Glossary
Every construct Prior Work measures - definition, why it matters, and the source of the items used to measure it. Seven job demands, seven job resources, three growth / personal resources, and three outcomes.
For the architecture behind these constructs - how demands and resources fit into two pathways - see the Introduction.
Definition. The subjective experience that the volume of work, the pace required, or the time pressure attached to one's role exceeds available capacity. The quantitative dimension of demand.
Why it matters. The most consistent demand-side predictor of exhaustion in the meta-analytic literature (ρ ≈ +.43–.47 with exhaustion). Unaddressed overload drives the health-impairment pathway to burnout and distress.
Source. HSE Management Standards Indicator Tool - Demands subscale (OGL v3.0).
Definition. The extent to which work requires sustained mental effort, concentration, rapid decision-making, and the simultaneous handling of complex or ambiguous information. Distinct from volume - cognitive demand can be high even when the number of tasks is manageable.
Why it matters. Elevated cognitive demand with low control is a canonical high-strain configuration (Karasek). Interruption burden in knowledge work compounds this: frequent task-switching degrades both output quality and recovery.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to de Jonge & Dormann's DISC model.
Definition. Exposure to emotionally charged interactions, the need to regulate one's own emotional display, and contact with others' distress as a required part of the role.
Why it matters. A dominant driver of exhaustion in care, education, emergency, and customer-facing roles. Surface acting (suppressing felt emotion) predicts burnout more strongly than deep acting.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Zapf (2002) and Grandey (2000).
Definition. Uncertainty about the expectations, priorities, authority, or success criteria attached to one's role. A classic antecedent in the work stress research that reliably predicts strain and turnover intentions.
Why it matters. Ambiguity consumes cognitive resources that would otherwise go to the work. Workers with unclear roles report elevated exhaustion (ρ ≈ +.32) and lower job satisfaction even when workload is not excessive.
Source. HSE Management Standards Indicator Tool - Role subscale (OGL v3.0). Items reverse-keyed.
Definition. The experience of incompatible or competing demands placed on the same role - conflicting instructions, irreconcilable stakeholder expectations, or requirements to behave in ways inconsistent with personal values.
Why it matters. One of the earliest and most robust correlates of strain. Role conflict ρ with exhaustion ≈ +.42 (Alarcon 2011) and is consistently associated with turnover intentions and reduced performance.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Rizzo, House & Lirtzman (1970).
Definition. The extent to which participation in the work role is made difficult by - or makes difficult - participation in non-work roles. Measured in the work-to-family direction, which is the direction management can act on.
Why it matters. Work-to-family conflict is a significant predictor of psychological strain (ρ ≈ +.35, Amstad et al. 2011) and a leading driver of resignation in post-2020 labour markets.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Greenhaus & Beutell (1985) and Netemeyer et al. (1996).
Definition. Perceived threat to the continuity or features of one's job. Encompasses quantitative insecurity (losing the job) and qualitative insecurity (losing valued features like pay, hours, or conditions).
Why it matters. Sverke et al. (2002) meta-analysis: insecurity ρ with psychological complaints ≈ +.28 and with job satisfaction ≈ −.37. Effects are similar in magnitude to exposure to actual job loss.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Sverke, Hellgren & Näswall (2002).
Definition. The degree to which a worker has influence over how, when, and in what order their work is done - decision authority, method control, and scheduling latitude.
Why it matters. The most-studied resource in occupational health psychology. Karasek's high-strain model predicts that demands are tolerable when matched with control; Humphrey, Nahrgang & Morgeson (2007) report autonomy ρ with satisfaction +.45 and with engagement +.40.
Source. HSE Management Standards Indicator Tool - Control subscale (OGL v3.0).
Definition. The degree of practical and emotional support provided by the direct manager - help with work-related problems, willingness to listen, fair treatment, and advocacy on behalf of the team.
Why it matters. Ng & Sorensen (2008): supervisor support ρ with engagement ≈ +.40. Supervisor behaviour moderates nearly every other resource in the model and is the single most actionable lever for most organisations.
Source. HSE Management Standards Indicator Tool - Manager Support subscale (OGL v3.0).
Definition. The availability of practical help and emotional backup from peers - assistance with tasks, covering when needed, and treating each other with respect.
Why it matters. Strong peer support buffers the effect of demands on burnout (Halbesleben 2010). It is also the resource most easily eroded by hybrid/remote arrangements and organisational churn, so worth measuring explicitly.
Source. HSE Management Standards Indicator Tool - Peer Support subscale (OGL v3.0).
Definition. The extent to which effort, contribution, and achievement are noticed and acknowledged - through informal feedback, formal recognition, fair pay, or visible advancement. The 'reward' side of Siegrist's effort-reward imbalance model.
Why it matters. Sustained effort without recognition is one of the most reliable drivers of disengagement and exit. Effort-reward imbalance predicts cardiovascular risk and depression in longitudinal studies.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Siegrist (1996).
Definition. The perceived fairness of the processes through which workplace decisions are made - consistency, bias suppression, accuracy, correctability, representativeness, and ethicality (Leventhal's criteria).
Why it matters. Colquitt et al. (2013) meta-analysis: procedural justice ρ with strain ≈ −.28 and with commitment ≈ +.43. Unfair processes erode trust in a way that fair outcomes alone cannot repair.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Leventhal (1980) and Colquitt (2001).
Definition. The extent to which workers are informed about, consulted on, and have meaningful input into organisational changes that affect how they work. A specific instantiation of procedural justice in the change context.
Why it matters. A legal obligation under WHS legislation in most Australian jurisdictions, and a reliable predictor of post-change engagement. Change imposed without consultation is one of the most common sources of elevated risk in surveys.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Australian WHS consultation provisions.
Definition. The quality of day-to-day working relationships - respect, absence of bullying or harassment, constructive handling of disagreement. Measured as a resource (positive climate) rather than as a hazard count.
Why it matters. Exposure to bullying and hostile behaviour predicts PTSD-range distress symptoms independent of other demands. High-quality workplace relationships buffer the effect of other demands and amplify the effect of other resources.
Source. HSE Management Standards Indicator Tool - Relationships subscale (OGL v3.0). Reverse-keyed.
Definition. The availability of opportunities to develop skills, take on new responsibilities, and progress in the role or organisation - access to training, stretch assignments, and visible pathways.
Why it matters. Growth opportunities predict engagement and retention above and beyond pay. Particularly important for workers in the first 5–7 years of a career, where lack of development is the dominant reason for early exit.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Weng & McElroy (2012).
Definition. The extent to which work is experienced as purposeful, significant, and connected to a larger good - contributing to something worthwhile, using one's strengths, and understanding how one's role matters.
Why it matters. Allan et al. (2019) meta-analysis: meaningful work ρ with engagement +.56 and with burnout −.44. One of the strongest known motivational resources in the work stress literature.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Steger, Dik & Duffy (2012).
Definition. A shared belief that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking - speaking up, raising concerns, admitting mistakes, and offering dissenting views without fear of humiliation or retribution.
Why it matters. Frazier et al. (2017) meta-analysis: psych safety ρ with engagement +.40, with burnout −.32, and with organisational commitment +.43. A proximal driver of team learning and error reporting.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Edmondson (1999).
Definition. A positive, fulfilling, work-related state characterised by vigour (energy, mental resilience), dedication (significance, enthusiasm, pride), and absorption (full concentration, being happily engrossed in work).
Why it matters. The positive endpoint of the motivational pathway. Predicts in-role performance, organisational citizenship behaviour, innovation, and reduced turnover.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Schaufeli et al. (2002, UWES).
Definition. A syndrome of prolonged response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors on the job. Measured via two core dimensions: exhaustion (physical and emotional depletion) and disengagement (cognitive and emotional distancing from the work).
Why it matters. The canonical negative endpoint of the health-impairment pathway. Strongly associated with sickness absence, psychological distress, reduced task performance, and exit.
Source. Bespoke (CC BY-SA 4.0), anchored to Demerouti et al. (2003, OLBI).
Definition. General, non-specific psychological distress over the past four weeks. Measured via the 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale - a validated population-mental-health screener in wide use by the ABS and NHS.
Why it matters. Provides a comparable, clinically-anchored outcome measure. Strong construct validity for anxiety and mood disorder symptoms; interpretable against Australian and international population norms.
Source. Kessler K10 (Kessler et al. 2002/2003). Public domain.