| 1. |
- Ahmadi, Elena, 1978-, et al.
(author)
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Managers in the context of small business growth: a qualitative study of working conditions and wellbeing
- 2024
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In: BMC Public Health. - : Springer. - 1471-2458. ; 24
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PurposeIn view of the importance of managers’ wellbeing for their leadership behaviour, employee health, and business effectiveness and survival, a better understanding of managers’ wellbeing and working conditions is important for creating healthy and sustainable businesses. Previous research has mostly provided a static picture of managers’ wellbeing and work in the context of small businesses, missing the variability and dynamism that is characteristic of this context. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore how managers in small companies perceive their working conditions and wellbeing in the context of business growth.MethodsThe study is based on qualitative semi-structured interviews with 20 managers from twelve small companies. Content and thematic analysis were applied.ResultsThe findings indicate that a manager’s working environment evolves from its initial stages and through the company’s growth, leading to variations over time in the manager’s experiences of wellbeing and work–life balance as well as changes in job demands and resources. Managers’ working situation becomes less demanding and more manageable when workloads and working hours are reduced and a better work–life balance is achieved. The perceived improvement is related to changes in organizational factors (e.g. company resources), but also to individual factors (e.g. managers’ increased awareness of the importance of a sustainable work situation). However, there were differences in how the working conditions and wellbeing changed over time and how organizational and individual resources affected the studied managers’ wellbeing.ConclusionsThis study shows that, in the context of small business, managers’ working conditions and wellbeing are dynamic and are linked to growth-related changes that occur from the start of organizational activities and during periods of growth. In addition, the findings suggest that changes in managers’ working conditions and wellbeing follow different trajectories over time because of the interaction between organizational and personal factors.
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| 2. |
- Ahmadi, Elena, 1978-
(author)
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Managers’ Work, Working Conditions and Wellbeing in Small Companies with Profitable Growth
- 2024
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Background Managers’ work, working conditions and wellbeing are important determinants of occupational health in organizations. Nevertheless, little research has investigated these factors in the context of small growing businesses, which are known to contribute to employment, economic growth and social stability. The aim of this thesis was to explore managers’ work, working conditions and wellbeing in the context of small businesses with profitable growth. Methods Study I used a cross-sectional design to assess patterns in managerial work activities and leadership behaviours. Studies II–IV used qualitative interviews with managers (II–IV) and employees (II) to explore the effects of managers’ wellbeing on their leadership (II), their working conditions (III), and changes in their working conditions and wellbeing in the context of growing small businesses (IV).Results Managers worked long hours, posing risks for occupational health, but also adopted work practices that bolster occupational health. Firm size matters for managerial work. Managers’ wellbeing reflected in their mood and energy levels and influenced their leadership behaviours and performance, and the company’s work environment. Managers were more constructive when they felt well, and more passively destructive when they felt unwell. Certain factors mitigated the consequences of their negative behaviours in the organization. Five types of managers’ demands and resources (daily managerial work; achievement of results; and social; organizational; and individual factors) were identified, where the specificity of the small business context revealed unique characteristics. Company growth changed managers’ experiences of working conditions and wellbeing.Conclusions The specific context of small growing businesses shaped managers’ work, working conditions and wellbeing and the interplay between them. Dynamism in the organizational context due to growth had implications for managers’ work, working conditions and wellbeing.
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| 3. |
- Casely-Hayford, Jeffrey, et al.
(author)
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Enculturating a Protective Professional Community - Processes of Teacher Retention in a Swedish Hard-to-Staff School
- 2024
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In: Education Sciences. - : MDPI. - 2227-7102. ; 14:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study presented a positive deviant case: a Swedish hard-to-staff school which has had a low rate of teacher turnover over time. In line with the purpose of studying positive deviance in organisations, our exploratory inquiry was geared towards understanding how and why 'at-risk' teachers, i.e., teachers who teach in subjects which are known to have high levels of staffing difficulties in Sweden, stayed at this particular school. Using a modified grounded theory approach, our results suggested that teachers remained at the school due to being embedded in a protective professional community that was enculturated by different expressions of collegiality. Finally, these findings are discussed in relation to the theoretical concepts of teachers' job embeddedness and social capital.
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| 4. |
- Januario, Leticia, 1990-, et al.
(author)
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Did the COVID-19 pandemic influence inequality in self-reported work environment conditions based on gender and place of birth? A study of a Swedish commercial laundromat
- 2024
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In: Applied Ergonomics. - : Elsevier. - 0003-6870 .- 1872-9126. ; 114
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We evaluated differences in work environment conditions and health by gender and place of birth in a commercial laundromat prior to (baseline) and at the end of the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (follow-up). Using survey data, including dimensions from the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire, from forty-one workers, we assessed work environment conditions and health at baseline, follow-up and in change scores between baseline and follow-up. At baseline, men and women reported similar scores, while foreign-born (FB) workers reported better work environment conditions than Swedish-born (SB) workers. During the pandemic, conditions generally declined for all workers, but FB reported smaller declines than SB. A consistent inequality hierarchy across the 4 groups was not clear at baseline, follow-up or in change scores between time points. The study suggests potential cultural differences may exist in how work environment conditions are experienced. This should be considered in future studies and when managing future crises
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| 5. |
- Karlsson, Ida, et al.
(author)
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Is a Problem-Solving Intervention with Workplace Involvement for Employees on Sickness Absence Due to Common Mental Disorders More Effective, than Care as Usual, in Reducing Sickness Absence Days? Results of a Cluster-Randomised Controlled Trial in Primary Health Care
- 2024
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In: Journal of occupational rehabilitation. - : Springer. - 1053-0487 .- 1573-3688.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PurposeThe aim was to evaluate the effectiveness of a problem-solving intervention with workplace involvement (PSI-WPI) added to care as usual (CAU) in reducing sickness absence days among employees with common mental disorders compared to CAU alone in Swedish primary health care on a monthly basis over 18-months follow-up.MethodsWe conducted a cluster-randomised controlled trial including 197 employees blinded to allocation (85 PSI-WPI and 112 CAU). As sickness absence data was skewed and over-dispersed, generalised estimating equations was used to enable a comparison between the intervention and control group for each month of the follow-up period.ResultsThe median number of sickness absence days over the 18-month follow-up was 78 days, inter-quartile range (IQR) 18–196 for employees receiving PSI-WPI and 64 days, IQR 18–161 for employees receiving CAU. The time x group generalised estimating equations analysis showed no statistically significant difference in sickness absence days per month.ConclusionThe addition of a PSI-WPI to CAU was not more effective in reducing sickness absence days. This may be explained by the primary health care context, lack of specialisation in occupational health and the Swedish social insurance system with specific time limits.Trial registration.The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT03346395 on January 12th, 2018.
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| 6. |
- Kjörling, Andreas, et al.
(author)
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Excluded or included–structural preconditions for occupational well-being among blue-collar temporary agency workers within the Swedish manufacturing industry
- 2024
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In: Journal of Critical Realism. - : Taylor and Francis Ltd.. - 1476-7430 .- 1572-5138.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.The purpose of this article is to explore structural preconditions for occupational well-being among blue-collar temporary agency workers within the Swedish manufacturing industry based on managers’ views and expectations of the worker. Through 25 interviews, we investigate how blue-collar temporary agency workers are seen by management using critical realism and the concept of ‘norm circles’ to analyse spatial, relational, sociotechnical and normative structures. We show how structures and norm circles possess alienating or dealienating mechanisms that precondition blue-collar temporary agency workers’ occupational well-being. The findings indicate management’s role as an important gatekeeper in determining structural preconditions for blue-collar temporary agency workers’ occupational well-being. By introducing aspects of skill and acquired skill, along with social aspects changing over time, this article contributes to the existing literature on blue-collar temporary agency workers’ occupational well-being.
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| 7. |
- Nordlinder, Carolina, et al.
(author)
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Individual, family, job, and organizational factors associated with retirement intentions among older long-term care workers: A systematic review
- 2024
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In: Geriatric Nursing. - : Elsevier. - 0197-4572 .- 1528-3984. ; 56, s. 83-93
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This systematic review synthesized prior quantitative research on individual, family, job, and organizational factors associated with retirement intentions (RI) among older long-term care (LTC) workers. Seven databases were searched for peer-reviewed studies. RI were defined as early (<65 years) or late (>65 years). To assess the methodological quality, we used JBI's checklists. The PRISMA statement guided this review. After duplicates were removed, 4 489 records were identified. A final sample of six articles was selected as eligible for inclusion. Current findings show weak social support, high physical job demands, and type of LTC occupation as important determinants for early RI. Strong social support and good job resources are important determinants fore late RI. In contrast to earlier research on other groups of older workers, this review shows no statistically associations between health nor emotional job demands and early RI for LTC workers. The results are discussed using the JD-R theory.
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| 8. |
- Toropova, Anna, et al.
(author)
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Return to Work Trajectories of Swedish Employees on Sick-Leave Due to Common Mental Disorders
- 2024
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In: Journal of occupational rehabilitation. - : Springer. - 1053-0487 .- 1573-3688.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- ObjectivesRecent research has emphasized that return to work (RTW) is a dynamic, gradual and often uneven process with a great degree of individual variation. This study aimed to identify RTW trajectories of Swedish employees on sick-leave due to common mental disorders (CMDs). The second aim was to explore which demographic, employment, health-related and work environment characteristics predicted RTW trajectory membership.MethodsData comes from two 2-armed cluster-randomized controlled trials (RCT) with a 12-month follow-up. A participative problem-solving intervention aimed to reduce sick-leave was compared to care as usual (CAU) involving any kind of work-directed interventions. Participants on sick-leave due to CMDs at baseline (N = 197) formed the study sample. Latent growth mixture modeling and logistic regression were the main analytical approaches.ResultsFive distinct RTW trajectories of Swedish employees were identified: Early RTW (N = 65), Delayed RTW (N = 50), Late RTW (N = 39), Struggling RTW (N = 21) and No RTW (N = 22). RTW trajectories differed consistently with regard to previous sick-leave duration and social support at work. More unique predictors of RTW trajectories included gender, rewards at work, work performance impairment due to health problems, home-to-work interference and stress-related exhaustion disorder.ConclusionThe study may have important clinical implications for identifying patients belonging to a particular RTW trajectory. Knowledge on the modifiable work environment factors that differentiated between the RTW trajectories could be useful for designing effective workplace interventions, tailored to particular needs of employees with CMDs. However, in a first step, the results need to be replicated.
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| 9. |
- Toropova, Anna, et al.
(author)
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Return to Work Trajectories of Swedish Employees on Sick-Leave Due to Common Mental Disorders
- 2024
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In: JOURNAL OF OCCUPATIONAL REHABILITATION. - : Springer. - 1053-0487 .- 1573-3688.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objectives Recent research has emphasized that return to work (RTW) is a dynamic, gradual and often uneven process with a great degree of individual variation. This study aimed to identify RTW trajectories of Swedish employees on sick-leave due to common mental disorders (CMDs). The second aim was to explore which demographic, employment, health-related and work environment characteristics predicted RTW trajectory membership.Methods Data comes from two 2-armed cluster-randomized controlled trials (RCT) with a 12-month follow-up. A participative problem-solving intervention aimed to reduce sick-leave was compared to care as usual (CAU) involving any kind of work-directed interventions. Participants on sick-leave due to CMDs at baseline (N = 197) formed the study sample. Latent growth mixture modeling and logistic regression were the main analytical approaches.Results Five distinct RTW trajectories of Swedish employees were identified: Early RTW (N = 65), Delayed RTW (N = 50), Late RTW (N = 39), Struggling RTW (N = 21) and No RTW (N = 22). RTW trajectories differed consistently with regard to previous sick-leave duration and social support at work. More unique predictors of RTW trajectories included gender, rewards at work, work performance impairment due to health problems, home-to-work interference and stress-related exhaustion disorder.Conclusion The study may have important clinical implications for identifying patients belonging to a particular RTW trajectory. Knowledge on the modifiable work environment factors that differentiated between the RTW trajectories could be useful for designing effective workplace interventions, tailored to particular needs of employees with CMDs. However, in a first step, the results need to be replicated.
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| 10. |
- Ahmadi, Elena, 1978-, et al.
(author)
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A qualitative study of factors that managers in small companies consider important for their wellbeing
- 2023
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In: International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1748-2623 .- 1748-2631. ; 18:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PurposeGiven the importance of small businesses for society, and the significance of managers’ wellbeing for employee health, leadership, and business performance, more knowledge is needed on the sources of managers’ wellbeing. This study explored factors within the small business context that were perceived by managers to hinder or enable their wellbeing.MethodsData were collected through qualitative semi-structured interviews with 20 managers from 12 small companies, and analysed with content analysis.ResultsThe factors that these managers in small businesses experienced as enhancing or hindering their personal wellbeing covered five categories: demands and resources in the daily managerial work, achievement of results, social factors, organizational factors, and individual factors.ConclusionsThe specific context of managerial work in small companies encompasses unique factors. For instance, the small company managers’ wellbeing was affected by vulnerability due to the smallness of the business and the absence of available resources. Simultaneously, a small company context provided a strong social climate and close relationships with employees and customers that strengthened the managers’ wellbeing. The findings suggest that the availability of financial, personnel, and organizational resources varies between small companies of different size, which may have implications for small business managers’ work and wellbeing.
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