Being mindful at work and at home: Buffering effects in the stressor–detachment model

Abstract

In this daily diary study, we examined the moderating role of employee domain‐specific mindfulness within the stressor–detachment model (Sonnentag & Fritz, , Journal of Organizational Behavior, 36, 72). According to the stressor–detachment model, emotional and quantitative demands should be associated with decreased psychological detachment after work, which in turn is associated with decreased well‐being (i.e., low positive affect and high negative affect) at bedtime. Moreover, we proposed that both mindfulness at work and home should buffer the relations between job demands and psychological detachment and between psychological detachment and well‐being. Sixty‐five employees completed two daily surveys (i.e., after work and before going to bed) over five workdays. Results of multilevel analyses revealed that job demands did not predict psychological detachment, which in turn did not predict well‐being at bedtime. However, the relation between emotional demands and psychological detachment was buffered by both mindfulness at work and at home while the relation between quantitative demands and psychological detachment was moderated by mindfulness at home only. Moreover, we found that mindfulness at home moderated the relation between psychological detachment and positive affect at bedtime. Our study demonstrates the buffering role of daily mindfulness within the stressor–detachment model and highlights the value of considering domain‐specific mindfulness. Practitioner points Being mindful at work and at home buffers the negative relationships between job demands and psychological detachment after work. Promoting mindfulness both in the work and home domain can help employees psychologically detach from work despite high job demands.

The Role of Trait and State Perfectionism in Psychological Detachment From Daily Job Demands

“…However, it seems that findings regarding the association between specific job stressors and detachment stemming from diary studies differ from cross-sectional findings (Sonnentag, 2018). In diary research and consistent with our findings, some stressors predict psychological detachment (e.g., self-control demands; Germeys & De Gieter, 2018), whereas some stressors do not-or at least not linearly (e.g., time pressure; Haun, Nübold, & Bauer, 2018).…”

Psychological Detachment from Work during Nonwork Time and Employee Well-Being: The Role of Leader’s Detachment

“…For instance, when subordinates experience low job involvement they might be less affected by their leaders' level of psychological detachment from work. Moreover, subordinate mindfulness might play a role as well (Haun, Nübold, & Bauer, 2018). When subordinates are highly mindful they might find it more easy to detach from work during nonwork time, even when their leaders stay mentally connected to work.…”

From Role Conflict to Job Burnout: A Mediation Model Moderated by Mindfulness

“…Valuable or instrumental personal characteristics include mindfulness, as it can be a coping skill for employees to deal with stressors at work (Jacobs & Blustein, 2008). Indeed, several studies have examined positive effects of mindfulness on occupational health among workers (i.e., Haun, Nübold, & Bauer, 2018; Hülsheger, Alberts, Feinholdt, & Lang, 2013). For example, mindfulness reduced negative career thoughts (Galles, Lenz, Peterson, & Sampson, 2019).…”

“…This tendency may make mindful individuals evaluate role conflict as less harmful than their counterparts because they try to view situations evincing role conflict nonjudgmentally and objectively. Reinterpretation of the situation (Shapiro et al, 2006) may permit workers to avoid the development of negative emotions by detaching themselves from the situation (Haun et al, 2018). Indeed, Long and Christian (2015) found that mindfulness reduced the effect of injustice on negative emotion.…”