The double-edged sword effects of challenge stressors on creativity and the boundary conditions

Although a body of literature investigates the relationship between challenge stressors and creativity, researchers have yet to arrive at a consensus regarding the nature of the relationship. Relying on job demands-resources model (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007), we examined an integrative model which investigated the contingent double-edged sword effects of challenge stressors on creativity. Using a sample from five companies located in China, we provided support for our proposed hypotheses. The results showed that psychological strain (the dark mechanism) mediated the negative relationship between challenge stress and creativity; and this indirect effect was attenuated by employees CSE and servant leadership. In contrast, whether work engagement (the bright mechanism) mediated the relationship between challenge stressors and creativity was contingent on the level of employees CSE and servant leadership. Specifically, the mediating effect was significant only when employees CSE or servant leadership was high. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.