Thriving at Work: Impact of Psychological Capital and Supervisor Support

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Findings
Ethical Dilemmas
Implications
Intellectual Reflection
Conclusion
References

Introduction

This paper is the review of the article “Thriving at work: Impact of psychological capital and supervisor support” written by Ted Paterson, Fred Luthans, and Wonho Jeung. The article was published in Journal of Organizational Behavior in 2013. The authors investigate the phenomenon of “thriving at work” in their research.

According to them, thriving includes the ability to learn and to be engaged in self-development, as well as the employee’s positive impressions and feelings from the working environment and processes. Paterson et al. claim that consisted of these two aspects the employees’ thriving at work is beneficial on both personal and organizational levels.

For proving their hypothesis the authors investigate the prior major work and analyse the data collected in the online survey with the participation of over 600 employed adults and their supervisors.

The researchers come to conclusion that the positive working environment that is comprised of “the supervisor support climate” and “positive appraisal of circumstances and probability for success based on motivated effort and perseverance” contribute to the good outcomes and thriving at work (Paterson, Luthans, & Jeung, 2013, p. 443).

The factor of the supervisor control wasn’t taken into account and investigated in the prior literature; thus, the findings made in the article are of great significance in the research of the working climates and thriving at work.

Findings

In a more detailed examination, the findings demonstrate that the employee’s thriving is interdependent with the supervisor rating of his or her work. With the help of the data analysis, the authors proved that the psychological capital and the supervisor support climate have a significant impact on the employees’ task focus, and thereby these factors are interconnected with the outcomes of the working process.

The research conducted in the article contributes to the perception of thriving at work and its positive outcomes in the self and organization development and its relations with the work behaviour.

The examination included the analysis of behaviour in the working environment. It is recognized by Paterson et al. and the other researchers that “when individuals act agentically, they are intentional and in control of their own behaviours” (2013, p. 436). Such kind of behaviour is considered more efficient as it supports the personal well-being, psychological soundness and has a positive impact on the working performance and job satisfaction.

According to the authors, the principal agentical behaviours include task focus and heedful relating. The analysis of the data collected in the online survey proves that the individual alertness and carefulness implied in these types of agentical behaviours are positively related to the thriving at work as they invoke the learning advancement and effective and healthy collaboration within the working team.

There are few individual and contextual factors that contribute to thriving at work. Paterson et al. distinguish psychological capital and supervisor support climate as the major factors (Paterson et al., 2013, p. 438). “Psychological capital consists of hope, efficacy, resiliency, and optimism,” and it enables the employees’ commitment to work in the multiple aspects (Paterson et al., 2013, p. 437). The supervisor support provides the positive environment for the employees’ development, sharing knowledge, and collaboration.

The survey participants represented by employees measured psychological capitals, thriving at work, supervisor support climate, and the agentical behaviours while the supervisor respondents measured their subordinates’ performances and development. The collected data was analyzed with the structural equation model (SEM).

The results of calculations provided the proof for the several hypotheses. First of all, it proved the relations between thriving at work and “supervisor-rated employee self-development” (Paterson et al., 2013, p. 442). The significant effects of task focus and heedful relating on the thriving also found evidence. The authors proved that the psychological capital influences the agentical behaviours to a great extent, and, therefore, it can increase or decrease the level of thriving at work.

Ethical Dilemmas

The survey participants were of different age, gender, educational degrees, and work experience. The respondent’s ratings were anonymous to provide the maximum level of frankness. The supervisors evaluated the performance of their subordinates while they have rated the supervisor support climate and other aspects related to it. The bilateral measuring allows the both sides of participants to gain benefits and discover the disadvantages that can interfere with the working process and skills advancement.

It is important for employees and supervisors to understand each other needs and demands. In this regard, a manager must know the difficulties and challenges an employee can face in their work. The employees must have the opportunity to discuss and share the negative impressions in an organized way.

In this respect, the managerial support and friendly attitude play crucial roles in the establishment of the positive environment that provides the flow of knowledge and mutual constructive criticism. Thus, it is important for the managers and their subordinates to be allowed to assess the work of each other because it allows refinement of skills, better learning, and it also increases the job satisfaction.

Implications

The findings can be adopted both in theory and practice. The information underpins the importance of the consideration of each individual’s working performance by managers. The positive outcomes of thriving at work make it clear that the maintenance and the creation of the friendly and conducive environments are the management’s priority. The managerial skills and attitudes encourage the subordinates’ development and skills refinement.

The working environment significantly influences the workers’ psychological states. And it is empirically proved that the employees’ well-being is potentially beneficial to the organizations business because it supports progress and creates competitive advantages in the market. The findings allow managers to organize, support, and design the working conditions in the way they would stimulate learning, efficiency, and work fulfilment.

The theoretical discoveries made by Paterson et al. can be used in the further research of the issues related to this subject. The phenomenon of thriving at work is complex and is comprised of the variety of aspects. The article introduces the new factors of the supervisor support and psychological capital as the stimulant for the thriving.

Nevertheless, the authors recognize the potential limitations of the research such as “core self-evaluations, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment” (Paterson et al., 2013, p. 444). The further research needs thus take into consideration these limitations and examine them more closely.

Intellectual Reflection

Since people devote a significant amount of time to their work, the issues of job satisfaction, opportunities and advantages are of great importance. Thriving at work is the indicator of the employee’s sound psychological state and it includes the ability to self-perform in the working environment, to develop skills, and to learn.

The capacity to provide the positive working environment is a significant part of the managerial craftsmanship. This skill can be considered as the most important because it supports the attractiveness of the workplace for the job candidates, and, moreover, it helps to reduce the staff turnover.

A person’s psychological well-being depends on the opportunities for development, a freedom of actions, the possibilities to express himself or herself, and to acquire knowledge. However, the aspects of the positive psychological state can vary according to age, gender, status, educational level, etc. Despite these differences, it is possible to assume that the working climate makes one of the most significant contributions to the psychological capital of any employed person.

The managers who respect employees and consider their needs have the greater chance to preserve the personnel, to improve their skills through experience and evaluation of their work, and, therefore, to obtain more profits at organizational or financial levels.

Conclusion

The research conducted in the article “Thriving at work: Impact of psychological capital and supervisor support” by Paterson et al. proves few hypotheses concerning thriving at work and its relation to employees’ performance, the aspects constituting the psychological capital, the importance of the supervisor support climate for the work efficiency, and the positive outcomes of thriving at work at the personal and organizational levels.

The conclusions made in the research can become in handy for the managers in the variety of organizational issues. First of all, for improvement of the employees’ work managers can provide the supportive work climate that would allow the employees’ to express themselves in their tasks, and that would create opportunities for development.

The friendly working environment can be provided by the evolvement of the organizational culture that would encourage the respectful relations and attitudes of the working staff members towards each other. It is possible to deduce that a well-developed organizational culture supports the individual thriving of each employee, and, therefore, it supports the organizational thriving and progress that increases the competitiveness and provides the advantages in the business conduction.

References

Paterson, T., Luthans, F., & Jeung, W. (2013). Thriving at work: Impact of psychological capital and supervisor support. Journal of Organizational Behaviour, 35, 434-464. doi:10.1002/job.1907

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