Does the State of Happiness Lead to Superior Professional Performance at Workplace - Research Paper Example

1. Executive Summary Various studies have indicated some sort of relationship between state of happiness and professional success in various fields. For an instance when people who often remain in state of happiness are compared with their peers who remain in the state of happiness, it is observed that the happy ones have better monetary earning, exhibit superior workplace or professional performance and comparatively they are able to provide more helping hands to their colleagues. It has been often assumed in various studies that a professional is successful because he or she is more happy and content. On the contrary, various other studies also indicates that state of happiness is not only associated with professional success but it often pave the way for such professional success at the workplace. It also observed that stimulating the state of happiness results into improved workplace outcomes. This assignment endeavours to take into consideration various studies and research undertaken to validate these perspectives and then highlight the gap areas and finally proposed a new dimension to cater to the gap. 2. Rationale: Various research studies have suggested that individuals who are happy and content are comparatively more successful in their professional life. For an instance relationship between state of happiness has been evaluated vis-à-vis earning (Diener & Biswas-Diener, 2002), complimentary appraisal by seniors (Cropanzano & Wright, 1999) and supportive gesture from colleagues (George, 1991). In spite of some apparent evidences of professional success exhibited by people often exhibiting state of happiness, it becomes crucial to take into consideration that state of happiness is not only the parameter which need to be gauged for achieved professional success. There are many other influential factors and resources playing the role in bringing the workplace success like. Thus it becomes important that any study highlighting the relationship between state of happiness and professional success should not only study the aforesaid correlation in isolation. Rather, other vital factors and resources should be accordingly incorporated in the study. The proposed study is not intended to suggest that professionals who are not happy cannot succeed in their career. There have been many live examples indicating this analogy wherein depressed people have been in the leading roles like Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill to name a few. Currently, the perspective of the aspect that negative emotions may also lead to workplace success is less than clear. However, there is a possibility that in some scenario even unhappy or depressed professionals could show superior performance compared to happy ones. Thus recognizing areas in which negative emotions may lead to professional success is another aspect in which future research is needed. Further, state of happiness is not applicable in all the conditions and circumstances. For an instance an ever positive and happy state would not be suitable for any security agency. There the professionals would be more effective and vigilant if they are bit fearful of the consequences and be prepared for any eventualities. Thus a healthy balance of both positive and negative wellbeing is needed in our day today life. In a nutshell, the proposed study is not at all highlighting that all we need is just positive well being and the state of happiness. While agreeing with the fact that we need both positive and negative emotions depending on the circumstances, this study is just concentrating on establishing the hypothesis that positive emotions are particularly well situated to encourage optimal functioning in the workplace. In the literature review that follows, we seek to demonstrate that individuals who are happy and content are comparatively more successful in their professional life. 3. Literature Review: Research has investigated and found correlation between income and subjective well-being. It has taken into consideration, the financial condition of the subject under study and also the background to which it hails (Diener & Biswas-Diener, 2002). It has found varying degree of correlation in different conditions. It further endeavoured to investigate the link between income and subjective well being across the economic strata of people and across different backgrounds. A fundamental finding is that for middle and upper-income people in economically developed nations, acquiring more income is not likely to strongly enhance subjective well being. Positive mood at work (as an affective state) was hypothesized to be significantly and positively associated with the performance of both extra role and role-prescribed pro-social organizational behaviours (George, 1991). Moreover, positive mood was hypothesized to have effects on pro-social behaviour above and beyond the effects of fairness cognitions. Conversely, positive mood as a trait (i.e., positive affectivity) was expected to be unrelated to either form of pro-social behaviour. Finally, the form of role-prescribed pro-social behaviour investigated, customer-service behaviour or helpful behaviour directed at customers, was hypothesized to be positively associated with sales performance. Cross sectional research has established a link between psychological well-being and job performance ratings (Cropanzano & Wright, 1999). This link was investigated through a 5-year longitudinal study. It was found that the well-being–performance relationship is influenced by the interval between assessment of well-being and assessment of performance. Research suggests that organizations can improve their overall effectiveness by increasing worker well-being. Most of these studies have indicated that achievement of these pointers of accomplishment in the professional life makes anyone contented. Further, the research has investigated the effect of both the state of well being and job satisfaction on the job performance. In fact this study has inserted one more factor which has the effect on the job performance. The happy-productive worker hypothesis has most often been examined in organizational research by correlating job satisfaction to performance. Recent research has expanded this to include measures of psychological well-being. A person can be said to be happy if he or she frequently experiences the positive emotions like enjoyment, fulfillment, gratification, passion and curiosity etc. Research has suggested that experiencing frequent positive emotions having low to moderate intensity can be attributed as the indicator of state of happiness (Diener, Sandvik, & Pavot, 1991). The research has highlighted the subjective well being from the perspective of its frequency and intensity. It has come out with a finding that being happy is associated with frequency rather than the intensity. Further, studies have indicated that experience of positive emotions by any individual is associated with his or her approach-oriented behavior (Elliot & Thrash, 2002). This research investigated the role of approach and avoidance motivation in different models of personality. It examined the hypothesis that approach and avoidance temperaments represent the foundation of several basic dimensions advocated in the trait adjective like affective temperament, and motivational system approaches to personality. The study has taken the approach of factor analysis in order to evaluate the proposed hypothesis. The two factor structure adopted in the study was shown to be independent of response biases as an outcome both approach and avoidance temperaments were shown to be systematically linked to achievement goals. This means that individual in a state of happiness is more likely to get into beneficial situations, constructively network with others and is more determined to set new goals (Carver, 2003). Positive feelings which represent a sign, that things are going better than necessary and are presumed to induce coasting. A tendency to coast is seen as facilitating the shift of attention and effort to other behavioural domains, where they may be needed more or where unforeseen opportunities have arisen. Being happy while experiencing positive emotions also indicates that the individual does not perceive any threat (Carver & Scheier, 1998). According to this study, all human behaviour is aimed towards attaining goals. In such situations, where not apparent thereat exists, the secure and relaxed ambience allows the individual to put up and widen academic, collective, and corporal resources. These accrued resources can be called at appropriate time whenever needed (Fredrickson, 2001). The broaden-and-build theory posits that experience of positive emotions broaden people's momentary thought–action repertoires, which in turn serves to build their enduring personal resources, ranging from physical and intellectual resources to social and psychological resources. The theory and findings suggest that the capacity to experience positive emotions may be a fundamental human strength central to the study of human flourishing. Equipped with these obtained resources and determined to chase new goals, individuals who experience positive emotions are also well equipped to achieve professional success. In a nutshell, it can be inferred that happy individuals are well placed to enjoy professional success at the workplace as compared to those individuals who rarely experience positive emotions and are not happy. Studies have also suggested that the link between being happy and better job performance is evident across various professional environment (Wright & Cropanzano, 2000). Better professional performance by happy individuals is not restricted to jobs prescribed by hierarchy position. The experience of positive emotions supports conduct that stretch beyond ones job description and in turn benefits colleagues or the business itself (Lee & Allen, 2002). Study investigates the role of affect and cognitions in predicting organizational citizenship behaviour and workplace deviance behaviour. 4. Methodology 4.1. Research Philosophy Positivists believe that reality is stable and can be observed and described from an objective viewpoint, that is without interfering with the Phenomenon being studied. “Positivism has a long history and rich historical tradition. It is so embedded in our society that knowledge claims not grounded in positivist thought are simply dismissed as unscientific and therefore invalid” (Hirschheim, 1985). Interpretivism on the other hand, contends that only through subjective interpretation of and intervention in reality can that reality be fully understood and so the study of phenomena in their natural environment holds the key to the interpretivist philosophy. The aim of this dissertation is to determine whether state of happiness leads to superior professional performance at workplace. In order to fulfil this aim, the following objectives were drawn up: To define state of happiness for any individual To define professional success at workplace To establish relationship between state of happiness and professional success at workplace. 4.2. Research appraisal Question Does state of happiness leads to superior professional performance at workplace? 4.3. Hypothesis There exists no relationship between state of happiness and workplace Performance. 4.4. Chosen Method Any investigation that needs to be undertaken to investigate the relationship between being happy and to be professionally successful should be a combination of cross-sectional, longitudinal, and experimental as these alone cannot provide sufficient support for the thesis. Cross-sectional study would provide co-relational evidence of a relationship between happiness and career outcomes. However, they would not confirm the cause effect relationship. On the contrary, longitudinal study would help in establishing the cause and effect relationship. This would ascertain mutually exclusive order of relationship either from happiness to success or from success to happiness. However, neither the longitudinal nor the cross-sectional study would indicate existence of any third variable which would affect both happiness and success. Thus experimental studies are always required here to investigate evidence for causality. Unfortunately, experimental studies often lack external validity, which makes it difficult to pinpoint the exact causal mechanism. 4.5. Data Collection Schema Data Collection enables one to formulate and test working assumptions about a process and develop information that will lead to its improvement. Every process improvement effort therefore relies on data to provide a factual basis for decision making. Questionnaires, interviews, observations, and documents are about the four research methods among others available. However, the chief determinant of the type of method to use is dictated by the nature of the research being undertaken. The intention of this research is to use more than one method to enhance the validity of the study. This research would therefore deploy the use of questionnaires, interviews and documents and secondary sources as they would substantially help to achieving the research objectives. As far as this study is concerned the followings are the details regarding the data collection: a) Survey Procedure: Questionnaire (Through E-mail & In person) b) Sampling procedure: Probabilistic random sampling accompanied by Judgmental sampling c) Identity of interviewer revealed: Yes For the purpose of this research, the questionnaires would be both open and closed question to be able to elicit the kind of responses that would help to enrich this study and its objectives. The use of Questionnaires have many advantages and there also a number of drawbacks. Generally, questionnaires allow for a larger sample to be carried out compared to the interview method. It is relatively cheaper; it gives greater consistency as all questions are the same for all respondents. Questionnaires can be conveniently completed by the respondents before the closing time. Unfortunately, questionnaires are time consuming. The design process normally involves selecting questions, creating professional and unambiguous layout, piloting and revision before administering. Another potential drawback is the uncertainty associated with the administering process where it is patently difficult to predict how many employees will possibly respond. Though having highlighted the advantages and disadvantages of the questionnaire method, there is however some balance in the rational for the use of this quantitative method of primary research. Interviews on the other hand, takes two likely forms. It is exploratory, where the purpose is to provoke issues or focused, where the aim is to acquire detailed information on pre-determined subject matter. This study would conduct both forms of interview in order to get very clear answers to fulfill the research objectives, make recommendations and draw conclusions. As in every method there are also advantages and disadvantages, giving further impetus to the use of triangulation method. Interviews generate a wealth of valuable data. It tends to draw out un-thought-off or unforeseen information and also allowing the interviewer to gain depth and greater understanding of the topic of research. The likely incidence of any form of bias or error can be much less with the researcher’s presence, he decides the questions to ask and further follow ups that may be required for a clearer perception on any issue. In this study, a set of questionnaires would be developed and administered on the professionals chosen for the study. These questionnaires would thoroughly capture the research objective. But the objectives are not revealed to the respondent in order to fetch the unbiased response. 5. References: Carver, C. S. 2003, Pleasure as a sign you can attend to something else: Placing positive feelings within a general model of affect, Cognition and Emotion, 17, 241-261. Carver, C. S., & Scheier, M. F. 1998, On the self-regulation of behavior, New York Cambridge University Press. Cropanzano, R., & Wright, T. A. 1999, A 5-year study of change in the relationship between wellbeing and job performance, Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 51, 252-265. Diener, E., & Biswas-Diener, R. 2002, Will money increase subjective well-being? A literature review and guide to needed research, Social Indicators Research, 57, 119-169. Diener, E., Sandvik, E., & Pavot, W. 1991, Happiness is the frequency, not the intensity, of positive versus negative effect, In F. Strack, M. Argyle, & N. Schwartz (Eds.), Subjective well-being: An interdisciplinary perspective (pp. 119-139). Oxford, UK: Pergamon. Elliot, A. J., & Thrash, T. M. 2002, Approach-avoidance motivation in personality: Approach and avoidance temperaments and goals, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82, 804-818. Fredrickson, B. L. 2001, The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-and build theory of positive emotions, American Psychologist, 56, 218-226. George, J. M. 1991, State or trait: Effects of positive mood on prosocial behaviors at work, Journal of Applied Psychology, 76, 299-307. Lee, K., & Allen, N. J. 2002, Organizational citizenship behavior and workplace deviance: The role of affect and cognitions, Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 131-142. Wright, T. A., & Cropanzano, R. 2000, Psychological well-being and job satisfaction as predictors of job performance, Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 5, 84-94. Read More