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Oxford Handbooks Online. Publications Pages Publications Pages. Recently viewed 0 Save Search. Alex Linley P. A generally accepted definition of SL is not established Andersen, , however it may be said that typical attributes of a servant leader include empowerment; accountability; standing back, giving support and credits; humility; authenticity; courage, taking risks and trying out new approaches to old problems; interpersonal acceptance, being able to forgive when conCopyright by the Colegio Oficial de Psiclogos de Madrid ISSN: - DOI: In their review, Avolio and colleagues introduced that the limited empirical research has shown that SL is positively related to follower satisfaction, their job satisfaction, intrinsic work satisfaction, caring for the safety of others, and also organizational commitment.
As part of others studies, the relationship between SL and the leaders values of empathy, integrity, competence, and agreeableness was tested too. The authors informed that followers ratings of leaders SL were positively related to followers ratings of leaders values of empathy, integrity, and competence and positively related to the leaders ratings of their own agreeableness Washington, et.
The relations with psychological well-being and positive affective well-being were apparently mediated by follower meaningfulness Arnold et. Similar to TL, in that it shares characteristics that may pertain to abundance approach, is authentic leadership AL.
The idea of authentic leadership, as reported by their authors i. Finally, we would like to add a comment regarding positively deviant leadership PDL. The concept of PDL emerges from positive organizational scholarship when diving into the field of strategic management. Positive psychological capital is a global construct that comprise four different personal resources: hope, resilience, optimism and efficacy. Psychological flexibility is defined as being in contact with the present moment as a conscious human being, and, based on what that situation affords, acting in accordance with ones chosen values i.
There are six processes involved: acceptance, cognitive defusion, being in the present moment, self as context, values and committed action. Each of these processes are supposed to be not just a strategy for preventing and alleviating psychopathology but a positive psychological skill themselves Bond et al.
There is strong evidence of the positive relation of psychological flexibility and health as shown in a recent meta-analysis Hayes et al. In that sense most of the research on psychological flexibility and health is focus on preventing the negative outcomes, thus relating it with positive outcomes such as job satisfaction and general well being. As stated in a chapter review of Bond et al. They tested it with a randomized controlled experiment in employees and found positive results for ACT and psychological flexibility when reducing mental ill-health at work.
As we have seen, psychological flexibility has been studied mostly reducing negative outcomes, however it is itself a positive personal resource. In this line, Bond recommends stress management approaches that combine interventions targeted at the work environment with interventions targeted at the person, not only to reduce negative outcomes but al-so as a preventive strategy in line with a positive approach.
As it is stated in a recent review Lord et al. There is an increasing emphasis on personal initiative and empowerment, thus, taking control of ones own goal-directed activities is of great relevance. Besides, self-regulate also yield benefits such as enhance individual growth and development, greater well-being and self-realization Lord et al.
However, in this study, goal progress itself did not predict an increase in affective well-being and work satisfaction and this relation was fully mediated by goal difficulty; in this sense, only when goals were perceived as difficult to achieve, individuals reported a change in positive and negative affect, job satisfaction and subjective developmental success. The differences between the starting point marked the relation in the sense that individuals who started off with unfavorable goal cognitions and who managed to achieve goal progress reported an increase in well-being, compared with those who had at first favorable goal cognitions and later similar rates of progress.
In a more specific analysis, Wellbourne et al. Emotional Intelligence. Another personal factor that has attracted researchers attention is emotional intelligence EI. EI is a controversial concept. According to Jain, and Sinha , some authors have found the concept of little relevance.
However, there are some others who advocated the concept. The first one asserts that EI is the ability to perceive and express emotion as well as the assimilation of emotions in thought, understanding, and reasoning; and the regulation of emotion in oneself and others. The second one is defined by Goleman on the basis of traits that include self-control, zeal, persistence, and the ability to motivate oneself.
In general, EI studies regarding workplace, suggest that EI is positively related with job satisfaction and other well-being related indicators i. Positive and negative affect may mediate the abovementioned relationship; particularly, in the case of males, where a full mediation effect may exist, according to Kafetsios and Zampetakis At the most particular level, researchers have investigated the effect of several personal resources on job satisfaction, well-being and positive affect.
Among the different personality variables, research has recently focused on the construct of core-self evaluation CSE. CSE was a concept introduced by Judge et al. CSE includes self-esteem, locus of control and emotional stability, as they are supposed to be so closely related conceptually and empirically that would compound a higher level dispositional core self-evaluation factor Judge et al. Piccolo, Judge et al. In the same line, Judge et al. A different approach, which is reviewed here, conceives employee engagement independently from job resources and positive organizational outcomes as a positive, fulfilling, affective-motivational state of work-related well-being characterized by vigor, dedication and absorption i.
This definition focuses on employeesexperience of work activity, and not the predictors or outcomes of these experiences. Thus, in order to gain insight onto the circumstances under which employees feel engaged, we must figure out what the predictors of the engagement experience are. In this sense, job resources i. Along with job resources, personal resources positively impact in work engagement i.
Moreover, the whole model proposes this previous relationship to be moderated by job demands, meaning for instance, that in conditions of high job demands, job resources result more beneficial in maintaining work engagement i. Finally in the model, as it will be seeing later, work engagement seems to be positive related to performance. Flow has been described as a particular kind of experience that is so engrossing that it becomes autotelic, that is, worth doing for its own sake even though it may have no consequence outside itself Csikszentmihalyi, , p.
In that state the person feels challenged, draws on his or her specific skills, enjoys the moment, thereby stretches his or her capabilities, and loose the perception of time. As stated in different studies i. On the other hand, Csikszentmihalyi established the following key elements to comprehend the essence of experiencing flow: having challenge-skills balance, actions-awareness merging, clear goals, unambiguous feedback, concentration on task at hand, sense of control, loss of self-consciousness, transformation of time, and an autotelic experience.
Flow theory points out that work settings, because of their characteristics, usually provide opportunities for experiencing flow, and in turn it claims that work should be organized to facilitate the experience of flow i. However, there is very little empirical research in respect to flow experience Revista de Psicologa del Trabajo y de las Organizaciones Vol.
And consequently there are only a few studies that shed light onto it. Nielsen and Cleal studied in managers which kind of tasks may best predict transient flow states at work. They found that planning, problem solving, and evaluation were all activities significantly predicting flow. In another study of Salanova et al. In the next section we proceed to describe the results found for the positive variables related in one way or another with different organizational gains.
Performance is usually divided into in-role performance similar to task performance , defined as fulfillment of tasks that are required by the formal job description, -sometimes authors refer to this type just as performance-, and extra-role performance related to contextual behavior and organizational citizenship behavior OCB- , defined as behavior that is beneficial to the organization and goes beyond formal job requirements e.
In the following lines, we present a review of the studied variables related to job performance and extra-role performance, when these last were functioning as dependent variables. At the broadest level, positive approaches have investigated the beneficial effects of positive organizational cultures and climates on performance and extraCopyright by the Colegio Oficial de Psiclogos de Madrid ISSN: - DOI: A positive relationship might exist between positive emotional climate practices and company performance and growth i.
Some studies suggests that enhancing employees empowerment i. Other studies, positively relate perceive organizational support with higher levels of task and contextual performance behaviors throughout affective commitment. As discussed before, servant leaders focus primarily on employees needs instead of organizational objectives, however, some authors argue that it is possible to expect positive organizational outcomes from SL.
For instance, Hamilton proposed several outcomes to be derived from servant-leadered organizations, including mission and value focus, creativity and innovation, responsiveness and flexibility, commitment to both internal and external service, respect for employees; employee loyalty and celebration of diversity.
According to Andersen , empirical evidence for these assumptions was not available till that date. Nevertheless, and as far as our review has led, we have retrieved three studies examining some of these and others relationships. On one hand, Liden et al. They analyzed this relation controlling for transformational leadership and leadermember exchange, and found positive correlations for all of them.
On the other hand, Neubert et al. Finally, Van Dierendonck and Nuijten in press also found positive relationships with in-role performance and extra-role behaviors as civic-virtue, altruism and taking charge both in Dutch and UK samples. Positive psychological capital hope, resilience, optimism and efficacy was related to performance in several studies. Some of these studies found better prediction with a composite factor than with the four individual facets i.
In this sense, several studies indicated that psychological capital as a global construct has positive impacts on employees performance and OCB i. However, as these four positive components are conceptually and psychometrically distinct i. There are some studies relating psychological flexibility and performance. For example, in a quasi-experiment quasi-experimental study, Bond, Flaxman, and Bunce show the moderation effects of psychological flexibility on a control-enhancing work reorganization intervention in a call center.
Job satisfaction, well-being and positive emotions. At the individual level, besides the well constructed review of the job satisfactionjob performance relation by Judge, Thoresen, Bono, and Patton in which they concluded that job satisfaction was an effective predictor of job performance, other recent research, in line with the happy-productive worker thesis, supports this relationship i.
Although job satisfaction-performance relationship has been studied mainly at individual level, we can find studies at group level too. When considering aggregated job satisfaction, it was found a positive relationship with organization innovation, and job variety as a moderator Shipton et. Besides unit-level OCB had a moderately strong relationship with unit-level performance. On the contrary, there is also some divergent evidence on the job satisfaction-performance relationship when controlling certain variables.
For example, a recent meta-analysis Bowling, showed that this relationship was partially eliminated after controlling variables like core-self evaluations, big five traits or work locus of control; and completely eliminated when controlling organizational based self-esteem.
A series of metaanalyses based on 57 studies indicated that positive affect also predicted task performance. In addition, positive emotions were also related to OCB Kaplan et al. Finally, despite it is not possible throughout crosssectional designs to test the direction of the relationships between employee satisfaction and performance, there is more evidence in line with job satisfaction causing performance than the other way around Riketta, Engagement As it has been described before, the definition of engagement, more broadly accepted within academic research context, and which is also used here, focuses on employees experience of work activity, and not the predictors or outcomes of these experiences.
However this does not mean that it is not closely related. As it has been stated before, little research has been conducted regarding flow experience. However, it is possible to relate some of its components with performance. In this relation positive mood was found as a mediator. The first matter of concern addressed by the current study has been to investigate whether or not employees and organizations growth can be nurtured together.
Are mutual gains possible? Or do workers and organizations mainly develop the one at the expense of the other? On the basis of the current review, we find reasonable to formulate that positive organizational practices e. In other words, the enhancement of positivity in the context work seems to be associated with an increase of organizational gains.
In broad terms, the current analyze coheres with the results obtained in a recent review yielded out by van de Voorde, Paauwe, and van Veldhoven under review. Van de Voorde and collegues investigation is the only review study that we have found raising the issue of whether organizational interests and employees health and well-being are compatible or not. In a qualitative and quantitative review based on 41 studies on Human Resource Management , the authors referred concluded that employees well being seems to function as mutual gain with performance, mainly when it is considered in terms of happiness and relationships.
Thus, at the sight of the coherence showed between the general results of our review and the conclusions depicted in van de Voorde et al.
Mutual gains seem possible, and thus positive psychologys applications to world of organizations might work indeed, as referred by Linley et al. From our point of view, the abundance approach arises as an interesting alternative to be considered by organizations in detriment of the deficit problem-solving strategy traditionally adopted. We would like to make a clarification up to this point. Some readers might be thinking that the search for mutual gains in the context of work and organizations is not a novelty, which in part is true.
In some sense, it is a concern that has been present almost since the establishment of industrial and organizational psychology. As a matter of fact, the outcome referred might be one of the most widely researched variables of the field, as stated earlier by Spector and due to the quantity of studies found in the databases nowadays. However, it seems to us that a qualitative change is occurring, an important shift favored by positive psychology movements influence over the area.
Despite the importance traditionally given to employees well-being, it seems to us that research was ultimately conducted in order to improve organizational gains. As Warren has referred: [] the Human Relation school of management, instigated by Mayos [] Hawthorne experiments [] caught the attention of academics and managers especially, as it highlighted the potential productive benefits of considering employees emotional wellbeing for example, individuals need for sociability, attention from their supervisor, and general desire for recognition, achievement and belonging.
But recently, under the frame of abundance approaches, scholars start to conceive well-being at work as an end on its own i. In fact, the current review might be considered as an expression of this change of perspective. In opposition with the traditional deficit problem-solving perspective, we believe that abundance approaches do honestly commit with employees growth and health.
For that reason, we encourage industrial and organizational psychologists to consider this approach and by doing so to establish a true balance between the both sides implied. However, we do not intend to state that abundance approaches arent the subject of betterment or improvement nowadays, or that their applicability and efficacy is yet well established. At this point, we would like to address the second research question that has guided the current study: What does evidence show about the development of theory building, research and application of abundance approaches?
At the sight of the reviewed studies, there is some evidence that mutual gains are possible and thus that abundance approaches should be considered as an alternative to the deficit approach. However, it seems to us that it is yet too early to discern the extent to which mutual growth could be nurtured together.
Moreover, we believe that we cant yet discriminate whether or not an aspect of organizations or employees interests is susceptible to be developed without generating counterparts for the other side. Some outcomes could be in conflict with others. Mutual gains possibility general statement doesnt imply that all levels of workers health and well-being, on the one hand, and organizational desirable outcomes, on the other, are always compatible or Revista de Psicologa del Trabajo y de las Organizaciones Vol.
There is some evidence supporting the idea depicted. In opposition to the general obtained results, Van de Voorde et al. Research concerning theses issues is rather scant, as stated above; therefore, any conclusion drawn from it should be cautious for now. Nevertheless, we raise the problem, hoping that future research will provide a better discernment of the variables functioning as a conflicting outcome, together with the extent and circumstances characterizing the phenomena.
Another issue of relevance that has attracted our attention while analyzing the development of abundance approaches is the relative lack of theory building. Many concepts and constructs have been raised under their frame i. The concept of Psychological Flexibility might constitute an example of convenient theoretical grounding. The construct referred is framed in an elaborated model of human health, which is grounded in turn in an experimentally well established theory of human language and cognition called Relational Frame Theory RFT.
RFT although being behaviour analytic in a traditional sense, involve implications for a very different behavioural approach to complex human behaviour, beyond the central claim that a particular kind of operant exists. Along with the generic need for theory building referred, we also find that some degree of methodological development is needed in order to improve the approach oriented towards abundance.
The vast majority of the studies reviewed were correlative in nature. Considering the youth of abundance approaches we find that this emphasis on prediction is sufficiently justified.
However, we report that a lack of longitudinal studies might be taking place. Along with a lack of diary studies and methodological tools alike that could complement and enrich the data generated through analytic and correlational methods. Moreover, we report that experimental methodology is almost absent in researchers agenda. Although the absence of experiments and quasi-experiments is partially justified due to early stage of development that currently characterizes abundance approach research program, we believe that this situation should change in the immediate future.
Not in vain, we find that the current lack of Revista de Psicologa del Trabajo y de las Organizaciones Vol. Moreover, we believe this fact to be the cause and the consequence of the lack of theory building referred above. In order to consolidate the abundance approach, we believe that it should be able not just to predict critical events in the context of work and organizations, but also to influence or control them. Up to this point, we would like to report the relative shortage of intervention studies and applied research within the abundance approach.
Not in vain, we believe that it might be a consequence, partially at least, of the abovementioned lack of development within the explanatory level of analyze. In addition, we have found a lack of cross-cultural studies in order to see if determinants of workers well-being vary across cultures and to what extent. Besides, this is a particularly important point if we consider that more and more international merges are taking place.
Moreover, there have been found cross cultural differences in several measures of life satisfaction, including job satisfaction i. As an example, as suggested by Avolio et al. Moreover, as Fineman argued we could be making a mistake considering positiveness as universal, in that it probably has cultural roots and subcultural nuances very different.
To close this section, in which we address some issues to be improved for the betterment of abundance approaches, mentioning two subtle risks that might be surrounding abundance approaches themselves, the issue of some of its constructs and dark side concepts and the issue of the trap of positivity. Regarding the first point, some authors have referred a dark side within some generally assumed positive variables.
Thats the reason why we havent include commitment as a positive individual outcome per se, in that it is usually more related to affective commitment to the organization or as a component of hardy personality Kobasa, , more than to the experience of being committed as it is the case of engagement.
Other researchers have questioned the positivity of different leadership practices raised in the frame of positive psychology, such as transformational, authentic, or positive deviant. Finally, some authors have criticized positive psychology and abundance approaches due to the risk that might be implicit in their accentuation of the positive. The separation between the negative and the positive is considered as a mistake by Fineman a, b , for example, who argues in favor of negative emotions and other experiences in their capacity to sharpen in intensity and meaning to the positive ones.
In this sense, Fineman a, b claim for the interconnection of positive and negative dynamics. According to Warren , there are several authors who argue that some degree of negativity is not only necessary for healthy psychological function, but that it is inevitable.
Besides, she has considered positive psychology as an expression of the over-riding requirement [] to accentuate the positive that characterizes our socio-historical context. Thus, despite being an attempt to harness emotional force for the good of organizations and individuals alike, a fact that can be hardly seen as a negative thing, she has stated that positive psychology might generate more negativity than it appears Warren, In general terms, we agree with the line of reasoning exposed by those authors.
The stress on the positive might lead to the inobservance of the ubiquity and importance of the negative. We do not mean that the stress should be put on the negative. We neither mean that it should be put on both, the positive and the negative at the same time. We believe that abundance approaches should seek individual and organization growth and development, and according to our point of view, positive and negative variables arent, per se, accurate indicators of them.
As we have discussed before, the same variable could be considered as positive or as negative one depending on the context and the person. For that reason, we encourage future research to abandon the traditional focus on positive and negative variables, and work in replacement, with personal and organizational growth-related variables.
Finally, we will consider some of the limitations and strengths of the current study. As a result of the broadness that characterizes the area and considering its huge variety of concepts, the current review only ambitioned to outline a global picture of the field. Specific debates around important particular issues have been avoided on purpose, for instance, whether job satisfaction measurement reflects appropriately or not both, its cognitive and affective nature Judge, , etc.
On the one hand, it is a qualitative review, not a quantitative one, thus it is subject to interpretation. On the other hand, due to the huge number of concepts and constructs and to our consequent focus in the use of descriptors during the search, its possible that prominent articles have escaped our notice. The global picture presented outlines a scenario where mutual gains for individuals and organizations seem more than possible.
Thus we call researchers to consider the alternative of adopting abundance approach instead of the traditional deficit one. In this sense, its necessary more theoretical development, conceptual definition and model integration. The diversification of methodological procedures is also needed: causal and longitudinal designs to deepen our understanding of the causality underlying the correlations that studies have not covered developing the explanatory level of analysis, diary studies, cross-cultural studies, etc.
And going further, looking for applied research as well. If future research pays attention to the lacks abovementioned, we believe that positive psychology or abundance approaches in organizations would replace the current status quo of deficit problem solving approaches, obtaining not only good possible better organizational gains but social approval and satisfaction over the working environment. Amiot, C. A longitudinal investigation of coping processes during a merger: Implications for job satisfaction and organizational identification.
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Using positivity, transformational leadership and empowerment to combat employee negativity. Avey, J. Impact of positive psychological capital on Revista de Psicologa del Trabajo y de las Organizaciones Vol. Regarding the strengths of our study; due to the extension of the field, the current review hasnt deepened, as stated above, on each specific issue and debate. However, we believe that an accurate global picture of the area has been outlined as a result precisely of the abovementioned approach.
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Journal of Applied Psychology, 92, Core self-evaluations: A review of the trait and its role in job satisfaction and job performance. European Journal of Personality. Bowler, W. Create your free account to read unlimited documents. Positive psychology is a revolutionary new field that studies the root causes of happiness, productivity, and success. The SlideShare family just got bigger. Home Explore Login Signup. Successfully reported this slideshow. We use your LinkedIn profile and activity data to personalize ads and to show you more relevant ads.
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