The weekend matters: Relationships between stress recovery and affective experiences

Non‐work experiences during the weekend provide opportunities to recover from work demands and to replenish lost resources. This longitudinal study examined how specific recovery experiences during the weekend (relaxation, mastery, control, and detachment), as well as non‐work hassles, were associated with specific positive and negative affective states during the following workweek. Participants ( N = 229) completed surveys before the weekend, during the weekend, and during the following workweek. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that after controlling for affective states the previous week, recovery experiences during the weekend significantly explained variance in affective states at the end of the weekend and during the following workweek. Suggestions for future research include a closer examination of the role of individual differences, self‐regulation, and specific work demands in employee stress recovery.