Are Mindful Employees Less Stressed at Work? The Impact of Mindfulness on Perceived Workplace Stress and the Moderating Role of Social Support

Rezumat

The present study aimed to investigate whether the role trait mindfulness (the general tendency to be present) decreases the stress level, where social support moderates this relationship. Stress has harmful effects on mental and physical health as well as productivity at work, being one of the main triggers for these problems. At the same time, mindfulness can mitigate these effects. However, few studies have tested the moderating role of social support and the empirical role of the awareness trait in this process. A sample of 182 employees participated in this cross-sectional study by completing a research questionnaire consisting of the Freiburg Mindfulness Inventory, the Social Provisions Scale, and the Work Stress Questionnaire. It was observed that mindfulness and social support are significant negative predictors of stress, indicating that higher levels of the two variables predict lower stress
levels. At the same time, social support was found to moderate the relationship between mindfulness and stress. These results emphasize the importance of integrating mindfulness programs alongside strategies to improve social support in the workplace. Future research should use a longitudinal design to observe the relationship between these long-term variables and the use of a possible mediating variable..