The Positive Face of Human Capital, Psychological Capital, and Well-Being

This chapter analyzes the relation between Positive Psychology, Psychological Capital, and Well-Being. Positive psychology pursues information that flourishes on life. Positive psychology improves the quality of life and investigates the paths towards positive individual characteristics and developing communities through actions that increase well-being and prevents discomfort in situations where life is vicious and meaningless. Psychological capital is associated with many positive results for employees and the organization and promises to increase productivity in today's workplace. In this chapter, the transformation of positive psychology into the concept of psychological capital is explained in the field of organizational behavior, and the state of well-being and psychological capital are examined from a theoretical perspective. Besides, it is explained how psychological capital improves employee wellbeing. Psychological capital and well-being are very effective concepts on employee workplace performance, and there are strong relationships between them.

Organizational-Cultural Elements for Improved Workplace Performance of Disabled Individuals

This chapter embarks from the increasing number of disabled individuals in private companies and public institutions and examines the working conditions of disabled employees in these organizations. Although this case is relevant to a considerable number of international contexts, the author focuses on Turkey as a case, illustrative of countries going through similar processes. The author starts by providing an introduction followed by literature on organizational culture. Next, the author discusses the recent legislation regarding the employment of disabled individuals and discusses with literature on their workplace performance. Next, the author focuses on the relationships between the organizational culture and workplace performance of disabled employees. Finally, the author concludes by recommendations for future practice to enhance performance of disabled employees and future research to conduct robust studies in the area. The chapter assumes that organizations can enhance performance of everyone by creating an inclusive culture surrounded by elements involving positive attitudes, equity, equality, and beliefs of productivity.

Treatment of mixed anxiety and depressive disorder: results from a observational study of the efficacy and tolerability of agomelatine

Objective: to study the efficacy, safety and tolerability of agomelatine in mixed anxiety and depressive disorder.Patients and methods. Agomelatine was administered to 30 patients diagnosed with mixed anxiety and depressive disorder for 3 months. The patients' condition was assessed using a battery of psychometric methods – the Hamilton Depression Scale, the Hamilton Anxiety Scale, and a short form of the SF-12v2 quality of life questionnaire.Results and discussion. It was shown that agomelatine effectively reduces both symptoms of depression and anxiety, begins to have a therapeutic effect a week after the start of administration, however, the drug shows the best clinical effect when administered for a period of three months or more. The predictors of complete remission on agomelatine therapy in this sample were: the presence of sleep disorders (early and medium, but not late insomnia), a greater severity of somatized anxiety, the presence of complaints of decreased workplace performance and activity.Conclusion. Our study has shown that agomelatine is an effective, safe and well-tolerated drug in the treatment of mixed anxiety and depressive disorder.

Publication bias and low power in field studies on goal priming

Research on goal priming asks whether the subtle activation of an achievement goal can improve task performance. Studies in this domain employ a range of priming methods, such as surreptitiously displaying a photograph of an athlete winning a race, and a range of dependent variables including measures of creativity and workplace performance. Chen, Latham, Piccolo and Itzchakov (Chen et al. 2021 J. Appl. Psychol. 70 , 216–253) recently undertook a meta-analysis of this research and reported positive overall effects in both laboratory and field studies, with field studies yielding a moderate-to-large effect that was significantly larger than that obtained in laboratory experiments. We highlight a number of issues with Chen et al .'s selection of field studies and then report a new meta-analysis ( k = 13, N = 683) that corrects these. The new meta-analysis reveals suggestive evidence of publication bias and low power in goal priming field studies. We conclude that the available evidence falls short of demonstrating goal priming effects in the workplace, and offer proposals for how future research can provide stronger tests.

Prevalence and contextual factors associated with compassion fatigue among nurses in northern Uganda

Background Compassion fatigue is associated with negative consequences that undermine workplace performance. However, literature is scarce on compassion fatigue among nurses in the context of Uganda who are at higher risk of compassion fatigue owed to the nature of their occupation and the unfavorable work environment. We aimed to assess the prevalence and predictors of compassion fatigue among nurses in Northern Uganda. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 395 randomly selected nurses from two referral and four general hospitals in Northern Uganda. Data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Data analysis consisted of descriptive statistics, cross-tabulations, and logistic regression at a 95% level of significance in SPSS version 25. Results Of 395 nurses who took part in the study, 58.2% were female, 39.8% had a diploma, 47.1% were single, and 32.4% had worked for between 11–15 years. Close to 50% of the nurses experienced compassion fatigue. The predictors of compassion fatigue among the participants were; workplace bullying (AOR: 3.83; 95% CI: 1.99–7.36; p = <0.001) career enhancement opportunities (AOR: 9.16; 95% CI: 2.32–36.22; p = 0.002; and remuneration (AOR: 7.30; 95% CI: 2.73–19.49; p = <0.001). Conclusion More than 3 in 4 nurses in Northern Uganda experience compassion fatigue. The Ministry of Health together with other stakeholders should strive to increase career enhancement opportunities for nurses, improve nurses’ remuneration and improve the overall workplace environment to prevent compassion fatigue among nurses in the country.

Workplace preparedness for an ageing workforce: a case study

PurposeFor many nations, their workforces are ageing. The purpose of this paper is to explore the concerns and attitudes of employers to employing older workers and what information they require.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire survey of workplaces was undertaken in the Fife region of Scotland, which in economic and demographic terms is representative of wider Scotland and other nations in Northern Europe. Descriptive analysis was undertaken to give insight into concerns and actions taken regarding ageing workforces.FindingsMost workplaces perceive more advantages to employing older workers than challenges. Many have adapted training and work practices, but many have not. The majority surveyed believe that existing policies and strategies are sufficient. This points to the need for national and local government and employer associations to become more active to persuade workplaces to better manage future workplaces.Research limitations/implicationsGeneralisability is problematic and the small sample restricted the scope of statistical analysis.Practical implicationsThe authors were unable to judge the severity of how an ageing workforce impacts on workplace performance, as employers found it difficult to conceptualise and identify the impact of ageing from market and economic pressures.Social implicationsResulting from population ageing the workforce of many societies are becoming older, this will impact on workplace relations and the social identity of those over the age of 50 years.Originality/valueLittle research has been undertaken to assess workplaces awareness of, and how to adapt to, an ageing workforce, and research is required to inform and guide management strategy of employers.

Does Domestic Violence Against Women Increase Teacher–Student School Violence? The Mediating Roles of Morbidity and Diminished Workplace Performance

This research reveals how domestic gender violence suffered by female teachers affects teacher–student school violence in the classroom. Based on a representative survey of 1,542 female professors in 95 public schools in the Callao metropolitan region of Peru using variance structural equation modelling, there is a strong positive relation found between both types of violence (β = 0.34), accompanied by the existence of mediating effects of morbidity and diminished workplace performance. These results demonstrate that in order to reduce the incidence of school violence we must not only address violence between educators and students, but also violence suffered by teachers at the hands of their domestic partner.

Generic Skills Development in the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries and Graduate Outcomes: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Generic skills are essential because today’s jobs and the future of work require flexibility, initiative, and the ability to undertake many different tasks. While higher education graduates in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries recognize the contribution of these skills in their academics and workplace performance, generic skills development is not a consistent part of their education, which has led to socioeconomic challenges. If higher education placed a great emphasis on developing generic skills, students would expect to have pragmatic benefits, such as academic success, boosting workplace performance, positive interpersonal relationships, and better health and overall well-being. To the best of our knowledge, no systematic review has been conducted to examine generic skills development outcomes in the GCC. Hence, this systematic review aims to identify, evaluate, and summarize findings from peer-reviewed and policy-related studies that have documented generic skills development outcomes in the GCC countries, including identifying broad definitions used and areas for future research. The findings demonstrated conclusive evidence regarding the effectiveness of generic skills development at the higher education level in enhancing graduate outcomes in employability promotion skills, enhancing stakeholder engagement in curriculum and instruction, academic or workplace performance, influences on health, and effects on social dimensions.

Analysis of determinants of work performance for seafarers based on fuzzy Electre model

Nowadays, most shipping companies are aware of the importance of analysing seafarers’ work performance. Thus, improving seafarers’ work performance or finding out the ways by which seafarers’ work performance can be enhanced is becoming one of the decisive factors for the success of any shipping company. Any organization aims to have employees who can accomplish corporate goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively. Manpower performance can be enhanced by putting more emphasis on factors that can stimulate employees’ motivational level, creativity and job satisfaction. In this study, we use literature review and experts’ opinions to identify determinants of workplace performance for seafarers working with Marine Services Company Limited (MSCL), a shipping company owned by the government of Tanzania. The data is collected from a random sample of 30 seafarers working for the MSCL and a Fuzzy Electre Model (FEM) is developed and applied to determine the significance of the factors and sub-factors for the work performance of seafarers. The fuzzy terms are adopted in order to integrate the uncertainty of subjective judgment when evaluating alternatives. The computational results validate the effectiveness of the developed evaluation model. This study is resourceful for the top management of MSCL, as it points out those factors that can directly affect the performance of her seafarers. Seafarers are important assets of any shipping company and thus, this study helps shipping enterprises devise efficient human resource strategies to get maximum benefit from this kind of assets. More importantly, enhanced seafarers’ work performance leads to improved company’s productivity and higher service quality and therefore make the shipping company competitive in the trading markets.