Abstract:

Considering the fact that time pressure is highly prevalent and significant in the workplace, academic researchers have delved deeply into the relationship between time pressure and employee performance or behavioral outcomes. While these studies have made substantial contributions to the time pressure literature, they have not yet arrived at a consistent conclusion. As such, determining the true impact of time pressure remains an open question. To address this, we conducted the first comprehensive meta-analysis on the effects of time pressure on individual work outcomes. This analysis encompassed a wide range of consequences, including job performance, innovative performance, prosocial behavior, and proactive behavior. By investigating the effects of time pressure through a meta-analytical lens, we were able to gain a better understanding of its impacts and develop appropriate coping strategies accordingly. Our findings offer valuable insights and recommendations for organizations seeking to effectively manage the time pressure experienced by their employees, ultimately aiming to enhance overall performance. This issue has become a topic of significant importance and concern in both theoretical and practical fields, with our study providing a crucial step forward in understanding the implications of time pressure in the workplace.

Based on 82 independent samples from 78 studies with a total study sample of 25,056 participants, this study conducted a meta-analysis of the relationship between time pressure and employee outcomes (job performance, innovation performance, prosocial behavior, and proactive behavior) and examined the moderating effects of cultural differences (power distance, individualism-collectivism, and short-term-long-term orientation), team interdependence, and rating sources on the relationship. The results found that time pressure had a significant positive correlation with employee job performance, prosocial behavior, and proactive behavior, but the positive correlation with employee innovative performance was not significant. Furthermore, this study examined the moderating effects of cultural differences, team interdependence, and rating sources. The data results showed that, first, under the background of high power distance, collectivism, and long-term orientation, time pressure had a significant positive correlation with prosocial behavior; while under the background of low power distance, individualism, and short-term orientation, time pressure had a significant positive correlation with proactive behavior. Second, compared with low team interdependence, in the context of high team interdependence, time pressure showed a more positive correlation with job performance, innovative performance, and prosocial behavior. Finally, compared to other-evaluated data, time pressure had a more positive correlation with self-evaluated employee job performance and behavioral outcomes.

This study makes significant theoretical contributions to the time pressure literature. First, the findings of this study enrich the existing research on the relationship between time pressure and employee outcomes. Although previous studies have mostly regarded time pressure as a challenge stressor and believed it to be a favorable factor for promoting individual and team achievements, our results suggest that time pressure does not always yield positive outcomes. Specifically, individual time pressure is beneficial for employees’ job performance, prosocial behavior, and proactive behavior, but its positive correlation with innovative performance is not significant, indicating that time pressure is not always assessed positively. Second, this study investigates the boundary conditions between time pressure and employee outcomes based on the stress appraisal theory. The mixed research conclusions on the relationship between time pressure and employee outcomes might be due to the varying degrees to which employees evaluate time pressure as challenging in different situations. This study identified several important boundary conditions, including cultural differences, team interdependence, and rating sources. These findings not only expand the application scope of the stress appraisal theory but also provide a more comprehensive and systematic reference for clarifying the boundary conditions between time pressure and employee outcomes. Therefore, this meta-analysis offers a comprehensive and reliable conclusion on the impact of time pressure and provides theoretical references and practical guidance for future research.

Key words: individual time pressure, individual work outcomes, meta-analysis, moderating effects