The Mediating Role of Work Flow Between Recovery Level and Energy Level: An ESM Study

Abstract

This study investigates the linkages between recovery at the beginning of the workday, flow state in the morning and energy level (i.e., exhaustion and vigor) at the end of the workday. Our research hypotheses used the effort recovery model and conservation of resources theory as a theoretical framework. We used an experience sampling method to collect data from 84 full-time employees. Participants received three survey links per workday during a two-week period. We employed hierarchical linear and structural equation modeling to test the hypotheses. The results show that the recovery level at the beginning of the workday benefits work flow in the morning and energy levels at the end of the workday. Higher recovery level at the beginning of the workday is negatively related to exhaustion and positively related to vigor at the end; recovery at the beginning is associated with work flow in the morning, and work flow is positively related to energy at the end of the workday. Additionally, work flow in the morning mediates the relationship between recovery level at the beginning and energy at the end of the workday. These findings reveal the importance of recovery process and the effects of work flow on employees’ energy.