Does a Toy a Day Keep the Stress Away?

10.6702/ijbi.2016.11.1.6

Tsang Kai Hung；Yun-Wen Huang

Office toy ； stress ； job performance ； pressure

International Journal of Business and Information

11卷1期（2016 / 03 / 01）

111 - 124

英文

In recent years, more and more workers have begun placing toys in their office for decoration, entertainment, mental and physical relaxation, or as a way of bonding with coworkers. Some scholars have found that office toys decrease stress and improve job performance. Others have found that they divert attention from work and thus reduce job performance. The current study explores the relationship between job stress and job performance and investigates whether office toys have a moderating effect on this relationship. Based on a review of the literature, the authors propose two hypotheses. Hypothesis 1 states that job stress and job performance have an inverted U-shaped curve rather than a linear relationship. Hypotheses 2 states that office toys have a moderating effect on the relationship between job stress and job performance. The hypotheses were tested in a survey of 104 general office workers in Taiwan using a questionnaire administered electronically. The results support Hypothesis 1, but do not support Hypothesis 2.

1. Campbell, C.(1987).The Romantic Ethic and the Spirit of Modern Consumerism.Oxford, England:Basil Blackwell.
2. Chen, Haiku(2008).Cheng Kung University.
3. Coelho, G.V.(ed.)(1974).Coping and Adaptation.New York:Basic Books.
4. Fang, Mei Yu(2002).,Taipei:Executive Yuan National Society.
5. Gattle, R.B.(1965).The Scientific Analysis of Personality.Baltimore, Maryland:Penguin Books.
6. Huber, V.L.(1981).Managing stress for increased productivity.Supervisory Management,26(12),2-12.
7. Ivancevich, J.,Mattenson, M.(1980).Stress and Work: A Managerial Perspective.Glenview, Ill.:Scott Foresman/Addison-Wesley.
8. Meglino, B.M.(1977).Stress and performance: Are they always incompatible?.Supervisory Management,22(3),2-12.
9. Motowidlo, S.J.,Scotter, J.R.(1994).Evidence that task performance should be distinguished from contextual performance.Journal of Applied Psychology,79,457-480.
10. Solomon, Michael R.(1983).The role of products as social stimuli: A symbolic interactionism perspective.Journal of Consumer Research,10,319-329.
11. Spector, P.E.,Jex, S.M.(1998).Development of four self-report measures of job stressors and strain: Interpersonal conflict at work scale, organizational constraints scale, quantitative workload inventory, and physical symptoms inventory.Journal of Occupational Health and Psychology,3(4),356-67.
12. Stephen, W.,Lesley, L.(2002).Managing Workplace Stress: A Best Practice Blueprint.New York:John Wiley & Sons.
13. Wang, X.C.(2007).National Yunlin University of Science and Technology.
14. Williams, Stephen,Cooper, Lesley(2002).Managing Workplace Stress: A Best Practice Blueprint.Chichester:John Wiley & Sons.
15. Wu, J.R.(2008).Shih Hsin University.
16. Yates, J E.(1979).Managing Stress.New York:Basic Books.
17. Ye, Jian Zong(2006).Changhua County,Department of Management, Institute for International Private Enterprise, Dayeh University.
18. Zhang, C.X.(1988).Modern Psychology.Taipei:Donghua Bookstore.