The Role of Off-Job Crafting in Burnout Prevention during COVID-19 Crisis: A Longitudinal Study

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic and remote working challenge employees’ possibilities to recover from work during their off-job time. We examined the relationship between off-job crafting and burnout across the COVID-19 crisis. We used a longitudinal research design, comprising one wave collected before the onset of the pandemic, in March 2019 (T1), and one wave collected during the first lockdown of the crisis in April 2020 (T2). We measured the six off-job crafting dimensions (Crafting for Detachment, Relaxation, Autonomy, Mastery, Meaning, and Affiliation) and burnout (fatigue/exhaustion) via a questionnaire among German and Swiss employees (N = 658; Age M = 47; 55% male). We found that both burnout levels and crafting for affiliation significantly decreased at T2 compared to T1. All off-job crafting dimensions and burnout correlated negatively cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Regression analyses showed that employees who crafted in their off-job time before and during the crisis experienced fewer burnout complaints during the crisis. Looking more closely at the subdimensions of off-job crafting, employees who crafted for detachment before and during, and for affiliation before the crisis, reported less burnout during the crisis. We conclude that off-job crafting may act as a buffer mechanism against burnout during the COVID-19 crisis.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind? A Longitudinal Investigation of Smart Working and Burnout in the Context of the Job Demands–Resources Model during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Additionally, our study suggests that interventions should also be aimed at the identification and training of those workers who are particularly at risk of burnout, including smart workers (i.e., secondary prevention). From this perspective, interventions could be directed towards the replenishment of resources that are depleted at work (e.g., by fostering recovery), the proactive modification of job characteristics (e.g., through job crafting) and the effective management of the boundary between work and non-work domains [127]. First, based on the idea that resources built during leisure time may spill over into the working life, individuals should be encouraged to proactively create changes in their non-working lives (i.e., off-job crafting), whose favorable effects may in turn manifest at work [127].…”

“…From this perspective, interventions could be directed towards the replenishment of resources that are depleted at work (e.g., by fostering recovery), the proactive modification of job characteristics (e.g., through job crafting) and the effective management of the boundary between work and non-work domains [127]. First, based on the idea that resources built during leisure time may spill over into the working life, individuals should be encouraged to proactively create changes in their non-working lives (i.e., off-job crafting), whose favorable effects may in turn manifest at work [127]. For example, employees should learn the benefits of mentally "switching off" from one's work-related thoughts during off-job time (i.e., detachment), as well as the importance of being closely related and emotionally connected to relevant others-such as family members or friends-when not working (i.e., affiliation) [128].…”

“…For example, employees should learn the benefits of mentally "switching off" from one's work-related thoughts during off-job time (i.e., detachment), as well as the importance of being closely related and emotionally connected to relevant others-such as family members or friends-when not working (i.e., affiliation) [128]. A recent study suggested that detachment and affiliation may be useful in replenishing psychophysical resources usually depleted at work, thus contributing to preventing burnout [127]. Second, interventions should be aimed at promoting job crafting, meaning that workers are encouraged to proactively optimize their own job design [129], for example, by increasing structural job resources (e.g., seeking greater clarity of tasks, in which roles and tasks are well-defined).…”

Müdigkeit, Fatigue und Erschöpfung: Alles das Gleiche oder Ausprägungen eines Kontinuums? – Ein Diskussionsanstoß

“…Erschöpfung ist gekennzeichnet durch eine Verringerung der kognitiven und emotionalen Ressourcen sowie ein niedriges Energieniveau und eine Abnahme der Leistungsfähigkeit Pijpker et al. (2022) [ 42 ] n = 658 CBI ( α = 0,85–0,87) Chronische Erschöpfung durch arbeitsbezogenes Burnout führt zur mentalen Distanzierung von der Arbeit, was die Sinnhaftigkeit und Erfüllung der psychologischen Bedürfnisse beeinträchtigen kann. Burnout ist das Ergebnis hoher Anforderungen und bedingt geringe körperliche, psychische und berufliche Leistungen Poole and Spies (2021) [ 43 ] n = 81 OFER ( α = 0,85) Erschöpfung/Chronische Fatigue entsteht durch fehlende Adaption und ist charakterisiert durch verringertes Interesse und verringerte Motivation Stussman et al.…”

Crafting work-nonwork balance involving life domain boundaries: Development and validation of a novel scale across five countries

“…Finally, the COVID-19 crisis, with mandatory home office regulations and lockdowns, has intensified this development (Cho, 2020;Vaziri et al, 2020;Rudolph et al, 2021). Proactive work designs including crafting are suggested as helpful strategies during this pandemic (Wang et al, 2020;Brauchli et al, 2022;Pijpker et al, 2022). Empirical evidence also highlights the importance of WNB for the well-being and health of employees (for reviews see Casper et al, 2018;Sirgy and Lee, 2018).…”