COVID-19 pandemic-related job insecurity, general mental health, and motivation of teachers: the moderating role of organizational compassion

Abstract

The closure of workplaces during COVID-19 resulted in short-term and long-term job losses, causing worry about the ability to retain jobs for many people worldwide. Whereas this can cause serious mental health problems and affect motivation, support from the organization can alleviate suffering and steer the motivation of employees. The study, therefore, investigated whether organizational compassion moderates the effects of job insecurity during the COVID -19 pandemic on employees’ general mental health and motivation. The study was conducted among private and public primary and secondary school teachers. Data was collected from 476 teachers using a standardized questionnaire. Hypotheses were tested using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficients and moderated mediation model in PROCESS Macro in SPSS. The results of the study showed that job insecurity during COVID-19 is positively related to mental health, amotivation, and extrinsic motivation; but not significantly associated with intrinsic motivation. Mental health (poor mental health) was positively significantly related to amotivation and extrinsic motivation and negatively significantly negatively related to intrinsic motivation. Organizational compassion was only significantly related to extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. In addition, the study found that the relationship between job insecurity during COVID-19 and the different dimensions of motivation was not mediated by mental health. Concerning moderation, organizational compassion only moderated the relationship between job insecurity during COVID-19 and extrinsic motivation. It did not moderate the relationships of job insecurity during COVID-19 with mental health, amotivation, and intrinsic motivation. Therefore, the study recommends that organizations develop interventions for addressing job insecurity and mental health as they affect motivation and behavior separately.