Healthy workplaces : factors of importance for employee health and organizational production

The overall aim of the thesis was to investigate one aspect of healthy workplaces; namely, how psychosocial work factors affect employees’ general health and organizational production.

The aim of Study I was to identify psychosocial factors at work that promote positive changes in employee health and factors that prevent negative changes in employee health. Specifically, we wanted to see if certain changes in the work environment would have a positive or negative impact on changes in the general health of the employee. The results showed that if employees’ perception of leadership and social climate improved, their health would also improve. A decrease in employees’ perception of leadership, organizational commitment and experiencing job strain were related to a decrease in their health.

The aim of Study II was to investigate whether there is a relationship between psychosocial work environment factors and production loss, and if a potential relationship is mediated by employee health. Organizational commitment, social climate, job demands, job control and role compatibility were directly or indirectly related to production loss through employee health.

The aim of Study III was to further develop a work capacity index including both qualitative and quantitative aspects of the ability to perform at work by including factors in the psychosocial work environment. A further aim was to evaluate the effects of a workplace intervention by estimating the change in the work capacity index. The results showed that the intervention had an effect in terms of more employees who were healthy and healthier employees, measured as improvement in the work capacity index, among the companies that worked actively with the intervention. The company that put less effort into the method did not have the same positive effect as the others did.

Improvements in employee health and decreased production loss are related to improvements in psychosocial work factors. A good work environment contributes to improved employee health, which in turn affects organizational production. Creating a healthy workplace is not achieved by a single intervention. Instead, it is a process that needs to be maintained and constantly preserved. This focus must be part of the organizational culture, structure and climate. The results of the research done here, as well as of previous research, suggest that a healthy workplace is not only of value to companies, but also to the people who work for those companies.

List of scientific papers

I. Lohela M, Björklund C, Hagberg J, Vingård E, Jensen I (2009). "Does a change in psychosocial work factors lead to a change in employee health?" Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 51: 195-203.
https://doi.org/10.1097/JOM.0b013e318192bd2

II. Lohela Karlsson M, Björklund C, Jensen I. (2010). "The effects of psychosocial work factors on production loss, and the mediating effect of employee health" Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. [Accepted]
https://doi.org/10.1097/JOM.0b013e3181d1cda2

III. Lohela Karlsson M. (1970). "Evaluation of a change in employees work ability." [Submitted]