Dealing with Stress in the Workplace

Abstract. In an online questionnaire filled out by 217 employees of various organizations, we investigated the implication of belief in a just world (BJW) for work-related cognitions and behavior (e.g., emotional exhaustion), taking central work stressors (e.g., workload), as well as work stress-related resources (e.g., autonomy), into account. We argued that BJW might compensate for the negative effects of the aforementioned stressors on work-related cognitions and behavior. BJW serves adaptive psychological functions such as the following: (1) It helps the individual to interpret the events in his or her life in a meaningful way and, thus, to deal with unjust experiences. In light of this function, we hypothesized that employees with a strong BJW would experience more organizational commitment and report fewer turnover intentions, and that the influence of BJW in these areas exists over and above the influence of central stressors and work stress-related resources. A further adaptive function of BJW is that it (2) provides the individual with trust in his or her own efficacy, as well as in the social environment. Thus, we assumed that those high in BJW would estimate that they perform better in their job and show less sick presence. As a consequence of these two functions, (3) BJW fosters mental health. With respect to mental health, we expected high believers to report less emotional exhaustion and fewer symptoms of depersonalization. Results of hierarchical regression analyses confirmed our hypotheses. We argue, therefore, that BJW should be seen as a psychological resource compensating for stress in the workplace.