Influence of Stressful Events on Work Engagement of Construction Workers during Emergency Infrastructure Projects: Analysis Using Affective Events Theory and Self-Efficacy Theory

The urgency and challenge of constructing an emergency infrastructure project (EIP) are prominent during emergencies and crisis situations. Under such stressful event pressures, EIP construction workers often face extended hours and high-intensity workloads, which negatively affect their work engagement. However, the quantitative impact of a stressful event on EIP construction workers remains unclear. To bridge this knowledge gap, this study takes EIPs, represented by mobile cabin hospitals, as representative cases and develops a conceptual model grounded in affective events theory and self-efficacy theory. Structural equation modeling is then employed to test the impact of the stressful event of EIP construction on construction workers’ work engagement, based on data collected from 314 EIP construction workers. The results show that, first, positive affect is positively influenced by event criticality, which further promotes external efficacy and response efficacy. Second, negative affect is negatively influenced by event criticality and positively influenced by event disruption, which further hinders response efficacy. Third, external efficacy and response efficacy positively influence the three dimensions of work engagement (i.e., work vitality, work dedication, and work concentration). Fourth, the work vitality and dedication of EIP construction workers from first-tier cities are lower than those of workers from other cities. Finally, EIP construction workers with a higher level of education level had higher work engagement. These findings make a significant contribution to construction work engagement literature through novel theoretical insights. Further, this study provides practical guidance for enhancing construction workers’ work engagement from the perspectives of governments and construction enterprises.