Effective and ineffective support: How different sources of support buffer the short-and long-term effects of a working day

Models of job stress suggest a causal process whereby exposure to job stressors increases employees' need for recovery, which in turn has an impact on subjective health complaints (e.g., Sluiter, van der Beek, & Frings-Dresen, 1999). The current study advances past research by investigating the association between need for recovery and health-related behavioural responses (i.e., sickness absence) and the variables likely to account for this association. Results from a sample of 241 employees in a state-owned manufacturing firm in China show that coworker support, but not supervisor support, attenuates the relationship between need for recovery and sickness absence, and that somatic symptoms partially mediate this relationship. Moderated mediation analyses further reveal that coworker support, but not supervisor support, moderates the association between need for recovery and somatic symptoms. In contrast, supervisor support, but not coworker support, was found to moderate the effect of somatic symptoms on sick leaves.