Abstract
Research indicates that Positive Psychology Interventions (PPIs) in the work context have a small positive impact on improving desirable work outcomes, and a small to moderate effect on reducing undesirable work outcomes, suggesting that the effects of PPIs are not trivial, but also not large. Whereas this may be related to the difficulty of changing oneself or one’s happiness levels, the relatively small effects of PPIs may also be due to the predominant use of one-off interventions instead of more structural interventions that reflect policy level commitment. Furthermore, since most PPIs tend to focus on the individual, one could question the long-term effectiveness of such interventions, especially when the work environment remains unchanged. In this manuscript, I introduce a typology of PPIs in organizations by distinguishing between the organizational level they target (the individual or group level), and between one-off and structural interventions. I argue that different types of interventions can strengthen each other, and that to make a sustainable contribution to the optimal functioning of workers, PPIs need to comprise a wide variety of one-off and structural interventions targeting both individuals and groups in organizations. Furthermore, I make suggestions for improving the long-term effectiveness of PPIs by drawing on the literature on transfer of training, nudging, and positive design.
Highlights
Most adults spend a large part of their life working, and their well-being at work accounts for a large part of the variation in their life satisfaction (Judge and Watanabe, 1993)
I argue that different types of interventions can strengthen each other, and that in order to make a sustainable contribution to the optimal functioning of workers, Positive Psychology Interventions (PPIs) need to comprise a wide variety of one-off and structural interventions targeting both individuals and groups
Despite definitions of PPIs that mention the aim of building positive institutions (Meyers et al, 2013), or enhancing the well-being of groups (Parks and Biswas-Diener, 2013), these studies are largely based on interventions that target positive states and traits of individuals but let the work environment remain unchanged
Summary
Most adults spend a large part of their life working, and their well-being at work accounts for a large part of the variation in their life satisfaction (Judge and Watanabe, 1993). Happy employees have been found to perform better than their less happy colleagues (Cropanzano and Wright, 2001). For these reasons, many scholars and practitioners develop and investigate Positive Psychology Interventions (PPIs) that are aimed to enhance worker well-being. Examples of well-known PPIs are interventions that try to enhance feelings of gratitude (Davis et al, 2016), optimism (Malouff and Schutte, 2017), or kind behavior (Curry et al, 2018). Whereas the ultimate aim of PPIs is to increase the well-being of an individual or group (Schueller et al, 2014), when considered in an organizational context
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