Perceived organisational support and well-being: the mediating effect of psychological capital

The field of Positive Psychology focuses on the strengths and positive capacities of human beings and investigates how mental well-being can be actively enhanced. Analysis of those factors influencing employee well-being constitutes a valuable approach for research purposes. Based on the Job Demands-Resources Theory and the Conservation of Resources Theory, it was assumed that Perceived Organisational Support (POS) and the higher-order construct of Psychological Capital (PsyCap), consisting of the facets of self-efficacy, hope, optimism, and resilience, are all resources that can contribute to a sense of greater well-being for employees. It was proposed that POS fuels the capacity of PsyCap, which can then result in an accumulation of resources leading to enhanced well-being. It was therefore hypothesised that the positive capacity of PsyCap would mediate the relationship between POS and well-being. A non-experimental, cross-sectional design using convenience and snowball sampling via personal contacts and social media was utilised. A research sample of 159 South African participants who completed an online survey was thus recruited. The respective constructs were assessed by means of the Survey of Perceived Organisational Support (SPOS), the Psychological Capital Questionnaire (PCQ-24), and the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS). All measures revealed excellent reliability. The SPOS and the WEMWBS were found to be valid after minor construct modifications had been made. The four-factor structure of the PCQ-24 could not be validated due to high inter-correlations between the subscales. Each subscale, however, was shown to be valid. The results of the statistical analysis indicate that POS, PsyCap and well-being are positively correlated with each other. Hierarchical regression analyses, structural equation modelling, and bootstrapping revealed that PsyCap fully mediates the relationship between POS and well-being. This implies that organisations can contribute to a greater sense of well-being in their employees by systematically enhancing their PsyCap through the offer of support structures

Perceived organisational support and well-being: The role of psychological capital as a mediator

Orientation: Today’s competitive work environment requires organisations and employees to successfully cope with challenges to maintain healthy levels of well-being. It is, therefore, imperative to investigate which organisational and psychological factors contribute to well-being in employees. Research purpose: This study served to analyse whether psychological capital (PsyCap) mediates the relationship between perceived organisational support (POS) and well-being. Motivation for the study: In light of the positive psychology movement, this study aimed to investigate how positive constructs actively contribute to employee well-being. Knowledge of organisational and psychological factors that enhance well-being in employees will be of great benefit to organisations that aim to create positivity in the workplace in order to avoid the negative consequences of work-related stress and a toxic work environment. Research approach/design and method: A cross-sectional, non-experimental design, applying convenience and snowball sampling, was used to recruit 159 South African employees who completed an online survey that assessed the constructs under investigation. Main findings: It was found that POS, PsyCap and well-being are positively correlated to one another. Moreover, hierarchical regression analyses revealed that PsyCap fully mediates the relationship between POS and well-being. Practical/managerial implications: These findings imply that organisations should be committed to target their employees’ PsyCap to enhance well-being in their workforce. Contribution/value-add: The findings show that it is not sufficient just to provide organisational support to enhance well-being. Organisations also need to acknowledge the important role of their employees’ PsyCap to ensure that they are well equipped to deal with challenges in the workplace while maintaining healthy levels of well-being

Effectiveness of a low‐dose mindfulness‐based intervention for alleviating distress in young unemployed adults

While the effectiveness of mindfulness‐based interventions (MBIs) with respect to distress has been widely researched, unemployed individuals, who often suffer from high levels of distress, have largely been neglected in MBI research. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of a low‐dose MBI on distress in a sample of young unemployed adults. The sample included 239 young unemployed adults enrolled for a 6‐week long employability‐related training camp. Participants were allocated into an intervention group that received weekly 1‐hour mindfulness training over 4 weeks, and a control group. Dispositional mindfulness, distress and well‐being were assessed in the entire sample prior to the start and upon completion of the mindfulness training. A mixed model ANCOVA showed that distress was inversely and significantly predicted by baseline levels of mindfulness and well‐being. After accounting for the baseline levels of mindfulness and well‐being, a significant effect of the mindfulness intervention was evident. This result shows that a low‐dose MBI can decrease distress in a sample of young unemployed adults and its effectiveness is positively associated with initial levels of dispositional mindfulness and well‐being

Can psychopathy be adaptive at work? Development and application of a work focused self- and other-report measure of the triarchic psychopathy model

Psychopathy may have both adaptive and maladaptive effects at work but research into workplace psychopathy is constrained by the lack of short, work-relevant measures that can be used for both self- and other-report. We adapt the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure (TriPM) for this purpose and distinguish the (mal)adaptive effects of psychopathy at work in two time-lagged survey samples. Sample 1 consisted of managers reporting their psychopathic traits and work outcomes (well-being, engagement, burnout and job performance). Sample 2 reported on their managers’ psychopathic traits and leadership styles (servant and abusive supervision) and their own work outcomes. The TriPM (Work) is a reliable, valid, 21-item measure of triarchic psychopathy at work with self- and other-report forms. Using this measure, we demonstrate that the triarchic model’s boldness trait is related to servant leadership and predicts improved well-being and performance while meanness and disinhibition are related to abusive supervision and predict increased burnout

Network analysis of mindfulness facets, affect, compassion, and distress.

Objectives: Mindfulness, positive affect, and compassion may protect against psychological distress but there is lack of understanding about the ways in which these factors are linked to mental health. Network analysis is a statistical method used to investigate complex associations among constructs in a single network and is particularly suitable for this purpose. The aim of this study was to explore how mindfulness facets, affect, and compassion were linked to psychological distress using network analysis. Methods: The sample (n = 400) included equal numbers from general and student populations who completed measures of five mindfulness facets, compassion, positive and negative affect, depression, anxiety, and stress. Network analysis was used to explore the direct associations between these variables. Results: Compassion was directly related to positive affect, which in turn was strongly and inversely related to depression and positively related to the observing and describing facets of mindfulness. The non-judgment facet of mindfulness was strongly and inversely related to negative affect, anxiety, and depression, while non-reactivity and acting with awareness were inversely associated with stress and anxiety, respectively. Strong associations were found between all distress variables. Conclusions: The present network analysis highlights the strong link between compassion and positive affect and suggests that observing and describing the world through the lens of compassion may enhance resilience to depression. Taking a non-judging and non-reacting stance toward internal experience while acting with awareness may protect against psychological distress. Applicability of these findings can be examined in experimental studies aiming to prevent distress and enhance psychological well-being

TREM2 Is Associated with Advanced Stages and Inferior Prognosis in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) is suggested to hamper antitumor immune response in multiple cancers. However, the role of TREM2 in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and its expression in tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are unknown. In this study, TREM2 expression was analyzed in the primary tumors and corresponding lymph-node metastases of OSCC patients via immunohistochemistry on tissue microarrays. Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and single-cell suspensions of tumor and healthy adjacent tissues were analyzed for the presence of TREM2+ macrophages and TAMs using flow cytometry. The serum levels of soluble TREM2 (sTREM2) were quantified using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. High TREM2 expression was associated with advanced UICC stages (Spearman’s rank correlation (SRC), p = 0.04) and significantly reduced survival rates in primary tumors (multivariate Cox regression, progression-free survival: hazard ratio (HR) of 2.548, 95% confidence interval (CI) of 1.089–5.964, p = 0.028; overall survival: HR of 2.17, 95% CI of 1.021–4.613, p = 0.044). TREM2 expression was significantly increased in the PBMCs of OSCC patients in UICC stage IV compared with healthy controls (ANOVA, p < 0.05). The serum levels of sTREM2 were higher in advanced UICC stages, but they narrowly missed significance (SRC, p = 0.059). We demonstrated that TREM2 was multi-factorially associated with advanced stages and inferior prognosis in OSCC patients and that it could serve as a prognostic biomarker in OSCC patients. Targeting TREM2 has the potential to reshape the local and systemic immune landscape for the potential enhancement of patients’ prognosis

IDO1 is highly expressed in macrophages of patients in advanced tumour stages of oral squamous cell carcinoma

Purpose Strategies for Indolamine-2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1) inhibition in cancer immunotherapy once produced encouraging results, but failed in clinical trials. Recent evidence indicates that immune cells in the tumour microenvironment, especially macrophages, contribute to immune dysregulation and therefore might play a critical role in drug resistance. Methods In this study, we investigated the signifcance of IDO1 expressing immune cells in primary tumours and corresponding lymph node metastases (LNMs) in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) by immunohistochemistry. The link between IDO1 and macrophages was investigated by fow cytometry in tumour tissue, healthy adjacent tissue and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). IDO1 activity (measured as Kynurenine/Tryptophan ratio) was assessed by ELISAs. Results High IDO1 expression in tumour-infltrating immune cells was signifcantly correlated with advanced stages [Spearman’s rank correlation (SRC), p=0.027] and reduced progression-free survival (multivariate Cox regression, p=0.034). IDO1 was signifcantly higher expressed in PBMCs of patients in advanced stages than in healthy controls (ANOVA, p<0.05) and IDO1+ macrophages were more abundant in intratumoural areas than peritumoural (t test, p<0.001). IDO1 expression in PBMCs was signifcantly correlated with IDO1 activity in serum (SRC, p<0.05). IDO1 activity was signifcantly higher in patients with LNMs (t test, p<0.01). Conclusion All in all, IDO1 expressing immune cells, especially macrophages, are more abundant in advanced stages of OSCC and are associated with reduced progression-free survival. Further investigations are needed to explore their role in local and systemic immune response. The IDO1 activity might be a suitable biomarker of metastasis in OSCC patients

Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS)

The Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) is a widely used measure for assessing levels of positive and negative affect. Its excellent psychometric properties make it a popular tool among researchers. This chapter provides an overview of the PANAS, outlining its theoretical background and describing its initial development and validation. It presents the results of factor analysis and reliability statistics, as well as evidence for its construct validity. It is important to note that affective measures such as the PANAS are particularly valuable in mindfulness research. The ability to regulate one’s affective states is a crucial component of mindfulness, and the PANAS can help researchers assess how mindfulness interventions impact affective states. This chapter also highlights more recent studies that support the psychometric properties of the PANAS and its usefulness in mindfulness research. The PANAS has been used in many languages and has demonstrated adequate reliability and validity across different cultures. Overall, the PANAS is an important tool for assessing affective states in research, particularly in the context of mindfulness interventions