Leading the Positive

Organization

Leading the Positive

Organization
Actions, Tools, and Processes

Edited by

Thomas N. Duening

Leading the Positive Organization: Actions, Tools, and Processes

Copyright Business Expert Press, LLC, 2016.
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First published in 2016 by
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Abstract
Positive psychology and positive organizational scholarship have begun to
have an impact on the enterprise. It is important for organizational leaders at all levels to understand this powerful new framework. This volume
brings together a wide range of organizational scholars who have derived
implications from positive research for the modern enterprise. Engaging topics from leadership, to self-esteem, and to conflict resolution, this
book provides practical tools, actions, and processes that can be used to
create positive organizations.

Keywords
positive psychology, positive organizational scholarship, leadership, psychological capital, self-esteem, conflict management, positive service organization, positive communications, organizational change, organizational
development.

Contents
Preface...................................................................................................ix
Chapter 1 The Positive Organization: Why Its Not More
of the Same........................................................................1

Thomas N. Duening
Part I
Positive Organizational Culture..................................... 25
Chapter 2 Organization-Based Self-Esteem: Making
aDifference at Work........................................................27

Donald G. Gardner, Jon L. Pierce
Chapter 3 Building Positivity inYour Organization
WithPsychological Capital..............................................49

Dustin Bluhm
Chapter 4 The Role of Positive Organizational Behavior in
Building a World-Class Service Organization...................71

Andrew J. Czaplewski, Thomas Martin Key,
James R. Van Scotter II
Part II
Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Positive Organizational Communications...................... 91

Positive Organizational Climate.......................................93
Jill Bradley-Geist
Positive Organizational Conflict
and Communication......................................................119
Kathleen A. Tomlin

Part III
Positive Organizational Transformation...................... 141
Chapter 7 Positive Transformational Leadership: Building
Positive Organizations....................................................143

D.D. Warrick
Chapter 8 Developing the Positive Organization: Preparation
for Learning and Collaborative Learning Design............163

Shawna L. Rogers
About the Authors................................................................................187
Index..................................................................................................193

Preface
Positive psychology is a relatively new field of study that represents a
significant shift in focus for the psychological, behavioral, and organizational sciences. Traditional psychology trained its attention on dysfunction and its relief; positive psychology focuses on optimal functioning and
its attainment.
Organizational scholars have embraced the positive psychology paradigm and have begun to explore its variety of applications within the
enterprise. This volume is based on work being conducted by scholars
from a variety of business disciplines. Together, they comprise the Positive
Organizational Behavior Research Group, housed within the College of
Business at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs.
The authors of the chapters contained in this volume have attempted
to convey the practical implications of their work that combines traditional organizational models with models and concepts from positive
psychology. The result, we believe, is a stimulating introduction to this
emerging field of study that should be of interest to scholars and practitioners alike.
Each chapter provides an introduction to the authors main line of research, a deep dive into how that basic research is enhanced and extended
by positive psychology, and concludes with an Action Time section with
practical suggestions for practice. We hope you enjoy this volume and
welcome any feedback you might have on the presentation of the chapters
and how our Positive Organizational Behavior Research Group can be of
further service to you and your organization.

CHAPTER 1

The Positive Organization:

Why Its Not More
of the Same
Thomas N. Duening
If we want to change the way organizations work, we need to learn
deeply, embrace fully, and communicate effectively this positive research.1

Introduction
Organizational theory is a term that many business practitioners loathe.
There is a prevailing notion that anything that is merely a theory cannot have substantive implications for practice. At the same time, most
business practitioners readily adopt popular organizational theories
in the hope that it will arm them with insights to transform their own
organizations.
This ambivalence about organizational theory is easy to understand.
The bookshelves in the business section of the local bookstore burst with
an ever-growing number of volumes promising to reveal the latest secrets,
insights, or rules that once and for all will ensure high performance. How
is one to choose among these various alternative approaches? What is the
evidence that backs up their lofty claims?
Business leader skepticism should be high when it comes to claims
about the latest breakthrough in creating high-performing organizations.
A review of the past 30 years of such epiphanies reveals a mostly dismal
record of lasting performance enhancements. Some of the organizational

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

theories have more substance than others, to be sure. For example, its
likely that most readers of this book have heard of W. Edwards D
eming
and the total quality management revolution he helped to usher in
following World War II.2 The transformations that many companies experienced as a result of adopting Demings ideas and prescriptions were
vitally important at the time. Today, Deming and total quality management dont sell well because most organizations have adopted quality
processes, practices, and controls as a routine part of their operations.
It is no longer revolutionary to say that one has adopted quality as a
centerpiece of competitive advantage; it is the entry price to nearly any
industry.
Readers may also recall several other noteworthy organizational theories that have appeared and faded over the past few decades:

Business Process Reengineering (Hammer and Champy)3

The One-Minute Manager (Blanchard)4
In Search of Excellence (Peters and Waterman)5
Competitive Advantage (Porter)6
Management by Objectives (Drucker)7

Of course, there are many more beyond this short list. If you find yourself
weary of organizational theory, you are not alone. In fact, some scholars
have written insightful critiques of the tendency for practitioners to become beguiled by the latest fads in organizational theory.8
We have collaborated to write this book on positive organizational
behavior (POB), because we believe this organizational theory is more
powerful than the others noted earlier, and it is based on substantial
evidence from the human sciences. In fact, a large part of its power and
potency derives from the fact that it is rooted in the ultimate causes
of human behavior. Ultimate causation links human behaviors to the
evolutionary origins of the motivations and mechanisms underlying
them. Traditional management and leadership scholarship has suffered
from a lack of integration of evolutionary insights into organizational
theory.9
POB is not a theory designed to dig us out of some contemporary organizational hole created by other, now defunct, theories. It is not a theory

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

that is merely a function of the times in which we live. Rather, POB is

based on scientific insights into how human beings actually function and
flourish, and into the evolutionary (ultimate) and cultural (proximate)
causes that underlie these elementary facts of life. For instance, research
has demonstrated a powerful cross-species motivation in all animals, including humans, that drives them to understand their environment. This
fundamental EXPLORATION motivation has been demonstrated to
be an ancestral part of all mammalian brains.10 [Note: The capitalization
convention for describing ancestral emotional systems is used to denote
that we may have a wide range of alternative terms for describing these
innate systems.] Engaging in EXPLORATION-related behaviors is rewarding to most mammalscreating positive feelingsand is, in fact,
one of the more powerful of the emotional/motivational (E/M) systems
common to all mammals (see more on this below).
Just as there is nothing that time-bounds the mammalian and, therefore, human motivation energized by the innate EXPLORATION system,
there is nothing that time-bounds the human desire to function at optimal
levels. Human flourishing is part of our natural inclination to understand
and make the best possible use of our individual talents to achieve personal
and social goals regardless of the environmentorganizational or natural
in which we find ourselves.
In this chapter, Ill first highlight several important foregrounding
advances in the human sciences that indicate why POB differs from other
management fads in its scientific foundations. The first of these advances
is positive psychology (PP). PP increasingly is being recognized as a fresh
new understanding of the human condition and how individuals can
optimize their talents.
The second advance is based on the evolutionary understanding
of the human E/M systems. Important new discoveries based on both
human and animal studies have revealed a primary, genetically inherited E/M architecture that underlies all human actions and cognitions.
These discoveries have been hard-won over the past several decades and
are now beginning to bear significant fruit for those interested in the
implications for organizational behavior and for individual and group
flourishing.
Lets begin with a brief overview of the emerging science of PP.

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

Positive Psychology
I now think that the topic of positive psychology is well-being, that the
gold standard for measuring well-being is flourishing, and that the
goal of positive psychology is to increase flourishing.11
Psychologists Martin Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi originated
the discipline of PP at the 1998 annual meeting of the American Psychological Association.12 In a nutshell, PP focuses on helping people advance
from normal to optimal functioning. Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi said
PP is about identifying and nurturing [a persons] strongest qualities,
what they own and are best at, and helping them find niches in which
they can best live out these strengths.13 This is in stark contrast to traditional psychology and its focus on human dysfunction and psychological
maladaptations. Figure 1.1 highlights the difference between traditional
and PP.
As this figure shows, clinical psychology is concerned with mental illness, mental disorders, and other dysfunctions. Organizational leaders, taking their cues from decades of psychological research into human capital
and its relationship to organizational performance, also were prone to focusing on helping people who were situated to the left in this figure. This has
been referred to as the four Ds approach to leading (damage, disease, disorder, and dysfunction). The four Ds approach tends to focus on preventing
poor performance, low motivation, ill-health, and disengagement.14
By way of contrast, PP focuses on the right side of Figure 1.1.
According to Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi, the purpose of PP is to
begin to catalyze a change in the focus of psychology from preoccupation
only with repairing the worst things in life to also building positive qualities. We emphasize here the difference between PP and other management fads such as positive thinking. The latter were never part of the

Mental illness Mental disorders Personality disorders Strengths Happiness Flourishing Virtues Meaning

Clinical psychology
Dysfunctional relationships Pathology Diagnosis

Positive psychology
Purpose Talent Flourishing Positive relationships

Figure 1.1 The continuum from mental illness to flourishing

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

scholarly literature, and much of the popular approaches to positivity

have come to be viewed with doubt and suspiciona product of wishful thinking, denial, or even hucksterism.15 Management scholar Fred
Luthans highlights that PP differs from feel good positive approaches
to human psychology in its heritage of insisting on sound theory and
research before moving on to application and practice.16
Negative versus Positive Organizational Behavior
For purposes of developing the negativepositive contrast in the realm
of organizational performance, consider two organizational behavior
typologies that have been developed by scholars. One focuses on deviancy in the workplace, the other on positive behaviors in the workplace.
Researchers Sandra Robinson and Rebecca Bennett developed the
employee deviancy typology.17 They defined employee deviance as voluntary behavior that violates significant organizational norms and in so
doing threatens the well-being of an organization.18 Notice that the
researchers distinctly linked deviant behavior to potential harms to the
organization. Their research was based on surveys and interviews with
full-time employees whose average age was 37. They discovered that the

ORGANIZATIONAL

Production Deviance

Property Deviance

Leaving early
Taking excessive breaks
Intentionally walking slow
Wasting resources

Sabotaging equipment
Accepting kickbacks
Lying about hours worked
Stealing from company

MINOR

SERIOUS
Political Deviance

Prosocial Aggression

Showing favoritism
Gossiping about co-workers
Blaming co-workers
Competing nonbeneficially

Sexual harassment
Verbal abuse
Stealing from co-workers
Endangering co-workers

INTERPERSONAL

Figure 1.2 Typology of employee deviant behavior19

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

deviant behaviors reported by the study participants ranged on a twodimensional scale between minor and serious and between interpersonal
and organizational. The typology that emerged from the research is provided as Figure 1.2.
No doubt youve seen some of these deviant behaviors before. They are
common among employees who dont have opportunities to flourish at work.
By way of contrast, a focus on POB has led to the development of
a positive typology. Luthans and Youssef give us a typology of positive
workplace behavior that is encapsulated under the acronym CHOSE
(confidence/self-efficacy, hope, optimism, subjective well-being, and
emotional intelligence) (Figure 1.3).20

1. Confidence/Self-efficacyones belief (confidence) in being able to successfully

execute a specific task in a given context.
Specific not general
Performance process: involvement, effort, perseverance
Sources: mastery experiences, vicarious learning/modeling, social persuasion,
physiological/psychological arousal
2. Hopeone who sets goals, figures out how to achieve them (identifies pathways),
and is self-motivated to accomplish them, i.e., has willpower and waypower.
Beyond feelings of things will work out for the best
Brand-new concept for OB with considerable performance potential
Valid measures show positive link with goal expectancies, perceived control,
self-esteem, positive emotions, coping, and achievement
3. Optimismpositive outcome expectancy and/or a positive causal attribution
but is still emotional and linked with happiness, perseverance, and success.
Beyond Power of Positive Thinking
Both motivated and motivating
Seligmans optimistic explanatory style of bad event: external, unstable, specific
4. Subjective Well-beingbeyond happiness emotion, how people cognitively process
and evaluate their lives, the satisfaction with their lives.
Beyond demographics to when and why people are happy
Components of SWB: life satisfaction, satisfaction with important domains such
as the workplace, and positive affect
SWB leads to job satisfaction but reverse not necessarily true
5. Emotional Intelligencecapacity for recognizing and managing ones own and others
emotionsself-awareness, self-motivation, being empathetic, and having social skills.
Currently very popular
One of the multiple intelligences
IQ gets you the job, EQ gets you promoted.

Figure 1.3 Luthanss CHOSE positive employee behavior typology21

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

Obviously there is a vast sea of difference between the employee

behaviors noted in the deviance typology from those in the positive
typology. The question for organizational leaders is how to promote the
positive over the negative. In the literature of PP, the way people behave is
the starting point for positive outcomes. Behavior can be guided, both by
the individual and by the organization, via commitment to a set of virtues
and character strengths. We next talk about a set of virtues that has been
identified in the PP research as being linked to human flourishing.
Virtues and Character Strengths
One of the primary topics of PP research is the identification of the virtues
that are correlated with high-functioning human beings. The technical
definition of virtue offered by the positive psychologists is A disposition to act, desire, and feel that involves the exercise of judgment and
leads to a recognizable human excellence or instance of human flourishing. Moreover, virtuous activity involves choosing virtue for itself and in
light of some justifiable life plan.22 Significantly, virtues represent character strengths (i.e., trait-like attributes that are at least partially malleable)
and are substantively different from personality traits (i.e., inherited attributes that are unchanging). The continuum from psychological states
to psychological traits is highlighted in Figure 1.4.23
Psychological states, such as moods, are changeable and momentary.
State-like psychological resources such as efficacy, hope, and optimism

State:
Momentary
Feelings
Pleasure
Happiness
Positive Moods
Transient

State Like:
Self Opinions
Efficacy
Hope
Optimism
Open to Change

Trait Like:
Big five
Core Self
Evaluations
Character
Strengths
Virtues
Difficult to
Change

Figure 1.4 The state to trait continuum

Traits:
Intelligence
Talents
Inherited
Characteristics
Unchanging

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

also are malleable, but they are more stable over time than are the ephemeral psychological states. Trait-like psychological constructs, including virtues, are relatively stable and difficult, although not impossible to change.
Finally, traits are largely defined as heritable and are stable and difficult to
change.
The research associated with PP is robust and diverse. Research considered central to the movement includes studies of human happiness,
well-being, positive emotions, and character strengths. Here, our primary interest in PP centers on its research associated with identifying and
explicating the virtues and character strengths associated with optimal
human functioning. This branch of PP has developed a relatively stable
understanding of virtues associated with optimal human functioning.
The stable set of virtues has been codified as the Values in Action (VIA)
Classification of Strengths (see Table 1.1).
The VIA Classification of Strengths identifies six virtues. Each virtue
has associated character strengths that are defined as the psychological ingredients of virtues.24 The originators of the VIA Classification
System recognize that the list of character strengths has some limitations. A primary limitation theyve identified is that it does not take
into account local cultural pressures and opportunities. For example, it
has been noted that the U.S. culture would likely need to include more
explicitly character traits of ambition and achievement to reflect the
positive moral evaluation such strengths generally receive in that culture. Seligman also addressed this absence and added achievement
to his list of measurable elements associated with human well-being:
Table 1.1 The VIA classification of strengths

Courage
Justice
Humanity
Temperance
Wisdom
Transcendence

Emotional strengths that involve the exercise of will to accomplish

goals in the face of opposition, external or internal.
Civic strengths that underlie healthy community life.
Interpersonal strengths that involve tending and befriending others.
Strengths that protect against excess.
Cognitive strengths that entail the acquisitions and use of knowledge.
Strengths that forge connections to the larger universe and thereby
provide meaning

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

positive emotion, engagement, positive relationships, meaning, and

achievement.25
Summarizing Positive Psychology
Building positive qualities in humans requires a new understanding of
the emotions and motivations that can be tapped to induce the necessary strivings, resilience, and determination that underlie flourishing.
The research ongoing in PP now enables us to undertake management
and leadership initiatives that are far subtler than those suggested by
past psychological theory. For example, one well-known framework
for understanding human psychology is Maslows hierarchy of needs
(Figure 1.5). Maslows theory is consistent with common sense, to be
sure (Who could argue that self-actualization is unlikely to be a priority for individual who are starving?). However, Maslow was short on
specifics about what self-actualization means and how best to achieve
and sustain it.
If you want to think about it from the perspective of Maslow, PP can
be viewed as a new science that provides us with infinitely greater detail
about what it means to self-actualize. This detail is based on scientific research into the behaviors, environments, thoughts, and social factors that
promote human flourishing.

Selfactualization

Esteem
Love/belonging
Safety
Physiological

Figure 1.5 Maslows hierarchy of needs

10

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

The Evolutionary Basis of Human Emotions/

Motivations
The basic emotions represent essential tools for living and learning,
and the higher brain systems with which they are intimately related
provide the perceptual and learned guidance that organisms must
have to fulfill their primitive urges.26
For those who need to understand human behavior in a deeper way, there
is little doubt that the ultimate causes of human thinking and animation lie in the evolution-given neurodynamic structures of the brain.27
It is important to understand that psychology, as a science, focuses on
interpreting the outputs of the brain as they appear in overt behaviors,
bodily expressions (e.g., smiling), and verbal reports (e.g., I feel happy).
Thus, when psychologists talk about things like depression or joy, they are
using concepts that are shorthand for vast and integral activities occurring
within the brain. The outward signs of depression, joy, and other emotions enable psychologists to intuit that some internal brain processes are
occurring.
Why is it necessary to delve into the brain to understand psychological
concepts in a deeper way? Why cant we just continue to use well-known
psychological terms like happiness, sadness, and others as we always have?
People have gotten by since the dawn of history using so-called folk psychology to describe the internal processes behind their own and others
behaviors. In fact, folk psychology is an incredibly effective way for all of us
to get about in, and get along with others in, our social worlds. But we can
do better.28 It is true that human culture has substantially broken free of the
chains of evolutionary history. Still, the evolved E/M systems that comprise
our species constrain us to a limited range of alternative patterns of human
flourishing. Behavior patterns that deviate too far from these innate constraints tend to be short lived. History is replete with failed experiments in
cultural design. And therein lies the reason to delve into the various brain
sciences to provide a stronger foundation for a nuanced understanding of
the ancestral forces that drive human feelings, behaviors, and cognition.
Perhaps, given this insight, positive cultural formsincluding organizational cultural formscan more readily be attained and sustained.

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

11

This section of the chapter will not endeavor to unravel the manner
in which the neural apparatus of the brain works. Suffice it to say that
chemical and electrical forces that power the vast neural networks in the
brain are non-mysterious parts of nature that give rise to all the thinking,
emoting, and behaving that people do.29 The brain is a dynamic and in
some ways mysterious organ to be sure. Likely, the human sciences will
never be able to trace the precise causal patterns that effect an individuals personality, proclivities, and preferences. Still, the general patterns
of behavior that emerge as distinctly human preferences are lodged in
the whispers of evolutionary priorities.30 It is indisputable, for example,
that people generally prefer to view pastoral landscapes rather than fetid
garbage dumps. Why? The choice seems unforced and naturalwhich is
exactly the point. Our ancestors evolved and carved out a niche in the savannas of Africa, and they developed a distinct and innate preference for
verdant, and therefore fruitful vistas. The dung beetle, on the other hand,
with its differential adaptations and life strategies likely would prefer the
garbage dump. To the dung beetle, that choice is unforced and natural.
Evolution works via natural selection. It has over the 4 billion years of
life on earth selected life forms that have adapted to their unique habitats.
Mammalian evolution, of which humans are part, has been traced back
315 to 320 million years. The evolution of the human line has been traced
back 4 million years. Of course, at the time at which the human lineage
began it was already equipped with the evolved brain bequeathed by its
mammalian primate ancestors. Since then, the main adaptation that has
led to the uniquely human way of functioning is an extraordinarily large
neocortex (measured by body mass) compared with other mammals. The
neocortex is the seat of most of our conscious experience, including communicating, planning, and thinking.
The large neocortex in humans evolved to help us manage our complex social environment. In other words, the uniquely social habitats chosen
by our ancestors led to the inexorable development of a distinctive social
brain.31 The main driving force of human evolution today is no longer selection of instinctual behavior patterns. Rather, humans are now subject primarily to the equally selective forces of cultural evolution.32 Still, the insight
that faint echoes of our instinctual preferences gently nudge our choices and
preferences to certain cultural forms over others does offer opportunities for

12

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

organizational applications. In short, leaders that heed this insight will be

more likely to create attainable, sustainable organizational cultures that enable employees to flourish in an unforced and natural way.
With this as a background, we can begin to explore some of the highlevel findings into human brain mechanisms that underlie the behaviors,
thoughts, and feelings that each of us experience. The research into these
primary E/M systems that underlie all of human psychology has identified roughly seven distinct systems: EXPLORATION, BONDING,
LUST, ANGER, FEAR, GRIEF, and PLAY (the capitalization convention, again, is used to denote the E/M system as primary driver of various
feelings and action potentials; as opposed to the behavioral manifestations resulting from activation of such systems for which we have a variety
of colloquial descriptions). Within these seven basic emotional systems,
four are clearly linked with positive emotions in humans (EXPLORATION, PLAY, BONDING, and LUST), and three clearly linked with
negative emotions (ANGER, FEAR, and GRIEF).
Generally speaking, the modern workplace likely plays host to individuals currently in the throes of the full range of these emotions. However, only six of these systems need be considered in greater detail for the
purpose of raising organizational performance. That is, the LUST system,
although it may be present among individuals within any organization, is
not likely a functional driver of workplace performance and we will ignore
it here.
The emotional systems that we will focus on are EXPLORATION,
BONDING, PLAY, ANGER, FEAR, and GRIEF. These key E/M systems are present in every person in the workforce to a greater or lesser degree, and can be influenced in a manner that leads more often than not to
organizational performance enhancements. As Panksepp noted, arousals
of these brain systems are accompanied by subjectively experienced feeling states that may provide efficient ways to guide and sustain behavior
patterns, as well as to mediate certain types of learning.33
The six E/M systems that individuals within all organizations experience, and that can be influenced through leadership can be divided into
Positive and Negative. Lets briefly explore each of these key E/M
systems to get a better idea of how they can be integrated into to organizational behavior and leadership.

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13

The Positive E/M Systems

EXPLORATION: This seminal E/M system drives the organism to explore its environment, to find key resources, to strive to solve problems,
and to anticipate new experiences with enthusiasm and anticipatory joy.
Feelings of environmentally engaged alivenesspositive excitement or
euphoriaaccompany such seeking urges in humans.34 The great adventure that is life is consumed almost entirely during adulthood by various
forms of work. For most people, work is defining of who they are. Think
about the last time you were at a cocktail party and you were introduced to
someone you didnt know. Surely one of the first questions that you ask or
that is asked of you is What do you do? This question, we all know, does
not refer to what you do as a hobby, what you do in the bedroom, or what
you do in your spare time. The question refers to what you do for work.
Despite the defining nature of work for most people, work also tends to
become routine, drudgery, and uninspiring. The EXPLORATION system
ceases to be activated often enough for people to recall the adventurous
spirit that led them to their career in the first place. One of the leaders of
the PP movement earlier investigated this phenomenon and postulated
that people are most engaged at work if they are able to achieve a state referred to as flow. Flow is a state of being where the EXPLORATION system is activated. This occurs most often when people are asked to stretch
their talents and skills in creative and innovative acts of problem solving
or value creation for the organization. Leaders help to establish flow in the
workplace by ensuring that people have opportunities to go beyond their
routine work assignments and to engage challenges that call forth their native talents and skills and stretch them. This type of challenge engages the
EXPLORATION system and the associated positive affects.
BONDING: The BONDING system is the primary driver of social, empathic, and altruistic feelings and actions among humans. The BONDING system drives people to seek shared goals with others and share
social achievements, and mutual traditions, values, and norms. Through
affiliation with specific others, people develop their individual identity.
According to Tomasello, The fundamental social-cognitive ability that
underlies human culture is the individual human beings ability to and
tendency to identify with other human beings.35 There are two primary

14

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

perspectives associated with BONDING: Identity theory and attachment

theory. Identity theory seeks to understand how individuals construct and
negotiate a personal work-centered identity. It is concerned with questions such as who am I? and how should I act?.36 Others have conceived social identity as perception of oneness with or belongingness to
some human aggregate.37 Indeed, some scholars have noted that identification with a social category is necessary to call forth human action. Sociologist Nelson Foote said, Doubt of identity, or confusion where it does
not cause complete disorientation, certainly drains action of its meaning,
and thus limits mobilization of organic correlates of emotion, drive, and
energy which constitute the introspectively-sensed push of motivated action.38 Thus, any confusion about ones identity not only may cause a
sense of disorientation, but also and more damagingly a tendency to avoid
focused action. Attachment theory posits that humans possess an innate
attachment system that motivates them to approach and emotionally
bond with others who provide them with a sense of security, comfort, and
warmth. In the infant, this is primarily manifest in the childparent bond.
In the adult, attachment forms with individuals with whom one identifies and who are able to provide a secure base. Organizations are domains
where attachment takes place both naturally and in a structured manner.
Natural affiliations occur among people who share commonalities such as
age, gender, career status, financial status, and other things. At the same
time, there are structured affiliations based on organizational structure,
physical proximity, workflow, and other factors that are design features of
the organization. Natural affiliations are the most powerful and lasting.
PLAY: Work and play are intrinsic parts of the lives of all of us. Work
provides meaning for many, while play provides respite and social connectivity. Although the term play connotes an activity more commonly
associated with childhood, the emotional roots of play remain an important part of adulthood. Indeed, the adult version of childhood rough and
tumble play is manifest as socially acceptable teasing, humorous banter,
and weekend recreation. In fact, the emotional urge to play was also not
left to chance by evolution, but is built into the instinctual action apparatus of the human brain.39 Part of social joy derives from our playful interactions with others, where winners and losers are determined according

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

15

to a common understanding of fairness. Even rats, which are prone to

engage in regular rough and tumble play with cage mates, have a mutual
understanding of fair play. If any single rat regularly pins its cage mate
(pinning is a common part of rat play behavior), the rat being pinned
quickly loses interest in play behavior if it does not have opportunities to
be the pinner. In other words, rats develop an ability to let each other
win often enough to keep a playful mood alive between them.
The Negative E/M Systems
ANGER: The ANGER system is aroused in all mammals when they are
frustrated from reaching goals and acquiring resources. Although unregulated ANGER is not appropriate in the workplace, it is useful to recognize
that this E/M system will be activated in workplaces that routinely and
without explanation thwart individual initiative. We know that [ANGER]
is an unpleasant affect not only because people say so, but also because both
animals and humans will try to avoid electrical stimulation of this system.40
FEAR: Fear is the most well-studied of the basic E/M systems we are discussing here. Fear and anxiety are common afflictions for many people,
with anxiety reduction programs and prescriptions for anxiety reducing
medications on the rise. This is because fear and anxiety create a cascade
of feelings and chemical/hormonal responses that tend to inhibit cognitive efficiency. The extreme of this is the fight or flight response where the
individual becomes consumed by instinctual action patterns with little
room for deliberative thought. Anxiety is pervasive because, as Panksepp
notes we are so intelligent [that] we humans can learn to fear more
things, past and future, than a little mouse can.41 Driving fear and anxiety from the workplace is likely not possible, but these pernicious E/M
systems can be managed and reduced through effective leadership tactics.
For example, it has been established that transparent, regular, and clear
employee evaluation systems engender a sense of security among employees. Knowing what is expected and knowing that one has the capacity to
meet expectations helps reduce anxiety in the workplace.
GRIEF: This system is perhaps the most challenging to understand from
the perspective of the practicing manager. Why should a manager be

16

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

concerned about an employees grief other than to provide appropriate

bereavement leave? In fact this E/M system is labeled in a manner that
creates some confusion. The GRIEF system is the term selected to describe the very specific E/M system activations a person feels when experiencing a wide range of situations that are interpreted by the individual
as social isolation or rejectionthe extreme form being when a loved one
dies with no hope of re-engagement for the bereaved. The neuropsychological research clearly demonstrates that humans derive deep satisfaction
from being in caring social relationships with others. This satisfaction is
based on powerful E/M system dynamics that are activated when one
feels embraced within secure, safe social relationships. The GRIEF system
kicks in when these social relationships are threatened or removed.
Summary of E/M Systems
The various E/M systems that have been posited as drivers of human behavior are not mysterious psychological forces, although they are still the subjects of much intense study. Essentially, researchers in this area are unified
on the basic notion that these primary drivers of behavior reflect speciesspecific adaptations based on evolutionary selection process to which the
humans have been exposed over millennia. The brain mechanisms involved
in these basic drivers are still being investigated, but there is gathering consensus at least around the six E/M systems we have explored in this chapter.
The E/M systems comprise both positive and negative affective states.
For the most part, humans perform at higher levels when in the throes of
positive affect than they do under the influence of negative affect. This is
not always true, however. For example, people who feel GRIEF over the
possibility of an impending social loss may increase their performance
in a manner that seeks to avoid the loss. Still, in the long run, humans
perform at higher levels, and for longer periods, and with greater determination and resilience when driven primarily by positive effects such as
BONDING over GRIEF and EXPLORATION over FEAR.
Now that we understand the premises of PP and have at least a beginners level understanding of the primary E/M systems that drive all
human behavior, lets explore some actions leaders can undertake with
this new knowledge.

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

17

Action Time
We have been on quite a journey through some of the theoretical foundations to POB that you will find reiterated and advanced throughout this
book. Its time now to get a general idea of how these theories can be put
into action within the organizational setting.
1. Prepare employees to be hired by the best in your industry, and be
prepared to help them advance their careers with other organizations if they choose.
Ironically, you are most likely to retain employees if they feel like you are
truly interested in their career advancementwherever it may take them. It is
counter-intuitive, obviously, to build individual talent in a manner that is a fit
with top competitors. But if you are building them to be a fit for top competitors, you are also building them for success in their chosen professionwhich
translates to higher performance for you. Most professional-level employees
enjoy building their talents to achieve excellence in their chosen careers. This
pursuit in fact feels good because it is a function of an active EXPLORATION E/M system. Research has shown that EXPLORATION is most active for people who feel they are operating from a secure base. If they believe
advancing in their career means they are trapped into a particular promotion
and salary band system (yours) they are likely to feel less secure. Far better to
make it known to everyone that you are most interested in helping them become accomplished professionals who have ample internal promotion opportunities, but who also will be assisted in the event that a better opportunity
ariseseven with your closest competitor.
2. Develop a robust and effective outplacement office that will assist
employees who have failed to meet the performance expectations
of the company.
This may seem like a cost-center investment that is not reflected in either
the revenues or profits of the firm. But lets take a deeper look at the logic
of developing outplacement services designed to help those who have
been terminated find comparable employment elsewhereeven with the
firms competitors.
The GRIEF system in mammals is activated when the individual feels
as though its social attachments are threatened. The activation of this

18

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

system powerfully inhibits positive E/M systems such as EXPLORATION and PLAY. When employees feel threatened, either because they
are taking risks that are necessary to advance the organization or because
they are not currently meeting expectations, their ability to advance beyond the feeling is blocked by activation of the GRIEF system. Such employees are more likely to continue to underperform and eventually to
select out of the system entirely.
To prevent and/or alleviate this type of behavior, companies must be
able to communicate to their employees that they will help them, even if
they should fail and be fired. Employees who feel a sense of social belonging despite their need to engage in risky, innovative behaviors are more
likely to find the internal E/M resources to face difficult challenges and
see them through than those who face the potentially gaping maw of
termination.
3. Enable play activities within the workplace and during the workday.
You may be thinking that this chapter has gone completely off the rails
suggesting that business leaders should allow people to play at work. Our
inclination as adults, who largely have sublimated our ability for imaginative play, is to separate work and play. Naturally, we are not suggesting
that the workplace should be turned into a playground, but there are
several very important consequences of enabling some play activity in the
workplace. Below we highlight some of these consequences and suggest
techniques for bringing them about:
Play promotes creativity and innovation. Play by its very
nature is spontaneous, open ended, and creative. Among
children there is no need for elaborate toys, play structures,
or organizational rules to initiate play. Children have little
trouble inventing games with others and creatively altering
and adjusting the rules as they proceed. Play, in fact, often
is inhibited by preexisting rules. When asked about play,
children often indicate that it is best when there is no adult
supervision. While adult play, such as professional sports, is
definitively rule-governed there is also an aspect of balance

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

that intuitively arises. Professional sports that are overly

officiated or where the rules begin to encroach upon the
spontaneity of the interaction become objects of derision
and controversy. Play in the workplace, if it is to enhance
innovation and creativity, must avoid being overly governed
by oppressive rules. Of course, employees should play
within the context of some rules that align with organizational
strategies and objectives.
Play promotes bonding and identification with others.
Organizations that promote reasonably bounded play activities
as noted above can help develop positive bonding among
employees. It is important, however, that play activities not be
forced on peoplewhich could have the opposite affect and
drive people apart. Many of you probably have been to retreats
or workshops where some high-paid consultant required that
you engage in a play activity that you would never choose on
your own. Often, this is done to get you out of your comfort
zone or some other silly reason. Most likely, you did not find
yourself becoming more deeply bonded with your playgroup
as a result of the play activity (except perhaps through your
shared disdain). Play has to flow naturally to be effective in
promoting interpersonal bonding. People must self-select to
the play activity. Organizations can establish opportunities
for people to engage in play. This can be done to great benefit
if the opportunities include play with individuals outside
ones normal work group. Extending social bonding via play
activities across organizational boundaries can go a long way
to breaking down the silos that become an endemic and
intractable problem for so many organizations. People that
have played together, and who have developed social bonds as
a result, are far more likely to solve cross-functional problems
than are those who have never before interacted except through
their (often adversarial) work activities.
Play has been linked to a wide range of positive health
benefits. Physical play has the benefit of promoting

19

20

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

fitness and reductions in stress and other autoimmune and

inflammation related disorders. As such, promoting play can
reduce absenteeism due to some health issues.
4. Establish and promulgate a set of organizational virtues that will
guide hiring and promotion practices within the organization.
Most organizations have mission statements. Some also have vision statements and/or statements of corporate values. These are important and
can be useful in guiding behavior that is designed to advance the organization as a whole. However, for individuals within the organization to
develop an ability to flourish, they must also be able to pursue virtues
that promote their individual flourishing. Research indicates that cultivating a virtues-based workplace identity is highly predictive of employee engagement in their work and organization.42 Companies should
articulate a set of virtues and character strengths that are consistent with
its mission and values. Most likely, the virtues and character strengths
developed and articulated by the VIA Classification System are consistent with nearly any type of organization. As such, they provide an excellent starting point for developing a set of preferred individual virtues
and character strengths for the organization. The organization should
also then establish a talent development regime aimed at helping people
evaluate their current capabilities on the virtues scale and at helping them
broaden and build their capacities on each of the virtues and associated
character strengths. Thegoal of the broaden and build approach to
talent development should not be limited to the workplace. It should
extend as well to improving employees lives at home, in their personal
finances, and myriad other areas.43

For Further Reading

Panksepp J., and Lucy Biven. 2012. The Archaeology of Mind: Neuroevolutionary Origins of Human Emotions. New York, NY: W.W. Norton
& Company.
This book provides an extensive overview of the E/M systems discussed in this chapter. It is extremely well-written, but may be challenging for newcomers to this topic.

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

21

Antonio Damasio. 2010. Self Comes to Mind. Constructing the Conscious

Brain. New York, NY: Vintage Books.
Damasio is one of the leading neuroscientists of the modern era. His
exploration of how the self emerges from the dynamics of the brain
is an accessible and fascinating read for anyone interested the topic.
Michael Tomasello. 2009. Why We Cooperate. Cambridge, MA: MIT
Press.
This small anthology presents the thesis that human beings are unique
in being the only species that cooperates to achieved shared goals. This
book provides a general reader with significant insights into how the
human species has evolved its propensity to cooperate.

Endnotes
1. Anchor, S. 2014. Foreword to How to be a Positive Leader, eds. J.E.
Dutton and G.M. Spreitzer. San Francisco, CA: Barrett-Koehler.
2. Deming, W.E. 2000. Out of the Crisis. Boston, MA: MIT Press,
reprint edition.
3. Hammer, M., and J.A. Champy. 1993. Reengineering the Corporation:
A Manifesto for Business Revolution. New York, NY: Harper Collins.
4. K. Blanchard. The One Minute Manager. New York, NY: William
Morrow.
5. Peters, T.J., and R.H. Waterman. In Search of Excellence: Lessons from
Americas Best-Run Companies. New York, NY: Harper & Row.
6. Porter, M.E. 1998. Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining
Superior Performance. New York, NY: Free Press.
7. Drucker, P.J. 2006. The Practice of Management. New York, NY:
Harper Business, re-issue edition.
8. Francis, R. 2007. The Science of Management: Fighting Fads and
Fallacies with Evidence-Based Practices. Samford Valley, Australia:
Australian Academic Press.
9. Bingham, P.M., and J. Souza. 2012. Ultimate Causation in Evolved
Human Political Psychology: Implications for Public Policy. Journal
of Social, Evolutionary, and Cultural Psychology 6, no. 3, pp. 360383.
10. Panksepp, J. 1998. Affective Neuroscience: The Foundation of Human
and Animal Emotions. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

22

LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

11. Seligman, M.E.P. 2013. Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of

Happiness and Well-Being. New York, NY: Atria, p. 13.
12. Donaldson, S.I. 2011. Determining What Works, If Anything,
In Positive Psychology. In Applied Positive Psychology: Improving
Everyday Life, Health, Schools, Work, and Society, eds. S.I. Donaldson,
M. Csikszentmihalyi, and J. Nakamura. New York, NY: Psychology
Press.
13. Seligman, M., and M. Csikszentmihalyi. 2000. Positive Psychology. American Psychologist 55, no. 1, pp. 514 (p. 6).
14. Bakker, A.B., and W.B. Schauffel. 2008. Positive Organizational
Behavior: Engaged Employees in Flourishing Organizations. Journal
of Organizational Behavior 29, pp. 147154.
15. Sheldon, K.M., and L. King. 2001. Why Positive Psychology Is
Necessary. American Psychologist 56, no. 3, pp. 216217.
16. Luthans, F. 2002. The Need for and Meaning of Positive Organizational Behavior. Journal of Organizational Behavior 23, no. 6,
pp. 695706.
17. Robinson, S.L., and R.J. Bennett. 1995. A Typology of Deviant
Workplace Behaviors: A Multidimensional Scaling Study. Academy
of Management Journal 38, no. 2, pp. 55572.
18. Ibid., p. 556.
19. Ibid., p. 565.
20. Luthans, F. Positive Organizational Behavior: Developing and
Managing Psychological Strengths. Academy of Management Executive 16, no. 1, pp. 5771.
21. Ibid., p. 69.
22. Yearly, L.H. 1990. Mencius and Aquinas: Theories of Virtue and Conceptions of Courage. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
23. Luthans, F., C.M. Youssef, and B.J. Avolio. 2007. Psychological Capital: Developing the Human Competitive Edge. Oxford, UK: Oxford
University Press.
24. Peterson, C., and N. Park. 2011. Character Strengths and Virtues:
Their Role in well-being. In Applied Positive Psychology: Improving
Everyday Life, Health, Schools, Work, and Society, eds. S.I. Donaldson,

THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

23

M. Csikszentmihalyi, and J. Nakaumra. New York, NY: Psychology

Press.
25. Seligman, M.E.P. 2011. Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of
Happiness and Well-Being. New York, NY: Atria Publishing.
26. Panksepp, J. 2005. Affective Consciousness: Core Emotional Feelings in Animals and Humans. Cognition and Consciousness 14, no. 1,
pp. 3080 (p. 69).
27. Panksepp, J. 2012. The Archaeology of Mind: Neuroevolutionary Origins
of Human Emotions. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.
28. Goleman, D. 2006. Social Intelligence: The Revolutionary New Science
of Human Relationships. New York, NY: Bantam Books.
29. Damasio, A. 2010. Self Comes to Mind: Constructing the Conscious
Brain. New York, NY: Vintage Books.
30. Barash, D. 1979. The Whisperings Within. New York, NY: Harper &
Row Publishers.
31. Lieberman, M.D. 2013. Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect.
New York, NY: Broadway Books.
32. Richerson, P.J., and R. Boyd. 2005. Not by Genes Alone. Chicago, IL:
University of Chicago Press.
33. Panksepp, J. 1998. Affective Neuroscience. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley
& Sons.
34. Panksepp, Affective Consciousness, p. 47.
35. Tomasello, M. 1999. The Cultural Origins of Human Cognition.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, p. 90.
36. Cerulo, K. 1997. Identity Construction: New Issues, New Directions. Annual Review of Sociology 23, pp. 385409.
37. Ashfort, B.E., and F. Mael. 1989. Social Identity Theory and the Organization. Academy of Management Review 14, no. 1, pp. 2039 (p. 135).
38. Foote, N.N. 1951. Identification as the Basis for a Theory of Motivation. American Sociological Review 16, no. 1, pp. 1421 (p. 19).
39. Panksepp, Affective Consciousness, p. 54.
40. Panksepp, J., and L. Biven. 2012. The Archaeology of Mind: Neuroevolutionary Origins of Human Emotions. New York, NY: W.W.
Norton and Company, p. 163.

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LEADING THE POSITIVE ORGANIZATION

41. Panksepp, The Archaeology of Mind, p. 176.

42. Harter, J., F. Schmidt, and C. Keyes. 2003. Well-Being in the
Workplace and Its Relationship to Business Outcomes: A Review of
the Gallup Studies. In Flourishing: Positive Psychology and the Life
Well Lived, eds. C. Keyes and J. Haidt. Washington, DC: American
Psychological Association, pp. 205224.
43. Fredrickson, B.L, and L.E. Kurtz. 2011. Cultivating Positive Emotions to Enhance Human Flourishing. In Applied Positive P
sychology:
Improving Everyday Life, Health, Schools, Work, and S ociety, eds. S.I.
Donaldson, M. Csikszentmihalyi, and J. N
akaumra. NewYork,
NY: Psychology Press.

Index
Accommodating approach, 123124
Adams, Douglas, 71
Adaptability, 80
Anger, 12, 15
Anxiety, 15
Apple company, 5657
Appreciative inquiry (AI) model, 154
Attachment theory, 14
AttractionSelectionAttrition (ASA)
model, 9899
Attribution, 78
optimistic versus pessimistic, 7879
Autonomy, 42
Avoidant conflict behavior, 122123
Bandura, Albert, 55, 73
Bass, Bernard, 149
Behavior, 6
patterns, 1011
Behavioral mimicry, 105
Biasperception conflict spiral, 133
Bingham, Liz, 54
Bluhm, Dustin, 49
Bonding, 12, 1314
Bradley-Geist, Jill, 93
Branson, Richard, 5759
Broaden and build approach, goal
of, 20
Buffer (social media marketing
company), 6263
BuildMeasureLearn feedback loop,
174, 175
Burns, James MacGregor, 149
CallWest company, 120121,
123124
Cameron, Kim, 100, 147
CEO and top-level leaders roles,
in building positive
organization, 144, 145

Change process, designing and

managing, 151156
Character strengths, virtues and,
79, 20
CHOSE acronym, 6, 7281
Citizenship behaviors, of
organizations, 83
Clinical psychology, 4
Cognitive consistency, 32
Cognitive dissonance, 32
Collaboration, defined, 172
Collaborative behavior, in conflict,
127
Collaborative Learning Design (CLD)
case studies, 178182
identifying problems, 176
identifying SME and designing
programs, 176
launching training program,
177178
loop, 175176
obtaining employee feedback, 177
for positive organization, 164,
171182
research MVP with employees,
176177
revise/pivot, 177
training (case studies)
in financial industry, 181182
in nonprofit organization,
179180
Collins, Jim, 49
Commitment
from CEO and top-level leaders,
144, 145
organizational, 34
Competitive style in conflict,
124125
Compromise, 125126
Confidence/self-efficacy, 6, 7375

194 INDEX

Conflict
concept of, 119120
positive and negative, 121
positive conflict and
communication, 128136
framing, 128130
language choice and conflict
spirals, 130133
positive communication and
positive affect, 133134
procedural justice and voice,
134136
styles, 121127
accommodating, 123124
avoiding, 122123
collaborating, 127
competing, 124125
compromising, 125126
Contagion, 96, 101
Cooperrider, David, 154
Coproduction of services, 73
Core self-evaluations, 36
Corporate citizenship, 83
Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly, 4
Culture and well-being, 82
Customer service, 7475
Czaplewski, Andrew, 71
Damasio, Antonio, 21
Decision-making process, model
of, 167
Deming, W. Edwards, 2
Depression, 10
Deviancy, in workplace, 5
Disagreement, 134
Downton, J.V., 149
Ds (four) approach, 4
Duening, Thomas, 1
Duluth Pack, 4142
Efficacy, 5456
Elliot, Jane, 75
Emotional contagion, 96, 102, 104
Emotional intelligence (EI), 6,
8081
Emotional labor, 102
Emotional/motivational (E/M)
systems, 3, 1011

negative systems, 1516

positive systems, 1315
summary, 16
Emotions, 135
Empathy, 80
Employee(s)
behaviors, 6
building individual talent, 17
deviancy typology, 5
OBSE and quality of job
performance, 3233
in positive organizations, 27, 35, 43
positive practices, 8182
trust, 40
See also Organization-based
self-esteem (OBSE)
Employee assistance programs
(EAP), 166
Enactive mastery experience, 77
Evolution, 11
Exploration, 3, 12, 17
Fairness, 1415
Fear, 12, 15
Feedback, 42
Financial organization, training
in, 169170
Flow, 13
Folk psychology, 10
Foote, Nelson, 14
Fortune Magazine, 147
Four Ds approach, 4
Four Ps of Marketing, 72
Framing, 128130
Gardner, Donald G., 27
Germ theory, 96
Glanz, Barbara, 74
Global self-esteem, 29
Goal creation, 78
Good to Great to Gone (book), 81
Google, 100
Grameen Bank, in 1977,
5253
Grant, Adam, 108
Gratitude, expressing, 110111
Grief, 12, 1516, 1718
Groupthink, 123

 INDEX
195

Happiness. See Subjective well-being

(SWB)
Heffernan, Margaret, 121
HERO acronym, 5159
High-impact team, 146147
Holocaust, 106
Hope, 6, 52, 7778
Hucksterism, 5
Human emotions/motivations,
evolutionary basis
of, 1016
Human flourishing, 3, 7, 20
Identity
and conflict, 135
theory, 14
Imposter syndrome, 55
IMVU company, 172173
Inspirational motivation, 150
Intangible asset, 4950
Integration, between personal
and professional life, 80
Intellectual capital, 49
Intellectual stimulation, 150
Interests statements, 131
Job characteristics, 42
Job satisfaction, 34
Jobs, Steve, 5657
Joy, 10
Key, Thomas Martin, 71
Leaders
in building positive organization,
144, 145
creating high OBSE workforce, 45
organizational, 44
trustworthiness, 3940
Leadership (book), 149
Lean manufacturing technique, 173
Lean Startup methodology, 164,
172175, 179
Learning design, 167171
Learning programs, 164, 165
Lewin, Kurt, 154
Lust, 12
Luthans, Fred, 4, 5

Management behaviors
building employee trust, 40
Managing change, 151156
classic model for, 154
principles for, 153
Maslows hierarchy of needs, 9,
165, 166
Microloan pathway, 5253
Milgram experiment, 106107
Minimal viable products (MVPs),
164, 173, 175
research conducted with
employees, 176177
revise/pivot, 177
Mirror neurons, 105
Modeling, 75
Moods, 7
Needs, Maslows hierarchy of, 9,
165, 166
Neocortex, 11
Office of Professional & Executive
Development (OPED), 178
Optimism, 6, 5759, 7879
Organization-based self-esteem
(OBSE)
adequate resources, 43
benefits of, 3335
building OBSE at work, 3844
concept of, 2930
defined, 29
developments, 3637
enriched work, 4142
importance of, 3031
leader trustworthiness, 3940
and organizational citizenship
behaviors (OCBs), 34
organizational structure, 39
organizational support and
respect, 4041
reasons for affecting performance,
3233
scale, 31
self-esteem, 2837
self-managed teams, 4243
withdrawal behaviors, 34
Organization development, 152

196 INDEX

Organizational behavior, negative

versus positive, 57
Organizational citizenship behaviors
(OCBs), 34, 83
Organizational climate, 95105
AttractionSelectionAttrition
(ASA) model, 9899
automatic subconscious contagion
processes, 103105
contagious nature of climate,
101102
controlled conscious contagion
processes, 102103
defined, 9596
Milgram experiment, 106107
positive organizational climate,
9698
representation of, 95
Organizational commitment, 34
Organizational homogeneity, process
model of, 99
Organizational structure, 39
Organizational support and respect,
4041
Organizational theory, 12
Performance, 31, 3233
Performance-driven curriculum, 179
Pessimism, 7879
Phony conflict, 121
Pierce, Jon L., 27
Play, 12, 1415, 1819
Political deviance, 5
Positive emotions, 163
Positive leadership
skills, 148
and transformational leadership, 151
understanding, 147148
Positive Leadership (book), 147
Positive organizational behavior
(POB), 2, 43
benefits, 8183
CHOSE (five core constructs), 72
emotional intelligence (EI), 8081
hope, 7778
optimism, 7879
self-efficacy, 7377
subjective well-being, 7980

coproduction of services, 73
role in building world-class service
organization, 7186
services marketing and
management, 7281
Positive organizational climate, 9698
Positive organizational conflict and
communication, 119138
Positive organizations
appointing high-impact team,
146147
building, 143159
Collaborative Learning Design
(CLD), 164, 171182
commitment, importance of, 144
developing, 163184
leaders in, 144, 145
managing change, 151156
organization-wide learning,
164167
positive leadership and, 147148,
151
resources on, 147
traditional learning design,
167171
transforming organizations,
156157
Positive psychology (PP), 4
Maslows hierarchy of needs, 9
negative versus positive
organizational behavior, 57
overview of, 49
purpose of, 45
traditional psychology and, 4
virtues and character strengths, 79
Positive thinking, 4
Positivity, 50
Poverty eradication, microloan
solution to, 5253
Power of Positive Thinking, The
(book), 50
Power statements, 130, 132
Practice mindfulness, 109
Practicing Positive Leadership
(book), 147
Prisoners Dilemma, 129130
Product, 72
Production deviance, 5

 INDEX
197

Property deviance, 5
Prosocial aggression, 5
Prosocial culture, 166
Prospect theory, 107
Ps (four), of marketing, 72
Psychological and affective states, 76
Psychological capital (PsyCap)
components of, 5059
defined, 50
in leadership development, 62
questionnaire sample items, 61
synergistic PsyCap, 6064
training and development of, 6364
Psychological ingredients, of virtues, 8
Psychological states, 78
Psychological traits, 7
Real conflict, 121
Reis, Eric, 172174
Resilience, 5657
Responsiveness, 80
Ries, Eric, 164
Rights statements, 131
Rogers, Shawna, 163
Role clarity, 7778
Rometty, Ginni, 5455
Sandberg, Sheryl, 54
Schneider, Benjamin, 98
Schutz, Will, 46
Scotter II, James Van, 71
Sculley, John, 56
Self-actualization, 9, 165, 166
Self-awareness, 80
Self-belief, 30, 32, 34
Self-efficacy, 6
concept of, 7374
enhancing, 7577
power of, 7475
prophesy, 7576
Self-esteem
defined, 28
See also Organization-based
self-esteem (OBSE)
Self-evaluations, 36
Self-handicapping, 33
Self-improvement, 6263
Self-managed teams, 4243

Self-monitoring, 80
Self-protection motive, 33
Seligman, Martin, 4
Services
coproduction of, 73
defined, 72
marketing, 71
Shoestack, Lynn, 71
Skill variety, 42
Social capital, 49
Social contagion, 101
Srivastva, Suresh, 154
Stress, 129
Subject matter experts (SMEs), 176
Subjective well-being (SWB), 6,
35, 7980
Sutton, Bob, 100
Synergistic PsyCap, 6064
Task identity, 42
Task mastery, 77
Task significance, 42
Thomas, Dan, 71
Tomlin, Kathleen, 119
Total quality management, 2
Toyota Production System
(TPS), 173
Traditional learning design, 167171
case studies, 168171
Training design, 172
Traits, 78
Transactional leadership, 149
Transformational change models,
156157
Transformational leadership
four dimensions of, 150
positive leadership and, 151
understanding, 149151
Transforming organizations,
156157
Trust, 3940
Unstable attribution, 79
Values and well-being, 8283
Values in Action (VIA) classification
of strengths, 8
Verbal persuasion, 75

198 INDEX

Vicarious experience, 75
Virgin Galactic, 58
Virtues and character strengths, 79, 20
Walton, Sam, 38
Warrick, Don, 143
Well-being
culture and, 82
values and, 8283
See also Subjective well-being
(SWB)
What Went Well (WWW) reflection
journal, 110

Withdrawal behaviors, 34
Work
forms of, 13
and play, 14, 1819
Worklife integration, 80
Workplace efficacy, 54
Workplace safety, 108
Wozniak, Steve, 56
Wurtzel, Alan, 81
Yunus, Muhammad, 5253
Zero-sum mindset, 120

OTHER TITLES IN THE HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND

ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR COLLECTION
Fostering Creativity in Self and the Organization: Your Professional Edge
by Eric W. Stein
Designing Creative High Power Teams and Organization: Beyond Leadership
by Eric W. Stein
Creating a Pathway to Your Dream Career: Designing and Controlling a Career Around
Your Life Goals by Tom Kucharvy
Leader Evolution: From Technical Expertise to Strategic Leadership by Alan Patterson
Followership: What It Takes to Lead by James H. Schindler
The Search For Best Practices: Doing the Right Thing the Right Way by Rob Reider
Marketing Your Value: 9 Steps to Navigate Your Career by Michael Edmondson
Competencies at Work: Providing a Common Language for Talent Management
by Enrique Washington and Bruce Griffiths
Manage Your Career: 10 Keys to Survival and Success When Interviewing and on
theJob, Second Edition by Vijay Sathe
Youre A Genius: Using Reflective Practice to Master the Craft of Leadership
by StevenS. Taylor
Major in Happiness: Debunking the College Major Fallacies by Michael Edmondson
Success: Theory and Practice by Michael Edmondson

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