Russell A. Matthews

Exploring the association between teachers’ perceived student misbehaviour and emotional exhaustion: the importance of teacher efficacy beliefs and emotion regulation

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between teachers’ perceived student misbehaviour and emotional exhaustion, and the role of teacher efficacy beliefs (related to handling student misbehaviour) and emotion regulation in this relationship. Additionally, we examined teacher turnover intentions in relation to emotional exhaustion. Data were collected from 610 elementary, middle‐ and high‐school teachers using an online survey. Results indicate that despite the significant direct effect between the two emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal, expressive suppression) on emotional exhaustion, both strategies failed to show a mediating effect between perceived student misbehaviour and emotional exhaustion. However, teacher efficacy in handling student misbehaviour was found to mediate the relationship between perceived student misbehaviour and emotional exhaustion. In turn, a significant relationship was found between emotional exhaustion and turnover intentions. Furthermore, teacher perception of student misbehaviour was found to have a considerable indirect effect on teacher turnover intentions. Findings signify the importance of developing strategies that enhance teachers’ situation‐specific efficacy beliefs.

The relationships of working memory, secondary memory, and general fluid intelligence: working memory is special.

Recent efforts have been made to elucidate the commonly observed link between working memory and reasoning ability. The results have been inconsistent, with some work suggesting that the emphasis placed on retrieval from secondary memory by working memory tests is the driving force behind this association (Mogle, Lovett, Stawski, & Sliwinski, 2008), whereas other research suggests retrieval from secondary memory is only partly responsible for the observed link between working memory and reasoning (Unsworth & Engle, 2006, 2007). In the present study, we investigated the relationship between processing speed, working memory, secondary memory, primary memory, and fluid intelligence. Although our findings show that all constructs are significantly correlated with fluid intelligence, working memory-but not secondary memory-accounts for significant unique variance in fluid intelligence. Our data support predictions made by Unsworth and Engle (2006, 2007) and suggest that the combined need for maintenance and retrieval processes present in working memory tests makes them special in their prediction of higher order cognition.

A Short, Valid, Predictive Measure of Work-Family Conflict: Item Selection and Scale Validation

The purpose of this research is to develop an abbreviated version of Carlson, Kacmar, and Williamss (2000) multidimensional measure of work-family conflict. The abbreviated measure would have high utility in research situations in which a measure representative of the entire theoretical construct is desired, but the use of a long measure is precluded, as in diary and longitudinal designs. Two 3-item abbreviated measures based on Carlson et al.s multidimensional measures were developed, 1 to assess work-to-family conflict and 1 to assess family-to-work conflict. Two samples were used to provide concurrent and predictive validity evidence for the abbreviated measure. Results from Study 1 indicate that the abbreviated measure has the expected factor structure and exhibited concurrent and predictive validity that replicated results found with Carlson et al.s 18-item measure. Results from Study 2 provide additional psychometric and construct validity evidence for the abbreviated measure; the abbreviated measure was internally consistent, exhibited good test-retest reliability, and was systematically related to measures of role stressors, work-family balance, and well-being outcomes.

Development and initial evaluation of an enhanced measure of boundary flexibility for the work and family domains.

This manuscript reports the development of a measure of work and family domain boundary flexibility. Building on previous research, we propose an expanded definition of boundary flexibility that includes two components-flexibility-ability and flexibility-willingness-and we develop a measure designed to capture this more comprehensive definition of boundary flexibility. Flexibility-ability is conceptualized as an individuals perception of personal and situational constraints that affect boundary management, and flexibility-willingness is conceptualized as an individual difference variable that captures the motivation to engage in boundary flexing. An additional feature of domain boundaries, permeability, is also examined. Data are presented from two studies. Study 1 (N = 244) describes the development of a multiscale measure that extends current conceptual definitions of boundary flexibility. Study 2 (N = 225) describes the refinement and evaluation of this measure. Confirmatory factor analysis, reliability evidence, interscale correlations, and correlations with important work-family constructs (e.g., domain centrality, work-family conflict) provide initial construct validity evidence for the measure.

Marijuana-related problems and social anxiety: the role of marijuana behaviors in social situations.

Individuals with elevated social anxiety appear particularly vulnerable to marijuana-related problems. In fact, individuals with social anxiety may be more likely to experience marijuana-related impairment than individuals with other types of anxiety. It is therefore important to determine whether constructs particularly relevant to socially anxious individuals play a role in the expression of marijuana-related problems in this vulnerable population. Given that both social avoidance and using marijuana to cope with negative affect broadly have been found to play a role in marijuana-related problems, the current study utilized a new measure designed to simultaneously assess social avoidance and using marijuana to cope in situations previously identified as anxiety-provoking among those with elevated social anxiety. The Marijuana Use to Cope with Social Anxiety Scale (MCSAS) assessed behaviors regarding 24 social situations: marijuana use to cope in social situations (MCSAS-Cope) and avoidance of social situations if marijuana was unavailable. In Study 1, we found preliminary support for the convergent and discriminant validity and internal consistency of the MCSAS scales. In Study 2, we examined if MCSAS scores were related to marijuana problems among those with (n = 44) and without (n = 44) clinically elevated social anxiety. Individuals with clinically meaningful social anxiety were more likely to use marijuana to cope in social situations and to avoid social situations if marijuana was unavailable. Of importance, MCSAS-Cope uniquely mediated the relationship between social anxiety group status and marijuana-related problems. Results highlight the importance of contextual factors in assessing marijuana-related behaviors among high-risk populations.

Emotional Exhaustion, Absenteeism, and Turnover Intentions in Childcare Teachers Examining the Impact of Physical Activity Behaviors

Drawing on Salmon’s (2001) unifying theory of the beneficial effects of physical exercise, we examined physical activity behaviors as an important, but understudied, buffer against experiences of emotional exhaustion, absenteeism, and turnover intentions in 189 childcare teachers. Structural equation modeling revealed that workplace and leisure-time physical activity were negatively related to emotional exhaustion, which in turn, was positively related to teacher migration and attrition intentions. Post-hoc analyses revealed indirect (mediated) effects between physical activity behaviors and teacher turnover intentions via emotional exhaustion. This theoretically driven model fit the data better than an alternative model whereby emotional exhaustion predicts physical activity behaviors.

The Relationship Among Self-Efficacy, Negative Self-Referent Cognitions, and Social Anxiety in Children: A Multiple Mediator Model

Evidence suggests that general self-efficacy, an individuals beliefs about his global abilities, and social self-efficacy, an individuals beliefs in his ability to navigate social situations, are strongly connected to levels of social anxiety. Negative self-statements, also known as negative self-referent cognitions, have also been linked with levels of social anxiety. Although self-efficacy and negative self-statements have been shown to be important variables in the phenomenology and maintenance of social anxiety in children, they have yet to be examined in conjunction with one another. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between negative self-referent cognitions and self-efficacy and to examine both general self-efficacy and social self-efficacy as mediator variables in the relationship between negative self-statements and social anxiety. Results were based on a sample of 126 children ages 11 to 14 years. A significant association between negative self-statements and both general self-efficacy and social self-efficacy was established. Results also indicated that general self-efficacy fully mediated the relationship between negative self-statements and social anxiety; however, contrary to hypotheses, social self-efficacy did not mediate the relationship between negative self-statements and social anxiety. Implications and future recommendations are discussed.

A multilevel model of the effects of equal opportunity climate on job satisfaction in the military.

To date, minimal work has explored associations between equal opportunity (EO) climate and employee work attitudes, and no known research has investigated the effects of EO climate beyond the individual level. We address these gaps in the literature by testing a multilevel structural equation model in which effects of EO climate are considered at both the individual and unit levels. At the individual level, we predicted that psychological EO climate would be directly associated with job stress and job satisfaction, as well as indirectly related to job satisfaction via stress. In addition, cross-level associations between unit EO climate and job stress and job satisfaction were hypothesized to be mediated by cohesion. Findings supported the proposed model; hypothesized relations were supported at both levels of analysis. We conclude with a discussion of the findings, study limitations, and directions for future EO climate research.

Work Hours and Work–Family Conflict: The Double-edged Sword of Involvement in Work and Family

In this study, we examine the role of work hours in a model that incorporates involvement in both work and family with experiences of work-family conflict and subjective well-being. Self-report data were collected from 383 full-time employees and analysed using structural equation modelling techniques. Results demonstrate that role salience was positively related to behavioural involvement with work and with family. In turn, behavioural family involvement was negatively related to work hours and family-to-work conflict, while behavioural work involvement was positively related to work hours. Behavioural family involvement was also positively related to life satisfaction. Finally, both family-to-work conflict and end-of-workday strain were negatively related to life satisfaction. Our results provide insight into unexpected problems that might arise when employees place overly high importance on work and work long hours. This study serves as a foundation for researchers to examine the interplay of time spent with work and family with other aspects of the work-family interface.

Understanding the roles of subjective and objective aspects of time in the work-family interface

The experience of time has been posited as an important predictor of work-family conflict; however, few studies have considered subjective and objective aspects of time conjointly. This study examined the reported number of hours dedicated to work and family as indices of objective aspects of time, and perceived time pressure (in the work and family domains respectively) as an important feature of the subjective nature of temporal experiences within the work-family interface. Results indicate that the stress of having insufficient time to fulfill commitments in one domain (i.e., perceived time pressure) predicts work-family conflict, and that perceived time pressures predict the amount of time allocated to a domain. Additionally, findings suggest that domain boundaries are not symmetrical, with work boundaries being more rigidly constructed than family boundaries. Work-to-family and family-to-work conflict were generally related to overall health, turnover intentions, and work performance, as expected.