Purpose: To investigate the association of the intention to recover from work with fatigue and its moderating effect on the link between occupational characteristics and fatigue.
Methods: Three hundred and eighty Austrian employees (nurses, teachers and administrative staff) participated in a survey assessing fatigue, the intention to create and engage in recovery activities and effort-reward imbalance as a measure of job characteristics. Data were analysed by regression analysis.
Results: Recovery intention was negatively associated with fatigue. This association was especially pronounced under conditions of high effort-reward imbalance, thus suggesting a buffering effect. Effort-reward imbalance, in return, was positively related to prolonged fatigue, indicating that fatigue was partly work related in the present sample.
Conclusions: Individuals differ in their intent to engage in recovery activities. Those high in recovery intention are less exhausted, especially under conditions of more demanding and less rewarding work characteristics. Thus, a promotion of recovery intentions could contribute to the prevention of work-related fatigue.