How does time pressure influence emotional wellbeing? Investigating the roles of domain satisfaction and neuroticism among small-business owners

Abstract

Emotional wellbeing is related to the balance of positive and negative emotions associated with activities at work and in free time. We conjecture that time pressure is a factor reducing positive emotions and amplifying negative emotions, such that it has a negative relationship to emotional wellbeing. We found this to be the case in two studies based on survey data derived from samples of small-business owners in Sweden. In Study 1, the relationship between time pressure and emotional wellbeing is negative for small-business owners as well as for employed wage earners, although at work the former group experience both higher time pressure and higher emotional wellbeing than the latter. No differences in free time between the groups are observed. Study 2 provides support for the hypothesis that, both at work and in free time, domain satisfaction partially mediates the negative relationship between time pressure and emotional wellbeing. Supporting two additional hypotheses, the results indicate that neuroticism has a direct negative relationship with emotional wellbeing, and also an indirect relationship with emotional wellbeing mediated by time pressure, and furthermore moderates the negative relationship between time pressure and emotional wellbeing.