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Department of Educational Psycholog, Faculty of Psychology and Education, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. , m.ramezanzadeh.t@ut.ac.ir
Abstract: (13 Views)
Background: With the expansion of information technologies and the blurring of boundaries between work and personal activities, cyberloafing has emerged as a common behavior in the workplace. This behavior can interrupt work processes, reduce concentration, and waste cognitive resources, thereby affecting job performance. Individual differences, particularly the personality trait of conscientiousness, may also influence the extent to which employees are affected by cyberloafing. Despite the importance of this issue, few studies in Iran have simultaneously examined these variables.
Aims: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of cyberloafing on job performance and the moderating role of conscientiousness among employees of a private company.
Methods: This study employed a descriptive–survey research design. The target population comprised all employees of a private company in Tehran in the year 1403 (n = 300). Using Cochran’s formula, a sample of 169 participants was selected through simple random sampling. The instruments used in this study included the Cyberloafing questionnaire (Skew, 2014), the Job Performance questionnaire by Patterson (1970, as cited in Saatchi et al., 1389), and the NEO personality inventory subscale for Conscientiousness (Costa & McCrae, 1992). The collected data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) with SPSS 26 and SmartPLS 4.
Results: The results indicated that cyberloafing had a significant negative effect on job performance (β = −0/641, t = 3/432). Conscientiousness also moderated this relationship and reduced the strength of the negative effect (β = 0/457, t = 2/094). The coefficient of determination for job performance (R² = 0.671) indicated a moderate explanatory power of the model, and the GOF index showed a strong model fit (GOF = 0/649).
Conclusion: Cyberloafing can reduce job performance; however, employees with higher levels of conscientiousness are less affected by its negative consequences. Therefore, organizations should consider employees’ individual characteristics in addition to technological controls. Paying attention to personality traits during recruitment, providing training in digital self‑management skills, and establishing clear internet usage policies may help reduce the negative consequences of cyberloafing and improve job performance.
Aims: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of cyberloafing on job performance and the moderating role of conscientiousness among employees of a private company.
Methods: This study employed a descriptive–survey research design. The target population comprised all employees of a private company in Tehran in the year 1403 (n = 300). Using Cochran’s formula, a sample of 169 participants was selected through simple random sampling. The instruments used in this study included the Cyberloafing questionnaire (Skew, 2014), the Job Performance questionnaire by Patterson (1970, as cited in Saatchi et al., 1389), and the NEO personality inventory subscale for Conscientiousness (Costa & McCrae, 1992). The collected data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) with SPSS 26 and SmartPLS 4.
Results: The results indicated that cyberloafing had a significant negative effect on job performance (β = −0/641, t = 3/432). Conscientiousness also moderated this relationship and reduced the strength of the negative effect (β = 0/457, t = 2/094). The coefficient of determination for job performance (R² = 0.671) indicated a moderate explanatory power of the model, and the GOF index showed a strong model fit (GOF = 0/649).
Conclusion: Cyberloafing can reduce job performance; however, employees with higher levels of conscientiousness are less affected by its negative consequences. Therefore, organizations should consider employees’ individual characteristics in addition to technological controls. Paying attention to personality traits during recruitment, providing training in digital self‑management skills, and establishing clear internet usage policies may help reduce the negative consequences of cyberloafing and improve job performance.
Article number: 3
Type of Study: Applicable |
Subject:
Special
Received: 2026/04/4 | Accepted: 2026/07/9 | Published: 2026/07/23
Received: 2026/04/4 | Accepted: 2026/07/9 | Published: 2026/07/23
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This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)