The link between workplace incivility, emotional exhaustion, and job embeddedness: examining the moderating role of power distance

Abstract

PurposeIntegrating the conservation of resources theory, Hofstede's national culture theory and the cognitive-motivational-relational theory of emotions, the authors propose that power distance (as a moderator) and emotional exhaustion (as a mediator) play a role in the relationship between workplace incivility, emotional exhaustion and job embeddedness.Design/methodology/approachThe data were collected in two stages using an online survey of 404 employees from three sectors, including hospitality, banking and manufacturing, in Indonesia. The authors tested a moderated mediation model using Hayes' macro PROCESS version 3.5.FindingsWorkplace incivility contributes to emotional exhaustion, which predicts job embeddedness. Emotional exhaustion also contributes to job embeddedness. In the moderation model, the authors found that the effect of workplace incivility on emotional exhaustion was more substantial for employees with high perceived power distance. Furthermore, power distance also played a moderating role in the relationship between emotional exhaustion and job embeddedness.Practical implicationsSince workplace incivility and job embeddedness differ across cultures, the results of this study contain practical management implications for Indonesian settings, especially the hospitality, manufacturing and banking sectors. The authors provide practical management implications for redesigning organizational culture to help employees avoid uncivil interactions in the workplace. The authors also provide implications concerning strategic managerial directions to improve communication and supervisors' skills at all levels of management.Originality/valueThis study is the first to introduce power distance as a complementary explanation for the relationship between workplace incivility, emotional exhaustion and job embeddedness while focusing on an Asian developing country.

From incivility to outcomes: tracing the effects of nursing incivility on nurse well-being, patient engagement, and health outcomes

“…The positive correlation between nursing incivility and nurse stress aligns with previous research indicating that workplace incivility can lead to negative psychological outcomes and job dissatisfaction [ 71 – 75 ]. The findings here extend this understanding by quantifying the correlation and delineating the impact of different levels of incivility.…”

An Investigation on Workplace Incivility and Non-Work-Related Presenteeism in Health Care Centres

“…Experiencing workplace incivility negatively affect employee's mental health. This, in turn, can lead to non-work-related presenteeism if an employee is dealing with anxiety, depression, or other mental health challenges that affect their ability to focus on work and personal life (Gustiawan et al, 2023). Thus, present study found that workplace incivility is a strong predictor of the non-work related presenteeism, emphasizing the need of resolving uncivil workplace behavior.…”

From hurt to harmony: Investigating the impact of workplace bullying on food and beverage employees' outcomes

“…Additionally, given the current workloads and demands, the focus right now should be primarily on workplace stressors. Such pressures and strains greatly increase workplace conflict and severely lower employee morale (Gustiawan et al, 2023;Lin et al, 2023). Conflict results from the buildup of unfavourable feelings over time without an opportunity to let them go.…”