People & Strategy Winter 2015 Vol. 38 Issue 1 - 15

difference in how employees feel at the end
of the day.
This brings us to the broaden-and-build
theory, summarized in Bono and Glomb, et
al.'s research publication as follows:
"Much of the research on positive events and
experiences has emerged from positive psychology and its foundational broaden-andbuild theory (Fredrickson, 1998 & 2001),
which explicitly addresses positive experiences and emotions as they enhance health
and flourishing. Taking an evolutionary
approach, Fredrickson argued that in contrast to negative emotions, which narrow a
person's thought and action repertoires in
preparation for quick action (e.g., to fight off

If we're focusing on the
negative only, then we're
leaving opportunity on the
table.
an imminent threat), positive emotions
broaden people's thought and action repertoires, allowing them to consider more
expansive ideas, actions, or solutions."
Negative events have a more poignant effect
than positive events on the human psyche,
perhaps because we have learned that survival may be at risk if we don't pay attention
to a hot stove or honking car. Humans naturally tend to focus on and remember negative
events more than positive ones. This means
that even a work day that is fairly balanced
between positive and negative events may be
perceived as a bad day unless the employee
consciously reflects on the actual events. On
the other hand, employees need positive
events to be able to fully contribute in broad
and creative ways. Bono and Glomb, et. al
state:
"Positive events may directly build psychological resources by fulfilling basic human
needs, including belongingness and autonomy (Baumeister & Leary, 1995; Ryan & Deci,
2000). In an effort to define positive human
health as something more than a sense of illness or disease, Ryff and Singer (1998) identified four core universal features of well-

being: mastery, a purposeful life, quality
interpersonal connections, and positive selfregard. According to the conservation of
resources model, workplace events that build
or enhance these features should enhance
core resources and combat stress. For example, accomplishing a task might enhance a
sense of mastery, and fun interactions with
coworkers might highlight social resources."
Given the importance of employees recognizing positive workplace events, what might
organizations do to overcome the "bad is
stronger than good" phenomenon? Our
researchers turned to the positive psychology
literature which suggests that even small and
somewhat simple interventions can, under
certain circumstances, help employees overcome this natural negative bias and make a
difference in employees' health and wellbeing. Based on these assumptions and the
theories discussed, this study looks at the
effects of everyday work events as well as a
simple positive reflection intervention on
employees' stress and physical health.

Purpose
The purpose of the study was to determine if
naturally occurring positive and negative
workplace events affect employee stress and
health, and to determine if a small positive
reflection intervention (reflecting on positive
events at the end of a workday) also affects
employee stress and health.

Methods
The study included approximately 60 participants and the methods are detailed in the
research article as follows:
"Each day, participants (a) reported work
events and stress through four PDA surveys
at work, (b) wore ambulatory blood pressure
monitors that automatically measured their
blood pressure...and (c) answered questions
about their current stress and health during
the evening phone interview. At the midpoint
of the three-week study, we introduced an
additional task: at the end of each workday...
participants performed a daily positive reflection exercise....Participants worked in nine
outpatient family practice clinics operated by
two health care organizations in a large metropolitan area....Participants recorded three
good things that had happened that day (personal or work-related) and explained why
they thought these events had occurred..."

Results
Results suggest that both naturally occurring
positive work events and the positive reflection interventions are associated with reduced
stress and improved health. The intervention
affected participants' stress levels, health, and
wellbeing in a significant and meaningful
way.

Discussion and
Conclusion
This section includes the key points of the
study's conclusions. Bono and Glomb, et al.
begin their discussion with the following:
"Studs Terkel opened his classic book Working with these lines: 'This book, being about
work, is, by its very nature about violence-
to the spirit as well as to the body. It is about
ulcers as well as accidents, about shouting
matches as well as fistfights, about nervous
breakdowns as well as kicking the dog
around. It is, above all (or beneath all), about
daily humiliations' (1972: xiii). This punishing view of work serves as the basis for much
existing research on employee stress, but our
research suggests that daily work comprises
more than pain and suffering...our results
suggest that-even if only in small ways-
positive daily experiences at work such as
socializing, positive feedback, and goal
accomplishment relate directly to reduced
stress and improved health...In Working, Terkel also suggested the promise of positive
experiences: 'It [work] is about a search, too,
for daily meaning as well as daily bread, for
recognition as well as cash, for astonishment
rather than torpor; in short, for a sort of life
rather than a Monday through Friday sort of
dying' (1972: xiii)."
In our search for meaning at work, those
positive and negative daily events that happen close around us and to us impact our
emotional and physical health. How we
reflect upon our daily events also affects our
health and wellbeing. These results have
implications for leaders and managers.
Supervisors should think carefully about how
they interact with their employees, especially
on the positive/negative balance of feedback.
Employees should be told what they are
doing wrong, but supervisors should not forget to give praise, compliments, and recognition when warranted. This will not only help
employees feel better emotionally, but will
help them feel better physically and be healthVOLUME 38/ISSUE 1 - 2015

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People & Strategy Winter 2015 Vol. 38 Issue 1

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of People & Strategy Winter 2015 Vol. 38 Issue 1
