The double-edged sword effect of illegitimate tasks on hotel industry employees’ self-control behavior

Introduction Illegitimate tasks are a significant workplace stressor in the hotel industry, yet their impact on employees’ self-control behavior remains inconclusive, with prior studies reporting both negative and positive effects. Methods Drawing on conservation of resources (COR) theory and the job demands-control model, this study examines the nonlinear impact of illegitimate tasks on self-control behavior, with power distance as a mediator and work autonomy as a moderator, using two-wave survey data from 536 hotel employees in China. Results Illegitimate tasks exhibit a U-shaped relationship with self-control behavior and an inverted U-shaped relationship with power distance. Power distance mediates the nonlinear link between illegitimate tasks and self-control, and perceived work autonomy moderates (steepens) the inverted U-shaped relationship between illegitimate tasks and power distance. Discussion These findings reconcile contradictory prior results by revealing the double-edged, nonlinear nature of illegitimate tasks, and provide practical guidance for hotel managers on task allocation, autonomy design, and employee support systems.