A moderated mediation model of job stress, job satisfaction, and turnover intention for airport security screeners

Abstract

Previous research on aviation safety has mainly focused on pilots and air-traffic controllers, with scant attention to airport security screeners. In addition, most studies have examined the factors that influence the performance of X-ray screening. However, for accurate screening, it is important that screeners acquire expertise through real world experience, which can only be gained over a long period. Therefore, the high turnover rate among airport security screeners is a potential threat to aviation safety. We investigate whether job stress influences screeners' turnover intention and whether job satisfaction mediates this relationship. Also, we examine whether the individual’s motivation level moderates this mediation model by conducting a moderated mediation analysis. We find that high job stress is associated with low job satisfaction, which in turn predicts higher turnover intention. Furthermore, the effects of such a mediation model were significantly larger among security screeners with high self-determined motivation than those with low self-determined motivation.