The role of psychological detachment and occupational self-efficacy in the relationship between illegitimate tasks and emotional well-being: a longitudinal moderated mediation model

Background Illegitimate tasks, as a workplace stressor, have been associated with a range of detrimental effects on employee well-being. However, the potential underlying mechanisms and boundary conditions linking illegitimate tasks to work-relevant negative psychological states remain insufficiently explored in current literature. As such, this study aimed to investigate the mediating role of psychological detachment in the relationship between illegitimate tasks and two negative affects (anger and depressive mood), while also examining occupational self-efficacy as a potential moderator of these relationships.Methods This study adopted a three-wave longitudinal design, involving a sample of 650 registered nurses from healthcare institutions across China. At Time 1, a total of 650 participants provided demographic information and reported their levels of perceived illegitimate tasks. Four weeks later (Time 2), participants (N = 592) completed measures assessing occupational self-efficacy and psychological detachment. At Time 3, conducted four weeks after Time 2, participants (N = 535) provided self-reported data on anger and depressive symptoms. Structural equation modeling and hierarchical regression analysis, incorporating a bootstrapping procedure, were employed to examine the hypothesized model.Results Illegitimate tasks positively predicted anger (β = 0.290, p < 0.01) and depressive mood (β = 0.397, p < 0.01), but negatively predicted psychological detachment (β = -0.254, p < 0.01). Psychological detachment partially mediated the effects of illegitimate tasks on both anger (indirect effect = 0.050, 95% CI [0.031, 0.076]) and depressive mood (indirect effect = 0.035, 95% CI [0.017, 0.062]). Moreover, moderated mediation analyses revealed that the negative effect of illegitimate tasks on psychological detachment, along with their indirect effects on anger (index of moderated mediation = 0.033, 95% CI [-0.067, -0.005]) and depressive mood (index of moderated mediation = -0.017, 95% CI [-0.039, -0.002]) through psychological detachment, were significantly more pronounced among nurses with low occupational self-efficacy compared to those with moderate or high levels.Conclusion This study elucidates a mediated pathway in which illegitimate tasks diminish nurse well-being via impairments in psychological detachment. Crucially, our results reveal occupational self-efficacy as a moderator that attenuates this negative relationship. These insights provide a clear theoretical rationale for healthcare organizations to invest in strategies that enhance nurses’ occupational self-efficacy, thereby mitigating the detrimental impact of unavoidable illegitimate tasks.