NEW YORK--()--In a newly-released study to be published in the April edition of The Journal of Social and Psychological Sciences, Yale researchers showed that training employees to view stress in a positive light results in significant and measurable improvements in job performance and overall health. This research was conducted by Alia Crum (lead investigator), Peter Salovey (professor of psychology and Yale’s incoming president) and Shawn Achor (former researcher at Harvard, author The Happiness Advantage, and CEO of Good Think).
“While the media is full of stories about the negative impacts of stress, there is a strong but often underrepresented body of research that shows stress can be good for your performance, health and personal growth”
“While the media is full of stories about the negative impacts of stress, there is a strong but often underrepresented body of research that shows stress can be good for your performance, health and personal growth,” stated Alia Crum. “This study shows that our mindset about stress matters – that is, whether we believe stress will have enhancing or debilitating effects will make those expected effects more likely.”
Study Details
In the study, 380 employees from a prominent investment bank were split into three groups. One group watched a series of videos showing how stress can be enhancing, the second group watched a series of videos on how stress can be debilitating and the third was a control group who watched no videos. As compared to the other two groups, the stress-is-enhancing group had a significant reduction in stress-related physical symptoms (such as headaches, backaches, fatigue) and a significant improvement in a productivity assessment, increasing from 1.9 to 2.6 on a four-point scale.
In a follow-up study, not yet published, the investigators trained 200 managers at the same investment bank on how to use their current stress to their advantage at work. The effects of the second experiment showed further improvements in work effectiveness and health outcomes.
Putting the Study into Practice
The investigators of these studies are developing an online training called ReThink Stress that integrates the proprietary videos from the first study with the core elements of the in-person training. Chief course architect Eric Karpinski brings his background as a corporate trainer and positive psychology coach to offer actionable steps for creating quantifiable impact.
“The ReThink Stress program can change the way one views stress from something to be feared to something that can be utilized to achieve important goals,” says Shawn Achor, CEO of Good Think and producer of the online training program. “And managers can bring this training to their employees to help their entire team tap into these productivity benefits.”
Learn more at http://rethinkstress.com/.
Crum, Achor and Karpinski are available for interviews. Contact Alexis Bierman for media inquiries, 210-787-8068, alexis@goodthinkinc.com.
About Good Think & the ReThink Stress Team
Good Think is a speaking and consulting firm whose goal is to bridge the gap between academic research in positive psychology and the real world with evidence-based, actionable and inspirational solutions.
Shawn Achor
http://goodthinkinc.com/speakers/shawn-achor/
Alia Crum, Ph.D.
http://www4.gsb.columbia.edu/cbs-directory/departments/faculty-staff/detail/7527493/Alia+Crum
Eric Karpinski
http://thehappinesscoach.biz/about
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