Study: Showing emotions makes collaboration easier
Emotions often run high when it comes to feelings in the workplace: while for some people a fist on the table is an honest expression of frustration, others consider sharing personal feelings to be unprofessional. Can or should you show your feelings openly at work? And are there feelings that are more accepted than others? These and other questions are explored in a recent study commissioned by the jobs network XING, for which over 1,000 professionals in German-speaking and French-speaking Switzerland were surveyed.
Showing your feelings makes it easier to work together and strengthens cohesion
87% of respondents say that they find it easier to work with colleagues when they show their feelings. 82% are also of the opinion that team cohesion is strengthened when feelings are shared. Only a minority (38%) fear that showing feelings could slow down their career. However, showing feelings should not mean acting accordingly. Two thirds (65%) find it problematic to be guided by their feelings at work.
Sandra Bascha, XING Communications Manager for Switzerland, says: "The results indicate a differentiated approach to the topic of feelings in the workplace. On the one hand, the vast majority say that sharing feelings promotes collaboration. On the other hand, for most people, feelings are not a reliable basis for making decisions in a professional environment."
Tears at work: women are more likely to cry out of anger and frustration, men out of sadness or joy
The majority of those surveyed (58%) have felt tearful at work at some point, with women (71%) more likely to do so than men (45%). Among female respondents, it is primarily anger or frustration (42%), followed by sadness (32%) that brings tears to their eyes. Men mainly cry out of sadness (19 percent) or out of joy and emotion (also 19 percent).
Positive feelings can be shown without hesitation
More than half of those surveyed (56%) say that they can show happiness at work without hesitation. The figure is 55 percent for satisfaction and 49 percent each for motivation and happiness. 44% state that they can show enthusiasm without hesitation. There is more restraint when it comes to negative feelings: Stress can still be shown without hesitation by 26%, anger by 23% and disappointment by 20%.
Sandra Bascha: "When it comes to expressing feelings, the more the merrier. What's more valuable is the certainty that I can express my feelings without having to fear negative consequences. This is the only way I can be myself at work, which is also a key feature of New Work. Whether this is possible depends on the culture of the company. That's why cultural fit is crucial when choosing an employer."
Showing feelings is more possible in German-speaking Switzerland than in French-speaking Switzerland
While 61% of respondents from German-speaking Switzerland say that they can show their happiness at work without hesitation, in French-speaking Switzerland the figure is less than half (39%). The differences are also evident when it comes to negative feelings. 27% of German-speaking Swiss are able to show their anger at work without hesitation, compared to just 9% in French-speaking Switzerland. The difference between the language regions is evident in almost all the feelings surveyed.
Stress and satisfaction shape the emotional world at work
The participants were also asked what feelings they often experience at work. At the top of the list are stress and satisfaction, both of which are frequently experienced by 49% of respondents. Motivation (42%) and happiness (41%) followed in second place. With the exception of stress, positive feelings clearly predominate in everyday working life. 27 percent often feel frustration at work, 20 percent anger and 19 percent demotivation.
Generation Z: most stressed and most motivated
Generation Z employees (18 to 26-year-olds) experience stress particularly frequently at 58%. Of millennials (27 to 42-year-olds), 50 percent, 47 percent of Generation X (43 to 58-year-olds) and 39 percent of baby boomers (59 to 65-year-olds) say that they often experience stress at work. Generation Z respondents also feel motivated (51%) and happy (48%) more often than all other age groups. And a sense of pride is more common among younger Generation Z professionals (34%) and Millennials (31%) than among members of Generation X (24%) and Baby Boomers (19%).
Satisfaction dominates in old age
Among Baby Boomers, satisfaction is the most frequently perceived feeling in the workplace at 60 percent, well ahead of stress at 39 percent. Meaningfulness is also perceived more frequently with increasing age: While 28 percent of Baby Boomers frequently experience a sense of purpose at work, this figure is 16 percent for Generation Z, 21 percent for Millennials and 26 percent for Generation X.
More joy and happiness in German-speaking Switzerland, more sense of purpose in French-speaking Switzerland
German-speaking Swiss are more likely to experience stress, but also joy and happiness at work than employees in French-speaking Switzerland. On the other hand, around a third (34 percent) of French-speaking Swiss regularly experience meaningfulness, compared to 19 percent of German-speaking Swiss.
Source: www. new-work.se
