Division of Labour and Self-Reported Mental Requirements in Human Services: Retail Sale Jobs

Ulrike Pietrzyk, Sarah Rodehacke, Winfried Hacker

Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universit?t Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
Department of Psychology, Working Group “Thinking-Knowing-Acting”, Technische Universit?t Dresden, Dresden, Germany.

DOI: 10.4236/psych.2014.510135                

Abstract

Significant associations between self-reported “whole units” of work and self-reported mental task requirements as well as personal outcomes are well known. Also of interest is, however, whether a significant association also exists between the underlying objective assignment of tasks, i.e. the division of labour, and self-reported mental requirements. Such an association would represent a concrete starting point for job design or redesign. We analyzed this question for retail sale jobs as an example of the numerous human service jobs, which usually consist of customer- and object-centred tasks. The study (N = 558 employees) evaluated the potential association between documented assignments of customer-centred and goods-centred activities and employees’ perceived mental requirements, skill utilisation, and learning on the job, as well as mental difficulties. A significant association of moderate effect size between the objective division of labour and self-reported mental job requirements was shown. Theoretical and practical consequences of this association are also discussed.

Keywords

Division of Labour, Task Identity, Retail Sale Tasks, Task Analysis

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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