Well but Unwanted: The Subtle Backlash Against Prioritizing Mental Wellbeing at Work

Abstract

Organizations are investing more into mental wellbeing initiatives than ever before, seeking to become more inclusive workplaces and combat rising employee stress. Yet 75% of employees still struggle with mental health and many hesitate to use these initiatives over fear of backlash. Our research suggests this fear is warranted, and that the nature of this backlash is particularly nuanced. Across 4 studies (N=2,107), we show that although displays of overt discrimination may be less common, employees who prioritize their mental wellbeing experience subtle forms of backlash, including social aversion (Study 2) and feedback withholding (Studies 1, 3). Although mental wellbeing prioritization violates the “ideal worker norm,” we demonstrate that political correctness norms (specifically concerns about appearing discriminatory) both lead evaluators to suppress overt backlash and simultaneously engage in subtle backlash (Study 4). Together, these results suggest that while prioritizing mental wellbeing may leave employees well, it may also lead them to be unwanted. We discuss the implications of this paradox for scholarship on social norms and wellbeing interventions in modern organizations.