Exploring the Role of Personal Demands in the Health-Impairment Process of the Job Demands-Resources Model: A Study among Master Students

Marijntje E. L. Zeijen, Veerle Brenninkmeijer, Maria C. W. Peeters and Nicole J. J. M. Mastenbroek
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Marijntje E. L. Zeijen: Department of Population Health Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, 3508 TD Utrecht, The Netherlands
Veerle Brenninkmeijer: Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, Utrecht University, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands
Maria C. W. Peeters: Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, Utrecht University, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands
Nicole J. J. M. Mastenbroek: Department of Population Health Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, 3508 TD Utrecht, The Netherlands

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 2, 1-14

Abstract: Research shows that students experience substantial levels of burnout during their studies. This study explores the role of personal demands on students’ well-being. After providing a conceptualization of personal demands, we examined the role of personal demands in the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model. Based on the Transactional Model of Stress, we hypothesized that students with high personal demands experience more burnout symptoms because they perceive more elements in their study as demanding (i.e., mediation hypothesis). At the same time, we hypothesized that the associations between study demands and burnout might be stronger for students with high versus low personal demands (i.e., moderation hypothesis). In order to test both hypotheses, we collected data from 578 master students. The data were analyzed with latent moderation and mediation analyses in Mplus. The results showed that students’ personal demands predicted burnout symptoms via the perception of study demands. Personal demands did not moderate the relationship between study demands and burnout. The findings of the present study expand the JD-R model by indicating that personal demands relate to burnout symptoms via the perception of study demands. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Keywords: personal demands; study demands; burnout; JD-R model; exhaustion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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