Job characteristics, motivators and stress among information technology consultants: A structural equation modeling approach

The aim of the current study was to test a structural model of the relationship between job characteristics (job demand, job control) and perceived stress (e.g. stressed, pressed, tense) with ‘motivators’ (e.g. responsibility, recognition, achievement, possibility of growth) as the mediating variable. In this cross-sectional study a web-based questionnaire survey was conducted among information technology (IT) consultants in Sweden (N=167). The results show that job demand was positively related to perceived stress. The results further indicate that motivators in part mediate the relation between job control and perceived stress, i.e. high job control was significantly related to high appraisals of motivators, and motivators was negatively related to perceived stress.Relevance to industryThe results point out the importance of motivators (e.g. responsibility, recognition, achievement, possibility of growth) among IT-consultants in the job stress and performance framework.