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
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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-
