Consistent with insights from both trait and social cognitive theories, this study presents a theoretical model positing emotional self-efficacy beliefs in managing negative emotions at work as a key mechanism that contributes to mediate the negative relationship between emotional stabilitya trait highly associated with positive affect and mental healthand job burnout. To test this assertion, a two-wave study using a representative sample of 416 new military cadets of an Italian military academy was designed. Military cadets were involved in the study 2 months after their entrance into the academy and then again, a year later. Results from structural equation modelling supported the hypothesized model. As predicted, self-efficacy beliefs in managing negative emotions at work significantly mediated the longitudinal relation between emotional stability and job burnout, even after controlling for the effect of the other Big Five traits, education, previous experience in military contexts, gender, and age. Practical implications and directions for future research are discussed. In conclusion, our study demonstrates that self-efficacy in managing negative emotions at work represents an important mechanism linking emotional stability level to burnout symptoms. Practitioner pointsSelf-efficacy in managing negative emotions at work proved to be an important resource for workers in managing job-related stress: practitioners interested in reducing burnout symptoms in stressful working environments should take into account this variable. Self-efficacy beliefs in managing negative emotions at work are cognitive structures malleable to change. Literature on social cognitive theory offers several suggestions on how to promote individuals' positive beliefs on managing negative emotions and dysphoric affect. Hence, findings and literature reported in this study may be useful for practitioners aiming at strengthen workers' self-efficacy in managing negative emotions at work, through the development and application of coaching and training programmes.

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Global self-esteem represents a protective personal resource lowering the risk of psychological distress. Research conducted in the work setting has confirmed the psychosocial benefits of high self-esteem. However, research linking self-esteem to neurobiological adaptability appears quite scarce. In this study, we propose a theoretical model in which self-esteem predicts work-related exhaustion indirectly, through the mediation of heart rate variability (HRV) and negative affect at work. Moreover, we explore the relationship between self-esteem and HRV. From one side, one would expect a positive link between self-esteem and HRV, signaling higher autonomic adaptability. However, recent studies have shown that in women, such associations become more complex, with even reversed patterns as compared with that in men. Thus, we included sex as a moderator of the relationship between HRV and self-esteem. The model was tested on a sample of 110 individuals working in the relational professions (54% males; Mage = 42.6, SD = 13.73), observed for an entire workday. Results confirmed the protective role of self-esteem against the experience of negative affect and (indirectly) work-related exhaustion. Symptoms of exhaustion at work were also negatively predicted by HRV, and both HRV and negative affect acted as mediators of the relationship between self-esteem and work-related exhaustion. Notably, sex differences emerged in the association between global self-esteem and cardiac vagal tone at work: in women, self-esteem was negatively related to HRV, which in turn led to higher work-related exhaustion, whereas in men, no evidence of this indirect effect appeared. Burnout prevention programs should not ignore important sex differences in how individuals respond to work-related stress.

The detrimental role of incongruent self-esteem has been corroborated. Practical implications and suggestions for future research dealing with stress in a university setting were provided.