Job Demands-Resources Model of Burnout and Engagement: The Role of Regulatory Foci

The Job Demands-Resources (J-DR) model has been widely used for explaining antecedent conditions and their pathways to burnout and engagement. This study aimed at examining the moderating role of promotion and prevention regulatory foci in extending this model. Prevention focus was hypothesized to primarily moderate the relation between job demands and burnout whereas promotion focus was hypothesized to primarily moderate the relation between job resources and engagement. The hypotheses were tested using data from the computer aided telephone interviews of 151 randomly selected full-time working adults across the occupational categories of managers, professionals, clerks and service workers in Hong Kong. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and regression analysis. It was found that prevention focus had a significant moderating effect on the relation between job demands and burnout. Contrary to expectations, both promotion and prevention foci moderated the relation between job resources and engagement. Results suggest preliminary support for the proposed hypotheses to the extent that the moderating effects of prevention and promotion regulatory foci reflect the role of individual differences in appraising both threats and opportunities. Implications of results are discussed for employee well-being in the workplace.