Financial Stress and Job Performance among Young Doctors: The Mediating Role of Work Engagement in Public-Sector Hospitals of Hazara Division, Pakistan

Abstract

Financial stress may undermine the effectiveness of early-career medical professionals by consuming psychological resources and diverting attention from work. This study examines the relationship between financial stress and job performance among young doctors working in public-sector teaching hospitals in Hazara Division, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, and tests whether work engagement mediates this relationship. Drawing on Conservation of Resources (COR) theory and the Job Demands–Resources (JD–R) model, the study uses a quantitative, cross-sectional survey of 224 young doctors selected through stratified random sampling from four public teaching hospitals. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation and regression analyses, and Hayes’ PROCESS Model 4 with 5,000 bootstrap samples. The thesis reports negative associations between financial stress and work engagement (r = −.752, p < .01) and between financial stress and job performance (r = −.893, p < .01), alongside a positive association between work engagement and job performance (r = .756, p < .01). The mediation analysis reports a negative indirect effect of financial stress on job performance through work engagement (effect = −.1269, 95% bootstrap CI [−.1983, −.0582]) and a significant negative direct effect (reported coefficient = −.6449, p < .001), indicating partial mediation. The findings suggest that financial well-being and engagement should be considered together in workforce-support strategies for public healthcare institutions. Because the study is cross-sectional and based on self-reports, causal interpretations and generalization beyond the study setting should remain cautious.