AbstractsPsychology

The overarching aim of the thesis was to identify work-related and personal factors which support employee well-being during working career and organizational restructuring. The empirical part of this thesis was based on a prospective cohort study of employees in the Finnish forest industry. Data included responses to questionnaires (N up to 4279) and records from organizational and national registers, all collected between 1986 and 2009. The data covered a period of stable growth, strong international expansion and organizational downsizing. The findings first of all show that the level of employee well-being was relatively stable over time. Employees who reported feeling unwell at work at follow-up worked in considerably worse working conditions (compared to people with good well-being) already 10 years before the follow-up. Their personal resources were weaker both at the 10-year follow-up and at baseline. Furthermore, the resources seemed to increase among those feeling well, whereas the development trend was vice versa among those feeling less well. There was an overall trend of decreasing mental well-being through the restructuring process, irrespective of the type of changes. The findings showed that the same factors which helped individuals to stay well over the long run also helped them during the turbulence of work life. Strong sense of coherence and strong social support were also associated with indices of employee well-being during organizational restructuring as well as a more positive view of the restructuring and its consequences. However, pre-change social support from co-workers did not provide a buffer against the detrimental effect of negative change experience on employee well-being. There was an association between the change appraisal and employee well-being, both health and mental well-being, during organizational restructuring: A negative appraisal of the restructuring process increased the risk of lower employee well-being. The findings showed that also the positive, motivational aspects of mental well-being can be damaged if the change appraisal is negative. Finally, the findings showed that by offering opportunities to participate in the planning of the changes related to one s own work and through the actions of top management and the immediate superior s organizations can support the development of positive change experience. Tässä väitöskirjassa selvitettiin niitä työhön liittyviä ja yksilöllisiä voimavaroja, jotka tukevat työntekijöiden työhyvinvointia läpi työuran ja organisaatiomuutosten. Työn kohderyhmänä olivat suomalaisen metsäteollisuuden työntekijät. Tutkimusaineisto koostui vuosina 1986 2009 kerätyistä kyselyaineistoista (N enimmillään 4 279) sekä organisaatiokohtaisista ja kansallisista rekisteriaineistoista. Ajanjaksoon sisältyi niin taloudellisesti vakaan kasvun, voimakkaan kansainvälistymisen kuin taloudellisen taantuman kausi. Tulokset ensinnäkin osoittivat, että työntekijöiden työhyvinvointi pysyi samalla tasolla pitkällä aikavälillä. Ne työntekijät, jotka…