Work design and job burnout in the construction industry: a latent profile analysis

Purpose Employees working in poorly designed work are susceptible to psychosocial hazards that can harm their mental health, causing outcomes such as burnout. While the impact of work design on job burnout of site-based construction employees has been a recognised concern, most research has been variable-based, overlooking the existence of subgroups that experience unique profiles of work characteristics. This study aims to employ a people-centred approach to reveal the work characteristics profiles experienced by construction employees, the antecedents of these profiles and their effects on job burnout. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was conducted with site-based construction employees in Australia. Latent profile analysis was adopted to identify the work characteristics profiles of construction employees. Multinomial logistic regression and multivariate analysis of variance were applied to examine the associations between personal demographic variables, mental health outcomes and the work characteristics profiles, respectively. Findings Results showed that there were three profiles: Profile 1 was characterised by a lack of mastery resources (e.g. low role clarity) and very high intolerable demands, Profile 2 was characterised by low relational resources and high intolerable demands and Profile 3 was characterised by high relational resources and tolerable demands. Workers in Profile 3 had lower levels of job burnout. Middle-aged men in site management roles were more likely to be in Profile 3, whereas young tradeswomen tended to be in the profile with particularly low role clarity (Profile 1). Originality/value This study provides a foundation for developing effective strategies to reduce psychosocial hazards and prevent job burnout amongst construction supervisors and workers.