Psychologicalwellbeingatwork: Researchevidenceandcurrent issues

ProfessorIvanRobertson RobertsonCooperLtd & LeedsUniversityBusinessSchool

Overview
PsychologicalWellBeing(PWB) whatisit? Howisitmeasured? Whatfactors(probably)determinePWB andwhatdowe knowabouttheirrelationshipwithPWB? Correlates(consequences&causes)ofPWB forIndividuals forOrganisations Currentissues

Currentissues
Employeeengagement Management&leadershipbehaviour Presenteeism Interventionstoimprovepsychologicalwellbeing

Theelementsofpsychologicalwell being?
Experiencingpleasanteventsfeelinggood maximisingpleasure..? (Hedonic) Doingwhatisworthdoingachievingagoal feelinggoodaboutoneself..? (Eudaimonic)

Psychologicalwellbeing:Emotional aspects
Positiveemotionalexperiences Fredricksons(1998)Broaden&Buildtheory Purposefulaspectsofwellbeing findingpositivemeaningmaybethemost powerfulleveragepointforcultivatingpositive emotionsduringtimesofcrisis. (Fredricksonet al.,2003,p374).

 Happiness

Psychologicalwellbeing:Emotional aspects
Lifesatisfaction(e.g.Dieneretal.,1985) Happiness(e.g.OxfordHappiness Inventory/Questionnaire,Hills&Argyle,2002) cognitiveevaluationsofwellbeing

Psychologicalwellbeing:Purposeful aspects
(CarolRyff,e.g.Ryff&Keyes,1995) Autonomy Environmentalmastery Personalgrowth Positiverelationswithothers Purposeinlifeand Selfacceptance

Measuringpsychologicalwellbeing
Psychological(Ill)health e.g.GeneralHealthQuestionnaire (GoldbergandWilliams,1988) Constantirritability,Difficultyinmakingdecisions,Lossof senseofhumour,Constanttiredness,Feelingunabletocope (ASSET,Faragheretal.,2004) Positive/negativeemotions e.g.PANAS(Watsonetal.,1988); Cropanzano&Wright(1999) Feeling excited,depressedorunhappy,ontopoftheworld,scared

Measuringpsychologicalwellbeing atwork
Theaffectivestatethatpeopleexperienceatwork Theextenttowhichpeopleexperienceapositive senseofpurposeintheirwork Timeframe todistinguishbetween Mood,DispositionandTrait

Measuringpsychologicalwellbeing atwork
PositivePsychologicalWellbeing(Emotionalcomponent): Forthetermsbelow,indicatetheextenttowhichyouhavefelt likethisduringthelastthreemonthsatwork veryslightlyornotatallalittlemoderatelyquitea bitverymuch Inspired Alert Excited Enthusiastic Determined Happy Contented

Measuringpsychologicalwellbeing atwork
Keyelementsofgoalsettingtheory*: Goalsandobjectivesareclear Goalsarechallengingbutachievable Peoplearecommittedtoachievinggoals Goalsarefelttobeworthwhile

*Locke & Latham, 2002

Measuringpsychologicalwellbeing atwork
Positivepsychologicalwellbeing(SenseofPurpose) Mycurrentjobgoalsarespecific Myjobgoalsandobjectivesareclear Iamcommittedtoachievingthegoalsofmyjob Myjobgoalsarechallenging Myjobgoalsareworthwhile

Whatfactorsinfluencepsychological wellbeingatwork?
Person Situation Work Non-work

(FiveFactorModel)
Openness intellectuallycurious,opentonewactivities,prefervariety andnovelty,fantasy&imagination Conscientiousness dependable,prudent,methodical,achievementstriving Extraversion gregarious,active,assertive,positiveemotions Agreeableness sympathetictoothers,cooperative,trusting Neuroticism emotionally unstable,anxious,irritable,depressed

Factorsoutsidework
Respiteandrecovery Demandingwork Conflict Positiveandnegativespillover Factorsthat(can)interfere Frequenttravel Poorfamilyrelationships Dualcareer Factorsthat(can)enhance Positivesocialorfamilyactivities Leisurepursuitsandhobbies

Whatworkplacefactorsinfluence psychologicalwellbeing?
Demands Control Support
Johnson & Hall, 1988; De Lange et al., 2003; ODriscoll & Brough, 2010

Workplacefactorsandwellbeing
Demands Control Relationships Change Role Support - Demands - Control - Support - Change - Role - Reward & contribution Resources& Communication Controland autonomy Workrelationships Worklifebalance; Workload Jobsecurity& change Pay,benefits&job conditions

(Individual)Correlatesofpsychological wellbeing
highercardiovascularrisk higherweightandwaisthipratios higherHbAlc(markerfordiabetes) lowerHDLgoodcholesterol poorerneuroendocrineregulation highersalivarycortisolthroughouttheday poorerimmunefunction higherinflammatorymarkers(IL6) poorersleep longerdurationREM lessbodymovement

Ryff, Singer and Love, Philosophical Transactions of Royal Society of London, 2004

Correlatesofpsychologicalwellbeing
Positivepsychologicalwellbeingassociatedwith: Reducedmortalityinhealthyandsickpopulations Lowerrateofmortalityfromheartdisease Lowerrateofmortalityinpatientswithother diseases
Metaanalysisof35studies Chida&Steptoe,PsychosomaticMedicine2008

Psychologicalwellbeing: risksbenefitstoindividuals
35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 % Colds Positive W/being scores Moderate W/Being scores Low W/Being scores

Cohen et al., Psychosomatic Medicine, 2003

Organisationalrisksbenefits
Boormanreview(2009)* Harter,Schmidtand Health&wellbeing Keyes(2003)Nearly8,000 relatedto: MRSA,Patient separatebusinessunitsin satisfaction,Agency 36companies spend engagement/wellbeing correlatedwithbusiness *www.nhshealthandwellbeing.org/FinalReport.html unitperformance (sicknessabsence, customersatisfaction, productivity,employee turnover,etc)

Organisationalrisksbenefits
Somestudies: Donaldetal.,(2005) almostaquarter(23%)of varianceinemployee productivity (sampleof 16,000UKemployees)is explainedby Psychologicalwellbeing Perceivedcommitment oforganisationto employee Resourcesand communications CropanzanoandWright (1999) Fiveyear longitudinalstudyof psychologicalwellbeing andperformance.Strong correlationbetweenwell beingandwork performance

Organisational outcomes
Key workplace factors that influence psychological well-being?
Productivity Lowsicknessabsence Lowemployeeturnover Attractivetorecruits Customer/user/patient satisfaction

Psychological wellbeing (& Employee engagement)

Individual outcomes Productivity & satisfaction Good citizenship Health & well-being

Resources and Communication Control

Outcomes
Productivity Low sickness absence Low employee turnover Attractive to recruits Customer/user/ patient satisfaction

Work Relationships Work Life Balance; Workload Job Security & Change Pay, Benefits & Job conditions

Psychological well-being & coping behaviour

Howdoesitwork?
Peoplehigheronpsychologicalwellbeing Showgreaterflexibilityandoriginality Respondbettertounfavourablefeedback Makemorepositivejudgementsaboutothers ShowhigherlevelsofEngagement Aremoreproductive Arelikelytolivelongerbesicklessoftenand havehappierworkandhomelife
e.g. Lyubomirsky, King & Diener, 2005

The Well-Being Reservoir

Work Learning & relationships Development Resources Respect & & communications attention

Control & Autonomy

Job conditions FairBalanced rewards Workload

Job Security & Change

Currentissues
Employeeengagement Management&leadershipbehaviour Presenteeism Interventionstoimprovepsychologicalwellbeing

Employeeengagement Work involvement(Flow)models

Researchers Schaufellietal. Absorption(fullconcentration, happilyengrossedinwork) Vigour(highenergyandmental resilience) Dedication(senseofsignificance, pride,challenge)

Employeeengagement positivejob&work attitudemodels

Practitioners TowersPerrin (DavidMacleod) HarnessingDiscretionary Effort Goingtheextramile Researchers Robinsonetal. Organisationalcitizenship Organisationalcommitment Job/rolecommitment

Anarrowviewofengagement
Discretionary effort Commitment Organisational citizenship Sense of purpose

Attachment

Awiderview
Discretionary effort Resilience Psychological well-being Commitment Organisational citizenship Sense of purpose

Positive emotions Attachment

Energy Energy

Results:Engagement&PWB
(.20) Narrow Engagement (Job Satisfaction, Commitment, Citizenship, Attachment) (.41) Sustainable Engagement (i.e. including psychological well-being) Productivity Productivity

N~9,000 people across 12 different organisations

Management&leadership
Qualityofrelationshipwithmanagerpredictsemployee turnover(Griffethetal.,2000 metaanalysis) Management/leadershipbehaviourrelatedto: Burnout Healthcomplaints Psychiatricdisturbance thisprovidesadditionalevidencethatsupervisor behaviourcanaffectemployeewellbeingandsuggests thatthoseseekingtocreatehealthierworkplacesshould notneglectsupervision. (GilbreathandBenson,2004)

Studydesign
Sample TotalN=800 Leaders=79 Measures Leaders: (i)PersonalityNEOPIR (Fivefactormodel) Workgroups: (i)Workplacefactors (ii)Psychologicalwellbeing Researchquestions (i)Relationshipsbetween leaderpersonalityand workgroupPWB (ii)Mechanismforleader personalityinfluencing workgroupPWB

Leaderpersonalityandworkgroup psychologicalwellbeing(PWB)
LeaderExtraversion (Domain)andworkgroup PWBr=0.40 E1Warmth r=0.28 E4Activity r=0.35 E6+veemotions r=0.30 Neuroticism(Domain)and workgroupPWB N3Depression r=.31* *relationshipisnegative Combinedinamultiple regressionmodel R=0.47

Possiblemodels
Leader personality Workgroup well-being

Leader personality

Resources & Communication Control and autonomy Work relationships Work life balance; Workload Job security & change Pay, benefits & job conditions

Workgroup well-being

PWB (mediated) multiple regression analysis PWB Step 2 Personality No increment in R Step 1 ASSET factors R= .73 Control Work Life Balance

ASSET factors fully mediate the impact of leader personality on PWB

Typesofpressure
Hindrancepressures Roleambiguity WorkRelationships Jobinsecurity Challengepressures Workload Timepressure Jobscope Responsibility

Pressure
Typeof Pressure Hindrance Strain Job satisfaction 0.48 Commitment Turnover Withdrawal

Challenge

0.21

Pressure
Typeof Pressure Hindrance Strain Job satisfaction 0.48 0.66 Commitment 0.63 Turnover 0.25 Withdrawal 0.23

Challenge

0.21

0.24

0.29

0.06

0.02

Podsakoff et al., Jour Appl Psych, 2007

Presenteeism
Sicknesspresenteeism Attendingworkwhileill (Johns,2009) Goingtoworkdespite feelingunhealthy(Dewet al.,2005) Wideraspectsof presenteeism Workingelevatedhours puttinginfacetime (Worralletal.,2000) Reducedproductivity duetoeventsthat distractonefromfull productivity (Whitehouse,2005)

Somequestionsaboutpresenteeism
Howcanitbemeasured? Howcommonisit? Whatfactorsareassociatedwithpresenteeism? Whatarethecauses Howcanpresenteeismbemanaged?

Measuringpresenteeism
Indirectmeasures e.g. StanfordWorkLimitationsQuestionnaire Directmeasures e.g.
Inthepast3months,haveyouevernotfeltwellenoughtoperformyourduties toyournormalstandard,butattendedworkregardless?

Inferentialmeasures e.g. Health NotgoodGood SicknessabsencefromworkYesNo

Prevalence
SeveralstudiesinScandinaviaandelsewhere e.g. Australia Prevalence: Oneepisode~60% Morethanone~35% OnlyoneUKstudy(WorkFoundation Ashby& Mardon,2010) 510AxaPPPemployees 45%ofemployeesoneor moredayofsicknesspresenceinthelastfourweeks.

UK:PrevalenceofPresenteeism Study1
Analysiscarriedoutondatasetof6,309participantsfrom7 organisationsoverthelast18months. Presenteeismmeasuredusingthefollowingquestion: Inthepast3months,haveyouevernotfeltwellenoughto performyourdutiestoyournormalstandard,butattended workregardless? Andtheresultsshowed: Yes 59.7% No 40.3%

Presenteeism anInferential measure

HealthGood HealthNot good

Noabsences

Healthy&present Unhealthyand present Sickness Presentees Healthyandnot alwayspresent Unhealthyand notalways present

Someabsences

UKprevalenceofpresenteeism Study2
Health Good Noabsences Some absences 35% 13% HealthNot good 28% 24%

N=39,000 employees from general working population (UK)

Presenteeismandproductivity Study2
Health Good and present Health Presentees goodand absent 88% 84%

Health Notgood andabsent 82%

Productivity (previous three months)

90%

What is the real productivity loss for presentees? A loss of 6%? A gain of 2%? A gain of 84% (on days when someone would otherwise be absent)

Factorsassociatedwithpresenteeism Study1&2
Factor Significant relationship? Findings
Highestpresenteeismlevelswhenwidowedor separated Lowestwhensingleormarried PresenteeismsteadilyincreaseswithLOS Higherpresenteeismforthosewhodonttake exercise. Higherpresenteeism forthoseworkingmorethan 50hours

MaritalStatus LengthofService Exercise

Workload

SourcesofPresenteeism Study1
Respondentsalsoaskedwherethepressuretoattendworkwhilstill comesfrom:

(%showingfirmagreement i.e.eitherstronglyagreeoragree)

4.0

Workplacefactors Study1

3.5

Moretroubled

3.0

2.5

2.0

PresenteeismGroup NonPresenteeismGroup

1.5

1.0

Outcomesassociatedwithpoorpsychologicalwell being(Study1&2)
Factor Significant relationship? Findings

Productivity Physicalhealth

Reducedproductivity

Poorphysicalhealth

Presenteeism

Higherpresenteeism

Absenteeism

Higherabsenteeism

Presenteeismworsethanabsenteeism? Study1
2.6 2.4 2.2 2.0 1.8 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.0 0daysoffthrough illness 1dayoffthrough illness 25daysoffthrough 6ormoredaysoff PresenteeismGroup illness throughillness

PoorerPhysicalHealth

Presenteeism worsethanabsenteeism? Study1

2.4

PoorerPsychologicalHealth

2.2

2.0

1.8

1.6

1.4

1.2

1.0 0daysoffthrough 1dayoffthrough 25daysoffthrough 6ormoredaysoff illness illness illness throughillness Presenteeism Group

Managingpresenteeism
Attendancemanagementpracticesmayincrease presenteeism* Presenteeism increasedduringdownsizingprocess** the evidenceheresuggestedthatemployeesweresubstituting morethanhalfoflegitimatesicknessabsenceswithsickness presence. Workfactorsaresignificantlycorrelatedwithpresenteeism** Presenteeism correlateswithhealth morestronglythan absenteeism**

*Munir, 2008 **Calverly, 2007

Interventions
Primary,secondaryandtertiarylevels Evaluatingwhatworks (NICE,Gravelingetal.,2008) Goodwork,goodmanagement,emergentrather thanprescriptivesolutionsseemmostsuccessful

References
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References
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References
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