogotá, Colombia. Descriptive statistics, item discrimination indexes, internal structure through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, and evidence of construct validity were established. The original five-factor structure of the test was maintained explaining 47.12% of the total variance. By using Structural Equation Models (SEM), an adequate adjustment and parsimony of the model in congruence with the theoretical proposal of the scale is evidenced. This Spanish version of the IDS has adequate psychometric properties and it can contribute to research in the country, on the intensification of work as a demand that is associated with the impairment of workers' health and well-being.

Resumen La aceleración del ritmo de gestión organizacional plantea nuevos desafíos para las empresas, que pueden reflejarse en la intensificación de las demandas del trabajo y en que las personas expresen un aumento tanto en los niveles de intensidad en el desarrollo de sus tareas como en la sensación de una mayor presión del tiempo en su contexto laboral. Teniendo esto en cuenta, el objetivo del presente estudio fue examinar en una muestra de trabajadores colombianos las evidencias de validez de constructo y confiabilidad de la versión en español de la escala Intensification of Job Demands Scale (IDS), desarrollada por Kubicek et al. en 2015 para evaluar cinco demandas del trabajo sujetas a la intensificación -la muestra estuvo compuesta por 420 profesionales del sector de servicios de la salud en Bogotá, Colombia-. Para esto, se establecieron los estadísticos descriptivos, así como los índices de discriminación de los ítems, la estructura interna del instrumento mediante análisis factorial exploratorio y confirmatorio, y las evidencias de validez de constructo. Como resultado, se mantiene la estructura original de cinco factores de la prueba, que explican el 47.12 % de la varianza total; y, por medio de la utilización de modelos de ecuaciones estructurales, se evidencia un adecuado ajuste y parsimonia del modelo en congruencia con la propuesta teórica de la escala. Se concluye que esta versión en español de la IDS posee propiedades psicométricas adecuadas y que puede contribuir a la investigación en la región sobre la intensificación del trabajo como una demanda asociada al deterioro en la salud y al bienestar en los trabajadores.

Relationship Amongst Technology Use, Work Overload, and Psychological Detachment from Work.

Permanent connection to the work world as a result of new technologies raises the possibility of workday extensions and excessive workloads. The present study addresses the relationship between technology and psychological detachment from work resulting from work overload. Participants were 313 professionals from the health sector who responded to three instruments used in similar studies. Through PLS-SEM, regression and dependence analyses were developed, and through the bootstrapping method, significance of factor loadings, path coefficients and variances were examined. Results of the study corroborate a negative effect of technology use on psychological detachment from work and a positive correlation between technology and work overload. Additionally, there is a significant indirect effect of technology on psychological detachment from work as a result of work overload. Findings extend the literature related to the stressor-detachment model, and support the idea that workers who are often connected to their jobs by technological tools are less likely to reach adequate psychological detachment levels. Implications for the academic community and practitioners are discussed.