Types of demands and well-being in correctional officers: The protective role of psychological capital

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Okros, Norberth^{a; 1} | Vîrgă, Delia^{a; 1; *} | Lazăr, Theofild-Andrei^b

Affiliations: [a] Department of Psychology, West University of Timisoara, Timisoara, Romania | [b] Department of Social Work, West University of Timisoara, Timisoara, Romania

Correspondence: [*] Address for correspondence: Delia Vîrgă, Ph.D., Full Professor, Department of Psychology, West University of Timisoara, Bv. Vasile Parvan, no. 4, Timisoara, 300223, Romania. Email: [email protected].; ORCID 0000-0002-9321-4520.

Note: [1] The first two authors contributed equally to the research.

Abstract: BACKGROUND:Correctional officers’ personal resources, such as psychological capital (PsyCap), may help them better manage their work environment in the penitentiary; however, there is limited research on the relationship between indicators of well-being and types of demands in this cohort and whether this relationship depends on PsyCap. OBJECTIVE:The aim of this study was to examine three types of demands (job, personal, and group) and the effect of each on three indicators of low well-being: burnout, physical and mental health complaints. We also tested the potential moderating role of PsyCap in the relationship between the three types of demands and indicators of well-being. METHODS:The potential moderating role of personal resources (PsyCap) between demands and well-being was tested via hierarchical multiple regression on a sample of 350 correctional officers. RESULTS:Results show that psychological capital attenuates the effect of personal distress and negative team relationships on all three indicators of low well-being. Psychological capital also moderates the relation between work-family conflict and mental health complaints. However, it does not act as a moderator between work-family conflict and burnout or physical health complaints. CONCLUSIONS:The findings are of value because they emphasize the importance of psychological capital, as a personal and malleable resource, for the occupational health of correctional officers.

Keywords: Correctional officers, demands, psychological capital, personal resources, well-being

DOI: 10.3233/WOR-205100

Journal: Work, vol. 73, no. 1, pp. 165-180, 2022