Academics' experiences of a respite from work: Effects of self-critical perfectionism and perseverative cognition on postrespite well-being.

Abstract

This is the accepted version of the paper.This version of the publication may differ from the final published version. Permanent repository link AbstractThis longitudinal study examined relations between personality and cognitive vulnerabilities and the outcomes of a respite from work. A sample of 77 academic employees responded to week-level measures of affective well-being before, during, and on two occasions after an Easter respite. When academics were classified as being either high or low in a self-critical form of perfectionism (doubts about actions) a divergent pattern of respite to post-respite effects was revealed. Specifically, during the respite, the two groups of academics experienced similar levels of well-being. However, during post-respite working weeks, the more perfectionistic academics reported significantly higher levels of fatigue, emotional exhaustion, and anxiety. The greater deterioration in well-being experienced by perfectionist academics when first returning to work was mediated by their tendency for perseverative cognition (i.e., worry and rumination) about work during the respite itself. These findings support the view that the self-critical perfectionist vulnerability is activated by direct exposure to achievement-related stressors and manifested through perseverative modes of thinking.Key words: perfectionism, recovery, well-being, burnout, worry, rumination (Eden, 2001). Extant research suggests that vacation-length respites from work are associated with an increase in employee well-being that tends to fade out within the first few weeks of work resumption (de Bloom et al., 2009(de Bloom et al., , 2010Fritz & Sonnentag, 2006). In addition, the ability to recover during briefer respites, such as evenings and weekends, has been associated with enhanced well-being and job performance on subsequent work days (Cropley & Millward Purvis, 2003;Fritz & Sonnentag, 2005).Despite recent advances in our understanding of employee recovery from a psychological perspective, some important issues remain underexplored. First, there has been little attention paid to personality variables that might influence a person's propensity to maintain any benefits accrued during time away from work. We propose that focusing on maladaptive personality dimensions (such as self-critical perfectionism) would help to identify those workers who gain fewer benefits from respites, and provide guidance on the types of intervention that might enhance leisure time experiences. A related issue concerns the nature of poor psychological detachment from work during leisure time. Researchers have tended to operationalize this construct as the degree to which employees think about work Academics' Experiences of a Respite 3 during a respite period (e.g., Copley et al., 2006; Etzion, Eden, & Lapidot, 1998;Sonnentag & Fritz, 2007). However, some studies have demonstrated that reflecting positively about work during leisure time is beneficial for well-being (Binnewies, Sonnentag, & Mojza, 2009;Fritz & Sonnentag, 2005, 2006. Thu...

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Social Activities Do not Distract Everyone from Work A Diary Study of Work-Related Perseverative Cognition

“…Individuals who face multiple stressors (e.g., time pressure and workload) are often too cognitively overwhelmed to engage in coping strategies that could help them reduce perseverative cognition (Nolen-Hoeksema et al, 1994). Therefore it fosters prolonged activation of psychological stressors and may lead to negative outcomes such as impaired concentration, negatively biased thinking, decreased recovery and depressive symptoms (Flaxman et al, 2012;Papageogiou & Siegle, 2003).…”

“…The five-item Work-related Worry and Rumination Scale (WWRS; Flaxman et al, 2012) was used (e.g., "I worried about things to do with work."). Each evening before sleep over two consecutive workweeks, participants had to indicate the extent to which a series of work-related thoughts had crossed their mind after their workday on a five-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("Not at all") to 5 ("A great deal").…”

“…Daily Work-related Perseverative Cognition (WPC) involves rumination about the past and worry about the future regarding workplace issues (Flaxman, Ménard, Kinman, & Bond, 2012). This condition drains cognitive and emotional energy as they promote prolonged activation of psychological stressors during respite periods (Brosschot, Pieper, & Thayer, 2005).…”

A Diary Study on Work-Related Perseverative Cognition and Employees’ Need for Recovery The Role of Emotional Support from Family and Neuroticism

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