Shared Positive Emotions at Work – Focal Actor Perspective to Responding to Others’ Positive Emotion

Abstract

The importance of sharing positive emotions in interpersonal relationships has been well established. Still, the focal actor perspective to responding to others’ positive emotions has largely been overlooked, even though the focal actor plays a key role in the process. To shed light on this important phenomenon, we propose that the focal actor’s response unfolds through a process of four steps – noticing, feeling care, taking action, and sensemaking – and numerous intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms impacting each step. The new understanding of the focal actor response may help foster desired symmetrical emotion regulation outcome, and increase employees’ motivation to share their positive emotions to a colleague, and help employees to experience the bolstering effect of the benefits of sharing their positive emotions. In the light of the new understanding, existing concepts of shared positive emotions, including positivity resonance, high quality connections, and relational energy, are addressed. Implications for responding to and sharing of positive emotions in interpersonal relationships, as well as the practice of effective responding in the workplace, are discussed.