Abstract
Drawing upon conservation of resources theory, we examine how and when stretch goals affect work effort and cheating behavior. We conduct an online experimental study (Study 1, N = 194) and a three-wave field study (Study 2, N = 298) to test our hypotheses. Results show that trait resilience moderates the relationship between stretch goals and work meaningfulness. When trait resilience of employees is high, stretch goals generate work meaningfulness, which in turn promotes work effort. Meanwhile, stretch goals are indirectly related to cheating behavior through emotional exhaustion. Moreover, trait resilience alleviates the link between stretch goals and emotional exhaustion and the indirect effect of stretch goals on cheating behavior through emotional exhaustion. The present study provides important theoretical and practical implications.
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This study was funded by grants from National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 72172119); Foundation of Humanities and Social Sciences sponsored by Chinese Ministry of Education (Grant No. 21XJA630010); Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars from Shaanxi province (Grant No. 2022JC-51).
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Zhang, Z., Chen, C. & Jia, M. Double-edged sword effect of stretch goal: is stretch goal a burden or boost to employees?. Asia Pac J Manag (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-024-09956-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-024-09956-2