Turnover Intention and Emotional Exhaustion "at the Top": Adapting the Job Demands-Resources Model to Leaders of Addiction Treatment Organizations

Hannah K. Knudsen, Lori J. Ducharme, Paul M. Roman

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

102 Scopus citations

Abstract

Compared with the large literature on subordinate employees, there are few studies of emotional exhaustion and turnover intention for organizational leaders. There is little research that has extended the job demands-resources (JD-R) model of emotional exhaustion to leaders. In this study, the authors adapted the JD-R framework to analyze data collected from a sample of 410 leaders of addiction treatment organizations. The authors considered whether two job demands (performance demands and centralization) and two job resources (innovation in decision making and long-range strategic planning) were associated with emotional exhaustion and turnover intention. The authors also examined whether emotional exhaustion fully or partially mediated the associations between the job-related measures and turnover intention. The results supported the partially mediated model. Both job demands were positively associated with emotional exhaustion, and the association for long-range strategic planning was negative. Emotional exhaustion was positively associated with turnover intention. Centralization and innovation in decision making were also directly associated with turnover intention. Future research should continue to examine this theoretical framework among leaders of other types of organizations using more refined measures of demands and resources.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)84-95
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of Occupational Health Psychology
Volume14
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2009

Funding

FundersFunder number
National Institute on Drug AbuseR01DA013110

    Keywords

    • emotional exhaustion
    • job demands
    • job resources
    • leadership
    • turnover intention

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Applied Psychology
    • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health

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