JOB CHARACTERISTICS AND EMPLOYEE WELL-BEING - A TEST OF WARRS VITAMINMODEL IN HEALTH-CARE WORKERS USING STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING

Warr's (1987) Vitamin Model was investigated in a representative sampl e of 1437 Dutch health care workers (i.e. nurses and nurses' aides). A ccording to this model, it was hypothesized that three job characteris tics (i.e. job demands, job autonomy, and workplace social support) ar e curvilinearly related with three key indicators of employee well-bei ng (i.e. job satisfaction, job-related anxiety, and emotional exhausti on). Structural equation modelling (LISREL 8) was employed to test the comprehensive Vitamin Model. The results showed that the fit of the n on-linear model is superior to that of the linear model. Except for th e relationship between job autonomy and emotional exhaustion, the curv ilinear relationships followed the predicted U-shaped or inverted U-sh aped curvilinear pattern. Moreover, it appeared that the three job cha racteristics are differentially related with various indicators of emp loyee well-being. In conclusion, this study partially supports the ass ertion of the Vitamin Model that non-linear relationships exist betwee n job characteristics and employee well-being. (C) 1998 John Wiley & S ons, Ltd.