Content area
Full text
Two studies were conducted to analyze how hope, resilience, optimism, and efficacy individually and as a composite higher-order factor predicted work performance and satisfaction. Results from Study 1 provided psychometric support for a new survey measure designed to assess each of these 4 facets, as well as a composite factor. Study 2 results indicated a significant positive relationship regarding the composite of these 4 facets with performance and satisfaction. Results from Study 2 also indicated that the composite factor may be a better predictor of performance and satisfaction than the 4 individual facets. Limitations and practical implications conclude the article.
In a special issue of the American Psychologist, Sheldon and King (2001, p. 216) point out that "Positive psychology revisits the 'average person' with an interest in finding out what works, what is right, and what is improving." Like positive psychology, which does not claim to have discovered the importance of positivity (e.g., see Peterson, 2006), the recently emerging positive organizational behavior field recognizes that much of the early history (e.g., Herzberg, 1966; Maslow, 1954; McGregor, 1960) and contemporary theories and research (e.g., job satisfaction, organizational commitment, positive affectivity, core self-evaluations, organizational citizenship, intrinsic motivation, humor, self-determination, organizational justice, among others) are positively oriented. Nevertheless, analogous to, and drawing from, the positive psychology literature, the term positive organizational behavior is intended to identify a newly emerging focus on a positive approach to developing and managing human resources in today's workplace (for recent reviews of this emerging literature, see Luthans & Youssef, 2007; Luthans, Youssef, & Avolio, 2007).
Positive organizational behavior has been defined as "the study and application of positively oriented human resource strengths and psychological capacities that can be measured, developed, and effectively managed for performance improvement" (Luthans, 2002b, p. 59; also see Nelson & Cooper, 2007; Turner, Barling, & Zaharatos, 2002; Wright, 2003). In addition, to differentiate from other positive approaches reported in both the academic and practitioner literatures, the following criteria were set for including constructs in this definition of positive organizational behavior: (a) grounded in theory and research; (b) valid measurement; (c) relatively unique to the field of organizational behavior; (d) state-like and hence open to development and change as opposed to a fixed trait; and (e) have a positive...