Exhaustion while teleworking during COVID-19: a moderated-mediation model of role clarity, self-efficacy, and task interdependence

Loredana Mihalca (), Lucia Ratiu (), Gabriela Brendea (), Daniel Metz (), Mihaela Dragan () and Florin Dobre ()
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Loredana Mihalca: Babes-Bolyai University, Romania
Lucia Ratiu: Babes-Bolyai University, Romania
Gabriela Brendea: Babes-Bolyai University, Romania
Daniel Metz: Babes-Bolyai University, Romania
Mihaela Dragan: Babes-Bolyai University, Romania
Florin Dobre: Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Romania

Oeconomia Copernicana, 2021, vol. 12, issue 2, 269-306

Abstract: Research background: The global COVID-19 pandemic created an unprecedented challenge not only for employees’ well-being, but also for the nature of their work, as teleworking became the norm for many of them almost overnight. Thus, there is a need to a more fine-grained understanding of the specific job demands experienced while teleworking during COVID-19, and the specific resources that mitigate the detrimental effects of demands and help employees to adopt resilient responses during and beyond COVID-19. Purpose of the article: Drawing upon the job demands-resources model, the present study aims at investigating the link between work overload (a job demand) and employee well-being (i.e., burnout), considering role clarity (a job resource) as a mediator, and task interdependence and self-efficacy as two potential boundary conditions. Methods: In order to examine the link between work overload, role clarity and emotional exhaustion moderated by task interdependence and self-efficacy, we used survey data from 701 Romanian employees at a large information technology company, who worked from home during COVID-19. We employed regression-based path analysis to examine the hypothesized relations. Findings & value added: The results reveal that role clarity partially mediates the relation between work overload and emotional exhaustion while teleworking during COVID-19. Moreover, the results from the moderated mediation analysis show that role clarity, self-efficacy, and task interdependence interact in their effects on emotional exhaustion. This study has important theoretical and managerial implications for employee well-being that go beyond the pandemic. As this study shows, when high levels of workload and task interdependence cannot be avoided, employees’ personal (self-efficacy) and job (role clarity) resources might be particularly useful to reduce their exhaustion while teleworking. Based on these results, managers can design better jobs for remote workers and more flexible work arrangements in the future.

Keywords: teleworking during COVID-19; emotional exhaustion; role clarity; task interdependence; work overload (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D23 J81 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pes:ieroec:v:12:y:2021:i:2:p:269-306

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