1375: Cognitive DA Fit and Employee Creativity: The Moderating Effect of Task Idiosyncratic Deals (12442)

By integrating the job demands–resources model with the demands-ability fit literature, we proposed that (in)congruence of cognitive demands and abilities and the congruence levels are indirectly related to employee creativity via creative self-efficacy, and task idiosyncratic deals serve as a crucial boundary condition for the relationships. A three-wave multi-source survey conducted among 1026 employees working in high-tech firms revealed that congruence on cognitive demands and abilities and the levels of congruence were positively related to creative self-efficacy, and indirectly related to employee creativity via creative self-efficacy. We also found that task I-deals complemented the effect of (in)congruence such that when task I-deals are higher than lower, employees with lower cognitive abilities than cognitive demands were more likely to enhance creative self-efficacy. Meanwhile, task I-deals supplemented the effect of the levels of congruence on creative self-efficacy and the indirect effect of the levels of congruence on employee creativity via creative self-efficacy, such that these effects were stronger when task I-deals were lower than higher. Our findings provide a holistic perspective to explain how job demands (i.e., cognitive demands), employee abilities (i.e., cognitive abilities), and job resources (i.e., task I-deals) interact to affect employee creativity via creative self-efficacy.

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