Can High Levels of Hindrance Demands Increase the Worker’s Intellectual Response?

  Ci a ion: Ma ín-Ma ín, F.G.; Díaz-Fúnez, P.A.; Du nia , K.; Sal ado -Fe e , C.M.; Llopis-Ma ín, J.M.; Limbe , C.; Mañas-Rod íguez, M.Á. Can High Le els o Hind ance Demands Inc ease he Wo ke ’s In ellec ual Response? Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107. h ps://doi.o g/ 10.3390/su14053107 Academic Edi o s: Hyo Sun Jung and E manno C. To ia Recei ed: 13 Decembe 2021 Accep ed: 24 Feb ua y 2022 Published: 7 Ma ch 2022 Publishe ’s No e: MDPI s ays neu al wi h ega d o ju isdic ional claims in published maps and ins i u ional a il- ia ions. Copy igh : © 2022 by he au ho s. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Swi ze land. This a icle is an open access a icle dis ibu ed unde he e ms and condi ions o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion (CC BY) license (h ps:// c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/ 4.0/). sus ainabili y A icle Can High Le els o Hind ance Demands Inc ease he Wo ke ’s In ellec ual Response? F ancisco G. Ma ín-Ma ín1,2 , Ped o A. Díaz-Fúnez 1,* , Ka a zyna Du nia 3, Ca men Ma ía Sal ado -Fe e 1, Juan Manuel Llopis-Ma ín1, Ca oline Limbe 4and Miguel Ángel Mañas-Rod íguez 1 1Resea ch Team in Psychology o Wo k, O ganiza ions and Human Resou ces (IPTORA), Uni e si y o Alme ia, 04120 Alme ia, Spain; [email p o ec ed] (F.G.M.-M.); [email p o ec ed] (C.M.S.-F.); [email p o ec ed] (J.M.L.-M.); [email p o ec ed] (M.Á.M.-R.) 2Hospi al de Ponien e, Andalusian Public Heal h Sys em, El Ejido, 04700 Alme ia, Spain 3Ins i u e o Psychology, Facul y o His o ical and Pedagogical Sciences, Uni e si y o W oclaw, 50-137 W oclaw, Poland; ka a zyna.du nia @uw .edu.pl 4Applied Psychology and Beha iou Change Resea ch G oup, Ca di Me opoli an Uni e si y, Ca di CF5 2YB, UK; climbe @ca di me .ac.uk *Co espondence: [email p o ec ed]; Tel.: +34-950-01-54-05 Abs ac : Job demands a e ac o s ha a e associa ed wi h a physical and psychological cos when i comes o coping wi h hem, bu which can also posi i ely a ec he mo i a ional p ocess. Demands such as o e load, de ined as an excessi e wo kload, ha e no p esen ed posi i e esul s in any o he s udies ha ha e ela ed i o employee engagemen . The p esen s udy aims o del e in o he possible posi i e e ec o his demand on he in ellec ual bonding o employees. I is hypo hesized ha : (a) Ini ially, he inc ease in he pe cep ion o wo k o e load will show a nega i e in luence on he in ellec ual engagemen o he employees; bu (b) high pe cep ions o o e load will change his e ec , p oducing an inc ease in he in ellec ual dimension o engagemen . The sample is made up o 706 employees o a Spanish mul ina ional company. The esul s suppo his asymme ic cu ilinea in luence. The le el o in ellec ual engagemen is signi ican ly educed when he ole o e load inc eases om he lowe alues o he scale. Howe e , upon eaching high le els o ole o e load, he in ellec ual engagemen esponse begins o g ow. These esul s challenge he concep ualiza ion o o e load as only nega i e and opens he doo o conside ha he posi i e esponse o a demand can also occu a high le els o i . Keywo ds: job demand; ole o e load; in ellec ual engagemen ; cu ilinea ela ionship; hind ance demands; challenge demands 1. In oduc ion Globaliza ion and echnological p og ess ha e gene a ed g ea changes in he con ex o wo k, assuming an inc ease in job demands [ 1 ]. Va ious s udies ha e coincided in poin ing ou he wo k o e load as he demand wi h he g ea es nega i e consequences a he economic le el, i s e ec s being equi alen o he loss o 3.5% o he G oss Domes ic P oduc (GDP) o a coun y [ 2 ]. In his con ex , i could be said ha he pe cep ion o being o e loaded has become one o he mos impo an wo k limi a ions oday [3,4]. Role o e load occu s when excessi e demands on ime and ene gy exceed he in- di idual’s a ailable ime and ene gy [ 5 ]. The e o e, wo o ms o ole o e load can be dis inguished: Fi s , when an employee’s wo kload is oo hea y o comple e on ime, and ano he occu s when employees lack he necessa y skills o comple e a ask well [6]. Wo k o e load no only has economic consequences, bu i also a ec s he employees hemsel es. Resea ch has epea edly associa ed he pe cep ion o ole o e load wi h nega i e e ec s o employees, such as sleep dis u bances, he de elopmen o emo ional diso de s, and he de e io a ion o physical heal h [ 7 ]. The e o e, his job demand has also Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107. h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/su14053107 h ps://www.mdpi.com/jou nal/sus ainabili y Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107 2 o 12 been iden i ied as one o he mos impo an impedimen s o p o essional de elopmen and well-being in employees [ 8 ], wi h a special incidence in he employees o mul ina ional companies [ 9 ]. Resea che s in e es ed in del ing in o in e na ional and mul icul u al o ganiza ions mus unde s and he challenges hese wo ke s ace in he wo kplace in o de o de elop in e en ions ha imp o e he well-being o hese wo ke s. [10]. In ecen yea s, he in e es in deepening he s udy o job demands has expe ienced an impo an boom [ 11 , 12 ]. This has been possible hanks o he de elopmen o heo e ical models and esea ch ha ha e p oposed ha labo demands do no ha e o ha e exclusi ely nega i e consequences [ 13 ]. Au ho s such as Deme ou i and Bakke [ 14 ] o Podsako , LePine and LePine [ 15 ] p opose an app oach o he s udy o demands, unde s anding hem also as a challenge, so ha hey can gene a e posi i e esul s bo h in p o essionals and in he o ganiza ion. One o he key elemen s in ela ion o ole o e load is employee engagemen . The ime and ene gy de o ed o a ole can e lec he indi idual’s engagemen wi h ha ole, as well as hei gene al a ailabili y o ime and ene gy [ 16 ]. Acco ding o Ma ks and MacDe mid [ 17 ], ole balancing is bo h a beha io al pa e n o ac ing h ough oles in a ce ain way and a cogni i e-a ec i e pa e n. F om his pe spec i e, wo k en i onmen s wi h a ce ain le el o demands could lead o an inc ease in posi i e mo i a ional s a es and job pe o mance [ 18 ]. The e o e, he posi i e balance o oles can a ec he endency o become in ellec ually in ol ed in he pe o mance o each ole in one’s o al ole sys em, o app oach each ypical ole and ole pa ne wi h an a i ude o a en ion and ca e [ 17 ]. Howe e , in he s udy o job demands, he e a e s ill many unknowns o sol e: Can all demands be challenging? I so, how do hind ance demands become challenging demands o ice e sa? and, wha ac o s can a ec he ansi ion o a demand be ween obs acle and challenge? The p esen s udy aims o deepen he ela ionship be ween he hind ance demands and he mo i a ional p ocess, speci ically s udying he e ec o high and low alues o o e load on in ellec ual engagemen . To do his, i ies o es he hypo hesis o whe he ole o e load can ha e a posi i e in luence on he emo ional esponse o employees. I is expec ed ha , in wo k con ex s wi h inc easing le els o ole o e load, employees ini ially expe ience a educ ion in hei le el o in ellec ual engagemen . Howe e , when aced wi h high o e load alues, his in luence could change, gene a ing a posi i e e ec ha inc eases in ellec ual engagemen . This supposes a no el ision o he in luence o he demands, especially an asymme ical cu ilinea ela ionship ha cap u es he complexi y o job demands con ex s. 1.1. Job Demands: Hind ances o Challenges When s udying he in luence o he o ganiza ional con ex on employee esponses, he e a e wo concep s ha ha e ocused he a en ion o esea che s in ecen yea s: job demands and esou ces [ 19 ]. F om he Job Demands-Resou ces Theo y (JD-R), i is p oposed ha bo h he demands and he esou ces a e he s a ing poin o he p ocesses o de e io a ion o heal h and mo i a ion, espec i ely, al hough he in luence be ween bo h p ocesses is cons an [18]. Focusing on job demands, hese a e de ined as ac o s o he wo k con ex whose cop- ing in ol es a cos , and which educe he abili y o people and o ganiza ions o achie e hei goals [ 14 , 20 ]. These we e ini ially concei ed as elemen s wi h nega i e consequences [ 21 ]. Howe e , in a ecen e iew, Bakke and Deme ou i [ 13 ] p oposed he possibili y ha demands can become challenging ac o s wi h posi i e consequences, p omo ing g ow h and pe sonal achie emen . These challenges would be pe cei ed as ewa ding expe iences ha a e well wo h he discom o gene a ed, which is why hey a e conside ed “good” s esso s [20,21]. Cu en esea ch p oposes ha he same demand can ac as an obs acle o as a challenge depending on con ex ual ac o s such as leade ship [ 21 ] o he pe sonal esou ces a ailable Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107 3 o 12 o he employee [ 22 , 23 ]. Al hough a key elemen in conside ing a demand as an obs acle o a challenge seems o be he le el a which he demand i sel is pe cei ed by he wo ke [ 24 ]. Among job demands, one o he mos ele an and s udied is ole o e load [ 3 , 4 ]. The pe cep ion o a ole o e load has shown nega i e e ec s on employees such as inc eased sleep diso de s, educed cogni i e abili ies, and de e io a ion in physical heal h in gen- e al [ 7 ]. A his poin , i is necessa y o cla i y he di e ence be ween wo kload and ole o e load. The wo kload e e s o he numbe o asks ha ha e o be a ended in a job, which can inc ease o dec ease, while ole o e load iden i ies he employee’s pe cep ion o an excess in wo kload le els. This dis inc ion is impo an , since when he wo kload is conside ed excessi e, i will ha e nega i e consequences om i s lowes alues, so i mus be conside ed a clea ly hinde ing a iable [25]. 1.2. Connec ing Demands o In ellec ual Engagemen The psychological bond o he employee wi h he o ganiza ion has been shown o only occu when employees eel ha he o ganiza ion a o s and alues i s esou ces [ 26 ]. A ele an app oach o he s udy o engagemen is ha ca ied ou by Soane e al. [ 27 ] based on he sa is ac ion o needs. Soane p oposes a measu emen o his a iable h ough he assessmen o h ee dimensions: in ellec ual, a ec i e, and social. The i s dimension e e s o he le el o in ellec ual abso p ion a wo k and he con ibu ion o ways o imp o e i ; he second dimension e e s o he s a e o posi i e a ec ha is expe ienced ela ed o he job ole; and he hi d dimension in oduces he le el a which he employee connec s socially wi h he wo k en i onmen and sha es common alues wi h colleagues. This s udy ocuses on he dimension o in ellec ual engagemen , due o i s special link wi h o e load. Au ho s such as Khalid e al. [ 28 ] concep ualize his dimension as he deg ee o e o made by employees o con ibu e hei knowledge and in ellec ual capaci y when pe o ming he wo k asks associa ed wi h a ole mo e e ec i ely and e icien ly. Resea ch has shown i s ele ance as i is he i s o he h ee dimensions o engagemen o inc ease i s alues du ing he employee’s emo ional bonding p ocess, which la e ex ends o a ec i e and social engagemen [29]. 1.3. Asymme ic Cu ilinea Hypo heses The in e es in maximizing he heal h and well-being o employees has been obse ed in p e ious empi ical s udies [ 30 ], bu mos o hem p o ed a linea ela ionship be ween a iables ( o example, p oposing posi i e links om labo esou ces o posi i e emo ions o he wo ke ). As a gene al ule, esea ch esul s ha e shown ha employees who pe cei e hei esou ces as insu icien when esponding o demands end o educe hei le els o engagemen [ 31 ]. This leads us o hink ha less o e loaded wo k con ex s will be mo e likely o s eng hen and inc ease employee engagemen . Howe e , hese linea ela ionships may no cap u e he complexi y o human beha io in an o ganiza ional con ex . Human beings a e sensi i e o si ua ions o imbalance because hey iola e an impo an ule o he mo al code in ou socie ies. Based on he Ye kes–Dodson heo y [ 32 ], Quick e al. [ 24 ] show o he hypo heses al e na i es o explain he ela ionship be ween job demands and in ellec ual engagemen . Fo example, he equi y hypo hesis [ 33 ] s a es ha only a balanced pe cep ion o job demands is capable o p oducing he highes le els o well-being and supposes a symme ic cu ilinea ela ionship be ween a iables. Howe e , he nonlinea ela ionship may p esen ano he o m ha would i in o an asymme ic hypo hesis, due o he special sensi i i y o humans o nega i e e en s [ 34 ], which in he p esen s udy a e associa ed wi h pe cep ions o high ole o e load. In his sense, he ini ial inc ease in demands would also mean an inc ease in hei le el o engagemen , hus ac ing as a challenging demand. Howe e , a a ce ain momen , he exci emen and ac i a ion de i ed om he p og essi e inc ease in demand will gene a e exhaus ion, and engagemen begins o dec ease [ 35 ], which u ns i in o a hind ance demand. Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107 4 o 12 Role o e load will cause a dec ease in employee engagemen om he i s mo- men [ 35 ]. Thus, in line wi h he Ye kes–Dodson heo y, a con ex wi h ole o e load will be loca ed om he i s momen in he dec easing zone o he hood, causing a educ- ion in he e o o in ellec ual abso p ion and in e es o employees in con ibu ing hei knowledge as employees in an a emp o minimize he ne loss o esou ces [ 36 ]. This leads o he i s o he hypo heses. Hypo hesis 1 (H1). Wo ke s subjec ed o inc easing ole o e load en i onmen s will ini ially expe ience a educ ion in hei le el o in ellec ual engagemen wi h he company. Howe e , aced wi h a con ex in which ole o e load is inc easing, is he only possible answe a educ ion in in ellec ual engagemen , o can ha end change a some poin ? The e a e ew s udies ha p opose an inc ease in engagemen in a con ex whe e demands each high le els, and mos o hem do no e e o o ganiza ional con ex s. Fo example, Billings, Folkman, Ac ee, and Moskowi z [ 37 ] s udied he esponse o ca egi e s o people wi h AIDS o high emo ional demands, inding ha hey main ain hei posi i e emo ional s a es, and e en inc ease hei le el a he imes o g ea es demand. These au ho s p opose ha his esponse is in ended o be a sel -p o ec i e eac ion, he pu pose o which is o slow down he p ocess o emo ional de e io a ion so as no o be a ec ed by he physical and emo ional symp oms associa ed wi h i . In a simila way, and applied o he o ganiza ional con ex , See s, McGee, Se ey, and G aen [ 38 ] had al eady shown he use o o ganiza ional esou ces as a sel -p o ec i e elemen . In his s udy, hey conclude ha employees, when aced wi h highe le els o ole con lic , showed a g ea e need o suppo i e beha io s. Mo e ecen ly, Bakke e al. [ 39 ] ollow his line and lea e open he possibili y ha , unde highly s ess ul condi ions, people can use coping esponses o educe, no so much he s ess o he o ganiza ion, bu he pe sonal consequences ha a ise om i . These esul s, oge he wi h he Ye kes–Dodson heo y (32), sugges he possible appea ance o a possible inc ease in he wo ke ’s in ellec ual engagemen in he ace o highe alues o ole o e load as a p o ec i e elemen , o which he ollowing hypo hesis is p oposed. Hypo hesis 2 (H2). The ela ionship be ween ole o e load and in ellec ual engagemen will no be linea , bu cu ilinea , gene a ing a change in end ha will inc ease he pe cep ion o he la e in employees wi h a highe pe cep ion o o e load. 1.4. Summa y o No el y This s udy aims o en ich he unde s anding o he ole o job demands in he o ganiza- ional con ex . The e ec o labo demands is changing in he labo con ex . These can show mo e han one ole depending on he le el a which hey a e pe cei ed. A he beginning, i will ac as a challenge wi h posi i e esul s; by inc easing i s le el i will become an obs acle o which he wo ke will espond nega i ely, bu i i con inues o inc ease i s le el o pe cep ion, i will gi e posi i e esponses, al hough o less in ensi y. 2. Ma e ials and Me hods 2.1. P ocedu e The sample is made up o 706 employees ( esponse a e: 82.3%) o a mul ina ional company dedica ed o he p oduc ion and dis ibu ion o ma e ials o a chi ec u e and design, whose headqua e s a e loca ed in he p o ince o Alme ia (Spain). All pa icipan s ga e hei in o med consen be o e pa icipa ing in he s udy. The s udy was ca ied ou in acco dance wi h he Decla a ion o Helsinki, and he p o ocol was app o ed by he E hics Commi ee o he Uni e si y o Alme ia on 26 Oc obe 2016. Once hey ag eed o pa icipa e in he p ojec , he employees o each depa men we e in o med by hei manage s abou he objec i e o he s udy and i s ele ance o he o ganiza ion. The ques ionnai es we e adminis e ed in g oup sessions du ing he wo king day and a he company’s acili ies. The con iden iali y and anonymi y o he pa icipan s we e ensu ed, since he use o alphanume ic codes eplaced he iden i ying cha ac e is ics in he ques ionnai es. Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107 5 o 12 2.2. Sample The sample dis ibu ion included 22.6% o indi iduals be ween 18 and 25 yea s old, 31.2% be ween 26 and 35 yea s old, 29.8% be ween 36 and 45 yea s old, 15% be ween 46 and 55 yea s old, and 1.4% olde han 56 yea s. Rega ding gende , 91.2% o he sample we e men, and 59.1% had a baccalau ea e deg ee, 22.4% had a bachelo ’s deg ee o equi alen , 8.3% had uni e si y aining, 3.4% had pos g adua e o doc o al aining, and 6.8% said hey had o he s udies. In e ms o enu e, 64.4% o he pa icipan s had less han i e yea s in he company, 12.2% had be ween i e and 10 yea s, 13.9% had be ween 10 and 15 yea s, and 9.2% had o e 15 yea s. The mos ep esen ed con ac was unde ined o 62.5% o he pa icipan s, while 35.4% had a empo a y con ac , and 2.1% had o he ypes o con ac s. The only selec ion c i e ion o pa icipan s was ha hey should ha e a job in he company in which he ques ionnai e was applied a he ime o he s udy. 2.3. Ins umen 2.3.1. Role O e load To measu e ole o e load, he dimension o he same name was used in he ool de eloped by Rizzo e al. [ 40 ], adap ed and alida ed o use in Spain by Pei óe al. [ 41 ]. This scale consis s o h ee i ems and asks whe he wo ke s can manage hei cu en o e load, he cu en pace o wo k equi ed o he job, and o wha ex en hey had o exe mo e e o han be o e o ge he job done (“The amoun o wo k ha I ha e o do (o wha hey ask me o do) is excessi e”). The esponse op ions we e p esen ed on a Like scale wi h i e ca ego ies, anging om 1 (s ongly disag ee) o 5 (s ongly ag ee), ollowing he o iginal design o he scale, wi h highe sco es indica ing a highe le el o o e load. C onbach’s Alpha o his scale was 0.86. 2.3.2. In ellec ual Engagemen To measu e his dimension, he Spanish e sion o he ISA Engagemen Scale [ 42 ] was used. This scale is based on he measu e de eloped by Soane e al. [ 27 ] ha consis s o h ee elemen s ha ask he deg ee o ocus wi hin he wo kplace ( o example, “I pay a lo o a en ion o my wo k”). The esponse op ions we e p esen ed on a Like scale wi h se en ca ego ies, anging om 1 (s ongly disag ee) o 7 (s ongly ag ee), ollowing he o iginal design o he scale, wi h highe sco es indica ing a highe le el o commi men . C onbach’s alpha o his scale was 0.94. 2.3.3. Con ol Va iables Because he e alua ion o he wo k con ex is sensi i e o he sex and age o he employees [ 43 ], we con ol o hese wo demog aphic cha ac e is ics. A dicho omy scale (“Woman e sus man”) was used o gende and a Like scale wi h i e ca ego ies (1: “18–25 yea s”, 2: “26–35 yea s”, 3: “36–45 yea s”, 4: “46–55 yea s”, and 5: “56 yea s o mo e”) o measu e age. 2.4. Analysis To assess, he e idence o con e gen alidi y and disc iminan da a we e analyzed ollowing wo app oxima ions. On he one hand, he co ela ions we e analyzed using Pea son’s coe icien , be ween he di e en a iables used. Posi i e co ela ions we e conside ed e idence o con e gen alidi y, while he co ela ions nega i e and he absence o co ela ion we e conside ed e idence o disc iminan alidi y. On he o he hand, a con i ma o y ac o analysis (CFA) in he amewo k o s uc u al equa ion modeling (SEM) was employed using EQ6 [44,45]. Hie a chical eg ession analyzes we e pe o med using he SPSS s a is ical p og am ( e sion 25) o e alua e linea and nonlinea ela ionships [ 46 ]. The eg ession analysis p ocess consis s o h ee s eps: In he i s s ep, he con ol a iables ( ha is, sex and age) we e en e ed o see hei in luence on he dependen a iable. In he second s ep, he independen e m ( ole o e load) was included in o de o es i s linea ela ionship Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107 6 o 12 wi h he dependen a iable (pe cep ions o in ellec ual engagemen ) in si ua ions o ole o e load wi h medium and low le els. Finally, ole o e load was en e ed in o he model as a linea o e p in indica o (squa ed e m). I he con ibu ion o he squa ed e m is s a is ically signi ican , he maximiza ion hypo hesis is ejec ed [ 47 ] and g aphical ep esen a ions a e used o show suppo o ai ness (symme ic) o asymme ic. The independen a iables we e ocused on educing possible mul icollinea i y p oblems [48]. 3. Resul s 3.1. Desc ip i e Analysis Rega ding he e idence o con e gen alidi y, we ound signi ican posi i e co ela- ions be ween he i ems ha make up he ole o e load scale (signi ican alues be ween 0.72 and 0.83). The same occu s wi h he i ems ha make up he in ellec ual engagemen a iable, all o hem show signi ican alues be ween 0.76 and 0.91. In ela ion o he e idence o disc iminan alidi y, nega i e and weak signi ican con- nec ions we e ound be ween he o al sco e o ole o e load and in ellec ual engagemen ( = −0.09). Themul i-g oupSEMo hehypo hesizedmodel i ed o he da awell: Chi-Squa e=8.065, d = 8, p- alue = 0.43, CFI = 1.000, RMSEA = 0–003 (90% CI 0.000, 0.044). Figu e 1shows s anda dized pa ame e s o he model [49]. Figu e 1. Con i ma o y ac o model (s anda dized pa h coe icien s, p< 0.01, * p< 0.05). Table 1shows he means, s anda d de ia ions, and bi a ia e co ela ions be ween he a iables. We obse ed a signi ican nega i e co ela ion be ween pe cep ions o ole o e load and in ellec ual engagemen ( : − 0.08; p: 0.03) and a signi ican posi i e co ela ion be ween age and in ellec ual engagemen ( : 0.09; p: 0.02). The ela ionship be ween ole o e load and age was no signi ican . Table 1. Desc ip i e da a and co ela ions. Va iable Scale Mean SD 2 3 4 1. Role O e load 1–5 2.81 1.14 −0.09 * 0.04 – 2. In ellec ual Engagemen 1–7 5.42 0.72 0.09 * – 3. Age 1–5 2.41 1.03 – 4. Gende Dummy – – *p< 0.05. Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107 7 o 12 3.2. Reg essions Analysis The esul s o he hie a chical eg essions a e p esen ed in Table 2. The esul s indica ed ha he linea e ms o ole o e load p edic ed a educ ion in he alues o in ellec ual engagemen in he employees ( β : − 0.05, p< 0.05). On he con a y, he linea o e p in (squa ed ole o e load) was also signi ican , bu wi h a change in in luence, which in his case will be posi i e ( β : 0.06, p< 0.05). This shows a ia ion in in ellec ual commi men , beyond he p edic i e capaci y o he linea e m and he con ol a iables ( ∆ R 2 : 0.03, p< 0.001). The e o e, ou indings suppo ed a cu ilinea ela ionship be ween pe cep ions o ole o e load and in ellec ual engagemen . Since he con ibu ion o he squa ed e ms was signi ican , he maximiza ion hypo hesis was ejec ed. Table 2. Reg ession analysis. In ellec ual Engagemen S eps β1p 1. S ep1 Age 0.06 0.01 Gende 0.01 0.86 ∆R20.00 0.06 2. S ep2 Role O e load −0.05 0.01 ∆R20.01 0.01 3. S ep3 Role O e load 20.06 0.00 ∆R20.03 0.00 1β: S anda dized Coe icien . 2Squa ed Values o Role O e load. 3.3. Asymme ic Cu ilineal Analysis The posi i e alues o β in he inal s ep show nonlinea ela ionships, ep esen ed by U-shapes (see Figu e 2), which con i m he asymme ic cu ilinea shape in he ela ionship be ween he a iables. The g ea es in ellec ual engagemen is obse ed a he lowes le els o ole o e load. In ellec ual pa icipa ion sco es dec ease when pe cep ions app oach he a e age le els in he pe cep ion o ole o e load. Las ly, in ellec ual engagemen imp o es sligh ly when pe cep ions app oach he a ea o ole o e load. Figu e 2. Cu ilinea ela ionship be ween ole o e load and in ellec ual engagemen . Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107 8 o 12 4. Discussion This s udy aims o shed new ligh and lea n mo e abou ole o e load in he o ganiza- ional con ex . This a iable can show mo e han one ole, wi h a posi i e in luence on he in ellec ual engagemen . Ou esul s ound in he p esen s udy suppo bo h hypo heses. In he i s , i was p oposed ha wo ke s subjec ed o wo k con ex s wi h inc easing le els o demands, such as ole o e load, will ini ially expe ience a educ ion in hei le el o in ellec ual commi men o he o ganiza ion ( β : − 0.05, p< 0.05). In he second hypo hesis, i was p oposed ha he ela ionship will no be linea , bu cu ilinea , be ween ole o e load and in ellec ual engagemen , gene a ing an inc ease in he la e a iable a he highes le els o pe cep ion o o e load (β: 0.06, p< 0.05). These esul s con i m he U-shaped cu ilinea ela ionship [ 30 , 33 , 34 ]. A he lowes alues o o e load, his a iable ac s as a hind ance demand, p oducing he educ ion o in ellec ual engagemen . Howe e , a high alues o ole o e load, his ac s as a challenging demand, p oducing an inc ease in he esponse o his ype o engagemen . This is a inding ha p o ides a new poin o iew wi h espec o p e ious s udies ha indica e ha wo k demands such as ole o e load, concep ualized as ole o e load, p oduce an in e ed U ela ionship whe e he esponse as a challenge occu s in he ini ial alues o he pe cep ion o demand [24]. In he ollowing sec ions, we desc ibe he heo e ical and p ac ical implica ions, limi a- ions, and oppo uni ies o u u e esea ch. 4.1. Theo e ical Implica ions The esul s shown in his s udy ha e h ee heo e ical implica ions. Fi s , hey cla - i y he concep ualiza ion o job demands as an obs acle o challenge wi hin he JD-R model [9,13–15]. This model p oposes ha demands ha ac as obs acles in e e e wi h he pe son’s abili y o achie e hei goals [ 14 , 20 ], while challenging demands p omo e pe sonal g ow h and a e pe cei ed as wo k expe iences ewa ding. [ 14 , 15 ]. Expanding he demand concep s o his model and suppo ing he esul s o Tays e al. [ 30 ], Ta is e al. [ 33 ], o Baumeis e [ 34 ], and ecen ly S oe e al. [ 48 ] and Ho an [ 49 ], he p esen wo k shows ha he ole o a demand is no s a ic bu luc ua es be ween obs acle and challenge depending on he le el a which i is pe cei ed by he employee. The second heo e ical implica ion o his wo k suppo s, om his luc ua ion, he ole as an impeding demand o hose ha a e pe cei ed as “excessi e”. In his case, ole o e load is concep ualized as an excess o wo kload, so low alues o his a iable cause de e io a ion o in ellec ual engagemen . These esul s a e in line wi h he esou ce conse a ion heo y [ 36 ] and wi h he indings o he s udies ha a e suppo ed by he Ye kes–Dodson heo y [ 32 ], which a i ms ha , when a demand equi es a high expendi- u e o esou ces o be aced, i will ha e a nega i e e ec on he emo ional s a e o he employee [24,31,50,51]. The hi d heo e ical implica ion o he p esen wo k is linked o he inc ease o in ellec ual engagemen in he highes alues o ole o e load. The esul s ound in his ega d sugges ha he esponse o job demands occu s in di e en s ages. P e iously, au ho s such as Chen and Wei [ 52 ] p oposed ha he inc ease in ole o e load ini ially p oduces an inc ease in posi i e emo ional esponses in employees, bu when hey pe cei e his bu den as excessi e, he in luence is e e sed educing hei le el o Engagemen . The con i ma ion o he second hypo hesis o he p esen wo k shows how, in he ace o high pe cep ions o o e load, employees once again modi y hei esponse and inc ease in ellec ual engagemen again, al hough wi h less in ensi y. This esul suppo s he hypo heses pu o wa d by See s, McGee, Se ey and G aen [ 38 ] and Bakke e al. [ 39 ], and shows ha in highly s ess ul condi ions, people inc ease hei posi i e emo ional esponse again, no so much o educe demand, bu he pe sonal consequences ha a ise om i . Sus ainabili y 2022,14, 3107 9 o 12 4.2. P ac ical Implica ions The indings o his s udy ha e p ac ical implica ions o he managemen o people ha we can g oup in o h ee le els: (1) Analysis o asks and job design ha adap he wo kload o he capaci ies o he employees; (2) implemen a ion o s a egies o inc ease he pe sonal and o ganiza ional esou ces o employees, especially in hose posi ions ha ace high le els o wo k o e load main ained o e ime; and he (3) educ ion o pe sonal consequences de i ed om he exis ence o highly job demanding con ex s, as ecommended by he Sus ainably De elopmen Goals epo s p epa ed by he Uni ed Na ions [53]: (a) Employees a e equen ly subjec o ole o e load demands, which easily o e whelm hei esou ces and ha e nega i e implica ions such as sleep dis u bances, de elop- men o emo ional diso de s, and de e io a ion o physical heal h [ 7 ]. The esul s o his s udy highligh he impo ance o p ope job design, whe e employees a e no exposed o a cons an ole o e load ha hey canno cope wi h. I he job de- sign is adequa e, wo ke s will ha e he necessa y esou ces o cope wi h he ole o e load, which will gene a e new posi i e esou ces in hem, such as inc eased sel - pe cep ion o e ec i eness. Fu he mo e, his inc ease in esou ces will allow hem o ace unp edic able ole o e load inc eases, due o speci ic condi ions o need, wi h g ea e gua an ees. (b) The esul s ound indica e he con enience o designing s a egies o inc ease he pe sonal and o ganiza ional esou ces o employees. Gi ing employees mo e e- sou ces can make i easie o cope wi h he demands o each posi ion, which can mean ha he employee can wi hs and g ea e le els o ole o e load be o e i becomes a hind ance demand. (c) Finally, he asymme ic hypo hesis ad ises he de elopmen o coping skills o em- ployees on a pe sonal le el in he ace o s ess. We ha e seen ha employees e u n o gi e a posi i e emo ional esponse o a hind ance demand when i is a e y high alues. This has been conside ed by au ho s as a p o ec i e esponse, which does no seek o ace he demand, bu a he o educe he nega i e consequences o he indi idual [ 38 , 39 ]. In his si ua ion, o ganiza ions mus p o ide hei employees wi h esou ces o hei own p o ec ion agains demand, such as echniques o emo ional sel -con ol o mind ulness, while implemen ing policies o educe he exposu e o employees o said demand. 4.3. Limi a ions and Fu u e Di ec ions This s udy has h ee main limi a ions. Fi s , i was conduc ed wi hin a speci ic o gani- za ion, so he esul s canno be ex apola ed o o he wo k con ex s. Fu u e s udies could expand he sample o include employees o o he public o p i a e o ganiza ions. Second, he e a e limi a ions in ha i only uses sel - epo ques ionnai es. Combining his wi h o he ypes o app oaches could ha e p o ided complemen a y da a. Fu u e esea ch may include he use o quali a i e me hods [ 54 ]; such as in-dep h in e iews, o o he ools such as obse a ion o he use o objec i e da a on he beha io o employees in he o ganiza ion ( o example, p oduc i i y o numbe o sick lea e). Finally, his is a c oss-sec ional s udy wi h only one an eceden and one consequen a iable. The e o e, i would be use ul o ca y ou longi udinal s udies ha allow a mo e in-dep h analysis o he e olu ion and causali y o he a iables s udied. I would be e y in e es ing o u u e esea ch o explo e ce ain esou ces in employees o in he o ganiza ion ha may a ec he ela ionship p oposed in his a icle. These ac o s will allow us o be e p edic he esponse o employees’ in ellec ual engagemen in he ace o wo k o e load. 5. Conclusions The p esen s udy con ibu es o deepening he knowledge o he di e en oles ha labo demands can assume in he o ganiza ional con ex . The inding o nonlinea ela ion-