Empowering Engagement: The Role of Job Control in Moderates Faculty Disengagement from Workload Pressures

Abstract

Faculty members face an extensive range of psychosocial stressors; education sector employees are at high risk of disengagement, which can affect their duties and performance. Evidence that specific individual characteristics moderate the detrimental effects of workload on employees' disengagement. The study concerns job control and workload concerning disengagement among faculty members in academic settings. Data was collected via an online survey of faculty from various educational institutions. For this purpose, 322 faculty members from the universities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa completed self-administered questionnaires. In this work, the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model and Self-Determination Theory have been employed to explore how autonomy, decision-making authority, or flexibility are perceived to affect faculty engagement and well-being. The study findings indicate significant relationships between workload, job control and disengagement; high levels of workload increase the level of disengagement, while high levels of job control decrease it. Multiple regression analyses revealed apparent moderating effects, demonstrating that job control is less likely to experience disengagement when confronted with workload. The study illustrates the moderating influence of job controls on the relationship between workload and disengagement. These observations highlight the need for organizational interventions to improve faculty’s job control and lessen the negative effects of workload on involvement and well-being across colleges. The study also demonstrates the education sector's values in implementing management practices that encourage job control and provide employees with resources to reduce employee disengagement risk. In addition, the study provided limitations and recommendations for work environment policy measures.