Performance of Academic Staff during COVID-19 Pandemic-Induced Work Transformations: An IPO Model for Stress Management

Muhammad Shoaib, Ayesha Nawal, Renata Korsakienė, Roman Zámečník, Asad Ur Rehman and Agota Giedrė Raišienė
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Muhammad Shoaib: Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management and Economics, Tomas Bata University in Zlín, 76001 Zlín, Czech Republic
Ayesha Nawal: Faculty of Business and Management, Sultan Zainal Abidin University, Kuala Nerus 21300, Terengganu, Malaysia
Renata Korsakienė: Department of Management, Vilnius University, LT-10222 Vilnius, Lithuania
Roman Zámečník: Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management and Economics, Tomas Bata University in Zlín, 76001 Zlín, Czech Republic
Asad Ur Rehman: Faculty of Business and Management, Sultan Zainal Abidin University, Kuala Nerus 21300, Terengganu, Malaysia
Agota Giedrė Raišienė: Department of Management, Klaipėda University, LT-92227 Klaipėda, Lithuania

Economies, 2022, vol. 10, issue 2, 1-21

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected all spheres of services-related business, including the higher education sector. As a pre-emptive measure, almost all traditional educational institutions have been transformed into virtual organizations. This pandemic-induced work transition has created stress among academic staff and has hampered their performance. The present study aims to examine the impact of leadership behaviors, e-training, and employment security on the stress management process, consequently improving employee performance during and after the pandemic. Based on the IPO (input–process–output) model, this study examines the effect of leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security on teaching staff’s tasks and adaptive and contextual performance, mediated by stress management. To test the conceptual model, data were collected from the teaching staff of Malaysian universities. The structural equation modeling technique was used for data analysis, while bootstrapping with the maximum likelihood estimator was used to confirm the mediational role of stress management. The study revealed that task- and relation-oriented leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security positively influence stress management and employee performance in virtual organizations. Moreover, stress management acts as a full mediator in the relationship between leadership behavior and employee performance, while partial mediation occurs between e-training, employment security, and employee performance. This study offers valuable insights into the literature by proposing leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security as input in the stress management process to attain the performance output of teaching staff. Higher education institutions should come forward to assist their teaching employees in managing their stress levels for better outcomes.

Keywords: leadership behaviors; e-training; employment security; stress management; employee performance; teaching staff (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E F I J O Q (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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