Effets du soutien organisationnel perçu et des caractéristiques de l’emploi sur l’anxiété au travail et l’épuisement professionnel : le rôle médiateur de la satisfaction des besoins psychologiques

Based on organizational support theory, job characteristics model, and self-determination theory, we examined the mechanisms that underlie the relations between organizational factors and ill-being. Specifically, the main purpose of the present study was to demonstrate the mediating role of the psychological needs for autonomy (i.e., the need for individuals to feel volitional and responsible for their own behavior), competence (i.e., the need for individuals to interact effectively with their environment), and relatedness (i.e., the need for individuals to feel connected and accepted by others), in the relationships of perceived organizational support (i.e., the degree to which employees believe that their organization values their contributions and cares about their well-being) and three motivational job characteristics (i.e., task identity, task significance, and work scheduling autonomy) to job anxiety and burnout. This is the first research, to the best of our knowledge, to test for the joint effects of perceived organizational support and motivational job characteristics on job anxiety and burnout through psychological need satisfaction. Four hundred and fifty-seven employees (216 men and 241 women) from different sectors (i.e., industry, trade, crafts) took part in the study. Fifty-seven participants worked in companies with less than 10 employees, 105 in companies with 11–49 employees, 138 in companies with 50–249 employees, 33 in companies with 250–499 employees, and 124 in companies with more than 500 employees. The hypothesized model was tested with structural equation modeling analyses. Results provided support for our hypotheses and revealed that all hypothesized paths were significant. Specifically, our results showed that perceived organizational support and job characteristics were positively related to psychological need satisfaction. In addition, satisfaction of these psychological needs was negatively associated with job anxiety and burnout. Therefore, feelings of autonomy, competence, and relatedness play a central role in the development or reduction of well- and ill-being at work. These results are consistent with previous research in the work context, which has shown that social factors (e.g., autonomy-supportive behaviors) have significant effects on workplace mental health through their influence on psychological need satisfaction. Practical and research implications as well as suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Stress perçu et santé physique des doctorants dans les universités françaises

Few studies have focused on PhD students in France despite the fact that this population appears to be particularly vulnerable to stress and often faces precariousness. This research investigated associations between socio-demographic factors, health behaviours, perceived stress and physical health in a wide sample of PhD students (n = 1923) in order to have a better understanding of this population's specificities. Our results indicated that stress is a critical issue among PhD candidates. Predictors of perceived stress were: gender, age, satisfaction with supervision, sleep quality and sports practice. Findings from this study confirm the relevance of the transactional model to investigate students’ health issues and suggest that physical activity and stress management should be encouraged through health promotion programs.     

Crossing road intersections in old age—With or without risks? Perceptions of risk and crossing behaviours among the elderly

Pedestrians aged over 65 are known to be a critical group in terms of road safety because they represent the age group with the highest number of fatalities or injured persons in road accidents. It is widely recognized that the latter is due to the physical vulnerability of this age group in case of injury. However, physical and cognitive decline come into play during the action of crossing a street. Various studies have attempted to connect the crossing behaviours of the elderly with variables such as age, gender, sensory acuity, level of attentiveness, physical decline and the design of intersections. In demonstrating the complexity of the relationship between people and their environments, the literature suggests that age, physical ability, and the spatial configuration of roads are major components of road safety. Moreover, people’s knowledge and mastery of their environments, as well as their ability to adapt to change affects how they move through space. Taking these factors into account, this study examines the perceptions of elderly pedestrians with regards to the quality and risks of road crossings in the context of Montréal, Québec, in Canada. The analyze are based on observations and questionnaires in order to bring to light a better understanding of the relationship between the crossing behaviours, characteristics and perceptions of the elderly. While previous studies have examined perception and observation separately, this study is unique in having looked at both angles simultaneously. Five profiles of elderly people in both urban and suburban environments were established. A sample of 181 elderly pedestrians (65–93 years of age, AVG = 74) were surveyed using a questionnaire. In addition to close-ended questions, respondents were asked to evaluate 17 environmental ambiance and risk behaviours according to various scales. Using principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), the data was grouped into 6 categories that define and distinguish 7 profiles of elderly people. These profiles were explored according to the socioeconomic status and crossing behaviours of respondents. The probabilities of adopting different crossing behaviours were tested by employing logistic regression models. The results reveal greater variability in the perceptions of the elderly in terms of risk related to crossing behaviours and type of signalisation at intersections. Even among seniors, the perceptions of risk varied greatly, which may have had an impact on their behaviours. While some of the behaviours observed coincided with the perceptions of respondents, the results of this study suggest that they only play a marginal role.     

Professional drivers’ fatigue as a problem of the modern era

ObjectiveAll around the world numerous studies have been carried out and indicated that 20–50% of commercial vehicle accidents occur because of fatigue. Professional drivers represent an important category of drivers who are present in traffic on a daily basis transporting passengers or goods and their responsibility is at a very high level. These drivers are most exposed to the impact of fatigue. The review of the literature has provided three main factors which can influence the onset of fatigue: sleep factors, work factors, health factors. The main aim of this study was to determine the influence of the three main factors of fatigue between bus and truck drivers in the Republic of Serbia.MethodsThe survey has been conducted among bus and truck drivers who are employed in transportation companies across the Republic of Serbia. The research consists of collecting and analyzing bus and truck drivers’ answers according to the above mentioned factors which influence the occurrence of fatigue.ResultsIn this study we have found that circadian rhythm, sleep and work factors have an impact on drivers’ fatigue. On the other side, time of going to sleep has no impact on the quality of sleep and on fatigue. The results show that if the drivers work over the legal limit, they are 3 times more likely to sleep less than 6 h in 24 h and if they sleep less than 6 h, it is likely that the poor quality of their sleep will be 8 times higher. The poor quality of sleep reduces driver performance, and therefore increases the risk of accidents.Conclusions2 of 3 investigated factors have an impact on the occurrence of fatigue. The third factor, health factor, should be examined in more detail, and other elements should be analysed in order to determine their influence on the fatigue.     

Effects of perception on public bike-and-ride: A survey under complex,multifactor mode-choice scenarios

Bicycles are an environmentally-friendly, energy-saving mode of transportation. Public bike-and-ride is a term used to describe the use of public bicycles combined with transit as a means of transportation. A new stated preference (SP) design scheme based on the factors respondents felt were most important was proposed to augment the traditional SP design under complex multi-factor and multi-level situations. iPads were used to automatically administer the survey under each design scheme and collect the choice behavior data for public bike-and-ride. The concept of perceived psychological distance was further proposed and used to estimate Logit models. Comparative analysis of these models shows for the traditional SP design scheme, some factors, including perceived psychological distance, have reduced statistically significant effects on public bike-and-ride choice relative to the new SP design scheme. This indicates that in scenarios with complex decisions, the decision-makers would reduce their consideration of some factors and simplify their decision process making the new SP survey design scheme more suitable to analyze their choice behavior in those cases. Model analysis showed that perceived psychological distance for each traveler is the most critical factor during the decision process for travel behavior analysis. Finally, sensitivity analysis was conducted to determine which factors in the new survey design were important to increase the share of public bike-and-ride users. Practical findings for promoting public bike-and-ride use are presented in addition to theoretical references for improving the traditional survey methods.     

Investigating cycling kinematics and braking maneuvers in the real world: e-bikes make cyclists move faster,brake harder,and experience new conflicts

Pedelecs (e-bikes), which facilitate higher speeds with less effort in comparison to traditional bicycles (t-bikes), have grown considerably in popularity in recent years. Despite the large expansion of this new transportation mode, little is known about the behavior of e-cyclists, or whether cycling an e-bike increases crash risk and the likelihood of conflicts with other road users, compared to cycling on t-bikes. In order to support the design of safety measures and to maximize the benefits of e-bike use, it is critical to investigate the real-world behavior of riders as a result of switching from t-bikes to e-bikes.Naturalistic studies provide an unequaled method for investigating rider cycling behavior and bicycle kinematics in the real world in which the cyclist regularly experiences traffic conflicts and may need to perform avoidance maneuvers, such as hard braking, to avoid crashing. In this paper we investigate cycling kinematics and braking events from naturalistic data to determine the extent to which cyclist behavior changes as a result of transferring from t-bikes to e-bikes, and whether such change influences cycling safety.Data from the BikeSAFE and E-bikeSAFE naturalistic studies were used in this investigation to evaluate possible changes in the behavior of six cyclists riding t-bikes in the first study and e-bikes in the second one. Individual cyclists’ kinematics were compared between bicycle types. In addition, a total of 5092 braking events were automatically extracted after identification of dynamic triggers. The 286 harshest braking events (136 cases for t-bike and 150 for e-bike) were then validated and coded via video inspection.Results revealed that each of the cyclists rode faster on the e-bike than on the t-bike, increasing his/her average speed by 2.9–5.0 km/h. Riding an e-bike also increased the probability to unexpectedly have to brake hard (odds ratio = 1.72). In addition, the risk of confronting abrupt braking and sharp deceleration were higher when riding an e-bike than when riding a t-bike.Our findings provide evidence that cyclists’ behavior and the way cyclists interact with other road users change when cyclists switch from t-bikes to e-bikes. Because of the higher velocity, when on e-bikes, cyclists appear to have harder time predicting movements within the traffic environment and, as a result, they need to brake abruptly more often to avoid collisions, compared with cycling on t-bikes. This study provides new insights into the potential impact on safety that a cycling society moving to e-bikes may have, indicating that e-cycling requires more reactive maneuvers than does cycling traditional bicycles and suggesting that any distractive activity may be more critical when riding e-bikes compared to traditional bikes.     

Investigating the effectiveness of perceptual treatments on a crest vertical curve: A driving simulator study

Rural roads are characterized by a high percentage of run-off-the-road accidents and head-on collisions, mainly caused by inappropriate speeds and failure to maintain a proper lateral position along the roadway alignment. Among several road safety treatments, low-cost perceptual measures are considered an effective tool, as they generally increase the risk perceived by drivers, or even alter the drivers’ speed perception, and consequently tempting them to decrease their speeds. Their effectiveness has been widely recognized in a number of studies, especially with respect to road intersections and curves.The overall aim of this study is to investigate the effects of different perceptual treatments on driving speed, along a crest vertical curve of an existing two-lane rural road, in order to identify the most effective measure to reduce speed and define its subsequent implementation in the field. Three perceptual treatments were tested using a driving simulator: white peripheral transverse bars, red peripheral transverse bars and optical speed bars, with each one being painted along the approaching tangent to the crest vertical curve. The effects of these speed-reducing measures were investigated using a sample of forty-four participants, by comparing the driving speeds with those recorded under a baseline condition (without a treatment); these were also used to validate the driving simulator’s speed measurements with those found in the field. Moreover, subjective measures were collected, consisting of the driver’s static evaluation of the desired speed, risk perception and markings comprehension, based on screen shot pictures that represented the simulated configurations of the treatments.The findings demonstrated an overall effectiveness of the perceptual treatments, although only the red peripheral transverse bars were found to significantly reduce the driving speeds (−6 km/h). The analysis of the questionnaire yielded interesting information and demonstrated the importance of performing driving simulation tests for evaluating the effectiveness of perceptual treatments.Finally, the results confirmed the enormous potential of using driving simulators to pinpoint a number of speed-reducing measures, and consequently select the most effective one that reduces cost and promotes safety before its actual implementation in the field.     

Dimensionality of stress experiences: Factorial structure of the Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ) in a population‐based Swedish sample

We investigated the factorial structure of the Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ‐recent; Levenstein, Prantera, Varvo et al., 1993) in a large (N = 1516; 35–95 years) population‐based Swedish sample (Nilsson, Adolfsson, Bäckman et al., 2004; Nilsson, Bäckman, Erngrund et al., 1997). Exploratory principal components analysis (PCA) was conducted on a first, randomly drawn subsample (n = 506). Next, the model based on the PCA was tested in a second sample (n = 505). Finally, a third sample (n = 505) was used to cross‐validate the model. Five components were extracted in the PCA (eigenvalue > 1) and labeled “Demands,” “Worries/Tension,” “Lack of joy,” “Conflict,” and “Fatigue,” respectively. Twenty‐one out of the 30 original PSQ items were retained in a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) model that included the five (first‐order) factors and, additionally, a general (second‐order) stress factor, not considered in prior models. The model showed reasonable goodness of fit [χ²(184) = 511.2, p < 0.001; CFI = 0.904; RMSEA = 0.059; and SRMR = 0.063]. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses supported the validity of the established model. The results are discussed in relation to prior investigations of the factorial structure of the PSQ.     

Perceived career congruence between adolescents and their parents as a moderator between goal orientation and career aspirations

We surveyed 601 Indonesian high school students (57.6% girls, mean age = 16.4 years) and investigated whether perceived career congruence between adolescents and their parents served as moderator between goal orientation (i.e., mastery-approach, performance-approach, and performance-avoid) and career aspirations. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that perceived congruence moderated the effects of mastery-approach and performance-approach, but not performance-avoid, on career aspirations. Mastery-approach orientation was more strongly related to career aspirations when perceived congruence was higher; whereas, performance-prove orientation was more weakly related when perceived congruence was higher. These findings highlight important roles for approach orientations and perceived career congruence between adolescents and their parents in career aspirations of adolescents in collectivist contexts.     

Effective coordination in medical emergency teams: The moderating role of task type

Coordination in health care action teams is an important factor in clinical performance and patient safety. Implementing a high-fidelity in situ simulation study, we investigated the performance-relevant effects of task distribution, provide information without request (PIWR) and closed-loop communication (CLC) in 68 medical emergency teams (METs) composed of fully qualified clinicians. We differentiated between two task types: algorithm-driven and knowledge-driven tasks. We assigned two different emergency tasks to each task type. We proposed not only a direct relationship between the three coordination behaviours and clinical performance, but also a moderating role for the type of task. Only CLC was related to performance and also moderated by task type. There was no relationship between the coordination behaviours task distribution and PIWR and performance. We discuss the differential effects of the three coordination behaviours on performance and emphasize the importance of the task in team research. In particular, we highlight theoretical and practical implications.