Team Resilience Training in the Workplace: E-Learning Adaptation, Measurement Model, and Two Pilot Studies

Abstract

BackgroundThe majority of resilience interventions focus on the individual. Workplace resilience is a growing field of research. Given the ever-increasing interconnectedness in businesses, teamwork is a guarantee. There is also growing recognition that resilience functions at the team level.ObjectiveThe objective of our work was to address three shortcomings in the study of workplace resilience interventions: lack of interventions focusing on group-level or team resilience, the need for brief interventions, and the need for more theoretical precision in intervention studies.MethodsThe authors took an established evidence-based program (Team Resilience) and modified it based on these needs. A working model for brief intervention evaluation distinguishes outcomes that are proximal (perceptions that the program improved resilience) and distal (dispositional resilience). A total of 7 hypotheses tested the model and program efficacy.ResultsTwo samples (n=118 and n=181) of engineering firms received the Web-based training and provided immediate reactions in a posttest-only design. The second sample also included a control condition (n=201). The findings support the model and program efficacy. For example, workplace resilience was greater in the intervention group than in the control group. Other findings suggest social dissemination effects, equal outcomes for employees at different stress levels, and greater benefit for females.ConclusionsThis preliminary research provides evidence for the capabilities of e-learning modules to effectively promote workplace resilience and a working model of team resilience.

Effectiveness of Digital Interventions for Deficit-Oriented and Asset-Oriented Psychological Outcomes in the Workplace: A Systematic Review and Narrative Synthesis

“…Finally, five self-help interventions, one RCT and four quasi-experimental studies had significant positive effects ( p < 0.05) on positive affectivity, life satisfaction, happiness, flourishing, quality of life and self-efficacy [ 78 , 80 , 81 , 88 ]. However, three mobile-based resilience training interventions [ 74 , 81 , 99 ] did not have significant effects on resilience measures, while two RCTs and two quasi-experimental studies that tested three online positive psychology interventions [ 76 , 89 , 90 ] had no significant effects on any indicators of psychological wellness.…”

“…Self-help interventions was the most frequently tested cluster of interventions (n = 18). They involved educational interventions [ 70 , 88 , 97 , 99 ], multicomponent interventions featuring cognitive and behavioural interventions [ 55 , 56 , 57 , 60 , 80 , 81 , 96 ], positive psychology exercises [ 76 , 78 , 89 , 90 , 100 ] and resilience training [ 74 , 101 ].…”

Integral Organizational Wellness™: An evidence‐based model of socially inspired well‐being

“…Part 3 further demonstrates the need for efficiency. By listening to the voices of study participants and customers, we: (a) condensed programs from their original longer version to accommodate busy schedules; and also (b) adapted programs to online technologies to improve employee access (e.g., online team resilience; Bennett, Neeper et al., ; prescription drug prevention; Bennett, Lucas et al., ). These compressions follow market trends noted in Part 1 of this paper, where there is increasing interest in mobile applications.…”

“…Third, we shortened the Team Resilience (TR) program from its original 6‐hr classroom training into a 30‐min interactive online program. Two pilot studies—one with a control group—suggested that the electronic TR may improve perceptions of resilience in the work climate (Bennett, Neeper, Linde, Lucas, & Simone, ). Finally, because growth in prescription problems and its impact on the workplace is a concern for employers (Van Hasselt et al., ), and given our success with TA and TR, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) retained us to develop a new module that focuses on reducing risks for worker prescription drug misuse.…”

Entrepreneurial Failure and Resilience: A Continuous Interplay Between Rigidity and Flexibility

“…Literature often refers to resilience as a quality present in a once-in-a-time setback that influences individual outcomes in the workplace (Guo & Anderson, 2018). This concept is apparent in topics such as health (Foster, Cuzzillo, & Furness, 2018), mindfulness (Joyce, Shand, Bryant, & Harvey, 2018) and issues about work teams (Bennett, Neeper, Linde, Lucas, & Simone, 2018). In contrast, a process view of resilience in entrepreneurship acknowledges that resilience is both an influence and an outcome.…”