Perceived stress among teachers at alternative education centers in Malaysia: Its relationships to job discrepancy and coping strategies

Many refugee children have not only suffered from their negative past experiences but also faced challenges to cope with their current difficulties and to improve themselves for a better future. Education is a strategy to assist these refugee children in tackling these difficulties, and a key factor in ensuring the success of education is the quality of teachers. This study uses the job demands and job resource model as a framework to understand the job demands of teachers at refugee community learning centres in Malaysia and their available resources, and the resources that the teachers need to meet their job demands. Purposive sampling was used to recruit 52 refugee teachers, and focus group discussion was used to collect data. Thematic analysis was then used to analyze the data. The results showed that the main difficult job demands are handling the classroom due to the lack of facilities, space and professional training. The diversities in students’ language levels and cultural backgrounds and the psychological problems of students increase the difficulties in classroom management. Support from different parties to provide relevant resources is needed for refugee teachers to tackle their job demands so that a better-quality education can be provided to refugee children.

The value of psychological principles has become apparent in medical settings, especially with the rise of patient-centered care. We aimed to provide a curriculum informing medical providers about the theoretical basis and clinical utility of the social-cognitive model of stress and coping. This workshop was delivered to an interprofessional team of faculty and trainees. Our initial pedagogical approach was to relate the concepts of cognitive appraisals and coping strategies to participants' own stress responses. We then used didactic presentation and small-group activities to explore ways to promote adaptive coping with patients to improve health outcomes. Learners participated in a mindfulness exercise, conceptualized coping strategies given a hypothetical case scenario, and, in small groups, role-played a patient encounter to construct an effective coping repertoire for the patient. Participants completed a prework self-assessment and workshop evaluation form. The 2.5-hour workshop had 48 participants from five professions (medicine, education, physician assistant, pharmacology, psychology). We received 35 evaluations (73% response rate). Learners reported increased real-world skills (M = 8.0 out of 10) and feeling better prepared for working in interprofessional settings (M = 7.6 out of 10). Qualitative feedback suggested that participants recognized the importance of individual differences in coping with stress and felt they could categorize strategies into emotion- or problem-focused coping. This workshop provided participants with basic knowledge about the social-cognitive model of stress and coping and allowed them to practice newly learned skills in a role-play as an interprofessional medical care team.

The consequences of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have raised many challenges in the social services workforce. The current study aimed to examine the associations between job demands, coping strategies (i.e. emotion-focused coping and problem-focused coping) and psychological distress exhibited by social workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the mediating role of different coping strategies was investigated for the associations revealed. The participants were 615 social workers, working in various organisations and with diverse populations in Israel. Each completed a validated self-report questionnaire. Results revealed that job demands were significantly associated with higher psychological distress, and that coping strategies, especially emotion-focused coping was associated with higher psychological distress and with job demands. In addition, emotion-focused coping strategies were found to mediate the association between job demands and psychological distress, especially ventilation of emotion beyond other strategies, which relate to emotion-focused coping. These findings are discussed with relation to a stress and coping theory, suggesting that in social work practice there is a need for intervention measures to improve social workers’ coping strategies during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

There has been extensive research on leadership and work engagement, but little is known concerning leadership practices and work engagement levels in higher education in Namibia. This study examines leadership practices and work engagement in higher education, as well as the mediating role of job demands and job resources in the link. A quantitative approach was adopted following an explanatory research design to explain the mediating roles of job demands and resources in the interplay between leadership practices and work engagement. A combination of sampling strategies (stratified, convenience, and purposive sampling) was adopted to draw a sample of 450 respondents from different groups of employees within the target population of the study. The primary data was collected through an online survey, which was formatted using the Likert-type rating scale. Quantitative data was analyzed using structural equation modelling via SmartPLS Version 3.3.9. Leadership practices have significant relationships with both job demands and resources. On the other hand, job demands have a significant positive relationship with work engagement, but job resources exert no significant effect on work engagement levels. Therefore, the relationship between leadership practices and work engagement was fully mediated by job demands in higher education.

Studies have shown the relationships among cybervictimization, coping strategies, and depression, but no study has examined the mechanism that links the three variables. Accordingly, this study used the transactional model of stress and coping theory as a conceptual framework and proposed that coping strategies are mediators for the effects of cybervictimization on depression. A total of 387 adolescents were recruited by using the purposive sampling method. The results showed that cybervictimization is not directly associated with depression. All the coping strategies are found to be associated with cybervictimization, but only the avoidant coping strategy is the statistical mediator for the effects of cybervictimization on depression. This study’s findings suggest that the transactional model of stress and coping theory may provide a framework in the area of cyberbullying and recommend more actions to be taken in order to reduce the use of avoidance coping strategies among victims of cyberbullying.

زمینه و هدف: نقش چاقی در بیماری های مختلف که محور توجه نظام سلامت در سراسر جهان است و پیامدهای اجتماعی و روانی و اقتصادی همراه آن، باعث شده است که این موضوع به عنوان اپیدمی و تهدید جهانی برای سلامتی مطرح شود. پژوهش حاضر با هدف تعیین نقش پیش بینی کنندگی راهبردهای مقابله ای و سلامت معنوی در کیفیت زندگی زنان باردار مبتلا به چاقی انجام گرفت. روش و مواد: روش پژوهش مقطعی از نوع همبستگی است. جامعه آماری این پژوهش را کلیه زنان باردار مبتلا به چاقی مراجعه‌کننده به خانه های سلامت و درمانگاه های مامایی شهر اراک در سال 1398 تشکیل دادند، که از میان آن‌ها، تعداد 200 نفر با روش نمونه‌گیری به شیوه در دسترس انتخاب شدند. ابزارهای پژوهش عبارت بودند از: پرسشنامه کیفیت زندگی سازمان بهداشت جهانی، پرسشنامه راهبردهای مقابله‌ای، پرسشنامه سلامت معنوی. تجزیه و تحلیل اطلاعات به دست آمده از اجرای پرسشنامه ها از طریق نرم افزار SPSS-24 در دو بخش توصیفی و استنباطی (تحلیل رگرسیون) انجام پذیرفت. یافته­ ها: میانگین (انحراف معیار) سن مشارکت­کنندگان (4/4) 1/29 سال بود. نتایج نشان داد با افزایش میانگین (انحراف معیار) نمره مقابله حل مسأله (1/4) 1/14 (001/0>P)، و با کاهش میانگین (انحراف معیار) مقابله هیجان مدار (5/9) 3/33 (004/0=P)، میانگین (انحراف معیار) نمره کیفیت زندگی (5/13) 2/92 افزایش یافت. با افزایش سلامت وجودی با میانگین (انحراف معیار) (3/5) 5/45، میانگین (انحراف معیار) نمره کیفیت زندگی (5/13) 2/92 افزایش یافت (002/0=P). متغیرهای راهبردهای مقابله­ای و ابعاد سلامت معنوی 22% از واریانس متغیر کیفیت زندگی زنان باردار مبتلا به چاقی را تبین می­کنند. نتیجه­ گیری: مطالعه نشان داد با افزایش مقابله مسئله مدار و کاهش مقابله هیجان مدار و با افزایش سلامت وجودی، کیفیت زندگی زنان باردار مبتلا به چاقی بهبود یافت.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to shed light on the job resources and demands of employees working in virtual teams and the impact of these job factors on their work engagement levels. Specifically, the authors focus on identifying the differing significance of employee job resources and demands on their virtual work engagement levels. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative approach grounded on abductive analysis is used to arrive at the findings. The methods for data collection include participant observation and semistructured interviews of 27 software engineers in the Indian information technology sector, working with virtual teams. Findings The authors identified the virtual-work-induced job demands and resources. Primarily, the authors found 14 job factors related to high and low levels of individual virtual work engagement, and classified them under eight aggregate dimensions: psychosocial hurdles, collaboration challenges, leadership and operational issues, dehumanization under job demands, supportive leadership, personal resources, alternate sources of income and learning goal orientation under job resources. Consequently, the authors built an importance–frequency work engagement map based on how these job factors are related to low and high levels of work engagement. Research limitations/implications This study’s qualitative nature limits the generalizability of the findings. Hence, further studies are encouraged to corroborate the findings. There is also a possibility of the social desirability bias that could have affected the results as participants may have perceived an element of risk in sharing all their honest feelings and perceptions. This may have especially been the case for those with higher status or positions in the company. Practical implications The findings suggest practical measures either to engage employees in their free time or to improve loyalty. There is a clear potential for the organization and virtual leader to communicate effectively about the expected goals, arrange informal interactions and reduce scrutiny of monitoring, thereby increasing the remote workers’ resources. Originality/value The originality of this study comes from multiple factors. First, the authors highlight ta contextual adaptation of the job demands-resources (JD-R) model into a virtual team context. By extension, the authors examine “how much” does both the job resources and demands contribute to the wellbeing of the employees working in virtual teams. Second, the authors construct an importance–frequency work engagement map (specifically for the virtual work context) based on the findings, which categorizes the observed resources and demands into four quadrants. The authors propose that this map could be a possible extension to the JD-R model, highlighting the differing significance of each resource and demand to employee work engagement.

Bank DKI melakukan perubahan sistem kerja demi terjaganya produktivitas kerja selama Pandemi COVID-19 yang berpotensi mengurangi keterikatan kerja. Penelitian ini bertujuan melihat peran variabel job demand, job resources, job satisfaction, terhadap work engagement. Peneliti melakukan regresi terhadap variabel job demand, job resources, job satisfaction, dan work engagement. Mediasi dilakukan antara job demand dan job resources terhadap work engagement oleh job satisfaction. Purposive sampling dilakukan dengan jumlah 181 karyawan Bank DKI. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa seluruh variabel, baik job demand, job resources, dan job satisfaction signifikan memprediksi work engagement. Efek mediasi kepuasan terjadi baik pada variabel job demand maupun job resources. Bank DKI has changed the work system in order to maintain work productivity during the COVID-19 Pandemic so that it has the potential to reduce employee attachment. This study aims to see the role of variables of job demand, job resources, job satisfaction, and employee work engagement. Researchers regression of the variables of job demand, job resources, job satisfaction, and work engagement. Mediation is carried out between job demand and job resources for work engagement mediated by job satisfaction. Purposive sampling was carried out with a total of 181 employees of Bank DKI. The results showed that all variables, both job demand, job resources, and job satisfaction significantly predicted work engagement. The satisfaction mediation effect occurs both on the job demand and job resources variables.

A multifactorial study of test anxiety and coping responses during a challenge examination

This cross-sectional study sought to investigate job demands and resources as predictors of teacher well-being. Participants were 319 portuguese teachers in grades 1–11 (elementary up to secondary level). Data were analysed through confirmatory factorial analysis, structural equation modelling and mediation analysis. Main findings revealed that job demand variables are negative predictors of teacher well-being, whereas job resources variables predict positively teacher well-being. Additionally, the results showed two indirect mediation effects: job resources buffered the job demands and well-being relationship. In particular, support from colleagues and autonomy were identified as the main mediators of the relation between job demands and teacher well-being. Overall, the main results are consistent with the Job Demands-Resources model and contribute to the understanding of interplay between job resources and demands and their influence over teacher well-being.

Job demands, job resources, and self-regulatory behavior : exploring the issue of match

How the work environment contributes to employees' overall subjective well-being remains inadequately explored. Building upon the seminal Job Demands-Resources model, this study aims to test a complex model that combines leadership, job demands, and job resources, as factors contributing either indirectly (via job satisfaction) or directly to employees' subjective well-being (SWB). The cross-sectional data (N = 1,859) of the Belgian National happiness study (2020) were used. Leadership (satisfaction with leadership; perceived supervisor support), job demands (role conflict; job insecurity; work-private conflict; perceived working conditions), job resources (autonomy; relatedness; competence; skill utilization; personal growth), job satisfaction and subjective well-being (life evaluation; positive affect; negative affect) were assessed via self-report questionnaires. The proposed model investigates the direct impact of job demands and resources on SWB, as well as the indirect impact with job satisfaction as mediating factor, and was tested using the Structural Equation Modeling technique. Findings supported the proposed model. Both job demands and job resources have a direct relationship with SWB. Job resources are positively related to overall SWB, whereas job demands negatively affected SWB. Moreover, job resources are more strongly related to SWB compared to job demands. The demands and resources also indirectly contribute to employee's SWB via job satisfaction as job satisfaction appeared to mediate these relationships. The current study shows that both job demands and resources directly and indirectly contribute to employees' SWB. Creating a supportive and healthy work environment is thus of paramount importance in order to foster employees' SWB. In particular, investing in improving job resources may be a fruitful approach to promote employees' overall subjective well-being.

Chemotherapy exerts adverse effects on physical, psychological and social functioning in women with breast cancer, which may trigger adaptive activities. For a better understanding of the experience of symptoms associated with chemotherapy and the development of targeted interventions, this study aimed to (a) explore the patient experience of chemotherapy, (b) identify patients' strategies to cope with the side effects and distress and (c) explore the link between their experience and coping strategies. Qualitative studies were included if they explored the experience or coping strategies of women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy. Instruments from the Joanna Briggs Institute were used to critically appraise the methodological quality, extract data and aggregate findings from the included studies. Twelve studies presenting findings from 184 women with breast cancer who had received chemotherapy were included in this review. Three synthesized findings were identified from 8 categories based on 91 original findings: (1) Women living with chemotherapy experienced various stressful side effects, and their lives were changed. (2) Supportive care to address needs is essential to help women get through this difficult time. (3) They engaged in numerous types of coping strategies to deal with side effects and adapt to this difficult journey. Moreover, the link between experience of chemotherapy and coping strategies is based on the Lazarus' stress and coping theory. Although the experience of women with breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy is individualized, we concluded that the distressing experience related to chemotherapy as a stimulus was viewed as a stressor that demands coping or adaptation. Based on the Lazarus stress and coping theory, the ability of a woman to appraise how chemotherapy changed her life and how she appraises her resources to cope with chemotherapy are essential. The results highlight that pre-chemotherapy care programmes, information support systems, social support groups and individual effective coping strategies are helpful in reducing treatment-related distress levels and enhance self-care effects at home.

Orientation: Mining companies are major sources of employment in South Africa. Withstanding the challenges that the mining industry faces, maintaining work engagement of employees is essential to success in this context.Research purpose: To investigate the mediating effect of job and personal resources (in parallel and serial) in the relationship between the job demands and work engagement of employees at two iron-ore mines in a remote South African locale.Motivation for the study: Most South African research on work engagement in the mining industry focuses on the role of job resources. There is a lack of research investigating the influence of both job and personal resources in the relationship between job demands and mineworkers’ work engagement.Research approach/design and method: Data were collected using questionnaires from 238 employees working for two open-pit iron-ore mines. Three mediating relationships were investigated using variance-based structural equation modelling.Main findings: The results indicate that job and personal resources (in parallel) partially mediated the relationship between job demands and work engagement, with personal resources having a stronger effect than job resources. In addition, job and personal resources (in serial) partially mediated the relationship between job demands and work engagement but not as strongly as personal resources (in parallel).Practical/managerial implications: Despite job demands, mineworkers’ work engagement can be increased by investing in interventions and a work environment that enhances job and personal resources (such as mindfulness and psychological capital).Contribution/value add: The study bridges a specific gap in the literature by exploring the role of both job and personal resources (i.e., mindfulness and psychological capital) in the relationship between mineworkers’ job demands and work engagement. No previous studies explored these variables in combination in the South African mining industry.

Summary This paper reports on a systematic thematic synthesis of literature focusing on encouraging and discouraging factors for social workers to train and practise as Approved Mental Health Professionals in England. These professionals have legal authority to authorise the detention for assessment/treatment of people with a ‘mental disorder’ under the Mental Health Act 1983 and other statutory responsibilities. The review included 23 papers, which reported on 14 research studies and is presented using the job demands and resources model. Findings The review identified a lack of quantitative studies and specific gaps in evidence about social workers’ motivations or reasons why they do not want to become Approved Mental Health Professionals. It identified job resources and demands relating to the intrinsic nature of Approved Mental Health Professional work and extrinsic factors such as fit with social work values and the shortage of inpatient beds. Some job resources and demands overlapped and interacted. Applications The review suggests that a national survey of Approved Mental Health Professionals might be timely, to examine the relative importance of the job resources and demands; to assess their impact on levels of stress and burnout and on Approved Mental Health Professionals’ motivations to continue or cease working in the role. The findings of the review support the need for increasing the number of inpatient mental health beds and community resources and establishing requirements for the availability of doctors (who may make the medical recommendation to detain) and local agreements about the role of the police and ambulance services in Mental Health Act assessments.