Intrusions are prevalent in workplaces especially with the growing usage of technological devices. Due to their anatomy, they are associated with negative consequences for employees, such as strain reactions and depletion of self-regulatory resources. Mindfulness as a well-studied phenomenon has its benefits in work-life as focusing on every aspect in the present moment provides regulating attention. Due to higher ability to exert control over shifting and maintaining attention, it is thought to replenish self-regulatory resources. The current study examines the relationship between self-regulatory resources and work-place intrusions, while investigating the moderation role of mindfulness. Individuals exerting mindful strategies may report fewer negative consequences like resource deprivation and strain, meaning they are able to bounce back to the goal-directed behavior in a more resilient manner. This study proposes future implications for organizational health behavior researchers, as mindfulness can be introduced as a strategy to cope with intrusions.
Keywords: mindfulness, coping strategy, intrusion, work, self-regulatory resources, strain.
Mindfulness as a Coping Strategy for Work-place Intrusions
From the research done on flow, it became evident that an activity that is absorbing and meaningful can result in a focused involvement. (Nakamura & Csikszentmihalyi, 2003). As this phenomenology goes for any activity, the concept is also applicable to the work environment. Flow is an internally driven concept, because it pays attention to one’s own skills and the challenges that are provided by the activity, so it is up to the relationship between the person and the activity to maintain this engagement or not. However, in a workplace, there are other kinds of stimuli that can break this ideal state of engagement, such as interruptions from others.
Unless working on a deserted island, every individual with a job is susceptible to experience interruptions while working. Especially with the growing usage of technology in today’s world, the e-mails, instant messages, and cell-phone calls entered the work lives only to provide additional sources of interruptions (Cutrell, Czerwinski, & Horvitz, 2001). Acknowledging the fact that the technology is here to stay, what would be effective ways to cope with interruptions?
Coming up with useful strategies to deal with work-place interruptions is highly relevant considering the high costs they come with (Wallis & Steptoe, 2006). On an individual level, 2.1 hours on average is wasted by interruptions on a typical work day, and the cumulative effect of lost time points at a loss of $588 billion dollars per year in the economy of the United States. The numbers are not limited to currency, but to human lives, as Dismukes, Young, and Sumwalt (1998) revealed the fifty percent chance of an aviation accident to be caused by a cessation in concentration due to an interruption. Furthermore, what would the patient say if the emergency room doctor treating him receives on average 10 interruptions per hour, as measured by Chisholm et al. (2000)?
Due to the undeniable real life implications of interruptions, it is necessary the investigate how they affect individuals in their work settings, and what coping strategies they can implement to handle them in the best way.
Literature review
Intrusions
Interruptions any employee can experience may come in forms of distractions, breaks, discrepancies, and finally intrusions (Jett & George, 2003). Defined as an unexpected interruption to the ongoing task induced by another person either through a physical encounter or through the use of technology, an intrusion is considered to be disruptive because of its anatomy (Jett & George, 2003). As the person is engaging in the primary task, he receives an alert for a new task, such as a phone call. The person then stops the primary task and focuses on the secondary task, such as disengaging from the computer and picking up the phone. After the person engages in the secondary task and finishes it, he then returns to the primary task. Still, actually returning to the task is not as easy, due to a lag period characterized by figuring out what the task was and what was supposed to follow as the next step (Trafton & Monk, 2008).
It is clear from the anatomy of intrusions that they challenge the attention of the individual, by putting a temporary end to their goal directed behavior. Due to the undesired change in focus, it is necessary to understand the relationship intrusions have with strain reactions. Considering how employee strain is associated with withdrawal from the organization, intrusions may impact the economy in a second way additional to time (Quick, Quick, Nelson, & Hurrell, 1997).
Even though the costs are highly undesirable and the best solution would be to eliminate work place intrusions, it is not a realistic proposition. However, it might be possible to reduce the effects on employees by studying coping strategies. The current study presents mindfulness as a strategy to cope with negative effects stemming from intrusions, and examines the effects of work-place intrusions on self-regulatory resources, and investigates the moderating role of mindfulness.
Self Regulatory Resources
Just like time is considered a scarce resource in economics, individuals also have a limited capacity for self-regulation, leading onto the emergence of the term self-regulatory resources. While allowing individuals to regulate behavior they engage in, they also allow people to engage using their own will (Baumeister et al., 1998). Previous research in psychology and organizational behavior have long recognized its importance due to its contribution to emotional, cognitive, or behavioral actions such as self-control behavior (Muraven & Baumeister, 2000), as well as managing and displaying incongruent emotions (Grandey, 2003).
Critical to understand is that, just like any resource, self-regulation is also expendable and there is only so much of it. According to the Ego Depletion Model (Baumeister et al., 1998), the self regulatory resources get to be consumed once the individual tries to regulate the behavior. Any action contradicting the original desires of the actor, such as dieting or keeping oneself from eating desirable foods (Baumeister et al., 1998), or avoiding to express certain emotions (Grandey, 2000) result in a depletion of these limited capacities, the individual fails to regulate behavior further in upcoming activities. The self-regulatory resources are only to increase again once the individual gives himself a restoration act (Tice, Baumeister, Schmueli & Muraven, 2007).
Self-regulatory resources are primarily impacted by task performance. As employees concentrate and maintain the focus on the work tasks (Vohs & Baumesister, 2008) and disregard more desirable behaviors like social activities (Sonnentag & Zijlstra, 2006), they consume their self-regulatory resources. Just like task performance, intrusions take up a substantial amount of self-regulatory resources because they pause goal-directed behavior and the pleasurable flow that comes attached to it, and engage in a secondary task (Lin, Kain, & Fritz, 2013), only to leave the employees with less of their initial resources to devote to the completion of the primary work task.
Self-regulatory resources are considered to be low if the individual demonstrates physical exhaustion, lethargy, and cannot focus attention, while they are considered to be high when they obtain show mental acuity and their ability to regulate behavior is high (Ciarocco, Twenge, Muraven, & Tice, 2011).
Previous researchers came to operationalize self-regulatory resources as a combination of fatigue and attentiveness. While high fatigue and low attentiveness point at a drained capacity to self-regulate, low fatigue and high attentiveness capture a replenished or high capacity for it. (Lin et al., 2015)
Symptomized by feeling sleepy, tired, sluggish, and drowsy (Watson & Clark, 1994), fatigue happens when the mind or muscles are used to the extreme (Holmes, 1938). While weakening self-control over one’s behavior, fatigue also manifests itself as momentary mental and physical exhaustion (Lin et al., 2015).
Watson & Clark (1994) also portray behavioral symptoms for attentiveness, such as being alert, attentive, concentrated and determined. Attentiveness points at a high state of cognitive awareness. Remembering how individuals report lethargy and exhaustion when their self-regulatory resources are depleted, scientists thus conclude that attentiveness stands as the conceptual opposite to fatigue (Lin et al., 2015). Even though they show high correlation when it comes to self-regulatory resources (Watson & Clark, 1994), they are distinct constructs that together represent self-regulatory capacity
Recovery from work stress (Eden, 2001) is a way to rebuild the resources. As the activities to help unwind from work stress range from vacations to lunch breaks (Lin et al., 2015), they are also associated with positive well-being in terms of increase in positive mood (Fritz, Sonnentag, Spector & McInroe, 2010), decrease in burnout (Fritz & Sonnentag, 2006), and fatigue (Sonnentag & Zijlstra, 2006)
Strain Reactions
Presence of intrusions are shown to predict strain reactions (Zijlstra et al 1999), specifically physical complaints and anxiety (Lin, Kain, & Fritz, 2013). There are certain other strain outcomes that vary in their level of stressor exposure. Starting with the mildest result of strain, fatigue happens when either the mind or the muscles are overused (). It is characterized by a decrease in psychological and physical capacities as well as a weakening of the will (Michielsen, De Vries, Van Heck, Van de Vijver & Sijtsma, 2004).. A short term resource depletion gives way to fatigue (Maslach & Leiter, 1988). For bigger depletion of resources, it is possible to speak of a burnout. Halbesleben and Demerouti (2005) define burnout as a psychological response to chronic work stress (p.208), and two dimensions of burnout are recognized, namely exhaustion and disengagement (Demerouti, Bakker, Vardakou & Kantas, 2003).. Exhaustion is a more severe form of fatigue, and happens when the stressor exposure is repeated stressors (e.g., Maslach & Leiter, 1988). Exhaustion comes with feelings of overextension and depletion.
The other aspect of burnout is called disengagement, and is defined as perceiving oneself to be distanced from work. While sustained resource depletion calls for this type of burnout (Maslach & Leiter, 1988), a disengaged individual might lose interest in work, find it unchallenging, or even disgusting (Demerouti et al., 2007).
The strong will needed to attend to intrusions use up resources that are valuable to employees. As proposed by the Conservation of Resources Theory, depletion of these self-regulatory resources result in more strain outcomes such as fatigue, exhaustion, and disengagement (Hobfoll, 1998).
Mindfulness
Mindfulness stems from the Japanese meditation approach of Zen, which is inspired by Buddhism (Smith, 2005). It was typically accepted that self-centered thought would lead to human suffering, thus in order to enhance life at large, individuals who engage in mindfulness meditation attend calmly to the flow of all stimuli, without analyzing or judging because that would put the self back in the picture (Smith, 2005).
Mindfulness meditation differentiates itself from another kind of meditation called concentrative meditation, by this very aspect of encompassing all stimuli rather than focusing on just one stimulus. To distinguish them, Smith (2005) makes the analogies of watching clouds float by in the mindfulness meditation, and focusing on a waterfall or a candle in concentrative meditation.
What mindfulness meditation aims is to equip the individual with calmness and concentration to foster individual development and well-being. It does so by opening up the focus of attention to every aspect of the present moment, especially the internal aspects such as feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations (Walsh & Shapiro, 2006). The ultimate purpose of mindfulness meditation is achieving self-actualization by enhancing qualities, and what puts it in a special position in the present research is its value of helping training the attention and awareness to improve exerting control over them (Walsh & Shapiro, 2006).
Previous research favors mindfulness and its use in several ways. It is found to enhance psychological well-being, creativity, and task performance while also providing more satisfaction in relationships (Brown et al., 2007; Ryan and Deci, 2000). In work-related research, Zivnuska et al. (2015) also found associations with fewer turnover intentions as well as more affective commitment, while also calling it an “important antecedent to resource accrual” (p.109). Furthermore, about the positive consequences of mindfulness, Gilbert (2009) proposes that mindfulness approaches lead nurses to have fewer stress related illnesses and become more resilient. Also, when facing employment uncertainty and ambiguity at work, mindfulness is shown to reduce anxiety and strain (Quillian- Wolever et al., 2003).
The centrality of mindfulness in this study lies under its association with self-regulation. Pointing once again at Hobfoll’s (2001) Conservation of Resources theory, mindfulness is one of the tools that can help individuals obtain, maintain, and rebuild resources valued by the individual. This theory enlivens in the empirical study by Zivnuska et al. (2015), where they conclude that practicing mindfulness help develop resources that in turn allow for better well-being and attitudes toward the organization.
Mindfulness meditation fosters the ability to distance oneself from stimuli, in a process called metacognitive insight, and facilitates noticing, prioritizing, and responding to the environment around the individual (Bishop et al., 2004; Teasdale, 1999; Teasdale et al., 1995). The changing environment is quickly detected by mindful individuals, due to the present-moment orientation of mindfulness. The capacity to switch attention gives way to noticing when the individual is carried away from the task at hand, and end in re-engaging in the task (Zivnuska et al., 2015)
Mindfulness and Intrusions
The connection with work-place intrusions finally enter the stage, as mindful individuals have the ability to thoughtfully choose how to respond to a change in the task that is dictated by others (Brown et al., 2007). Instead of being emotionally reactive, mindful individuals shift the attention to the present issue, and this mastery of attentional control may result in enhanced emotional self-regulation (Shapiro & Schwartz, 2000). Zivnuska et al. (2015) further claim that while other individuals suffer from divided attention when multi-tasking, for mindful individuals the interruption becomes the target of full attention (Bishop et al., 2004).
In light of all these inspiring research findings, it is possible that intrusions that originally deplete self-regulatory resources and result in strain reactions, may produce less detrimental effects for mindful individuals who have the ability to sustain or shift their attention to their liking. Mindfulness thus stands a moderator variable to the effects of strain reactions and self-regulatory resource depletion caused by work-place intrusions. This leads to two predictions for the present research.
Hypothesis 1: The individuals who practice mindfulness will report significantly less strain reactions after encountering intrusions to their work-related task.
Hypothesis 2: The self-regulatory resources reported by individuals who practice mindfulness will be significantly higher than individuals who do not engage in such coping strategies.
Method
Participants
60 graduate students from the Division of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences of Claremont Graduate University will be recruited to participate in the study. Recruitment will run through the “Online Research Surveys” website of Claremont Graduate University. Age of the participants will range between 22 and 30. Based on whether or not they use mindfulness strategies in daily life, they will be assigned either to the experimental condition consisting of mindful individuals or to the control condition consisting of individuals who do not apply any mindfulness techniques. For the 30-minute task, the participants will be compensated with 1 course credit for a specified course of interest that will be counted towards their final grade.
Materials
Before and after the data-entry task which takes place in the laboratory, the participants will complete a 15-minute survey assessing mindfulness, strain, and self-regulatory resources.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness will be measured using the Mindfulness at work scale (Zivnuska et al., 2005). Participants will be asked to indicate on a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree, the extent to which they agree with the items. An example of these 17-item scale include “When interrupted from a task I am engaged in at work, I am able to clear my mind and dive back into the task”.
Self-regulatory resources
Constituting the changes in self-regulatory resources, fatigue and attentiveness will be measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule: Expanded Edition (PANAS-X, Watson & Clark, 1994). Participants will be asked to indicate on a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from never to always, the extent to which they feel certain emotions. 4 items for fatigue include sleepy, tired, sluggish, and drowsy, while 4 items for attentiveness are alert, attentive, concentrating, and determined.
Strain
In addition to fatigue, exhaustion and disengagement will be assessed with the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory consisting of 16 items (OLBI; Halbesleben & Demerouti, 2005). 8 items were devoted to exhaustion, such as “There are days when I feel tired before I arrive at work”. Similarly, 8 items assess disengagement, one of the items being “Sometimes I feel sickened by my work tasks”. Participants will be asked to indicate on a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree, the extent to which they agree to the items.
Procedure
When participants sign up, they will first complete the 15-minute survey assessing their mindfulness, strain reactions, and self regulatory resources. The participants with mindfulness scores of over 0.5 will make up the experimental group, and below 0.5 make up the control group. Then they will schedule a laboratory session to take place one week after the completion of the first survey. The experiment will be run for all participants in the same laboratory room, allowing for making sure the confounding factors such as lighting, noise and environment will be stable. After they fill out the consent form, the participants will be asked to perform a data entry task using a computer, where they need to find certain information in research articles and fill in a spreadsheet accordingly. In the same room a confederate will also be performing the same task, and ask questions to the participant every two minutes. These intrusions will range in complexity from simple greetings, to lengthier explanations, similar to those experienced at work. After the data-entry task, the same 15-minute survey will be administered for the second time. The participants will be thanked for having attended, and their course credit will be granted.
Conclusion
Western psychology and eastern meditation are only beginning to work as allies (Walsh & Shapiro, 2006). Even though mindfulness meditation has been around for more than a millennium, its benefits are only being understood recently. Providing individuals an ability to control their attention, mindfulness has advantages in work life, since the nature of work requires employees to juggle different tasks. While tasks brought to the scene by other co-workers, or intrusions, require employees to regulate their behavior against their desires to handle a secondary task, they deplete self-regulatory resources which manifests itself as strain reactions.
Mindfulness equips individuals with a tool to notice, maintain, and redirect attention, while also minimizing emotional reactivity. As the self-regulatory resources replenish through the use of mindfulness strategies, employees may be more ready to deal with shifts in tasks. Ability to bounce back from negative consequences of intrusions may be the newest benefit of mindfulness.
The prevalence of intrusions and benefits of mindfulness constitute why studying this moderation relationship is important. If more individuals learn mindfulness techniques, not only would they stop losing time in the lag where they try to figure out what the primary task and the next step was, but also they would report more well-being. Moreover, in the bigger picture this would benefit the economy as time and attention would be allocated more effectively, and turnover as a negative result of stressed employees decreases.
The proposed study might inspire future researchers to look into the application of mindfulness in work places. The causal conclusions this study provides might necessitate examining the strategies in real work settings. Apart from that, it will be useful to investigate the details that play a role in providing the best moderation effect of mindfulness. The amount of time the secondary task takes might also be moderating the strain reactions, and the extent to which mindfulness is useful in dealing with longer intrusions might be vital in the complex work life of the 21st century.