Reducing work–life stress: The place for integrated interventions.

Brady

Perry

2019

J Occupat & Organ Psyc

Self Cite

The present study evaluates the effectiveness of a supervisor support training programme on both supervisor attitudes and employee sleep and stress outcomes by drawing on a multi-level rigorous randomized controlled trial in 35 organizations. Utilizing theory from the social support and training literatures, the purpose of the current study was to understand ways to improve the transition, and ultimately the health and well-being, of military veteran employees in the workplace via a supervisor support training intervention. Drawing on a sample of 982 supervisors and a subsample of 189 matched supervisor-employee dyads, the current study demonstrated that supervisor support training led to improved supervisor attitudes towards veteran employees. Additionally, supervisors' attitudes towards veteran employees at baseline significantly moderated the effects of the training on employee sleep and stress outcomes, suggesting that the training was more effective when supervisors started out with more positive attitudes towards veterans. These results demonstrate the importance of training supervisors to support employed veterans and employees more generally, and have implications for research, practice, and theory development. Practitioner pointsThe Veteran Supportive Supervisor Training (VSST) promotes more positive supervisor attitudes towards veteran employees. When supervisor attitudes towards veteran employees are more positive, the supportive supervisor training improves sleep and stress outcomes for veteran employees. The VSST effects suggest that the training has promise to be extended to other leadership support domains, such as supervisor support for health; to other types of vulnerable and underserved workers, such as those with disabilities; and to other employee well-being outcomes, such as engagement and satisfaction at work and at home.With tens of thousands of U.S. veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, and millions of international veterans residing worldwide, surprisingly little attention has been concentrated on their post-deployment transition into the civilian workforce.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Training supervisors to support veterans at work: Effects on supervisor attitudes and employee sleep and stress

Brady

Perry

2019

J Occupat & Organ Psyc

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“…With increased interest in the improvement of health and well‐being of workers among occupational health scholars and organizational practitioners, more efforts have been focused on developing and evaluating the effects of workplace interventions (Hammer & Perry, 2019). Positive effects have been demonstrated for training interventions targeting supervisor supportive behaviours on worker outcomes including sleep (e.g., Crain et al, 2019) and psychological health (e.g., psychological distress; Kossek et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Supervisors are particularly valuable source of support for employees in the workplace, as the support they give can serve as both a positivity catalyst and negativity buffer. Supervisors are able to cultivate a culture of support for employees; for example, workplace programmes encouraging family supportive supervisor behaviours (FSSB) lead to improved employee health, well‐being, and work outcomes (Hammer & Perry, 2019). Supervisors also hold positions enabling them to provide critical resources to offset work‐related stress (Hammer, Kossek, Zimmerman, & Daniels, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Can supervisor support improve daily employee well‐being? Evidence of supervisor training effectiveness in a study of veteran employee emotions

Mohr

Brady

et al. 2021

J Occupat & Organ Psyc

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Workplace supportive supervisor interventions offer an effective, though underutilized mechanism to bolster employee well‐being, which may have important benefits particularly for understudied groups such as military veterans in the civilian workforce. The present study employed a two‐wave daily diary study to test the effectiveness of a supportive supervisor training on positive and negative emotions of veteran employees. Daily diaries are instrumental to understanding well‐being, in that they accurately capture emotions as they are experienced without retrospective biases that reflect more global emotional assessments. Each wave (baseline and 6 months later) comprised emotion reports over 32‐day periods. Thirty‐five organizations were randomized into intervention and control groups; 144 veterans (91% men) participated in the daily diaries at baseline. The training significantly improved well‐being facets including improvements in unactivated positive (i.e., calm) emotions at follow‐up. Two significant moderation effects were also revealed for PTSD screening. For veteran employees with positive PTSD screens, the intervention functioned to reduce negative emotions. For those employees with negative PTSD screens, the intervention enhanced positive emotions. Our work highlights the benefit of workplace supervisor support to positive and negative employee mood. Practitioner points Our supervisor support training represents an evidence‐based programme that improves employee positive emotions. Positive emotions were increased among veterans who did not screen positive for PTSD (i.e., most veterans). Veterans with positive PTSD screens may benefit from enhanced supervisor support resulting in a reduction of negative emotions, providing supportive evidence for supervisor mental health awareness training.

“…Finally, creative work-family management is the proactive and innovative process, by which leadership collaborates with employees to restructure work for the purpose of maximizing the benefits experienced at work and at home [19,21]. Employee reports of FSSB have been correlated with important health, family, and workplace outcomes [22][23][24].…”

Section: Family-supportive Supervisor Behaviors (Fssb)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Family-Supportive Supervisor Behaviors and Psychological Distress: A Secondary Analysis across Four Occupational Populations

Bouleh

Allen

2022

IJERPH

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This study assessed the associations of employee’s perceptions of family-supportive supervisor behaviors (FSSB) and their psychological distress across four occupational populations (n = 3778): Information technology; healthcare; military-connected Veterans; and National Guard service members. Data were gathered and analyzed from four larger archival datasets to compare differences in these relationships. Results revealed significant negative relationships between employee reports of FSSB and their psychological distress within occupations, as expected. Furthermore, results revealed significant differences across occupational populations for employee reports of both FSSB and psychological distress. Hierarchical moderated multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the extent of these mean differences across groups. Results revealed significant differences among these four groups such that the military-connected Veteran employees demonstrated significantly stronger associations of FSSB, and psychological distress compared to the other three occupations of information technology, healthcare, and National Guard service members. These findings suggest the importance of FSSB to worker psychological health across a variety of occupational populations, specifically noting the importance and presence of FSSB for Veteran employees’ psychological distress in civilian workplaces. Practical implications include the need for training leaders on how to better support employees’ work and non-work lives, mental health, and well-being.