The Emotional Experience of Work (1CE)

Number of Credits: 1

This course is for: Clinical Psychologists and Counselors

Course By: Ken Springer, PhD

Content By:  Biskup, M. J., Kaplan, S., Bradley-Geist, J. C., Membere, A. A.  (2019). Just how miserable is work? A meta-analysis comparing work and non-work affect. PLoS One, 14(3).

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0212594

Course Description: Work is a significant part of life for many people, but the emotional experience of work is not consistently portrayed across research, theory, and anecdotal descriptions. The present study consisted of a meta-analysis of research on the positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) that employees experience while at work versus away from work. The authors found that self-reported PA was generally the same in work versus non-work settings, although specific types of PA like alertness were higher at work, while other types of PA like enjoyment were higher in non-work settings. NA was slightly higher at work than away from work, regardless of specific type of NA. The authors also found slightly higher PA and slightly lower NA at work when emotional states were measured in real time as opposed to retrospectively, a finding which suggests that one's emotional experience while at work differs from the later recollection of that experience. Overall, the differences between emotional experiences at work versus away from work were small. The results have implications for understanding the impact of work on employees' emotional well-being.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand how meta-analysis was used to explore the emotional experiences of work
2. Describe the main findings of the study concerning PA and NA experienced at work, and note how these findings depend on type of emotional state and timing of measurement
3. Integrate the strengths and limitations of the study, and summarize the clinical importance of understanding work-related emotional experiences

Course Outline:

• Read and understand Just how miserable is work? A meta-analysis comparing work and non-work affect
• Review the Course Description and Learning Objectives
• Understand how meta-analysis was used to synthesize studies on the experience of PA and NA in work and non-work settings
• Analyze how emotional experiences at work were affected by the types of PA and NA measured as well as the timing of measurement
• Integrate the study's key findings, strengths, limitations, and clinical implications
• Work through the post-test questions, using the article as the sole basis for your answers
• Revisit the article for any missed questions and/or to better understand the impact of work on the emotional experiences of employees

Approvals: