Moderating Role of Religiosity on the Relationship between Job Burnout and Workplace Deviant Behaviour among Academic Staff of University

The increasing reports of workplace deviant behaviour among academic staff of universities have become a source of concern to the government, researchers, parents, and other stakeholders. Hence, several efforts have been made to reverse this ugly trend due to its negative consequences on the university system. The main thrust of this research is to examine the moderating role of religiosity on the relationship between the dimensions of job burnout and workplace deviant behaviour among the academic staff of Kaduna State University, Kaduna. The study utilized proportionate stratified sampling design to draw a sample of 404 academic staff across the faculties of the university. PLS-SEM was used to analyze the hypotheses developed for the study at 5% level of significance. Findings revealed that depersonalization and reduced personal accomplishment have a positive significant effect on workplace deviant behaviour among academic staff. However, emotional exhaustion was found to have insignificant effect on workplace deviant behaviour. On the moderating role of religiosity on the relationship between emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment, the result revealed that religiosity does not moderate the relationship. Based on the findings of the study, the study recommends among others that the management of the university should continue to sustain its wellness programmes to prevent academic staff from developing emotional exhaustion, provide an organizational culture that supports academic staff, and enhance professional development.