Abstract
The Job Demands-Resources model hypothesises that some variables (especially personal and social resources/threats) moderate the relationship between job demands and work outcomes. Based on this model, in this study we examine the role of stigma towards customers as a moderator of the relationship between job demands and a series of work outcomes: that is, fatigue, burnout, and satisfaction. We advance that the relationships between work demands and outcomes should be influenced by the employee’s perceptions regarding resources and constraint. In particular, we hypothesised that social stigma towards customers can represent a reliable moderating variable. Hypotheses were tested among 308 Italian supermarket workers in five supermarkets in the same chain, just after the end of the Italian lockdown caused by COVID-19. Results showed that stigma towards customers moderates the relationship between job demands and the consequences on the professional quality of life. The implications of these findings for the JD-R model are discussed.
Highlights
The current COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in social stigma and discriminatory behaviour against people belonging to certain ethnic groups and anyone believed to have been in contact with the virus [13,14,15,16]
Many studies have focused on the emotional impact and related stigma of COVID-19 in healthcare workers, and various tools have been created to measure the fear of COVID-19 and other effects on the behaviour and experiences of workers [17,18,19]
Since self-esteem previously showed no significant relationships with negative work outcomes and a very weak correlation with COVID-19 stigma [21] we considered self-esteem as a covariate of social stigma
Summary
The emotional and behavioural reactions of the individuals on the front line during the COVID-19 lockdown and non-lockdown phases, as well as those of the population, have been the subject of scientific interest for the implementation of institutional and health communication processes, and for the study of the environmental determinants to be being able to control and to better manage the pandemic phase [1,2].the impact of social stigma towards possible COVID-19 carriers on the behaviour and conduct of healthcare and front-line workers has been the subject of numerous studies in the last year [3,4] and wide institutional interest [5,6,7,8].Social stigma can have a negative effect on people affected by the disease, as well as their own caregivers, their family, their friends and their community [9,10,11,12].The current COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in social stigma and discriminatory behaviour against people belonging to certain ethnic groups and anyone believed to have been in contact with the virus [13,14,15,16].Many studies have focused on the emotional impact and related stigma of COVID-19 in healthcare workers, and various tools have been created to measure the fear of COVID-19 and other effects on the behaviour and experiences of workers [17,18,19].less attention has been given to both the psychological mechanisms underlying social stigma at work and to other exposed non-healthcare workers on the front line in the phases immediately following the total lockdown [20]. The impact of social stigma towards possible COVID-19 carriers on the behaviour and conduct of healthcare and front-line workers has been the subject of numerous studies in the last year [3,4] and wide institutional interest [5,6,7,8]. Social stigma can have a negative effect on people affected by the disease, as well as their own caregivers, their family, their friends and their community [9,10,11,12]. The current COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in social stigma and discriminatory behaviour against people belonging to certain ethnic groups and anyone believed to have been in contact with the virus [13,14,15,16].
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