With the aim of investigating the possible moderating effect of job control and dispositional mindfulness between different sources of organizational stress and job satisfaction, a correlational study was designed involving health care workers (HCWs). The following questionnaires were administered and completed by 237 HCWs: (1) Occupational Stress Indicator (OSI), to measure the sources of stress at work (managerial role, climate power, climate structure, internal relationships), and job satisfaction; (2) Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) to assess the individual’s level of attention to what is taking place in the present; (3) Job Control Scale (JCS) to assess the perceived control at work. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to test the hypothesized relationships between variables; the results showed that, between the different sources of stress, the organizational climate dimension was negatively associated with job satisfaction; moreover, mindfulness attention moderated the relationship between climate stress and job satisfaction; unexpectedly, the interaction between job control and the organizational climate dimension was not significant in affecting job satisfaction. This study can provide useful information for Human Resources Management (HRM) practices regarding job and mental control interventions and empowerment, and possibly offer a new interpretation of the role of attention to what is happening in the present moment and autonomy between climate stressors and occupational satisfaction.

Well-being conditions at work are determined by the balance between the demands from the organizational context and the perception of people to possess resources concerning the ability to cope with such requests. The pandemic caused by COVID-19 has changed working conditions, and employees have had to adapt to smart working (SW) by bringing new resources into play to meet new demands. Many organizations are questioning how to implement SW after the pandemic. According to the JD-R model, the present study considered workload during smart working and Techno-stress (the perceived stress concerning the use of technologies) as new requests (i.e., demands) coming from the organization and Psychological Detachment (the ability to create psychological distancing from work) as a personal resource. We investigated the moderator role of Psychological Detachment in the relationship between workload in SW and Well-being, mediated by Techno-stress (in its three dimensions: Techno-Overload, Techno-Invasion, and Techno-Complexity). The sample is made up of 622 Italian public administration employees who completed a questionnaire containing the following scales: Quantitative Workload Inventory, Well-being Index, Psychological Detachment, Techno-stress Creator Scale. Mediation and moderate-mediation models have been tested with PROCESS Macro. Findings showed that Techno-Invasion and Techno-Complexity fully mediate the relationship between workload in SW and well-being. Psychological detachment moderates the effect of the workload on Well-being, which in turn is mediated by Techno-Invasion. Furthermore, findings suggest the importance of identifying protective factors that can mitigate the workload effects on the employees’ well-being in SW.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of flexible work arrangements within the Italian public administration. While much of the existing research has focused on the drawbacks of such arrangements, there has been less exploration of their benefits. Cognitive demands related to the structure of work activities, planning of working hours, planning of workplaces, and coordination with others, under flexible working conditions, might be considered as job resources that act as challenging demands within the Job Demand-Resource (JD-R) model. This study aimed to explore how the “cognitive challenge of flexible work” (CCFW) impact job satisfaction through home-based performance, taking into account the role of weekly working hours on home-based performance. Furthermore, the potential moderating role of cognitive and physical job demands between CCFW and home-based performance was explored. Using structural equation modeling on data from 484 public employees, the findings confirmed the positive impact of the structure of work tasks and planning of working times on both job satisfaction and home-based performance. In addition, cognitive demands (i.e., perception of cognitive work overload) played a moderating role in the mediated relationship between coordinating with others on job satisfaction and the structure of working tasks on job satisfaction through home-based performance.

The perceived quality of the learning environment may influence both motivation and concentration. Little is known about how perceived characteristics of the learning environment, and specifically sub-dimensions of Perceived Restorativeness (being away, fascination, compatibility, and extent), can promote these positive effects in an academic context. We addressed, through a correlational study, the possibility that the characteristics of learning environments may promote concentration and involvement in activity (i.e., flow) via intrinsic and extrinsic motivation for academic study within the job demands–resources model. A total of 165 Italian university psychology classes in a 3-year degree course from two different universities context completed an online questionnaire made up of the construct considered in this study. Results in the hierarchical multivariate regression analyses confirm that the restorative quality of learning environments (i.e., being away, compatibility, extent) is positively correlated with flow. However, there is a non-significant relationship between extent and flow. Regression analyses show a significant indirect effect of compatibility, both through intrinsic and extrinsic student motivation. Furthermore, the results confirm a significant indirect effect of extent through intrinsic motivation and being away, and fascination through Extrinsic motivation. Furthermore, intrinsic motivation is a full mediator between the extent and flow relationship. The results underline the importance of considering the restorative quality of the environment for improving place design, concentration, and student learning motivation.

In recent years, Italian Public Administrations (PAs) have swiftly adapted to flexible work arrangements due to the impact of COVID-19. The flexible work has led to addressing new challenges including the need to balance work demands with family commitments, a lack of social support, struggles with inadequate technology, and managing home interruptions that negatively affect home performance. Based on the job demands-resources (JD-R) model, the present study aims at examining the negative impact of home interruptions on smart working performance and the moderating role of two potential job resources: organizational support and perceived quality of the smart working. A convenience sample of 301 Italian public employees engaged in smart working completed an online questionnaire. Multivariate regression analysis results showed that organizational support plays a moderating role in reducing the negative effect of interruptions on home performance. However, the findings did not support a moderating role for the perceived quality of smart working. Overall, these findings highlight the critical role of social factors in buffering the negative effects of smart working, as compared to the quality of the technological arrangements. This information could be valuable for organizations looking to enhance the effectiveness of smart working by focusing on organizational support.

Job insecurity is attributable to the fear of being exploited by the organization and may have negative effects on employees. For example, it may lead employees to adopt non-compliant or deviant behaviors that harm individuals and their organization. However, knowledge about specific fears that have positive or negative effects on employees and organizations is limited. Therefore, this study aimed to detect the main fears related to job insecurity in an organization and the hidden meanings included in each of these fears that may cause negative and positive effects on important work-related outcomes. Further, we identified safety behaviors related to the previously identified fears. Notably, we investigated whether fears reduce well-being, the number of accidents and near misses, and behaviors related to safety and whether they increase the perceived probability of making mistakes. We conducted 65 focus groups with 37 managers/employees and 180 workers in separate groups. Furthermore, they completed a self-report questionnaire. We identified eleven fears and related meanings and ten safety behaviors. Multivariate regression analyses revealed that fears were significantly negatively associated with well-being and safety behaviors but not with the probability of making mistakes and causing accidents. Thus, fears play a key role in promoting behaviors, organizational strategies, and employees’ well-being. The analysis results show that fears are included in a main general factor and suggest a new way to consider fears at work. Given our findings, we propose a new definition of fear in the organization.