In the context of COVID-19: the impact of employees’ risk perception on work engagement

Abstract

The global outbreak of COVID-19 has led to a normalization mode for preventing and controlling the spread of the epidemic. The way of life and work for both organizations and employees has undergone new changes, and the relationship between employees' risk perception and work engagement has attracted attention. Following the social-cognitive model of psychological stress and the resilience theory of positive psychology, by three-stage time-lag design, we obtain 285 questionnaires from employees of effective organizations in Mainland China. Regression analysis and bootstrap tests were conducted on SPSS and AMOS to verify the relevant hypotheses. The results showed that: (1) Employees' risk perception has a positive impact on work engagement; (2) Employees' risk perception has a negative impact on anxiety; (3) Anxiety plays a completely mediating role in the relationship between risk perception and work engagement; (4) Psychological resilience has a negative moderating effect on the relationship between risk perception and anxiety; (5) Psychological resilience has a negative moderating effect on the relationship between anxiety and work engagement. This research contributes to an improved understanding of the mechanism and boundary conditions of employee work engagement under conditions imposed by COVID-19 and provides a theoretical basis and practical guidance for organizations.