Job Stress, Social Support, Self-Efficacy, and Psychological Strain Among Faculty Members in Universities of Pakistan

Universities are the strategic assets of Pakistan, however, in the recent years, universities are facing different challenges due to the 21st century trends, which have created new performance standards. Resultantly academicians are experiencing job stress and psychological strain. Moreover, academicians need solution for coping with their job stress. Realizing the seriousness of problem of job stress in academia of Pakistan, this study has examined the direct relationship between job stress and psychological strain, moreover, the moderating role of social support and self-efficacy has also been examined to determine buffering effects of resources on job stress. Using a cross sectional design, data was collected via self-administered online questionnaire from a sample of faculty member. Socio-demographic data was analysed by descriptive statistics, whereas Hierarchal Multiple Regression Analysis was run to know direct and moderating effects among variables. Results show that job stress was positively associated with the psychological strain, whereas both social support and self-efficacy had significantly moderated the association between job stress and psychological strain. The findings of this study were in concurrence with the existing literature on job stress in academia. This study has yielded important implications and recommendations at individual, institutional and policy levels.