Perfectionism and workaholism in managers: The moderating role of workload

The purpose of this study is to examine the association between workaholism and two possible dispositional and situational antecedents, namely perfectionism, in terms of both self-oriented perfectionism (SOP) and socially prescribed perfectionism (SPP), and workload. Specifically, we hypothesize that both perfectionism and workload are positively associated with workaholism, and that workload may moderate the association between perfectionism and workaholism. Overall, 250 middle and top managers of an Italian service organization completed a self-report questionnaire. The hypothesized relationships were tested using moderated multiple regression. Results showed that SOP, SPP, and workload were positively associated with workaholism. Additionally, workload moderated the association between SOP/SPP and workaholism, which was stronger for workers with high workload. This study suggests that dispositional and situational factors, in terms of perfectionism and workload, may interact in predicting workaholism in managers. Interventions aimed at preventing workaholism could target cognitive elements of perfectionism, such as irrational beliefs about performance demands and failure.