Testing causal models of job characteristics and employee well-being : a replication study using cross-lagged structural equation modelling

This study re-evaluated causal relationships between job characteristics (demands, autonomy, social support) and employee well-being (job satisfaction, emotional exhaustion) in a methodological replication of De Jonge et al.'s (2001) two-wave panel study. The principal difference was the 2-year time lag between measurements in this study versus a 1-year time lag in the original study. Three competing causal models were compared: regular causation (job characteristics influence well-being); reverse causation (well-being influences job characteristics); and reciprocal causation (combining regular and reverse causation). As in the original study, regular causation offered the best account. Regarding specific longitudinal paths there were some between-study differences, which are considered in relation to exposure-time models of stressor-strain relations.