Building social support: The impact of workgroup characteristics, the COVID-19 pandemic and informal interactions.
Work
; 72(4): 1175-1189, 2022.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1902898
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Social support from colleagues is a key resource for employees and organizations, with beneficial effects on performance, employee well-being and resilience. Although the importance of social support is well-known, the factors that help to build and maintain social support are not equally well understood.OBJECTIVE:
This study analyzes the impact of workgroup characteristics (i.e., workgroup composition regarding national diversity and tenure; workload) and the COVID-19 pandemic on employees' perceptions of instrumental and emotional support, and examines the mediating role of informal interactions.METHODS:
The study is based on responses from 382 seafarers to a cross-sectional online survey. Hypotheses were tested using OLS regression and mediation analysis using PROCESS.RESULTS:
Workgroup composition regarding national diversity had indirect effects on social support through informal interactions around social foci (here joint leisure activities). High workload and pressure from the COVID-19 pandemic reduced interactions around social foci, thus contributing to the erosion of perceived social support.CONCLUSION:
The findings provide insights on the development of social support, suggesting that informal interactions provide an important mechanism for the development of social support at work. From a theoretical perspective, this highlights the value of a relational perspective on the development of social support, a perspective that is based on the insight that social support is embedded in social relationships. From a practical point of view, this indicates that organizations can proactively foster the development of social support through practices that shape workgroup characteristics and social foci.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Qualitative research
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Humans
Language:
English
Journal:
Work
Journal subject:
Occupational Medicine
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
WOR-220020
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