The protective role of work self-efficacy on wellbeing during COVID-19 pandemic: Results from a longitudinal year-long study

Roberta Fida; Marinella Paciello; David Watson; Rachel Nayani

doi:10.1016/j.paid.2022.111760

The protective role of work self-efficacy on wellbeing during COVID-19 pandemic: Results from a longitudinal year-long study

Pers Individ Dif. 2022 Oct:197:111760. doi: 10.1016/j.paid.2022.111760. Epub 2022 Jun 3.

Authors

Roberta Fida¹, Marinella Paciello², David Watson¹, Rachel Nayani¹

Affiliations

¹ Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom.
² Faculty of Psychology, Uninettuno Telematic International University, Rome, Italy.

Abstract

In this study, we focused on four work self-efficacy dimensions and their relationship with wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic. We adopted a person-centered approach and investigated whether individuals with different work self-efficacy profiles would have different wellbeing experiences at 6 and 12 months from the beginning of the pandemic. Data were collected in the UK across three waves (January 2020, October 2020 and January 2021) on a sample of 393 full-time employees. Results showed that being in two at-risk profiles significantly increases the likelihood of experiencing lower wellbeing during the pandemic. In particular, the probability of belonging to the Profile 3 "low self-efficacy but high empathic" significantly increased the risk of lower wellbeing in the shorter and longer timeframe. In addition, the probability of belonging to the Profile 2 "high assertive and task self-efficacy but low emotional" also significantly increased the risk of lower wellbeing in the longer timeframe.

Keywords: COVID-19; Person-centered approach; Self-efficacy; Wellbeing; Work self-efficacy.