Conclusions

• Within working life research  there has been a long and strong tradition of focusing on risks, problems, diseases, and other negative aspects of the work environment. Modern reflexive social systems and organizations incorporate, internalize, and apply this knowledge, which creates new conditions for research and reflexivity, and so forth. There are similar processes on the individual level – people reflect and internalize knowledge which changes their perceptions, cognitions and action strategies. In that way our societies have gained much knowledge about what work conditions should be avoided or eliminated.  In the Nordic welfare states, as in many other countries, there exists thinking and politics which hold that work should offer something more than an activity one does for money. According to this view, work should contribute to individual satisfaction, personal development, occupational skills, health, etc. On the road to a more individualized and health and development oriented working life there is need for a research perspective that generates knowledge on how to form “healthy work” and “healthy workplaces”. The positive psychology movement is an inspirational source for occupational psychology to move in that direction and a positive occupational psychology perspective is not in conflict with the traditional and established work psychology or disease model – the role is rather to contribute to a new working life research front with a strong potential for generating knowledge for preventive measures. The Nordic welfare states, with their view that work should contribute to personal growth and health, should have a special interest in research and knowledge for such a development.

Subject headings

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Psykologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Psychology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

positive psychology

work environment

occupational health psychology

Psychology

Psykologi

Psychology

psykologi

Publication and Content Type

vet (subject category)

kap (subject category)