Applying the job demands-resources model to reduce the aberrant behavior of bus drivers: Let them play a good social role

Abstract

IntroductionThe display of social roles is an important activity in maintaining the health of daily life. When the social roles cannot be properly played due to job demands, it will affect the individual's physical and mental health and work status. This has been relatively neglected in previous research on the aberrant behavior of bus drivers. This study is based on the job demands-resources (JD-R) model, in which job demands are constructed as a resistance factor that prevents drivers from fulfilling their social roles (e.g., attention to detail, and interaction with passengers), and examines the imbalanced responses between these demands and their job resources, including burnout, satisfaction, health and aberrant behavior for bus drivers. MethodsA self-administered questionnaire was designed to collect empirical data from 246 drivers of Taiwanese bus companies. This study used structural equation modeling to test the proposed relationships and to estimate the factors affecting drivers’ aberrant behavior. ResultsThe results confirm the job resources-burnout-job satisfaction relationship and show that the mediating role of burnout, meaning that both job demands and job resources have a significant effect on burnout, which then further affects drivers' health and aberrant behaviors. ConclusionsThis study establishes that job demands and resources impact health and aberrant behavior through burnout, while job satisfaction's direct influence on aberrant behavior and health is limited. Intermediate factors likely moderate the relationship between job satisfaction and abnormal behavior, enriching the JD-R model's understanding. The confirmed hypotheses offer actionable insights for developing burnout management resources to enhance driver well-being and mitigate aberrant behavior.