The chicken or the egg: The reciprocal relationship between job insecurity and mental health complaints

Yannick Griep*, Alexandra Lukic, Johannes M. Kraak, Sergio Andres Lopez Bohle, Lixin Jiang, Tinne Vander Elst, Hans De Witte

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

Abstract

To push the job insecurity literature forward, we bring together and simultaneously examine multiple theoretical frameworks to explain the direct job insecurity-mental health relationship and the reciprocal mental health-job insecurity relationship. Using 3-wave survey data, with a six-month time lag, from 1994 employees, we found that the stability of job insecurity from Time 1 to Time 2 was positively related to stress and social exchange mechanisms, as well as mental health complaints at Time 3. We also found that the stability of mental health complaints from Time 1 to Time 2 was positively related to the conservation of resources mechanism of absenteeism, as well as to perceptions of job insecurity at Time 3. Moreover, the stability of absenteeism over time was positively related to perceptions of job insecurity at Time 3. We discuss implications for the job insecurity literature, as well as make suggestions for future research and practical implications.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)170-186
Number of pages17
JournalJournal of Business Research
Volume126
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2021
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Job insecurity
  • Mental health
  • Recursive model
  • Longitudinal study

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