PROF. DR. SATU UUSIAUTTI Positive Psychological Viewpoints ... · A visionarynew understanding of happiness and well‐being. • Everyone has their characteristics strengths that

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Positive Psychological Viewpoints to Success at WorkMarch 28, 2018 at 12-1pm. Colloquium Series, Leadership, Counseling, Adult, and Higher Education Department (LCACHE)University of South Florida, Tampa, USA

P R O F . D R . S A T U U U S I A U T T I

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Positive Psychological Viewpoints to Success at Work

A G E N D A

1. Positive Psychology – a Brief Introduction2. Elements of Success at Work3. Success and the Changing World of Work4. Two Dimensional Model of Success

The Purpose of Positive Psychology

• Well-being, happiness, quality of life, positive feelings, strengths, and positive development…

• …without closing eyes from the negative• Positive features form a buffer against

negative development and malaise • Interest in positive strategies in life that

manifest self-respect and appreciation of others, too

(Gable & Haidt, 2005; Gilpin, 2008; Seligman, 2011; Fredrickson &

Branigan, 2005, etc.)

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WELL-BEING THEORY

TOPIC: well-being

MEASURES: PERMApositive emotion,

engagement, meaning,

positive relationships, accomplishments

GOAL: increase flourishing by increasing positive emotion, engagement, meaning, positive relationships, and accomplishment

Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish. A visionary new understanding of happiness and well‐being.

• Everyone has their characteristics strengths that are called signature strengths (Seliman, 2011; Seligman et al. 2005)

• Recognition and active use of one’s own strengths lead to e.g., positive states such as flow, higher self-esteem and self-confidence etc.

Positive psychological capital (Luthans et al., 2004)

• Most importantly: the sense of meaning in life (Seligman, 2002)

• Related to all elements of well-being

Values-In-Action (VIA) strengths survey : https://www.viacharacter.org/survey/account/register

The Human Strengths as the Key of Well-being

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A G E N D A


Interest in finding out whether people who act positively and show

positive development have different kinds of lifespans than others,

and if this is the case, what the features of their lifespans are

that manifest human strengths and positive action, and how to recognize them?

Why to Research Success?

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But what is success?

And does it have anything to do with well-being?

Elements of Success 1/5: Motivation

• Intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation (Ryan & Deci)

• Motivation (interest in one’s work) and motivated behaviors are crucial to high performances (Mitchell 1997)

• Interesting and meaningful contents of work maintain intrinsic motivation the work itself motivates

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Elements of Success 1/5: Motivation

“I have realized that I am privileged because quite many, economist or someone familiar with financial things, would say that there is no point in doing that. But there are other values that matter the most.”

“No, it is just that my work is important. No one can deny its importance. When I became a XXX, I certainly did not want to become rich. - - If I had so-to-say advanced in my career, I would have lost the what is really best in my basic work, in other words the contact with other people. I would have just read from the documents. It has been a clear choice, my work would be so much more boring. - - A bigger room and title, that is not it. The content of my work is rewarding.”

Elements of Success 2/5: Competence

Work competence (e.g., Kanfer & Ackerman 2005) means the ability to perform well in one’s work – knowledge and skills

Expectations and demands related to the work role together with contextual and individual factors determine work competence and maximal performance at work

Employees of the year were excited about new challenges and opportunities to develop themselves and their work

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Elements of Success 2/5: Competence

“Without further knowledge I tend to seize challenges that later appear problematic and that I ponder afterwards. I have hopped in quite challenging situations and tried to participate in development. I tend to train myself all the time and long study periods alongside work all the time.”

“I can actually say that we have very diverse training at work. And all these courses help with doing this work as this environment is changing constantly and of course, the whole society. Continuously educating yourself in this way is essential in order to maintain your proficiency.”

Elements of Success 3/5: Positive States

• Work drive (Hakanen & Bakker 2017)• Dedication, absorption, vigor• High activation level, pleasure, static state• Opposite of boredom and work stress

• Joy at work (Varila 2001)• Emerges from enthusiastic, dedicated working• Also momentary positive states

• Flow (Csikszentmihalyi 2008)• Total aborption and state of being focused and working at the limits of one’s

abilities• Working is extremely attentive and motivated

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Elements of Success 3/5: Positive States

“I become enthusiastic in a situation where it is possible to develop something, make it better and more reasonable.”

“I am able to concentrate so deeply that I escape from reality. I am riveted by my work and I see it as a blessing.”

“It is amazing really, that you do not feel tired and you are enthusiastic. You do not count hours and think whether it is free-time or work hours. That you just want to do you work. At its best, it is quite amazing.”

Elements of Success 4/5: Optimism and Resilience

Optimistic people are more likely to act actively to reach good outcomes by choosing positive strategies because they think that they can pass adversities and solve difficult situations successfully in one way or another (e.g., Carver & Scheier 2002)

Resilience = an individual's tendency to cope with stress and adversity and to "bounce back" to a previous state of normal functioning, or even better functioning than expected (e.g., Dunn et al., 2008)

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This truth is that believing that you can accomplish what you want to accomplish is one of the most

important ingredients – perhaps the most important ingredient – in the recipe for success.

(Maddux, 2002, p. 277)


“Firstly, you have to try again if it is worth it. But then again, you can think that now is the time to look in the mirror and accept the fact that that way is not leading you anywhere and find another one. This I have done many times along my way. And what else can you do?”

“This hopefulness is like optimism and that you trust that you will cope with it. Even though you do have difficulties and have to try again or find another route. And then you just say that ‘okay, here we go’”

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Elements of Success 5/5: Collaboration

“The good work community is the absolute precondition. Everything is done better when you feel good. Even though you talked nonsense with you colleague five or ten minutes, it still serves the whole picture.”

“I think that my most powerful experiences at work are those in which we are working together as a group.”

“Then I was hired as a substitute XX and that was something that I felt that I could work with real experts and received plenty of support and could be in really good team.”

“It is the most fruitful when we all are enthusiastic about the development we do at work.”


A G E N D A


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How to Face Changes at Work?

• If work is changing all the time, can we even talk about “changing work” or should we just talk about “work”? (Torppa, 2012)

• Findings about success and adjustment to change at work(see e.g., Uusiautti, 2015; 2016)

How Do People Face Changes at Work?

Change is negative and frightening, a threat to routines and familiarity

“I expect that my work contents and work environment stay sensible.”

“Changes cause me difficulties.”

“I do not have any expectations.”

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“I take what it gives. I have seen so many ‘winds of change’ that I won’t be surprised anymore.”

“It has required that I go along with the change. Sometimes with ‘whining’”

The change is inevitable, one’s survival and flexibility are the core


“The changes have made it possible to expand my expertise.”

“Changes have necessitated further training and my own zest of welcoming new things.”

The change is positive,an opportunity to develop and learn

The change is inevitable, one’s survival and flexibility are the core


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Positive Engagement predicts Successful Adjustment

• Positive engagement = an employee fully participates and is enthusiastic about his or her work (Stairs & Galpin, 2013)

• In a positive organization, the people are flourishing as they work. In terms of outcomes, they are exceeding expectations. (Quinn, 2015, p. 7)

• The way workers tolerate the changing nature of work is also an important success factor (Uusiautti, 2017)


A G E N D A


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Uusiautti, 2015 (in Finnish), 2016 (in English): http://journal.uia.no/index.php/EJWI/article/view/356/356

Thank you!Further information: [email protected]://satuuusiautti.wordpress.com/

ulapland.fi

The true success is not just determined by the outcome, but mostly by all that happens before it, the process itself and whether it is

successful.Anyone can be a successful worker; it is merely dependent on your

own awareness of your strengths and whether you are able to employ them at your work!

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References• Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2008). Flow. The psychology of optimal experience. New York: Harper Perennial.

• Fredrickson, B. L., & Branigan, C. (2005). Positive emotions broaden the scope of attention and thouhgt‐action repertoires. Cognition and Emotion, 19(3), 313–332.

• Gable, S. L., & Haidt, J. (2005). What (and why) is positive psychology? Review of General Psychology, 9(2), 103‐110.

• Gilpin, J. M. (2008). Teaching happiness. The role of positive psychology in the classroom. Pell Scholars and Senior Theses, 12,1–‐23.

• Hakanen, J., & Bakker, A. B. (2017). Born and bred to burn out: a life‐course view and reflections on job burnout. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 22(3), 354–364.

• Kanfer, R., & Ackerman, P. L. (2005). Work competence: a person‐oriented perspective. In A. J. Elliot & C. S. Dweck (Eds.), Handbook of competence and motivation (pp. 336‐353). New York:The Guilford Press.

• Luthans, F., Luthans, K.W., Luthans, B.C. (2004). Positive psychological capital: Beyond human and social capital. Business Horizons, 47(1), 45‐50.

• Mitchell, T. R. 1997. Matching motivational strategies with organizational contexts. Research in Organizational Behavior, 19, 57‐149.

• Quinn, R. E. (2015). The positive organization. Oakland, CA: Berrett‐Koehler.

• Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self‐determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well‐being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68‐78.

• Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish. A visionary new understanding of happiness and well‐being. New York: FreePress.

• Stairs, M., & Galpin, M. (2013). Positive engagement: From employee engagement to workplace happiness. In P. A. Linley, S. Harrington, & N. Garcea (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of positive psychology and work (pp. 155‐172). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

• Uusiautti, S. (2015). Menestyvä ja hyvinvoiva yritys positiivisen psykologian valossa. Yritysjohdon ja työntekijöiden näkemyksiämenestyksestä [Successful and thriving enterprise in the light of positive psychology. Leaders’ and employees’ perceptions of success] Helsinki: BoD.

• Uusiautti, S. (2016). Success at work requires hope and the ability to engage in an optimistic attitude. European Journal of Workplace Innovation, 2(2), 41‐64.

• Uusiautti, S., & Määttä, K. (2015). The psychology of becoming a successful worker: Research on the changing nature of achievement at work. New York: Routledge.

• Varila, J. (2001). Joy of Work as a Research Topic. Researhing Work and Learning. University of Calgary. Faculty of continuing education. Conference proceedings, 501–507.

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PROF. DR. SATU UUSIAUTTI Positive Psychological Viewpoints ... · A visionarynew understanding of happiness and well‐being. • Everyone has their characteristics strengths that