Factors Buffering Against the Effects of Job Demands: How Does Age Matter?. (February 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Besen, Elyssa; Matz-Costa, Christina; James, Jacquelyn B.; Pitt-Catsouphes, Marcie
• Is Part Of: Journal of applied gerontology. Volume 34:Number 1(2015:Feb.)
• Page Start: 73
• Page End: 101
• Publication Date: 2015-02
• Subjects: age -- job demands -- job control -- personal control -- mental health; Gerontology -- Periodicals; 362.6
• DOI: 10.1177/0733464812460430
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0733-4648

Abstract

Given the increasing role that paid work is likely to play in older adulthood in the coming decades, the goal of this study was to understand the circumstances under which work is related to mental health for older adults and whether these circumstances differ by age. Using a multiworksite sample of 1, 812 U.S. workers age 18 to 81, we use the life-span theory of control to hypothesize that older and younger workers may benefit differentially from job and personal control in the context of high job demands. Results suggest that for younger workers with high personal control, job control buffers the impact of job demands on mental health. For older workers, personal control alone buffers the impact of job demands on mental health. This study adds to previous research by addressing how the factors thought to buffer against the effects of job demands differ cross-sectionally by age.