Study questions on examination literature
Work & Performance Course 2021-2022
These study questions are intended to help you study the examination literature of the Master’s
course “Work & Performance”. The questions below could be full or partial examination questions
about the arti
cles concerned.
Schaufeli & Taris (2014)
Schaufeli, W.B. & Taris, T.W. (2014). A critical review of the Job Demands-Resources Model:
Implications for improving work and health. In G. Bauer & O. Hämmig (Eds), Bridging occupational,
organizational and public health (pp. 43-68). Dordrecht: Springer.
1. Mention several similarities and differences between the Job Demands-Resources model on
the one hand, and the Job Demands Control model and the Effort-Reward Imbalance model on
the other.
JD-R model: it predicts that long-term excessive job demands from which employees do not
adequately recover may lead to sustained activation and overtaxing. Besides, a lack of resources
precludes that job demands are met and that work goals are reached, which leads to withdrawal
behavior. Both increase the risk for a burnout. The revised JD-R model adds that job resources
increase work engagement and that work engagement and burnout both have an effect on work
outcomes, such as health and productivity.
Job Demands Control model: It expects that when job control gets lower and job demands get higher
there is an increase in job strain (strain hypothesis). In addition, if job control gets higher and job
demands get higher as well, there is more active learning (active learning hypothesis).
Similarities:
- In JD-R, Job resources may act as a buffer on the negative effect of job demands (which is
similar to the strain hypothesis).
- In JD-R, when work load and resources are high this may increase work engagement (which is
similar to the active learning hypothesis).
Dissimilarities:
- Job control is more specific than job resources job resources is broader.
- JD-R goes beyond the Job demand control model in a sense that it predicts health outcomes
and that it not only lead to job train, but can cause a burnout.
- JD-R predicts that job resources are related to burnout symptoms as well and eventually lead
to certain work outcomes.
Effort-Reward Imbalance model: is about the balance between efforts spent and rewards
(money/appreciation) received at work. When there is a mismatch between high efforts spent and
low rewards received will have a negative impact on one’s health. You are so committed in the job
that you do so much that you lose the balance in your job. So you are overcommitted and this will
eventually lead to negative health and work outcomes.
- More specific than JD-R model in a sense that rewards is a specific resource and effort can be
seen as job demand.
- Similar in its statement that job resources can act as a buffer against job demands
- Also assumes that high effort spent (high job demands) and low rewards received (job
resources) will increase the risk for negative (health) problems.
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,2. Explain the differences between the original JD-R model and the revised JD-R model.
The revised model sees burnout as one aspect and not as two (exhaustion and disengagement).
Besides, it adds that job resources lead to work engagement which can be seen as a positive
psychological state. Job resources increase the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation which increases a
positive, fulfilling, work-related state of mind (i.e. work engagement). It also assumes that burnout
and work engagement lead to work outcomes (health and productivity). It assumes that burnout will
lead to health problems such as depression, cardiovascular disease, or psychosomatic complaints.
3. The focus of the revised JD-R model is on two processes: the health impairment process and
the motivational process. Describe these processes.
The health impairment process is the process in which high job demands increase the risk for
burnout, decreasing the risk for positive work outcomes (health/productivity). Burnout has thus a
mediating role between job demands and health/work outcomes. The motivational process expect
that job resources increase work engagement, which has a positive effect on work outcomes.
4. Describe the revised JD-R model and explain the concepts used.
Work engagement refers to a positive, fulfilling, work-related state of mind that is characterized by
vigor (that is, high levels of energy and mental resilience while working), dedication (referring to a
sense of significance, enthusiasm, and challenge) and absorption (being focused and happily
engrossed in one’s work)
5. It is concluded from the cross-sectional evidence for the JD-R model that: “the joint effect of
job demands and job resources on burnout and engagement adds little beyond their additive
effects” (p. 48). Explain what the authors mean by this.
Mean effects drive the results and you might find these interactions and you would theoretical
expect them, but in practical you would not find them, because they add little variance. Thus, Job
demand moderate/interact the effect of each other is negligible. If you expect an interaction effect in
a survey study you need a large sample and a power analysis is quite important
There is no buffer effect: that high resources protect against burnout, whereas low resources has no
effect. Resources are in this case a buffer (it protects against the negative effect of high job demand).
The crossover effect: that the effect is reversed (it is literally a cross).
6. In recent developments of the JD-R model, personal resources are also included in the model.
Explain what personal resources are and describe three ways in which they can be
incorporated in the JD-R model.
The older JD-R models only consist characteristics of the work environment. However, it is assumed
that human behavior results from an interaction between personal and environmental factors and
therefore personal resources would be integrated in the JD-R model.
Personal resources are defined as the psychological characteristics or aspects of the self that are
generally associated with resiliency and that refer to the ability to control and impact one’s
environment successfully.
- Personal resources may directly impact well-being. As personal resources are defined in
terms of resiliency and control, they may reduce burnout and increase engagement.
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, - It may moderate the relation between job characteristics and well-being: it may be a buffer
negative effects of job demands on burnout and exacerbate positive effects of job resources
on engagement.
- Personal resources mediate the relation between job characteristics and well-being.
Resourceful environments are likely to develop feelings of self-confidence and optimism
about their future work. In turn, these personal resources will be positively related to work
engagement.
- Personal resources influence the perception of job characteristics they shape the way
people understand their environment.
- Personal resources act as a third variable: personal resources may affect both perception of
job characteristics and employee well-being.
7. Some longitudinal studies showed that a gain spiral (or gain cycle) exists between job
resources or personal resources and work engagement. Explain what a gain spiral is and give
an example of such a gain spiral.
For a gain spiral/gain cycle to exist, there should not only be reciprocal causation but one variable
(e.g., a specific job demand) should also increase the level of another variable (work engagement),
and vice versa.
Work engagement has a positive impact on personal resources and personal resources increase well-
being (work engagement). Resiliency and control may reduce burnout and increase engagement. But
work engagement itself may also increase the perception of resiliency and control over time. Thus
the (perceived) availability of personal resources foster work engagement, which in turn has an
positive effect on the (presence/perception) of personal resources.
8. In recent developments, job demands are subdivided into “challenges” and “hindrances”.
Explain the difference between these types of job demands and provide examples. How will
challenges and hindrances influence the occurrence of work engagement and burnout?
Challenges: workload, time pressure, responsibility
Hindrances: role conflict, role ambiguity and ‘red tape’
Challenges have the potential to promote mastery, personal growth, and future gain, whereas
hindrances could thwart personal growth, learning and goal attainment. Both types are positively
related to burnout. Hindrances relate negatively to work engagement and challenges positive.
9. A point of criticism concerning the JD-R model is its heuristic character. The demands,
resources and outcomes contained in the model can vary strongly between studies.
Substantiate why you do or do not consider this to be a problem.
The model does not include a specific set of particular demands, resources, mental states, and
outcomes and therefore previous research used quit different concepts. This is both a strength as
well as a weakness of the model.
Strength:
- it can be used in many different contexts because it is so broad.
- It provides a good description of the way demands, resources, psychological states, and
outcomes are associated.
Weakness:
- Generalizability is limited, that one relation between a specific demand and mental state is
found, does not mean that it account for all demands and all mental states.
- Often an additional explanatory theoretical framework is needed to argue why particular.
demand interact with particular resources; and therefore only provide limited insight into the
psychological mechanisms involved.
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, 10. In principle, the JD-R model is a model for research at individual level, but it can also be applied
to research at team level. Explain what requirements the measurements of demands,
resources and outcomes must meet according to Schaufeli and Taris.
Compatibility principle: all variables in the model must be operationalized at the same level of
specificity. So, collective constructs (e.g., team resources) should be studied in relation to other
collective constructs (e.g., team engagement or team performance). For example, by referring to
team level instead of individual when operationalizing the constructs (e.g., referring to “my team”
instead of “I”).
11. Schaufeli and Taris emphasise that the JD-R model is a continuation and integration of previous
theories and models, but that it cannot replace those models. Explain the reason for this.
It complements (and in a sense encompasses and integrates) previous approaches and ideas
concerning the relationship between work characteristics. Its generality comes at the cost of lack of
specificity. So, other theoretical frameworks are needed to account for the associations between
specific demands, resources and outcomes. It is a simple framework that informs researchers roughly
about the association among concepts, but to understand the precise mechanisms underlying the
associations more specific frameworks are needed.
De Jonge, Spoor, Sonnentag, Dormann & Van den Tooren (2012)
1. Describe the Demand-Induced Strain Compensation model.
The DISC-model propose that job demands, job resources and job-related outcomes exist of three
components: cognitive, emotional and physical elements. It predicts that high job demands may have
a negative effect on health and well-being and that job resources can act as a buffer against these
negative outcomes. Thereby it assumes that matching job resources are more powerful in combating
particular job demands.
2. Explain what is meant with the principle of multidimensionality and the principle of matching
in the DISC-model.
The strongest health effect when demands and resources match. For instance: emotionally
supportive colleagues will be more effective in jobs with high emotional job demands in preventing
negative (emotional) outcomes. In addition, employees in jobs with high emotional demands in their
job are better off avoiding engagement in off-job activities that put high demands op the same
system. So detachment of the emotional system is most effective in preventing emotional outcomes
in case of high emotional detachment. Same for cognitive (high cognitive demands don’t read
books after work) and physical (better take physical rest instead of going to the gym).
3. The Triple Match Principle is an important principle in the DISC-model which is not explained in
the present article. Find out elsewhere (e.g., in Peeters, De Jonge & Taris, 2012) what this
principle is, and describe it.
This is the match between the demand resource outcome.
So, high physical demands and low physical resources increases the risk for physical outcomes.
4. Describe the role of recovery in the extended DISC-R model.
Recovery can be seen as an internal resource. It assumes that employees need to detach from work
to ‘recover’ from work, which in turn prevent negative health outcomes. The most effective
detachment matches to the demands.
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