Original Article
Protecting Job Performance and Well-Being in the Demanding Work Context: The Moderating Effect of Psychological Detachment for Chinese Employees
Luo Lu,
Chun Yi Chou,
Corresponding Author
Luo Lu
National Taiwan University, Republic of China
Address for correspondence: Professor Luo Lu, Department of Business Administration, National Taiwan University, No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei 106, Taiwan, ROC. E-mail: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorLuo Lu,
Chun Yi Chou,
Corresponding Author
Luo Lu
National Taiwan University, Republic of China
Address for correspondence: Professor Luo Lu, Department of Business Administration, National Taiwan University, No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei 106, Taiwan, ROC. E-mail: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorThis work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan, ROC, under Grant MOST106-2410-H-002-197-SS2.
Abstract
The aim of this study was twofold: first, to examine the lasting effects of working hours on later job performance and well-being (i.e. emotional exhaustion and work engagement); second, to delineate the protective role of psychological detachment in the highly demanding Chinese work setting featuring long working hours. We employed a panel design in which all variables were measured twice, with six months in between the waves. Data were obtained from 323 Chinese employees working in diverse industries in Taiwan. Analysing the panel data with structural equation modelling (SEM) techniques, we found that working hours were positively associated with emotional exhaustion and negatively associated with work engagement and job performance, measured six months later. Detachment moderated the effects of working hours on later work engagement and job performance. Specifically, detachment attenuated the negative relationships between working hours and work engagement and job performance. The present study extends the recovery research in the West by demonstrating the protective role of detachment in the East Asian societies with important managerial implications.
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