Does Workload Moderate the Association Between Perfectionism and Workaholism?
A Longitudinal Study
Abstract
Abstract. The aim of this study is to examine, with a longitudinal design, the moderating role of workload in the relationship between perfectionism and workaholism. It was hypothesized that self-oriented perfectionism (SOP) and socially prescribed perfectionism (SPP) predict an increase in workaholism and that workload may exacerbate this association. Four hundred and thirty workers completed a self-report questionnaire at two different time points, and the hypothesized relationships were tested using structural equation modeling. Overall, SOP and SPP were not associated with workaholism over time. The interaction between SOP, but not SPP, and workload was significant. SOP predicted an increase in workaholism over time in workers facing high workload. Accordingly, SOP may be a risk factor for workaholism when workload is high.
References
2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
(2014). Workaholism: An overview and current status of the research. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 3, 1–11. 10.1556/JBA.2.2013.017
(2017). Working conditions and individual differences are weakly associated with workaholism: A 2–3-year prospective study of shift-working nurses. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 2045. 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02045
(2014). A heavy work investment typology: A biopsychosocial framework. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 29, 81–99. 10.1108/JMP-05-2013-0140
(2015). Confirmatory factor analysis for applied research (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
(1993). Symptoms and traits of personality disorder: Two new methods for their assessment. Psychological Assessment, 5, 81–91. 10.1037/1040-3590.5.1.81
(2016). All work and no play? A meta-analytic examination of the correlates and outcomes of workaholism. Journal of Management, 42, 1836–1873. 10.1177/0149206314522301
(2013). Stress, benessere organizzativo e performance. Valutazione & intervento per l’azienda positiva [Stress, organizational well-being, and performance. Evaluation and interventions for a positive organization]. Milano, IT: FrancoAngeli.
(2004). Shedding light on the relationship between personal standards and psychopathology: The case for contingent self-worth. Journal of Rational-Emotive and Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 22, 237–250. 10.1023/B:JORE.0000047310.94044.ac
(2000). Subjective well-being: The science of happiness and a proposal for a national index. American Psychologist, 55, 34–43. 10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.34
(2018). Cognitive-behavioral treatment for perfectionism. In J. Stoeber (Ed.), The psychology of perfectionism: Theory, research, applications (pp. 44–67). London, UK: Routledge.
(2010). Applied missing data analysis. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
(2017). Why is perfectionism a risk factor for workaholism? The mediating role of irrational beliefs at work. TPM – Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 24, 583–600. 10.4473/TPM24.4.8
(2012). Una nuova scala di misura degli effetti psico-fisici dello stress lavoro-correlato in una prospettiva d'integrazione di metodi [A new scale for measuring the psycho-physical effects of work-related stress in a perspective of methods integration]. La Medicina del Lavoro, 103, 288–308.
(2014). “The best or nothing”: The mediating role of workaholism in the relationship between perfectionism and burnout. TPM – Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 21, 213–232. 10.4473/TPM21.2.7
(2002). Perfectionism and maladjustment: An overview of theoretical, definitional, and treatment issues. In G. L. FlettP. L. Hewitt (Eds.), Perfectionism: Theory, research, and treatment (pp. 5–31). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
(2008). Perfectionism, distress, and irrational beliefs in high school students: Analyses with an abbreviated survey of personal beliefs for adolescents. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, 26, 194–205. 10.1007/s10942-007-0066-1
(1990). The dimensions of perfectionism. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 14, 449–468. 10.1007/BF01172967
(2018). The 2 × 2 model of perfectionism: Assumptions, trends, and potential developments. In J. Stoeber (Ed.), The psychology of perfectionism: Theory, research, applications (pp. 44–67). London, UK: Routledge.
(2019). Is workaholism associated with inflammatory response? The moderating role of work engagement. TPM – Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 26, 305–322. 10.4473/TPM26.2.9
(2018). Perfectionism and workaholism in managers: The moderating role of workload. TPM – Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 25, 571–588. 10.4473/TPM25.4.7
(2015). Perfectionism and presenteeism among managers of a service organization: The mediating role of workaholism. TPM – Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 22, 507–521. 10.4473/TPM22.4.5
(1991). Perfectionism in the self and social contexts: Conceptualization, assessment, and association with psychopathology. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 60, 456–470. 10.1037/0022-3514.60.3.456
(2018). Examining the longitudinal effects of workload on ill-being through each dimension of workaholism. International Journal of Stress Management, 25, 144–162. 10.1037/str0000055
(2018). semTools: Useful tools for structural equation modeling. R package version 0.5-1. Retrieved from https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=semTools
(2014). Workaholism and work engagement in the family: The relationship between parents and children as a risk factor. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 23, 875–883. 10.1080/1359432X.2013.832208
(2010). Workaholism among management and workers in an Italian cooperative enterprise. TPM – Testing, Psychometrics, Methodology in Applied Psychology, 17, 201–216. 10.4473/TPM.17.4.2
(2009). Personality traits and personal and organizational inducements: Antecedents of workaholism. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 37, 645–660. 10.2224/sbp.2009.37.5.645
(2013). Longitudinal structural equation modeling. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
(2017). Clinical conceptualization of workaholism: A comprehensive model. Organizational Psychology Review, 7, 306–329. 10.1177/2041386617734299
(2013). Structural equation models of latent interaction and quadratic effects. In G. R. HancockR. O. Mueller (Eds.), Structural equation modeling: A second course (2nd ed., pp. 267–308). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
(2013). Workaholism as a risk factor for depressive mood, disabling back pain, and sickness absence. PLoS One, 8, e75140. 10.1371/journal.pone.0075140
(2018). Are workaholism and work engagement in the eye of the beholder? A multirater perspective on different forms of working hard. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 34, 30–40. 10.1027/1015-5759/a000318
(2008). The wellsprings of workaholism: A comparative analysis of the explanatory theories. In R. J. BurkeC. L. Cooper (Eds.), The long work hours culture: Causes, consequences and choices (pp. 85–111). Bingley, UK: Emerald.
(2007). Dimensions, antecedents, and consequences of workaholism: A conceptual integration and extension. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 28, 111–136. 10.1002/job.424
(1996). Organizational impact of workaholism: Suggestions for researching the negative outcomes of excessive work. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 1, 70–84. 10.1037/1076-8998.1.1.70
(2018). R: A language and environment for statistical computing [Computer software]. Vienna, Austria: R Foundation for Statistical Computing.
(2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55, 68–78. 10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68
(2016). Your work may be killing you! Workaholism, sleep problems and cardiovascular risk. Work & Stress, 30, 228–242. 10.1080/02678373.2016.1203373
(2016). Heavy work investment, personality and organizational climate. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 31, 1057–1073. 10.1108/JMP-07-2015-0259
(2008). It takes two to tango: Workaholism is working excessively and working compulsively. In R. J. BurkeC. L. Cooper (Eds.), The long work hours culture: Causes, consequences and choices (pp. 203–225). Bingley, UK: Emerald.
(1997). An exploration of the meaning and consequences of workaholism. Human Relations, 50, 287–314. 10.1023/A:1016986307298
(2001). Perfectionism and psychopathology: A review of research and treatment. Clinical Psychology Review, 21, 879–906. 10.1016/S0272-7358(00)00072-6
(2015). Workaholism vs. work engagement: The two different predictors of future well-being and performance. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 22, 18–23. 10.1007/s12529-014-9410-x
(2012). Beyond workaholism: Towards a general model of heavy work investment. Human Resource Management Review, 22, 232–243. 10.1016/j.hrmr.2011.11.011
(1992). Workaholism: Definition, measurement, and preliminary results. Journal of Personality Assessment, 58, 160–178. 10.1207/s15327752jpa5801_15
(2016). Perfectionism in employees: Work engagement, workaholism, and burnout. In F. M. SiroisD. S. Molnar (Eds.), Perfectionism, health, and well-being (pp. 265–283). Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing.
(2013). Perfectionism and workaholism in employees: The role of work motivation. Personality and Individual Differences, 55, 733–738. 10.1016/j.paid.2013.06.001
(2006). Positive conceptions of perfectionism: Approaches, evidence, challenges. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 10, 295–319. 10.1207/s15327957pspr1004_2
(2017). Beyond nine to five: Is working to excess bad for health? Academy of Management Discoveries, 3, 262–283. 10.5465/amd.2015.0115
(2012). For fun, love, or money: What drives workaholic, engaged, and burned-out employees at work? Applied Psychology, 61, 30–55. 10.1111/j.1464-0597.2011.00454.x
(2011). mice: Multivariate imputation by chained equations in R. Journal of Statistical Software, 45, 1–67. 10.18637/jss.v045.i03
(2014). Enough is enough: Cognitive antecedents of workaholism and its aftermath. Human Resource Management, 53, 157–177. 10.1002/hrm.21573
(2013). Irrational beliefs at work and their implications for workaholism. Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation, 23, 336–346. 10.1007/s10926-012-9416-7
(2016). Do I feel ill because I crave for work or do I crave for work because I feel ill? A longitudinal analysis of work craving, self-regulation, and health. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 5, 90–99. 10.1556/2006.5.2016.005
(