Work-related extended availability, psychological detachment, and interindividual differences: A cross-lagged panel study

Abstract

Work-related extended availability (WREA) refers to employees being available for work-related matters during leisure time. Although studies have suggested negative effects of WREA on employee health, there is a scarcity of longitudinal research especially studies trying to disentangle how WREA may impact health. Moreover, there are only few studies dealing with interindividual differences in the effects of WREA on health. These aspects are crucial as they can help laying a foundation for interventions that help coming to terms with negative effects of WREA. The current study implemented a cross-lagged panel design with three waves to clarify how effects of WREA unfold and whether there are interindividual differences. Based on the stressor-detachment-model and person-environmental-fit theory, we proposed that (1) the relationship between WREA and sleep as well as between WREA and exhaustion is mediated by psychological detachment, and (2) that the relationship between WREA and the outcomes is moderated by segmentation preferences. In total, 528 employees (320 women, mean age = 48 years) participated in the study. Although there was a cross-lagged negative association between WREA and detachment, we did not find an indirect relationship between WREA and either sleep or exhaustion via detachment. Moreover, we did not find evidence for interindividual differences in the effects of WREA on any of the outcomes. On the basis of the negative cross-lagged relationship between WREA and detachment from work, we recommend organizations to discourage employees from WREA, because failure to regularly recover from work may lead to health issues in the long run.

When the exception becomes the norm: A quantitative analysis of the dark side of work from home

“…WFH). Employees have access to work content on different (mobile) devices and are able to constantly stay connected with work issues (Thörel et al, 2021; Wang et al, 2020). At the same time, these new manners of communication do not provide the same level of information and social presence as face-to-face communication (Marshall et al, 2007).…”

Implementation of Computer-Aided Piano Music Automatic Notation Algorithm in Psychological Detoxification

“…More and more automatic notation methods have been proposed because the abstractness and richness of music make the music generated by the notation method in the composition process have little causality with the input. On this basis, the research on hiding carrier-free information using this characteristic has essential [ 6 ]. The study of the use of this feature to hide carrier-free details is of great value.…”

Boundaryless working hours and recovery in Germany

“…Thus, we cannot rule out reverse relationships, for example, people with recovery problems are more readily available for work in off-job time. Evidence for such a relationship is, for example, provided by the longitudinal study of Thörel et al ( 2021 ), in which a reciprocal relationship between extended work availability and psychological detachment was found. Although cross-sectional data have frequently been used in studies that investigated both the mediating and moderating role of a construct (e.g., Safstrom and Hartig 2013 ; Wu et al 2012 ), future studies could use other research designs, such as longitudinal studies using different time lags or well-controlled intervention studies with a systematic manipulation of boundaryless working hours and/or recovery experiences.…”