| A Study of Socially Dirty Work: a conservation of resource framework |
Received:October 16, 2017 Revised:October 16, 2017 |
Key Words: Perceived clients’ stigma, job strain, calling orientation, socially dirty work, Conservation of Resource Theory |
| Author Name | Affiliation | | Shanshan WEN* | Shenzhen University | | Dora Chi-sun Lau0 | The Chinese University of Hong Kong |
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Abstract: |
| Occupations involve regular contacts and associations with stigmatized or degraded people (e.g., policemen, nurses, social workers) are referred to as socially dirty work (Hughes, 1951; Ashforth & Kreiner, 1999; 2014). Socially dirty workers dealing with clients who are stigmatized by the society are likely to encounter identity threat and negative societal perceptions of themselves (Kreiner, Ashforth & Sluss, 2006). Drawing on the conservation of resource framework (Hobfoll, 1989; 1990), we examine the stressful experience of socially dirty work due to their clients’ stigma. In particular, we propose that perceived clients’ stigma– the extent to which clients are stigmatized by society would be positively related to employees’ job strains and indirectly and negatively related to employees’ psychological wellbeing. We also propose employees’ calling orientation would moderate the relationship between perceived clients’ stigma and employees’ job stress experience. Data were collected from hospital workers in mainland China and the hypotheses were supported. |
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