The emotional complexities of the COVID-19 pandemic and organizational life

Abstract

Applied to COVID-19, individuals could recognize that negative emotions (e.g., frustration) indicate that their current state (e.g., working from home with kids) is discrepant from their ideal state (e.g., being able to hold a call or Zoom meeting without interruption), signaling that added effort is needed to resolve this issue. Fredrickson (2003) also offers sentiments in her broaden-and-build theory, suggesting that positive emotions can help employees foster the resilience they need to make progress during a crisis (Fredrickson etal., 2003). [...]people may feel calm and happy that they are able to work from home and maintain employment, spurring productivity. [...]healthcare workers who face challenging job demands and conditions (e.g., lack of personal protective equipment or working in hospitals where crisis care has been evoked) are likely to feel heightened fear as they expose themselves to the people with the virus, yetalso feel gratitude for their coworkers who are with them and community members who are celebrating them. [...]capturing how emotions are jointly experienced is a crucial means to understanding how working during COVID-19 affects employee health, motivation, and performance.