Extension of Working Hours: An Explaining Mechanism Why Workload Leads to Exhaustion?

• In Event: Sources of Stress and Strategies for Coping

Abstract

The Job Demands-Resources Theory (Bakker & Demerouti, 2014) provides a sound theoretical foundation for investigating occupational health in the teaching profession. However, the model falls short in understanding the underlying mechanisms. The paper examines the health impairment process by theoretically combining the JD-R theory with transactional stress theory (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984) and extension of working hours as a coping strategy (Deci et al., 2016). The main research question is whether extending working hours as an attempt to actively deal with job demands mediates the relationship between job demands and exhaustion. Based on a longitudinal survey of K-12 teachers in Switzerland (N=533) structural equation models were carried out including the influence of resources (autonomy, relatedness, competence) on this process.

Author

• Anita Sandmeier, Schwyz University of Teacher Education