How emotional contagion relates to burnout: a moderated mediation model of job insecurity and group member prototypicality

Building on the job demands–resources model and the social identity theory, the present study examined the underlying mechanisms (i.e., job insecurity) and boundary conditions (i.e., group member prototypicality) for the relationships between contagion of positive (i.e., joy) and negative (i.e., fear) emotions and job burnout (i.e., emotional exhaustion, cynicism). Data from 367 employees in the United States suggest that job insecurity mediates the negative relationship between contagion of joy and burnout and the positive relationship between contagion of fear and burnout. In addition, results showed that group member prototypicality exacerbated the relationships of job insecurity with emotional exhaustion and cynicism. Furthermore, the conditional indirect effects of contagion of joy, as well as fear, on burnout via job insecurity were stronger for those with high group member prototypicality than for those with low group member prototypicality. The research findings revealed that the contagion of positive/negative emotions may decrease/increase employee uncertainty about their job, which, in turn, predicts their emotional exhaustion and cynicism. Moreover, compared with those who are low in group member prototypicality, those who identify highly with their work group are more vulnerable to the social costs of the possibility of job loss, thereby experiencing a higher level of burnout.