Journalists as first responders: a new perspective on emotional labour and initiative taking in crises

The paper uses the HRM-psychological wellbeing-performance mechanism to place journalists, a previously overlooked group in the literature as first responders, as the focal point of the HRM-wellbeing-performance discussion. Based on the Job demand-resource theory, job resources can buffer against challenging job demands, such as emotional labor that is peculiar to first responders’ jobs. Our model examines the interacting effect of supervisor behavioral ambidexterity (SBA) and flexibility of human resource practices (HRPf) on the relationship between emotional regulation strategies and personal initiative-taking behavior from eustress— a good type of stress that carries a positive connotation for the employee experiencing it. A multisource two-wave survey amongst employees and supervisors from different organizations was used to explore the variables’ empirical association. Results do not provide support for the moderating effect of HRPf (alone), even at high levels. However, the model showing the moderating effect of HRPf on the relationship between emotional regulation strategies and personal initiative-taking through eustress significantly improves at high levels of SBA, highlighting the linchpin role of SBA in the HRM-psychological wellbeing-performance relationship.