Purpose In the current paper, we focus on the play behaviour of entrepreneurs, which we refer to as “entrepreneurial play”. We distinguish between two forms of entrepreneurial play – diversionary and serious play – and investigate their relationships with outcomes of well-being (psychological well-being and work satisfaction) and ill-being (work stress and burnout). Design/methodology/approach Drawing on conservation of resources (COR) theory, we conceptualise entrepreneurial play – both serious and diversionary – as work-embedded personal resources that foster well-being. We use data from entrepreneurs who run small businesses. Findings Our results reveal that serious play is associated with higher levels of well-being and lower levels of ill-being, whereas diversionary play is only associated with higher levels of work satisfaction. Practical implications These results challenge assumptions about the universal benefits of detachment from work and underscore the need for occupation-specific models of well-being. This study also advances the understanding of play as a strategic behavioural resource in entrepreneurship, with implications for sustaining mental health in entrepreneurial ecosystems. Originality/value Our study contributes to the burgeoning literature on entrepreneurs’ health and well-being by identifying entrepreneurial play as a potential antecedent to entrepreneurs’ sense of well-being. Also, our work contributes to COR theory by identifying a new work-embedded personal resource – entrepreneurial play (diversionary and serious play) – which can lead to gain spirals that foster well-being.

This study focuses on the interplay between work-life balance (WLB), job satisfaction, and personal characteristics of employees of hotel Food and Beverage (F&B) service department. This study explores the socio-demographic predictors of job satisfaction (JS) and work-life balance (WLB) among hotel food and beverage (F&B) employees, embodying frameworks like the Conservation of Resources Theory and Work-Family Conflict Theory. A cross-sectional survey was carried among 354 hotel Food & Beverage employees using Spector’s (1985) Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS) and capitalized work-life balance measures. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, logistic regression using SEM (AMOS), and comparative analysis with previous studies. The findings revealed moderate overall job satisfaction (M = 3.5) with the highest satisfaction for "Nature of Work" (M = 4.2) and the lowest for "Fringe Benefits" (M = 2.6). Logistic regression evident marital status significantly influence work-life balance (OR = 0.29, p < 0.001), with married employees reporting significantly lower WLB. Education positively predicted WLB, while gender and age had no significant effects. Comparative analysis with Spector (1985) and Karatepe & Uludag (2007) showed similar trends but also revealed sector-specific differences. This study introduces a socio-professional identity lens to contextualize why F&B workers, despite similar job demands, experience WLB disparities tied to marital and educational divides. Practical implications urge hotels to adopt demographically targeted interventions, such as family-support policies and skill-development programs to mitigate burnout and turnover. By spotlighting the understudied F&B sector, this research fills a gap in the literature and redefines WLB strategies for high-pressure service environments.

Purpose This study explores how service sector employees perceive, appraise, and cope with the disruptive impacts of organizational AI adoption—an aspect often overshadowed in literature by strategic and technical concerns. Design/methodology/approach The study proposes an eight-stage process model based on the transactional theory of stress and coping and the conservation of resources theory. It introduces a novel nested 2 × 2 coping typology that categorizes 16 distinct strategies (reactive, preventive, anticipatory, and proactive, further differentiated by active/passive and constructive/destructive dimensions) and defines an appraisal pivot point (APP) as a critical juncture for strategy reassessment. Findings The findings indicate that employees' responses to organizational AI adoption are strongly influenced by personal and managerial resources. Diverse evaluations of AI-induced stressors trigger evolving coping strategies, with the APP marking a decisive moment where adjustments lead to 16 unique coping responses. Research limitations/implications As a conceptual model, its propositions require empirical validation. Future research should test the model across varied industries and cultural settings using longitudinal designs and develop reliable measurement scales for constructs like the APP. Practical implications The study provides actionable insights for service organizations, guiding the design of targeted HR interventions and leadership strategies. Emphasizing resource replenishment through training, support, and feedback, the model assists in shifting employee behaviors from destructive to constructive coping during AI transitions. Originality/value The current study contributes to the service literature by proposing a holistic framework that integrates temporal, individual, and organizational dimensions into understanding employees' perspectives amid AI-driven workplace transformations, thereby bridging a critical gap in current research and offering fresh research directions and practical insights for managing change.

Grounded in the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory, this study investigates the impact of workplace bullying on the psychological and physical well-being of Information Technology (IT) professionals in five major metropolitan cities in India (Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, and Mumbai). Specifically, it examines how workplace bullying increases psychological distress and how this distress subsequently impairs sleep quality, along with the moderating role of resilience in this relationship. Data were collected from 380 Information Technology employees using a structured online questionnaire through a Stratified simple random sampling technique. The sample consisted of full-time IT professionals across various age groups, job levels, and work arrangements. The hypothesized relationships were tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). Results show that workplace bullying significantly elevates psychological distress and reduces sleep quality. Psychological distress partially mediates the effect of bullying on sleep, while resilience weakens the negative impact of distress on sleep, confirming a conditional mediation model. Theoretically, this study advances COR theory by demonstrating how personal resources such as resilience buffer the loss spirals associated with workplace stressors. Practically, the findings highlight the need for IT organizations to strengthen resilience-building initiatives and implement targeted interventions to reduce bullying and protect employee well-being.

The swift integration of cryptocurrencies into mainstream financial systems has attracted a growing number of new investors to conventional markets. This segment entering digital asset environments for the initial time is distinctly exposed to inherent dangers like unpredictable price fluctuations, uncertainty in regulations, security threats and limited protections for members. This investigation aims to study how perceptions of monetary peril influence the investment choices of these fledgling contributors. By utilizing a quantitative, cross-sectional, correlational design, the research gathered primary data from 300 initial cryptocurrency buyers through an online structured questionnaire. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, correlation, multiple direct regression and moderation analysis. Key results indicate that heightened perceptions of fiscal risk—particularly regarding capital depletion and unstable markets—are significantly associated with cautious investment behaviors for example preferring long-term possession of assets and avoiding leverage. Additionally, the work found demographic variables such as age and income moderate the strength of these links. Grounded in the Conservation of Resources theory, the analysis offers a psychological explanation for the resource-preserving strategies embraced by new crypto investors. By focusing on an understudied population within the behavioral finance domain, this examination contributes to theoretical understanding of financial decision-making under ambiguity and furnishes practical insights for fintech platforms, investor education programs and regulatory frameworks aimed at enhancing the security and inclusiveness of digital monetary markets.

The interaction between two critical resources, emotional intelligence (EI) and perceived organizational support (POS), is studied to understand how they come together to associate resilience and well-being among healthcare professionals. Based on the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory and the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model, we explore whether these resources are synergistic or whether there is a substitutive relationship when combined. Data were collected from 304 healthcare professionals in Saudi Arabia, both local and foreign. Using structural equation modeling, we examined a moderated mediation model in which resilience was examined as a mediator of the associations of EI and POS with well-being, and their interaction was included as a correlate of both resilience and well-being. EI and POS both individually showed positive association with resilience and well-being. However, in interaction, they significantly negatively associated with both resilience and well-being, suggesting a substitution effect-i.e., high levels of one resource are linked to a lower marginal value of the other. This suggests a nonlinear dynamic to resource accumulation among pressured healthcare workers. This study advances COR and JD-R theories by uncovering a substitution effect between emotional intelligence and organizational support, offering fresh insights into resource dynamics among healthcare professionals.

ABSTRACT Burnout is a critical issue in occupational mental health, and decent work is recognised as a key factor in promoting employee well-being. Drawing on the Psychology of Working Theory and Conservation of Resources Theory, this study examined whether Career Calling, as a personal resource, moderates the relationship between Decent Work and Burnout among Portuguese workers. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted with 173 participants, and data were analyzed using the PROCESS macro. Results indicated a significant negative relationship between Decent Work and Burnout, with Career Calling moderating this association: its protective effect was stronger when decent work conditions were adequate. These findings highlight the importance of prioritising decent work as the primary strategy to prevent burnout, while supporting the development of Career Calling as a complementary resource to enhance resilience, engagement, and meaning in work.

Pediatric critical care nurses provide advanced care for their patients and their families but are exposed to high levels of stress. Organizational cultures can help mitigate stress if individual values align with the behaviors within the culture, but if misaligned, they can increase stress. Although there has been extensive research on the impact of the emotion regulation strategies in emotional labor, it is not known if the relationship between organizational culture value differences and stress is mediated by the different emotional regulation strategies within emotional labor for pediatric critical care nurses. Using the Conservation of Resources Theory, a non-experimental mediation analysis was conducted using 96 pediatric critical care nurses from a large pediatric trauma center in the Southern United States. The emotional labor dimensions of surface acting, deep acting, and authentic display were tested as parallel mediators for differences between preferred and current collaborate, create, control, and compete cultures and stress. The results showed that surface-acting and deep-acting dimensions of emotional labor mediated the relationship between the differences in preferred and current collaborative culture and stress, p < .001, R2 = .201. Similarly, emotional labor dimensions of surface acting and deep acting also mediated the relationship between differences in preferred and current compete culture and stress, p < .001, R2 = .180. No effects were observed for emotional labor as a mediator of preferred-versus-current differences in create or control cultures with stress. Pediatric critical care nurses prefer organizational cultures that are collaborative and have elements of control, while compete and create cultures were least preferred. Misalignment between a current and preferred culture has an effect on nurse's stress, which impacts how emotion regulation strategies in emotional labor. Pediatric organizational leaders should foster value alignment with behavior expectations. Future research should investigate interventions designed to minimize surface acting while promoting deep acting.

ABSTRACT Red tape is a significant challenge to street-level bureaucrats’ (SLBs) working experience and performance. While extensive research has examined its negative consequences, less attention has been given to how SLBs adapt to bureaucratic constraints. Using Conservation of Resources Theory, we hypothesize that collaboration is an initial coping strategy to navigate red tape. However, as red tape intensifies, collaboration becomes unsustainable, following a curvilinear pattern. Using a survey dataset of 95,571 teachers across 40 countries, we empirically corroborate hypotheses and suggest that while collaboration may initially help SLBs manage red tape, excessive bureaucratic constraints ultimately undermine their ability to collaborate effectively.

Purpose: This study examines the impact of abusive supervision on turnover intention among faculty members at private universities in Bangladesh. It examines emotional exhaustion as a mediator and employee resilience as a moderator. By using Affective Events Theory (AET) and Conservation of Resources Theory (COR), this study addresses the scarcity of research on the dark side of leadership in South Asian higher education, particularly using AET and COR together, and exploring the combined mediation and moderation model in this context. Design/Methodology/Approach: Data were collected from 319 faculty members at private universities in Bangladesh. SPSS v27 and AMOS v24 were used to analyze the relationships among abusive supervision, emotional exhaustion, resilience, and turnover intention. Findings: The results reveal that abusive supervision significantly increases turnover intention (β = 0.376, p &lt; 0.01) and emotional exhaustion (β = 0.559, p &lt; 0.01). Emotional exhaustion was found to mediate the relationship between abusive supervision and turnover intention, with a significant positive indirect effect (β = 0.141, p &lt; 0.01). Furthermore, employee resilience was found to significantly weaken the positive association between emotional exhaustion and turnover intention (β = -0.159, p &lt; 0.01). Practical implications: The study underscores the need to address abusive supervisory behaviors to reduce turnover intention. It highlights the importance of leadership development and resilience-building initiatives to improve faculty retention and organizational well-being. Originality/Value: This study contributes to the limited literature on abusive supervision in South Asia and emphasizes the protective role of resilience in mitigating its negative outcomes. It provides valuable insights for improving faculty retention and leadership practices in higher education.

Purpose Drawing upon conservation of resources theory, this study examines the double-edged mechanism of leader perfectionism on employee work withdrawal behavior (WWB). Design/methodology/approach This study utilizes a three-wave design with 319 participants. The hypotheses were tested by the structural equation model and the bootstrap method. Findings Leader perfectionism promotes employee job crafting and reduces WWB. Leader perfectionism also triggers employee workplace anxiety and increases WWB. Cognitive flexibility moderates the effects of leader perfectionism on job crafting and workplace anxiety. Additionally, it moderates the indirect effect of leader perfectionism on WWB through job crafting and workplace anxiety. Originality/value These findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of WWB and the multifaceted nature of leader perfectionism’s effectiveness. The research offers valuable insights into organizational management practices.

Purpose This study aims to explore job embeddedness (JE) from a stuckness perspective by nesting the principles of conservation of resources (COR) theory in the context of public energy sector organizations. The study examines the impact of on-the-job embeddedness (ONTJE) and off-the-job embeddedness (OFFTJE) on the workplace well-being of employees. Remote locations are a common feature of energy sector organizations and a significant concern for both employees and employers. The study examines the moderating role of locational remoteness in the relationship between OFFTJE and workplace well-being. Design/methodology/approach The hypothesized model was evaluated using 399 data points collected from employees of energy sector organizations through an online survey. The data for independent and dependent variables were collected at various times. The partial least squares-structural equation modeling technique was used to assess the measurement and structural model. Findings The study found that both ONTJE and OFFTJE are positively associated with workplace well-being. However, OFFTJE demonstrated a slightly stronger standardized path coefficient (ß = 0.375) compared to ONTJE (ß = 0.323), indicating its higher predictive strength in this context. In addition, remoteness was found to moderate the relationship between OFFTJE and workplace well-being, contributing to the resource caravan’s discussion in the COR theory. Practical implications The results of the study indicate that, despite its many positive effects, JE is not a cure-all. According to the complementarity perspective, employees who are embedded report lower levels of well-being when assigned to remote locations. In this context, leaders of the organization and policymakers must consider the context in which they are embedded to avoid potential unintended negative effects. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the initial studies to examine the relationship between embeddedness and workplace well-being, which includes both the hedonic and eudemonic perspectives. The study also includes the understudied dimension of embeddedness and OFFTJE and weaves it into the context of the study to bring out its criticality for energy and allied sectors by studying it alongside remoteness.

Analysis of factors influencing empathy fatigue among emergency nurses based on the Conservation of Resources theory.

The association between videoconference fatigue and psychophysical strain over time: Are age and remote work risk factors?

ABSTRACT Although the organizational antecedents and consequences of defensive decision making are well studied, the potentially detrimental effects on the decision makers themselves have thus far been overlooked. Drawing on conservation of resources theory, we propose reciprocal associations between defensive decision making and emotional exhaustion. Using data from 492 employees who participated in a longitudinal study with three measurement points, we found that defensive decision making was not consistently related to subsequent increases in emotional exhaustion, but that emotional exhaustion consistently increased subsequent defensive decision making. Moreover, emotional exhaustion at an earlier point indirectly predicted emotional exhaustion at a later point via more defensive decision making, whereas the reverse indirect path was not supported. Our results emphasize the importance of considering employees’ well-being to prevent the emergence of a vicious circle between emotional exhaustion and defensive decision making, thus contributing to the literature on self-protection at work and workplace stress.

ABSTRACT Parenting in immigrant families is shaped by legal status, social support and economic conditions. Immigration‐related stress may increase parenting stress, but the pathways and moderators of this link remain underexplored. We surveyed 318 legally present immigrant parents in the United States through a national Qualtrics panel in 2023. Guided by Acculturative Stress Theory and Conservation of Resources Theory, we tested mediation and moderated mediation models using structural equation modelling. Key measures included immigration stress, parenting stress, social support and economic self‐sufficiency. Parents with temporary immigration status reported significantly more immigration stress than those with permanent or naturalised status. Immigration‐related stress was a mediator of the relation between immigration status and parenting stress. Although social support was associated with lower overall parenting stress, it did not buffer against immigration‐related stress. Men and those using government benefits reported heightened parenting stress, possibly due to provider pressure, stigma or hindrance in reaching support systems. Financial security did not predict parenting stress. The study reveals that legal vulnerability is a strong predictor of immigrant parents' stress. Programs must extend beyond individual supports to address the structural factors that affect families with temporary legal status.

Purpose Drawing on the Affect Theory of Social Exchange and Conservation of Resources Theory, this research aims to examine the impact of workplace ostracism against frontline LGBTQ+ service employees by their colleagues on service sabotage, an intentional anti-service behavior toward customers. Design/methodology/approach A moderated serial mediation model was tested using survey data from frontline LGBTQ+ service employees. Emotional exhaustion and reduced social desirability were examined as mediators in the ostracism–sabotage relationship. The model also tested the moderating role of psychological ownership in the emotional exhaustion–social desirability pathway. Findings Workplace ostracism was found to be positively associated with service sabotage. Both emotional exhaustion and reduced social desirability mediated this relationship, individually and sequentially. In addition, psychological ownership attenuated the negative effect of emotional exhaustion on social desirability. Practical implications Organizations should revise antidiscrimination policies to explicitly address ostracism and redesign recruitment practices to foster inclusivity, thereby promoting a work environment where LGBTQ+ employees can thrive and contribute positively to service outcomes. Social implications The implications of workplace ostracism extend beyond organizational boundaries, reinforcing broader stigma toward LGBTQ+ individuals. Service sabotage, although often indirect retribution, may confirm negative stereotypes for customers, legitimizing further coworker exclusion and amplifying societal discrimination. This recursive cycle highlights how workplace dynamics and customer perceptions mutually reinforce bias. Effective interventions should be evaluated not only for organizational outcomes but also for enhancing LGBTQ+ employees’ dignity, belonging and authenticity. By fostering ownership, support networks and resilience, firms can mitigate sabotage, improve service outcomes and more importantly, disrupt stigma while advancing inclusion and contributing to broader cultural change. Originality/value This study extends service management and diversity research by revealing how workplace ostracism contributes to customer-directed harm through specific psychological mechanisms in frontline LGBTQ+ service employees. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the link between workplace ostracism and service sabotage has not been examined beyond Sarwar et al. (2020), who focused solely on nursing and did not consider how ostracism may be experienced in marginalized groups such as LGBTQ+ employees.

Drawing on the Job Demands–Resources Model and Conservation of Resources theory, this study investigates how leadership support and psychological capital influence academic professionalism and, in turn, affect university teachers’ well-being. Moreover, the mediating effect of academic professionalism and the moderating effect of digital literacy are also discussed. A mixed-methods design was adopted, combining survey data from 382 Chinese university teachers and semi-structured interviews from 8 participants. Results from partial least squares structural equation modeling supported all six hypotheses. Leadership support and psychological capital significantly positively affected academic professionalism, which in turn predicted well-being. Mediation and moderation effects were also confirmed. Qualitative findings further revealed that intrinsic motivation, peer benchmarking, emotional support, and digital competence contributed to teachers’ professional engagement and psychological satisfaction. These findings enrich the understanding of academic professionalism as a dynamic resource and highlight the importance of institutional, personal, and digital enablers of teacher well-being. Implications for policy, faculty development, and future research are discussed.

Purpose This study examines how psychological detachment from work relates to work–family balance and how this relationship is moderated by the type of work model (remote, hybrid and on-site) and employees’ perceived fit with their work modality. Design/methodology/approach Based on the conservation of resources theory, a cross-sectional survey was conducted with 373 Portuguese employees across various sectors. Validated measures of psychological detachment, perceived fit and work–family balance were used. Moderation effects were tested using PROCESS in SPSS. Findings Results show that psychological detachment significantly enhances work–family balance. Remote and hybrid work models are associated with higher levels of work–family balance than on-site work, although no significant differences were found in detachment levels across work models. Crucially, the perceived fit of the work model moderated the relationship: the positive effect of detachment was stronger when employees perceived the work model as adequate for their needs. Practical implications Organisations should support psychological recovery by creating conditions that promote detachment in all work models. Ensuring a good fit between employees and their work arrangements can amplify the benefits of detachment, improving well-being and reducing work–family conflict. Originality/value This study extends the understanding of how flexible work environments impact psychological recovery and highlights the role of perceived work model fit as a critical contextual resource. Findings offer practical insights for improving employee well-being in diverse work settings.

Purpose Negative workplace gossip sent by supervisors (NWGS) is a prevalent yet understudied form of poor managerial communication. Drawing on the conservation of resources (COR) theory, this study aims to propose that NWGS depletes employees’ psychological resources and examine its effect on employee quiet quitting (QQ). This study tests both the direct and mediating effects via psychological safety and quiescent silence. Design/methodology/approach Confirmatory factor analysis was used to validate the measurement model and ensure the robustness of the constructs. Covariance-based structural equation modeling tested the proposed hypotheses using data from 431 participants recruited in the USA and UK via Prolific Academic. Findings The effect of NWGS on QQ is indirect, mediated by psychological safety, and serially mediated by psychological safety and quiescent silence. Furthermore, both psychological safety and quiescent silence have significant direct effects on QQ. Practical implications This study highlights the need to reduce downward gossip by training managers to deliver constructive feedback and normalize leadership challenges. It also emphasizes fostering psychological safety through open, transparent communication and building a culture of trust, inclusion and mutual respect. Originality/value This study identifies NWGS as a novel antecedent of QQ and explains its mechanism, showing how NWGS depletes emotional resources and undermines psychological safety. It also contributes to the COR theory by demonstrating how resource depletion spreads across interdependent resources, leading to disengagement.