What is it about?
This study explores why the same work demands—like tight deadlines or complex tasks—can feel motivating one day, but frustrating or even threatening the next. We followed over 400 employees across several workdays and found that when people face high levels of hindrance demands (like red tape, role conflict, or daily hassles), they are less likely to see time pressure and complexity as positive challenges. Instead, they view them as obstacles or personal threats.
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Why is it important?
Some stressors can energize and help us grow. But this research shows that such positive effects cannot be expected if it’s layered on top of frustrating or demotivating work conditions. By highlighting how different types of job demands interact, the study helps organizations better understand how to design healthier work environments where pressure leads to growth, not burnout.
Perspectives
This study underscores a simple but often overlooked truth: how we experience pressure depends on what else we’re dealing with. I find it especially meaningful that we could show how seemingly unrelated demands—like unnecessary bureaucracy—can shape whether a challenge feels energizing or overwhelming. It’s a strong call for organizations to reduce unnecessary burdens so that employees can actually benefit from meaningful work demands.
Prof. Dr. Thomas Rigotti
Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR) and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Hindrance demands as a boundary condition to the appraisal of challenge demands, Anxiety Stress & Coping, August 2022, Taylor & Francis,
DOI: 10.1080/10615806.2022.2108019.
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