Job Demands-Resources Model: Its Applicability to the Workplace Environment and Human Flourishing

Abstract

For decades, the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) Model has been used in a plethora of studies about the psychosocial and physical conditions associated with job stress or strain, resulting in disability, disease, and/or poor job performance. Simply, job strain occurs in a situation of overwhelming demand in the face of resource scarcity. Many of these demands and resources can arise directly from the workplace environment itself. To provide a simple framework for workplace practitioners to understand the complex relationship between the employee and the workplace, this chapter presents a domain-specific extension of the JD-R Model, termed the Environmental Demands-Resources (ED-R) Model. Then, we draw upon psychological theories of universal human needs to explain the workplace resources deemed foundational for human flourishing and fortification in the face of overwhelming challenge. This perspective aligns with the goals of the modern organization for a sustainable and regenerative workplace by intentionally creating benefits instead of merely avoiding harms.