Job characteristics, role stress and mental health

We propose and evaluate a model of mental health in the workplace. Based on Warr's (1987) distinction between job-related and context-free mental health, we hypothesize that indices of job-related affective well-being (work satisfaction, emotional exhaustion and depersonalization) and subjective competence (personal accomplishments at work) mediate the relationships between job characteristics and role stressors on the one hand, and mental health on the other. Confirmatory path analysis of responses from 720 hospital employees showed that all but 4 of the 20 hypothesized effects were significant in the expected direction, and the model provided a good fit to the data. Moreover, the proposed model fits the data better than both a non-mediational model and a model positing an alternate causal sequence. Results are interpreted as providing support for the mediational role of job-related well-being. Some directions for future research linking work and mental health are discussed.