The mediating role of psychological capital on the association between occupational stress and job burnout among bank employees in China.

Xirui Li,Lie Wang,Jiana Wang,Meng Shi,Hui Wu,Dan Kan,Yang Wang,Xiaoshi Yang,Li Liu

doi:10.3390/ijerph120302984

Abstract

Although job burnout is common among bank employees, few studies have explored positive resources for combating burnout in this population. This study aims to explore the relationship between occupational stress and job burnout among Chinese bank employees, and particularly the mediating role of psychological capital. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Liaoning, China, during June to August of 2013. A questionnaire that included the effort-reward imbalance scale, the Psychological Capital Questionnaire and the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey, as well as demographic and working factors, was distributed to 1739 employees of state-owned banks. This yielded 1239 effective respondents (467 men, 772 women). Asymptotic and resampling strategies explored the mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between occupational stress and job burnout. Both extrinsic effort and overcommitment were positively associated with emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation. Meanwhile, reward was negatively associated with emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation, but positively associated with personal accomplishment. There was a gender difference in the mediating role of Psychological capital on the occupational stress-job burnout. In male bank employees, Psychological capital mediated the relationships of extrinsic effort and reward with emotional exhaustion and depersonalization; in female bank employees, it partially mediated the relationships of extrinsic effort, reward and overcommitment with emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation, as well as the relationship between reward and personal accomplishment. Psychological capital was generally a mediator between occupational stress and job burnout among Chinese bank employees. Psychological capital may be a potential positive resource in reducing the negative effects of occupational stress on job burnout and relieving job burnout among bank employees, especially female bank employees.

Highlights

Job burnout is an individual reaction to emotional and interpersonal stress and is related to work pressure and occupational stress [1]
For female bank employees, Psychological capital (PsyCap) partially mediated the effects of the three dimensions of occupational stress on the two dimensions of job burnout
Intervention strategies previously developed to enhance PsyCap level should be applied to bank staff in China. Among both male and female bank employees, extrinsic effort and overcommitment were positively related to emotional exhaustion and cynicism, while reward was negatively related to emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation and positively related to personal accomplishment

Summary

Introduction

Job burnout (burnout) is an individual reaction to emotional and interpersonal stress and is related to work pressure and occupational stress [1]. Burnout comprises the three dimensions of emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and personal accomplishment [2]. As social reforms have progressed and competitive pressures have increased, the highly specific occupational hazard of job burnout has attracted growing attention [4,5,6]. Burnout affects both physical and mental health, and symptoms can include chronic fatigue, headaches, depression and anxiety [7,8,9,10]. Because banks are service businesses, bank jobs can involve significant interpersonal pressure, which may lead to long-term energy consumption among bank employees

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