Seeking Challenges, Individual Adaptability and Career Growth in the Relationship between Workload and Contextual Performance: A Two-Wave Study

Emanuela Ingusci, Paola Spagnoli, Margherita Zito, Lara Colombo and Claudio G. Cortese
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Emanuela Ingusci: Department of History, Society and Human Studies, University of Salento, 73100 LECCE, Italy
Paola Spagnoli: Psychology Department, Università Vanvitelli, 81100 Caserta CE, Italy
Margherita Zito: Department of Business, Law, Economics and Consumer Behaviour, “Carlo A. Ricciardi” Università IULM, 20143 Milan, Italy
Lara Colombo: Psychology Department, Turin University, 10124 Turin, Italy
Claudio G. Cortese: Psychology Department, Turin University, 10124 Turin, Italy

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 2, 1-13

Abstract: Based on the theoretical approach of the psychology of sustainability and sustainable development and on the theoretical Job Demands-Resources model, this contribution aims to explore the mediating effect of seeking challenges on the relationship between workload and contextual performance and the moderating effects of individual adaptability and organizational career growth in this process. The study involved a convenience sample from different occupational sectors. Data from 178 employees were collected with a self-report questionnaire administered at times T1 and T2 (six months later) and then analyzed through conditional process analysis. Challenging job demands (T1) fully mediated the relationship between workload (T1) and contextual performance (T2); furthermore, individual adaptability (T1) moderated the relationship between workload (T1) and challenging job demands (T1), and organizational career growth (T2) moderated the relationship between challenging job demands (T1) and contextual performance (T2). The results imply that seeking challenges can represent an effective approach to promote sustainable development through improvement of performance at work, maintaining its sustainability over time. The present study is innovative because in the new framework of the psychology of sustainability and sustainable development is able to link workload, seeking challenges, career growth and performance in a two-wave study that not only has theoretical implications for organizations but also operative and practical spillovers.

Keywords: job crafting; seeking challenges; psychology of sustainability and sustainable development; Job Demands-Resources model; career growth; adaptability; workload (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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