Change in affective well‐being on change in perceived job characteristics: The mediating role of hope

Abstract

Research on occupational health has consistently shown that job characteristics and personal resources predict employee well‐being. Building on the associative network theory, we claim that – vice versa – well‐being is likely to affect the perception of job characteristics and personal resources. The aim of this study was to expand the literature on job characteristics, personal resources, and employee well‐being (1) by taking a reversed causation perspective and (2) by investigating the dynamic nature of these relations in a latent change model. More specifically, we hypothesized that baseline levels and change in affective well‐being are related to change in emotional demands and autonomy, two core job characteristics for our sample of psychotherapists. In addition, we explored the mediating role of hope as a personal resource in this process. A total of 326 psychotherapists participated in a two‐wave online survey with a 5‐month time lag. Results revealed that baseline levels of and change in affective well‐being were associated with change in emotional demands. Furthermore, change in hope mediated the effect of change in affective well‐being on change in autonomy. In conclusion, the results show that affective well‐being can mark a starting point for building personal resources and changing employees' perceptions of their job characteristics.Practitioner points Employees with high levels of affective well‐being perceive fewer emotional demands at work over time. An increase in affective well‐being over a period of 5 months further decreases their experience of emotional demands at work. Employees whose affective well‐being increases over time build hope at work. This, in turn, goes along with a more positive perception of their autonomy at work.