Workplace stress and job satisfaction among child protective service ...

Children and Youth Services Review 57 (2015) 134–140

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Workplace stress and job satisfaction among child protective service workers in South Korea: Focusing on the buffering effects of protective factors Youngsoon Chung, JongSerl Chun ⁎ Department of Social Welfare, Ewha Womans University, South Korea

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history: Received 17 April 2015 Received in revised form 12 August 2015 Accepted 12 August 2015 Available online 15 August 2015 Keywords: Workplace stressors Protective factors Job satisfaction Child protective service workers South Korea

a b s t r a c t The aim of this study was to examine the relationships among workplace stressors including role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload; organizational protective factors such as rapport with supervisor and client-centered supervision; personal protective factors including prosocial behavior and problem-focused strategies; and job satisfaction among a sample of Child Protection Services (CPS) workers in South Korea. Using a path analysis, the current study verified that rapport with supervisor, client-centered supervision, prosocial behaviors, and problem-focused strategies were protective factors among South Korean CPS workers; however, as protective buffers, each of these factors functioned differently against each stressor. We found that rapport with supervisor was a prominent protective factor against both role ambiguity and role conflict; problem-focused strategies had a protective effect against role ambiguity; and prosocial behavior and problem-focused strategies had other direct effects on job satisfaction. Based on our findings, we suggest implementing effective strategies to further develop rapport with supervisor, prosocial behavior, and problem-focused strategies for the purpose of increasing job satisfaction among CPS workers. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989, and South Korea ratified the Convention and finally amended its Child Welfare Law in 2000 (Ju & Lee, 2010). According to the law, 17 child protection agencies — including the National Child Protection Agency — were established in 2000 (Park, 2005), and the number of agencies increased to 51 by 2013 (Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare & Korean National Child Protection Agency, 2014). Child protection agencies receive reports of child abuse cases, investigate these cases, and provide prevention and intervention services for abused children in Korea (Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare & Korean National Child Protection Agency, 2014). Despite the growth in the number of agencies, and the service quality of Korean child protection agencies in the last decade, Korea's Child Protective Service (CPS) workers face the difficulties of excessive workloads, lack of staff, post-traumatic stress, threats to their safety, and a lack of law enforcement (Korean Ministry of Health, and Welfare, & Korean National Child Protection Agency, 2004; Lee, 2009; Park, 2008). Moreover, there are challenges with cultural issues. Under the influence of Confucianism, and its emphasis on filial piety ⁎ Corresponding author at: Department of Social Welfare, Ewha Womans University, 52 Ewhayedae-Gil, Seodaemun-Gu, Seoul 120-750, South Korea. E-mail address: [email protected] (J. Chun).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2015.08.007 0190-7409/© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

in Korean society, permissive attitudes toward corporal punishment and a negative atmosphere regarding social intervention into family problems have resulted in the Korean population's strong resistance to CPS (Park, 2005). Therefore, CPS workers typically experience high levels of stress (Regehr, Leslie, Howe, & Chau, 2000). This stress was followed by job changes for approximately 25% of South Korea's CPS workers in 2006 (Korea Institute of Policy Evaluations, 2008), thereby highlighting service instability and declining professionalism as serious sectoral concerns (Kong, 2005). Job satisfaction is recognized as a strong predictor of turnover or intention to leave, regarding CPS employment (Barak, Nissly, & Levin, 2001), which thereby influences the quality, stability, and consistency of services for vulnerable children (Powell & York, 1992; Todd & Deery-Schmit, 1996). With the emergence of stability and the effectiveness of the CPS field as important issues in South Korea, there has been an increasing interest in job satisfaction among the nation's CPS workers. Subsequent studies (e.g., Ahn & Jung, 2012; Byeon & Oh, 2009; Kang & Kim, 2006) that examined the factors that influence job satisfaction have garnered attention because of their corresponding strategy implications regarding improving job satisfaction among Korean CPS workers. Because child welfare workers typically experience high levels of stress, previous studies reported workplace stressors as the main factor underpinning the decline in job satisfaction among CPS workers (Regehr et al., 2000). The stress–strain–outcome (SSO) model, by

Y. Chung, J. Chun / Children and Youth Services Review 57 (2015) 134–140

Koeske and Koeske (1993), is an appropriate theoretical framework for illustrating the relationships among stress, strain, and outcomes. In the SSO model as applied to the workplace, workplace stressors can include heavy workloads, role ambiguity, role conflict, and lack of resources, the outcome of which is job satisfaction. Work strain is identified as a lack of social support and personal accomplishment, with buffering effects between stressors and job satisfaction (Koeske & Koeske, 1993). Adopting the SSO model, Um and Harrison (1998) proposed a model that included coping skills and social support as having buffering effects for clinical social workers. Previous studies also empirically verified the array of the SSO model. Workplace stressors were identified as the main factor underpinning the decline in job satisfaction among Korean CPS workers (e.g., Byeon & Oh, 2009; Kang & Kim, 2006). Specifically, role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload are generally regarded as the main workplace stressors in the child welfare sector (Kang & Kim, 2006; Yoon, 1996). Kang and Kim (2006) identified role ambiguity as the best predictor of decreased job satisfaction among CPS workers. Also, role conflict has been associated with low job-satisfaction levels (Dickinson & Perry, 2003; Um & Harrison, 1998). Stalker, Mandell, Frensch, Harvey, and Wright (2007) also reported that a heavy workload decreases the workers' job satisfaction. Even though the aforementioned factors might act as workplace stressors, many child welfare workers have been able to adequately manage workplace-related stress and retain their jobs (Anderson, 2000). Although assumptions have been made regarding the diminishing effect of protective factors on the negative impact of stressors, only a small number of empirical studies have been conducted on the influence of protective factors. In one of these rare researchstudy cases, Anderson (2000) argued that child welfare workers who used problem-focused strategies more effectively managed their stress; furthermore, Stalker et al. (2007) also suggested that child welfare workers who felt rewarded by helping others were likely to successfully accomplish their tasks. In terms of worker supervision, Pearlman and Mac Ian (1995) found that supervision acted as a protective factor in organizations, resulting in more moderated role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload. The direct effects of the aforementioned protective factors on job satisfaction have been investigated in previous studies, and many of these research studies found that the quality of supervision influenced the workers' job satisfaction (Barth, Lloyd, Christ, Chapman, & Dickinson, 2008); according to Cole, Panchanadeswaran, and Daining (2004), the quality of supervision was directly associated with job satisfaction. Mena and Bailey (2007) divided supervisory relationship into two parts — the rapport between supervisor and supervisee and client-centered supervision — and found that only the rapport between supervisor and supervisee significantly influenced job satisfaction. Recently, prosocial behavior, defined as a tendency to consider or help others, has been identified as a new influential factor regarding job satisfaction (Barth, 2008; Ellett, 2009; Ellett, Ellis, Westbrook, & Dews, 2007; Landsman, 2001; Mandell, Stalker, de Zeeuw Wright, Frensch, & Harvey, 2013; Stalker et al., 2007). Accordingly, in the Stalker et al. (2007)'s study, workers who felt rewarded by helping others were likely to be satisfied with their jobs. Although only a small amount of research has yet examined the relationship between problem-focused strategies and job satisfaction among CPS workers, Anderson (2000) argued that workers who effectively managed stress tended to actively use problem-focused coping strategies; moreover, these coping strategies are regarded as influential protective factors in job satisfaction in numerous other fields (Welbourne, Eggerth, Hartley, Andrew, & Sanchez, 2007). Considering the previous results together, little attention has been paid to the relationships among job satisfaction, stressors, and protective factors for Korean CPS workers. Using a path analysis, this study therefore clarified the direct influences of both workplace stressors including role ambiguity, role conflict and role overload and protective

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factors including rapport with supervisor, client-centered supervision, prosocial behavior, and problem-focused strategies on job satisfaction and the buffering effects of the protective factors on the stressors among a sample of CPS workers in South Korea. 2. Methods 2.1. Research design To analyze the pathways that affect job satisfaction, we first built a research model. In this model, role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload were exogenous variables, and rapport with supervisor, client-centered supervision, prosocial behavior, and problem-focused strategies were endogenous variables. In this research model, we assumed that role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload would directly affect job satisfaction — while also assuming that their indirect effects would be mediated by rapport with supervisor, client-centered supervision, prosocial behavior, and problem-focused strategies — to determine if the endogenous variables provided protective effects against the exogenous variables that were the stressors in this study. 2.2. Participants and data collection CPS workers in South Korea were surveyed from December 12, 2012, to January 17, 2013. We asked the Korean National Child Protection Agency to send official support letters to all 45 local CPS agencies in 2012 to facilitate the attainment of the agencies' cooperation for this study, and a complete list of South Korea's official child protection agencies and CPS workers was obtained. Questionnaires were mailed to all 293 CPS workers at the 45 child protection agencies, and a total of 275 questionnaires were collected; that is, the response rate was 93.9%. All of the CPS workers participated voluntarily in this study after signing written informed consent forms. After we discounted incomplete surveys as invalid, a final total of 268 questionnaires were used for the data analysis. 2.3. Measures The survey was conducted in Korean. The dependent variable of job satisfaction was measured in accordance with both general satisfaction and the job descriptive index (JDI) that was developed by Smith, Kendall, and Hulin (1969) because it has been the most frequently used job satisfaction scale for social workers, and it was validated with Korean workers by Tak and Downey (1991). The JDI consists of 27 questions that comprise five subscales: work in present job; pay; opportunities for promotion; supervision; and colleague relationships. The participants answered each of the 27 questions using a five-point Likert scale, with a high score indicating a high degree of job satisfaction. A very high Cronbach's alpha value of 0.918 was obtained. To measure workplace stressors, including role ambiguity, role conflict, and workload, a job stress scale that was developed by Jayaratne and Chess (1984) and applied to Korean workers in a study by Lee and Suh (2011) was used with a total of 11 items; again, every question was answered using a five-point Likert scale. Role ambiguity was defined as a situation in which a worker is provided with unclear or incomplete expectations regarding the role performance of a given job (Lichtman & Hunt, 1971). To measure role ambiguity, a total of three items were used, with one item excluded because of a low correlation. A sample item on the scale is “Work objectives are well defined.” Higher scores indicate higher levels of job clarity. Role conflict is understood as a discordance regarding role expectations (Lichtman & Hunt, 1971), and role overload indicates workload requirements that cannot be performed within the given time, or are beyond the limits of the worker's ability and knowledge (French & Caplan, 1972). Each subscale comprised a five-point Likert scale that consisted of four items. A sample

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item regarding role conflict is “On my job, I can't satisfy everybody at the same time.” Higher scores indicate higher degrees of conflict demands that a person perceives as existing in his or her job. A sample item regarding role overload is “How often does your job require you to work very hard?” Higher scores represented higher perceptions of the individuals' workloads. The Cronbach's alpha values are high for each variable: 0.761 for role ambiguity, 0.811 for role conflict, and 0.886 for role overload. To measure the protective factors of rapport with supervisor and client-centered supervision, we used a worker version of the supervisory working alliance inventory (SWAI) that was developed by Efstation, Patton, and Kardash (1990), and validated with Korean social workers in Kang (2008). This scale comprises two subscales — the first of which is rapport with one's supervisor (which indicates the degree of rapport between supervisee and supervisor), and the other is clientcentered supervision (which measures the extent of the emphasis on clients during a worker's supervisory session) — and consists of 19 questions (Efstation et al., 1990). Examples of these questions are “In supervision, I place a high priority on our understanding of the clients' perspective,” “I make an effort to understand my supervisee,” and “My supervisee identifies with me in the way he/she thinks and talks about his/her clients.” The items were rated using a seven-point Likert scale. The total scores ranged from 7 to 84 for rapport with supervisor and from 7 to 49 for client-centered supervision; higher scores indicate a higher degree of client focus and more effective supervisory relationships. The Cronbach's alpha values were 0.938 and 0.956 for clientcentered supervision and rapport with supervisor, respectively. Prosocial behavior is an individual's voluntary actions that benefit other individuals (Eisenberg, Fabes, & Spinrad, 2006). To measure prosocial behavior, this study used the prosocial scale of a validated Korean version of the strengths and difficulties questionnaire (Ahn, Jun, Han, Noh, & Goodman, 2003) that was developed by Goodman (1997). The scale consists of five questions on a three-point Likerttype scale (e.g., “Considerate of other people's feeling” and “Often volunteers to help others”). The total scores ranged from 5 to 15, with higher scores indicating higher levels of prosocial behavior. The Cronbach's alpha was 0.869. A problem-focused strategy consists of either an attempt to directly solve a problem or the careful devising of a plan of action (Welbourne et al., 2007). The corresponding measurement in this study was the coping strategy indicator (COI) developed by Amirkhan (1990). This study used a validated Korean version of the COI by Shin and Kim (2002), which was composed of 11 items on a five-point Likert scale (e.g., “Rearranged things so your problem could be solved” and “Formed a plan in your mind”). Higher scores indicate a greater usage of problem-focused strategies. The Cronbach's alpha was quite high, at 0.884.

and an RMSEA value verifies a good fit when it is less than .05; a value of less than .01 indicates excellent fit (Bae, 2005). 3. Results 3.1. Characteristics of participants The demographic characteristics of the participants are summarized in Table 1. Of the 268 participants, 58.20% were female, and the average age was 29.32 years. Most of the workers were in their twenties; only 4.80% were in their forties. Most of the workers had bachelor's degrees, and 10.50% held Masters or Doctoral degrees. In terms of their workplace position, mid-level managers comprised 26.87% of the sample, and 73.13% were workers. The average length of work experience was 2.91 years: 45.69% of the sample had worked for less than two years in the field, and only 17.60% had worked in the field for more than five years. The average length of working experience in the current agency was 2.74 years. In addition, 51.18% of the participants answered that six months had not passed since they had experienced a severe case of child abuse, with 95.88% of these participants reporting the receipt of immediate supervision when severe cases occurred. The participants reported that the perpetrators of the child abuse presented a risk to their personal safety that was quite high, with a score of 11.12 out of 15 on the scale. The score for the post-traumatic stress that can arise during the process of counseling victims and their families was 52.99 out of 85, which is also quite high. 3.2. Descriptive analysis A descriptive analysis of the variables is summarized in Table 2. Regarding the job satisfaction scale that included general satisfaction, the average score was only 89.70 out of 135 (3.32 on the five-point Likert scale). The average scores for role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload were 9.90 out of 15, 13.27 out of 20, and 15.03 out of 20, respectively. The overall scores for the stressors were quite high, and might have been the cause of the low job satisfaction scores of the Korean CPS workers in this study. For the supervisory relationships, the average scores for rapport with supervisor and client-centered supervision were 63.01 out of 84 and 37.08 out of 49, respectively. The average score for prosocial behavior was 11.76 out of 15 (which is high), and the average score for problem-focused strategies was 38.80 out of 55. Table 1 Characteristics of participants. Variables Gender (%) Age (M, SD) Education (%)

2.4. Data analysis First, a descriptive analysis was conducted to describe the characteristics of the variables. Amos 7.0 was used to analyze the path model for the purpose of identifying the relationships between the exogenous and endogenous variables. The Sobel test was conducted to verify the significance of the mediating effects of the protective factors. To verify the overall fit of our research model, the values of absolute (χ2) and incremental fit measurements including the normed fit index (NFI), the Tucker–Lewis index (TLI), the comparative fit index (CFI), and the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) were examined. In terms of χ2, a concurrent low χ2 value and a high probability indicate that a model accurately represents a population (Kim, 2007); however, the value of χ2 is sensitive to the sample size and can result in low statistical power (Bae, 2007). The emphasis was therefore placed on the NFI, TLI, CFI, and RMSEA values to verify the fitness of the model. The NFI, TLI, and CFI are acceptable when they exceed .90 (Bae, 2005),

Years in agency (M, SD) Years in field (M, SD) Position Number of supervision

Type of supervision (multiple responses)

Months after severe case

Personal safety (M, SD) Post-traumatic stress

N Female Male Community college College Master's degree Doctor's degree

Mid-level manager Workers Frequently Rarely Total (M, SD) One-to-one supervision Peer supervision Supervision to all employees Others Less than 6 months More than 6 months Total (M, SD)

%

156 58.20 112 41.80 29.32 (5.33) 4 1.50 236 88.10 27 10.10 1 0.40 2.74 (2.77) 2.91 (2.66) 72 26.87% 196 73.13% 256 95.88% 11 4.12% 267 1.07 (0.42) 190 33.93% 149 26.61% 217 38.75% 4 0.71% 130 51.18% 124 48.82% 254 3.26 (1.25) 11.12 (2.12) 52.99

Y. Chung, J. Chun / Children and Youth Services Review 57 (2015) 134–140 Table 2 Descriptive analysis of variables. Variables

Mean

Median

SD

Job satisfaction Stressors

3.32 9.90 13.27 15.03 38.19 63.01 37.08 100.05 11.76 38.80 38.14 30.23 107.12

3.35 10.00 14.00 15.00 38.00 66.00 38.00 103.0 11.00 39.00 39.00 30.00 108.00

0.49 2.02 2.69 3.20 5.58 11.74 6.65 17.48 2.13 5.52 6.19 6.27 10.94

Supervision

Role ambiguity Role conflict Role overload Total Rapport with supervisor Client-centered Total

Prosocial behavior Stress coping Problem-focused Social support Avoidance Total

Table 3 Model fitness. Model

χ2

df

p

NFI

TLI

CFI

RMSEA

Measurement model Structural model

944.837 1180.885

550 742

.000 .000

.928 .925

.916 .911

.927 .923

.053 .048

3.3. Path-model fitness To determine the relationships among job satisfaction, the stressors, and the protective factors, a path analysis was conducted on the variables. Because the prerequisite for a model analysis was fulfilled, the research model was analyzed. The measurement model of the latent variables was analyzed first, and a high χ2 value of 1180.885 (df = 742) was found, together with a p-value of less than .001; however, the values of the NFI, the TLI, and the CFI all exceeded .90, and the RMSEA was smaller than 0.55 (Table 3). These results verified the model fitness. The antecedent variables accounted for 73.2% of the variance in job satisfaction, and role ambiguity, role conflict, role overload, rapport with supervisor, client-centered supervision, prosocial behavior, and problem-focused strategies all accounted for job satisfaction. In the relationship between the stressors and the protective factors, the stressors accounted for 40.6% of the variance in rapport with supervisor, 31.0% of problem-focused strategies, 29.5% of client-centered supervision, and 10.2% of prosocial behavior. These results show that role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload effectively accounted for rapport with supervisor, problem-focused strategies, and client-centered supervision,

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with the exclusion of only prosocial behavior. From the path analysis, the fitness of our path model for finding effective ways to improve the job satisfaction of CPS workers in South Korea was verified. 3.4. Path analysis As shown in Fig. 1, the pathways between job satisfaction and the antecedent variables that were hypothetically influential on job satisfaction were significant, with the exception of client-centered supervision. When the protective variables were controlled, role ambiguity (β = −.219, p b .05) and role overload (β = −.205, p b .01) were revealed as significant predictors of job satisfaction. The influence of role conflict (β = − .140, p b .05) on job satisfaction was the smallest among the stressors, but it was also a significant predictor. These results support the hypothesis that stressors negatively influence job satisfaction among CPS workers. The analysis of the direct effects of the protective factors on job satisfaction showed that client-centered supervision (β = −.033) had no direct influence but rapport with supervisor (β = .338, p b .01) had the most prominent direct influence on job satisfaction. Prosocial behavior (β = .233, p b .001) had a significant direct influence and acted as the second-most-effective predictor of job satisfaction. Additionally, problem-focused strategies had a direct influence on the CPS workers' job satisfaction (β = .173, p b .01). Our analysis supports the hypothesis that rapport with supervisor, prosocial behavior, and problem-focused strategies are predictors of job satisfaction; however, the hypothesis that client-centered supervision significantly influences job satisfaction was rejected. The indirect influence of stressors on job satisfaction as mediated by protective factors was examined to determine whether the protective factors helped workers cope with stressors. Through this analysis, the indirect influence of role ambiguity (β = − .323, p b .01) was very high, and that of role conflict (β = −.103, p b .05) was quite prominent; in contrast, we found that the indirect influence of role overload (β = .056) was insignificant. To analyze which protective factors mediated the relationship between the stressors and job satisfaction, the indirect influences were broken down as shown in Table 4. Role ambiguity was largely mediated by rapport with supervisor (β = −.177, p b .01). The indirect effects of role ambiguity on job satisfaction were mediated by problem-focused strategies (β = −.092, p b .05) and prosocial behavior (β = −.069, p b .01), and, even though the indirect effects were smaller than those of rapport with supervisor, they were still significant. Compared with role ambiguity, the indirect influence of role conflict was

Fig. 1. Research model.

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Table 4 Effects of factors influencing job satisfaction. Path analysis of parameters Role conflict

Job satisfaction

Direct effects

Indirect effects

Total effects

−.140⁎

−.103⁎ .007 −.091⁎ −.005 −.013 −.323⁎⁎ .015 −.177⁎⁎ −.069⁎⁎ −.092⁎ .056 .005 −.054 .022 .028

−.243

Client-centered supervision Rapport with supervisor Prosocial behavior Problem-focused strategies Role ambiguity

Job satisfaction

−.219⁎

Client-centered supervision Rapport with supervisor Prosocial behavior Problem-focused strategies Role overload

Job satisfaction

−.205⁎⁎

Client-centered supervision Rapport with supervisor Prosocial behavior Problem-focused strategies Client-centered supervision Rapport with supervisor Prosocial behavior Problem-focused strategies

Job satisfaction Job satisfaction Job satisfaction Job satisfaction

−.033 .338⁎⁎ .233⁎⁎⁎ .173⁎⁎

Z .329 −2.428⁎ −.279 −.997

−.543 .331 −2.809⁎⁎ −2.926⁎⁎ −2.501⁎ −.261 .329 −1.917 1.179 −1.728 −.033 .338 .233 .173

⁎ p b .05. ⁎⁎ p b .01. ⁎⁎⁎ p b .001.

only mediated by rapport with supervisor (β = − .091, p b .05). Role overload had no statistically significant indirect influence on the job satisfaction that was mediated by protective factors. As indicated by the results, rapport with supervisor, prosocial behavior, and problem-focused strategies acted as protective factors only in the case of role ambiguity. Regarding role conflict, rapport with supervisor was the only protective factor. No protective factors were involved with role overload. 4. Discussion A path analysis was conducted to determine both the direct influences of workplace stressors, including role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload and the buffering effects of protective factors on job satisfaction on a sample of Korean CPS workers. This study verified that rapport with supervisor, prosocial behavior, and problem-focused strategies were protective factors among the sample. However, each of these factors functioned differently as a protective buffer against each stressor. We found that rapport with supervisor was the most prominent protective factor against both role ambiguity and role conflict in this study, although a previous study suggested that supervision moderates role ambiguity, role conflict, and role overload (Pearlman & Mac Ian, 1995). The protective effect of rapport with supervisor on role ambiguity and role conflict therefore needs to be elucidated. Additionally, problem-focused strategies only had a protective effect on coping, in terms of role ambiguity, despite the findings that such strategies have been an important way to manage workplace stress (Anderson, 2000). This outcome shows that problem-focused strategies may not be a protective factor for all types of stressors. Prosocial behavior was also identified as a protective factor against role ambiguity, indicating the importance of the protective role of human caring that is essential to a belief in the value of child welfare in this study, but it has generally been overlooked. We also revealed that the protective factors had independent effects on job satisfaction among the CPS workers. The strongest predictor of job satisfaction among the research participants was rapport with supervisor, which was also the most effective protective factor against the stressors in this study. This finding supports previous studies that reported that support from a supervisor was an effective predictor of job satisfaction (Dickinson & Perry, 2003; Mena & Bailey, 2007; Westbrook, Ellis, & Ellett, 2006). This result showed that job satisfaction cannot be enhanced by supervision if a rapport does not exist between a worker and his or her supervisor.

Moreover, we found that prosocial behavior, a new protective factor against role ambiguity, was the second-most-effective predictor of job satisfaction among the CPS workers, even though only a few studies have attempted to verify an association between prosocial behavior and job satisfaction. These findings support the notion that prosocial behavior is positively related to job satisfaction; for example, Ellett (2009) observed that CPS workers with high prosocial behavior were more likely to successfully manage stress, and show increased job satisfaction. From these findings, it becomes clear that prosocial behavior is an essential personal trait for successful practice in the CPS field. In addition, we found that the use of problem-focused strategies was a strong predictor of job satisfaction among the CPS workers, in spite of its limited role as a protective factor; this highlighted its direct effect on job satisfaction rather than its buffering effect on the stressors. Our finding is consistent with the study by Welbourne et al. (2007) that verified that the use of problem-solving strategies among nurses was positively related to job satisfaction. The CPS workers in our study who used problem-solving strategies tended to find tangible solutions for stressful situations and regarded the stress in a more positive way; this finding indicates that CPS workers should learn how to use problem-solving strategies in supervision sessions. We found that the direct effect of the workplace stressors became less prominent because of the buffering effects of the aforementioned protective factors; however, we found that role ambiguity, which had the largest buffering effect on the protective factors, was a main predictor that directly lowered the degree of job satisfaction. As a result, the total effect of role ambiguity on job satisfaction was as significant as that of rapport with supervisor, supporting the conclusion of Glisson and Durick (1988) that role ambiguity, a stressor that is inherent to child welfare, was one of the most effective predictors of low job satisfaction. Alternatively, the direct effect of role conflict on job satisfaction was the smallest among the stressors that we examined, even though its indirect effect — mediated by the protective factors — was not as prominent as that of role ambiguity. The current Korean CPS system was established based on the US system (Park, 2005); however, Korean society lacks sufficient emotional and systematic support (Park, 2002) for its CPS workers. Therefore, they still experience role conflict, and it might be difficult for them to cope with this predominant social attitude. The direct effect of role overload, without a protective buffer, was as large as that of role ambiguity, indicating that role overload could be one


of the most important stressors. Interestingly, role overload had no indirect effects; this is assumed to be associated with the lack of staff and high caseloads in Korea's CPS system. The total number of CPS workers in Korea was only 375 in 2013, and the workload per CPS worker in 2013 comprised 34.9 case reports, 56.9 site investigations, 1197.8 intervention sessions, and 46.5 preventive education sessions (Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare & Korean National Child Protection Agency, 2014). Because of the short history of the CPS system and the high turnover rates among CPS workers in Korea, the field workforce is short-staffed, and the supervisors take on field duties in addition to their supervisory roles. This situation may cause role overload among both mid-level managers and frontline workers. Therefore, it is assumed that role overload is too heavy to be buffered by any protective factor. This study demonstrated that rapport with one's supervisor was the best protective factor against the workplace stress that resulted from role conflict and role ambiguity. This finding suggests that rapport with supervisor is the best way to improve the job satisfaction of individual workers, which sheds a new light on the importance of supportive supervision. According to the Confucian philosophy that permeates Korean society, hierarchy and collectivism are dominant (Park, 2005) and, under this hierarchical organizational culture, it is important to develop close rapport between supervisors and CPS workers. Our results indicate that the role of CPS supervisors includes providing emotional support to CPS workers, in addition to giving the workers instructions and supervising their job performance. The other effective way to improve job satisfaction is related to the workers' ability to cope with stress. Personal traits like prosocial behavior, and the use of problem-solving strategies were protective against the stress caused by role ambiguity and, in turn, contributed to an improved job satisfaction. Developing these personal traits, through activities like training sessions, can be a key way to enhance job satisfaction; however, Gibbs (2001) argued that CPS agencies have shown no interest in workers' personal growth, meaning that supervisors have not received the support they need to help workers reinforce prosocial behavior and learn problem-solving strategies in supervision sessions. In addition, different strategies that depend on each stressor are required to effectively increase workers' job satisfaction. To prevent role ambiguity, organizations should clarify workers' roles by providing a national standard for manual tasks, and rapport with supervisor, prosocial behavior, and problem-solving strategies should be strengthened through activities such as professional development training. To decrease role conflict, the rapport with one's supervisor should be used, and roles need to be clarified within an organization as a preventive measure. It is important to focus on strategies that directly decrease role overload in both organizational and supervisory contexts. Despite the significance of this study, a number of limitations are pertinent. The findings reported herein limit the potential for generalization because the sample was restricted to Korean CPS workers who voluntarily agreed to participate. Therefore, the findings should be situated within the working structure of Korea's CPS system. Additionally, the cultural particularities of the Korean CPS field should be considered in future studies.

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