Everyone wants their boss to play fair, but new research suggests that while doing so might make employees happy, it's not always so great for the boss. Specifically, bosses who are fair make their workers happier and their companies more productive, but in the end may burn themselves out, according to a new study led by Michigan State University's Russell Johnson. Researchers found that the act of carefully monitoring the fairness of workplace decisions wears down supervisors both mentally and emotionally. Johnson, an assistant professor of management, said that managers face a double-edged sword in maintaining structured, rule-bound fairness, known as procedural justice. "While beneficial for their employees and the organization, it's an especially draining activity for managers," he said. "In fact, we found it had negative effects for managers that spilled over to the next workday." As part of the study, researchers surveyed 82 bosses twice a day for a few weeks. Managers who reported mental fatigue from situations involving procedural fairness were less cooperative and less socially engaging with other workers the next day. "Managers who are mentally fatigued are more prone to making mistakes, and it is more difficult for them to control deviant or counterproductive impulses," Johnson said. Procedural justice fatigues managers mentally because it requires them to conform to particular fairness rules, such as suppressing personal biases, being consistent over time and across subordinates, and allowing subordinates to voice their concerns, according to Johnson. "Essentially, managers have to run around making sure their subordinates' perceptions remain positive, whether the threat to the atmosphere of the workplace is real or imagined," he said. "Dealing with all of this uncertainty and ambiguity is depleting." Knowing this type of burnout can occur, Johnson said it's critical managers create situations in which they are better prepared to cope with fatigue. He suggests several tips, including getting sufficient sleep, taking short mental breaks during the workday, adhering to a healthy diet and detaching from work completely when outside of the office. The study, which was published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, was co-authored by Klodiana Lanaj, an assistant professor at the University of Florida, and Christopher Barnes, an assistant professor at the University of Washington. Both were former Michigan State doctoral students. |
據(jù)外媒報(bào)道,每個(gè)員工都希望自己的老板公平處事,但是新的研究表明,雖然這樣能夠讓員工快樂,但是老板往往很為難。根據(jù)密歇根州立大學(xué)拉塞爾-約翰遜進(jìn)行的新研究表明,公正的老板能使員工更加快樂,公司更加多產(chǎn),但最后自己可能會心力交瘁。 研究者發(fā)現(xiàn),如果一直小心翼翼保證工作中決定的公正性,公司主管會在精神和情緒上精疲力竭。 管理學(xué)助理教授約翰遜說,管理者在維持組織和規(guī)章的公平性——即程序公正時(shí), 面臨著一把雙刃劍。 “盡管對員工和公司都有益處, 但這對于管理者是極耗腦力的工作,” 他說,“事實(shí)上,我們發(fā)現(xiàn)它對于管理者有負(fù)面影響,會延續(xù)到下一個(gè)工作日。” 作為研究的一部分, 研究者調(diào)查了82位公司老板, 一天兩次, 持續(xù)數(shù)周。老板當(dāng)中因?yàn)楸WC程序公正而精神疲憊時(shí),在第二天的工作中合作與交流能力均有所下降。 約翰遜說, " 精神疲憊的老板更容易犯錯(cuò)。他們很難控制好錯(cuò)亂和消極的沖動。” 根據(jù)約翰遜的分析, 程序公正讓老板精神疲憊的原因是, 它要求老板遵循特定的公平法則, 比如抑制個(gè)人偏見, 平等對待下屬, 聽取他們的意見。 “根本上說, 老板必須始終保證下屬持有積極的態(tài)度, 無論工作氛圍中出現(xiàn)的威脅是真實(shí)的還是想象的,”他說,“應(yīng)對所有的這些不安定和模棱兩可的情況是極讓人疲憊的。” 約翰遜說, 意識到這種心力交瘁后, 老板們可以創(chuàng)造出更好處理疲憊的環(huán)境, 這是至關(guān)重要的。他表示,有一些方面需要注意,包括保證充足的睡眠,工作時(shí)讓精神放松一會,保證健康飲食,下班后就完全拋開工作。 這項(xiàng)研究發(fā)表在《應(yīng)用心理學(xué)》的雜志上,參與研究的人還有佛羅里達(dá)大學(xué)的助理教授克洛蒂婭娜·拉娜和華盛頓大學(xué)的助理教授克里斯托弗·巴恩斯。他們兩人都曾是密歇根州立大學(xué)的博士生。 相關(guān)閱讀 (譯者 曾崇達(dá) 編輯 王輝) |