Kindness and happiness at work

Abstract What is the relationship between kindness and happiness at work? Previous research has shown that kindness is a cause and a correlate of happiness in general, and that kinder companies have happier employees. Here we build on this research by using a new measure—the The Kindness Questionnai...

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Main Authors: Oliver Scott Curry, Chloe San Miguel, Mehmet Necip Tunç
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Springer 2024-11-01
Series:Discover Psychology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1007/s44202-024-00276-6
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author Oliver Scott Curry
Chloe San Miguel
Mehmet Necip Tunç
author_facet Oliver Scott Curry
Chloe San Miguel
Mehmet Necip Tunç
author_sort Oliver Scott Curry
collection DOAJ
description Abstract What is the relationship between kindness and happiness at work? Previous research has shown that kindness is a cause and a correlate of happiness in general, and that kinder companies have happier employees. Here we build on this research by using a new measure—the The Kindness Questionnaire (KQ)—to look at the relationship between kindness to and from specific individuals at work, and workplace happiness. In Study 1 (n = 1151) we find that kindness to and from bosses, colleagues and subordinates, and a more general measure of kindness at work, predicts happiness at work. In Study 2 (n = 781) we find that kindness to bosses, colleagues and subordinates, and kindness from bosses, colleagues but not subordinates, as well as more general measures of kindness at work, predict happiness at work. However, in both studies, the simpler general measures of kindness at work are better predictors of happiness at work than the more complicated specific measures. We also find that fair pay, meaningful work, and a competent boss predict happiness at work. The implications, limitations and future directions of this research are discussed.
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spelling doaj-art-87c2f2f40e994478b0fbd4cf265f01542025-02-09T12:49:41ZengSpringerDiscover Psychology2731-45372024-11-014111510.1007/s44202-024-00276-6Kindness and happiness at workOliver Scott Curry0Chloe San Miguel1Mehmet Necip Tunç2School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography, University of Oxford Kindlab, kindness.orgDepartment of Social Psychology, Tilburg UniversityAbstract What is the relationship between kindness and happiness at work? Previous research has shown that kindness is a cause and a correlate of happiness in general, and that kinder companies have happier employees. Here we build on this research by using a new measure—the The Kindness Questionnaire (KQ)—to look at the relationship between kindness to and from specific individuals at work, and workplace happiness. In Study 1 (n = 1151) we find that kindness to and from bosses, colleagues and subordinates, and a more general measure of kindness at work, predicts happiness at work. In Study 2 (n = 781) we find that kindness to bosses, colleagues and subordinates, and kindness from bosses, colleagues but not subordinates, as well as more general measures of kindness at work, predict happiness at work. However, in both studies, the simpler general measures of kindness at work are better predictors of happiness at work than the more complicated specific measures. We also find that fair pay, meaningful work, and a competent boss predict happiness at work. The implications, limitations and future directions of this research are discussed.https://doi.org/10.1007/s44202-024-00276-6KindnessOrganizational behaviorHappiness
spellingShingle Oliver Scott Curry
Chloe San Miguel
Mehmet Necip Tunç
Kindness and happiness at work
Discover Psychology
Kindness
Organizational behavior
Happiness
title Kindness and happiness at work
title_full Kindness and happiness at work
title_fullStr Kindness and happiness at work
title_full_unstemmed Kindness and happiness at work
title_short Kindness and happiness at work
title_sort kindness and happiness at work
topic Kindness
Organizational behavior
Happiness
url https://doi.org/10.1007/s44202-024-00276-6
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