Abstract
ObjectivesPublic service motivation refers to the idea of commitment to the public service, pursuit of the public interest, and the desire to perform work that is worthwhile to society. This study investigates how challenge stress and hindrance stress influence job performance among healthcare workers in Chinese public hospitals. It has also examined the mediating effect of public service motivation.MethodsData of 1594 healthcare workers were obtained from typical public hospitals in eastern, central, and western China. To test our hypotheses, we used descriptive statistical analysis, correlation analysis, structural equation modeling, and subgroup analysis to investigate the sample.ResultsChallenge stress and hindrance stress were strongly correlated among healthcare workers in Chinese public hospitals (β = 0.59; p < 0.001). Challenge stress was significantly positively associated with public service motivation (β = 0.14; p < 0.001) and job performance (β = 0.13; p < 0.001). Hindrance stress was significantly negatively associated with public service motivation (β = − 0.27; p < 0.001) and job performance (β = − 0.08; p < 0.05). Public service motivation was directly positively associated with job performance (β = 0.58; p < 0.001), and it indirectly mediated the association between job stress and job performance.ConclusionsThis study provides important empirical evidence on the effects of job stress and public service motivation on job performance among healthcare workers in Chinese public hospitals. Job performance may be raised by limiting hindrance stress, which provides moderate challenge stress and increases public service motivation.
Highlights
Job stress can be defined as an individual’s response to external stimuli in the environment
Previous studies have mostly focused on the negative effects of job stress on performance [5], which argue that higher pressures can make individuals perform less effectively on tasks that call for tolerance and concentration [6], subsequently resulting in lower productivity and job quality [5]
This study introduces public service motivation (PSM) and explores the mediating role that it plays in the relationship between job stress and job performance, which contributes to the development of the study of the mediator between job stress and performance, and answers the call for more studies of the effect of PSM on other psychological constructs and work-related outcomes [14, 16]
Summary
Job stress can be defined as an individual’s response to external stimuli in the environment. Recent studies have indicated that job stress has a major effect on individual physiology, psychology, and behavior [1,2,3], e.g., job performance [4]. Previous studies have shown that job stress can indirectly affect job performance through mediator variables. Few studies have examined the mediating effect of other specific motivation constructs that inspire individual performance [12]. Unlike job satisfaction, which is often regarded as a work-related emotion variable, PSM is an intrinsic predisposition to do good for others and society [14]. Previous studies have investigated the positive relationship between PSM, job satisfaction, and job performance [16, 17]. This study introduces PSM and explores the mediating role that it plays in the relationship between job stress and job performance, which contributes to the development of the study of the mediator between job stress and performance, and answers the call for more studies of the effect of PSM on other psychological constructs and work-related outcomes [14, 16]
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