Personal Resources and Organizational Outcomes: Sex as a Moderator of the Complex Relationships Between Self-Esteem, Heart Rate Variability, and Work-Related Exhaustion.

Evelina De Longis,Guido Alessandri,Cristina Ottaviani

doi:10.3389/fnins.2021.615363

Abstract

Global self-esteem represents a protective personal resource lowering the risk of psychological distress. Research conducted in the work setting has confirmed the psychosocial benefits of high self-esteem. However, research linking self-esteem to neurobiological adaptability appears quite scarce. In this study, we propose a theoretical model in which self-esteem predicts work-related exhaustion indirectly, through the mediation of heart rate variability (HRV) and negative affect at work. Moreover, we explore the relationship between self-esteem and HRV. From one side, one would expect a positive link between self-esteem and HRV, signaling higher autonomic adaptability. However, recent studies have shown that in women, such associations become more complex, with even reversed patterns as compared with that in men. Thus, we included sex as a moderator of the relationship between HRV and self-esteem. The model was tested on a sample of 110 individuals working in the relational professions (54% males; Mage = 42.6, SD = 13.73), observed for an entire workday. Results confirmed the protective role of self-esteem against the experience of negative affect and (indirectly) work-related exhaustion. Symptoms of exhaustion at work were also negatively predicted by HRV, and both HRV and negative affect acted as mediators of the relationship between self-esteem and work-related exhaustion. Notably, sex differences emerged in the association between global self-esteem and cardiac vagal tone at work: in women, self-esteem was negatively related to HRV, which in turn led to higher work-related exhaustion, whereas in men, no evidence of this indirect effect appeared. Burnout prevention programs should not ignore important sex differences in how individuals respond to work-related stress.

Highlights

Exhaustion is the core component of job burnout syndrome, and it refers to a feeling of depletion of emotional, physical, and cognitive resources (Hobfoll and Shirom, 2000; Maslach et al, 2001)
Moderate correlations were found among workrelated exhaustion and negative affect, as well as negative affect and self-esteem
Self-esteem was negatively correlated with heart rate variability (HRV) in women, whereas there was no observed correlation in men

Summary

Introduction

Exhaustion is the core component of job burnout syndrome, and it refers to a feeling of depletion of emotional, physical, and cognitive resources (Hobfoll and Shirom, 2000; Maslach et al, 2001). Given its significant impact on individuals’ health and well-being, researchers have widely investigated exhaustion’s antecedents in order to better understand and prevent this phenomenon In this regard, a large body of literature has highlighted the role of individual differences in the development of exhaustion symptoms (for a meta-analysis, see Alarcon et al, 2009). Individuals with high self-esteem are usually more satisfied with their life and more optimistic, have a clearer self-concept, are more likely to experience positive emotions, and have a high sense of mastery (Lyubomirsky et al, 2006) They are less vulnerable to anxiety and depression (Lyubomirsky et al, 2006). Self-esteem proved to be a valuable resource, as it was found to be associated with career success, better working conditions and outcomes, better quality of relationships with colleagues, and low levels of exhaustion (e.g., Janssen et al, 1999; Kammeyer-Mueller et al, 2008; Kuster et al, 2013; Orth and Robins, 2013; Perinelli et al, 2021)

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