The terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001 affected the U.S. airline industry more than almost any other industry. Certain of these companies emerged successful, however, and demonstrated remarkable resilience while others languished. This investigation identifies the reasons why some airline companies recovered successfully after the attacks while others struggled. Evidence is provided that layoffs after the crisis, while intended to foster recovery, instead inhibited recovery throughout the four years after the crisis. But layoffs after the crisis were strongly correlated with the lack of financial reserves and the lack of a viable business model prior to the crisis. Digging deeper, we find that having a viable business model itself depended on the extent to which positive employee relationships had been achieved and maintained over the long term. One implication of our findings is that layoffs, while reducing costs in the short term, may also undermine the positive relationships that are critical for achieving lasting recovery.

Relationships, Layoffs, and Organizational Resilience: Airline Industry Responses to September 11

Purpose: Long-lasting COVID-19 symptoms are closely associated with psychiatric sequelae. However, little is known about whether it is possible to predict a protracted course early in the disease. In this study, we aimed to understand how post-COVID-19 psychiatric symptomatology evolves over time and the variables that affect these symptoms. 
Materials and Methods: Anxiety, depression, acute stress, and sleep disorders among patients with COVID-19 were prospectively evaluated during hospitalization and six months after discharge. Adult patients recently admitted to non-intensive care units with COVID-19 were eligible. Their psychiatric status was assessed using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, National Stressful Events Survey Acute Stress Disorder Short Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The patients’ clinical data were gathered from hospital records. Six months after they were discharged, the same questionnaire and a checklist to assess ongoing physical symptoms were distributed to the patients via WhatsApp. 
Results: 143 participants were enrolled, 47 of whom completed the study. The results showed that patients’ depression, anxiety, and insomnia significantly decreased during the follow-up. However, there was an increase in the number of patients who reported acute stress symptoms. The highest C-reactive protein level during acute infection (OR=1.09) predicted depression during the follow-up. Experiencing a higher number of infectious symptoms during hospitalization predicted a higher number of protracted symptoms six months later (OR=1.5). 
Conclusion: This indicates that the severity of systemic inflammation during acute COVID-19 infection may predispose patients to persistent depression. Patients with a higher number of symptoms during acute infection may be at risk of developing long-term COVID-19.

COVID-19 enfeksiyonu geçiren bireylerde altı ay içinde görülen ruhsal bozukluklar

Gratitude or the appreciation of being given something of value, is an important element in positive emotions within positive psychology. Gratitude has been linked to wellbeing and gratitude in the workplace is positively associated with constructs such as performance and organizational citizenship behavior. The pandemic brought on many negative experiences but employees could still find things to be grateful for during this time. The purpose of the study was to understand what aspects of work and the organization employees were grateful for during the pandemic. A generic qualitative approach was used. Participants were sourced from various industries in South Africa using purposive sampling. Data were gathered through 21 semi-structured interviews of working people in South Africa. Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis revealed five themes, namely, (1) gratitude for no negative work-life changes; (2) gratitude for a caring workplace; (3) gratitude for a new way of working; (4) gratitude for the ability to put oneself first; and (5) gratitude for having resilience, optimism and spirituality as a psychological buffer. Managers should deliberately engage in behaviors that will bring about gratitude from their employees. Employees should reflect on the positive things at work that they are thankful for as a way of enhancing gratitude and thereby, wellness, performance, and commitment. The study combines existing knowledge on gratitude during the pandemic with gratitude in the workplace.

Thankful employees: The manifestation of gratitude at work during a pandemic in South Africa

Considering the pandemic situation caused by COVID-19, the majority of Manufacturing companies in India have declared work from home until 2021. The pandemic has disrupted both the private and professional lives of people working in the Manufacturing sector, which has impacted the employee's attitude toward work. Therefore, the study is conducted to extract all the employee engagement factors that can actually improve the employee's performance during pandemic. Factor analysis has been applied on a sample of 200 respondents, and the factors significantly influencing the engagement of employees are organization's commitment, job safety and security, employee satisfaction, opinions and stability, and set goals and objectives. 

Employee Engagement Strategy

Waja Sampai Kaputing merupakan falsafah hidup Suku Banjar yang merupakan pesan dari Pangeran Antasari agar pantang menyerah dalam mencapai tujuan. Falsafah ini dapat dikaji menggunakan konsep psikologi Psychological Capital. Dalam penerapannya pada zaman sekarang, falsafah hidup ini masih menjadi sesuatu yang relevan untuk generasi muda sebagai calon pemimpin bangsa masa depan yang menghadapi tantangan dan situasi yang tidak pasti. Labelling sebagai strawberry generation disematkan pada generasi muda untuk melambangkan sebagai generasi yang mudah menyerah, lemah, dan mudah hancur. Banyak faktor yang menyebabkan generasi muda menjadi generasi yang lemah antara lain eksposur internet, penggunaan media sosial berlebihan, toxic parenting, dan lingkungan sekolah yang tidak mendukung. Studi ini dilakukan dengan tujuan untuk mengulas falsafah Waja Sampai Kaputing yang kemudian disandingkan dengan konsep psikologi Psychological Capital pada strawberry generation di Indonesia. Melalui studi ini dapat diketahui bahwa falsafah WASAKA dapat ditinjau dari aspek psikologis PsyCap masih relevan dapat diterapkan dalam berbagai aspek kehidupan generasi muda.               
 
Waja Sampai Kaputing is a philosophy of life in Banjar Tribe that contains a message from Pangeran Antasari for the young generation not to give up on pursuing their goals. This philosophy can explain more through the psychological concept called Psychological Capital. Waja Sampai Kaputing has become a relevant life philosophy for today’s young generation as a nation’s future leader to face challenges and uncertainty. The young generation is labelled as the strawberry generation, a generation that gives up quickly and is fragile. Factors that cause our young generation to become fragile are internet exposure, excessive use of social media, toxic parenting, and a toxic school environment. The purpose of this study is to review “Waja Sampai Kaputing” through Psychological Capital to strawberry generation in Indonesia. This study concludes that WASAKA can be seen from a psychological aspect called Psycap and is still relevant to be applied in various parts of the life of the younger generation. 

https://ejournal.umm.ac.id/index.php/JICC/article/download/22637/11449

Kajian psychological capital pada filosofi hidup Suku Banjar “Waja Sampai Kaputing” pada Strawberry Generation

Positive change comprises an examination of the factors that influence the adaptation of a positive lens, positively deviant performance, the effects of an affirmative bias, and the impact of pursuing the best of human conditions in an organization. To generate positive change, a Middle Eastern financial services firm designed and implemented a positive business initiative ‘RACE’, which involved various sports, arts, cultural, and everyday business activities, intended to engage employees and build their psychological strengths.



In the context of RACE initiative, this study examines the role of self-efficacy, optimism, and job engagement in positive change. Self-efficacy is a specific, positive expectation of success based on belief in one’s individual abilities. Employees’ with higher levels of optimism tend to maintain positive expectation about what will happen to them in the process of change. Employees who are engaged in the jobs bring in their complete selves by investing physical, emotional, and cognitive energies.



This study explores the relationship of self-efficacy and optimism with performance outcome. It further provides an explanation of this relationship through the mediating role of three dimensions of job engagement, that is, cognitive, emotional, and physical.



Responses were collected from 406 employees who participated in the RACE initiative. While all of the respondents are based in the UAE, the sample is international in nature, encompassing 15 countries. These respondents were asked to assess their own self-efficacy, optimism, and job engagement, along with their perception of the team-level performance of the branch office in which they work. The hypothesized relationships were tested in AMOS 20 using structural equation modeling.



The results indicate that higher levels of self-efficacy and optimism significantly predict higher levels of cognitive, emotional, and physical engagement. Also, the higher levels of cognitive, emotional, and physical engagement significantly predict performance. Further, significant indirect effects support the mediating role of job engagement in relationship between these psychological strengths and performance outcome. Thus, employees’ level of self-efficacy, optimism, and job engagement can be enhanced by designing and implementing business initiatives that are relevant to positive change.

/pdf/role-of-self-efficacy-optimism-and-job-engagement-in-1azg9b4bi5.pdf

Role of Self-efficacy, Optimism and Job Engagement in Positive Change: Evidence from the Middle East

Objective: The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in India was widespread and caused psychological distress among the citizens. Hospitals were running at a premium, increasing deaths and trepidation stories were on air by media, this generated sleep disturbances for many. This study aimed to examine the sleep quality of Covid-19 recovered patients in India during the second wave of the pandemic. Methods: Patients who had recently recovered from Covid-19 were invited to participate in this cross-sectional study using various social media platforms. An online survey questionnaire, including socio-demographics, health-related information, Covid-19 related information, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), was administered in June 2021. Descriptive statistics were used to compare the scores among the mild, moderate, and severe groups. ANOVA was used to find the difference between the groups for global PSQI scores. Results: A total of 311 participants (261 mild, 45 moderate, and 5 severe) provided usable responses. The Global PSQI score for the overall study sample was 8.22 ± 3.79. In the severe group, scores were higher 16.8 ± 2.59, and statistically significant from mild or moderate groups. Sleep quality of Covid-19 recovered patients was found to be statistically significantly different based on their gender (P < .001), annual income (P < .001), employment status (P < .001), and marital status (P < .001). Conclusion: Females, employment in the private sector, annual income below rupees 11 lakh, and unmarried Covid-19 recovered patients reported poor sleep quality. As our findings indicate poor sleep quality among the Covid-19 recovered patients during the second wave in India, designing psychological interventions is recommended to support their wellbeing post-recovery.

Sleep Quality of Covid-19 Recovered Patients in India

Validating the Big Five Aspect Scale amongst B-School Students in India

Safety concerns are a key factor that demotivate women from traveling. Tourism organizations are yet to develop approaches to address this comprehensively. Employing the case study design, this study describes how an Indian tourism organization adopted safe women travel as its purpose to reduce women’s safety risk perceptions and motivated them to travel. Nine qualitative interviews were conducted with key stakeholders including co-founders, employees, customers, and vendors. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis resulting in the identification of purpose as a pull factor. Themes of defining, communicating, embodying purpose, and its resulting influence were identified. Through this process, the organization was able to positively impact perceptions of safety, enhance women’s travel motivation, and develop long-term associations with all stakeholders. An actionable framework for implementing purpose was developed that can be used to align tourism organizations’ practices and activities.

/pdf/motivating-women-to-travel-in-india-embodying-safety-as-an-1djpswhw.pdf

Motivating Women to Travel in India: Embodying Safety as an Organizational Purpose

Thriving is a psychological state in which individuals experience a sense of vitality and a sense of learning. Thriving come from relational connections with others, and is deeply rooted in social systems. Theoretical literature suggests that thriving occurs in the presence of decision-making discretion, broad information sharing, and a climate of trust. However, no study has investigated these environmental factors empirically. Using a multiple-studies approach, we (a) established valid and reliable scale for each of these environmental factors using experimental vignettes, (b) confirmed the association of decision-making discretion, broad information sharing and climate of trust with thriving, and (c) identified the role of self-determination theory in determining these relationships. Our analysis was based on data collected from 512 Indian management students across five studies. The results indicate significant difference in thriving for high vs. low level for decision-making discretion, broad information sharing and climate of trust. The relationship of these environmental factors with thriving is mainly due to the fulfillment of the need for competence. Competence partially mediates the relationship of decision-making discretion with thriving, and fully mediates the relationship of broad information sharing and climate of trust with thriving. Autonomy, although positively related with the environmental factors, does not lead to thriving. Practical implications, limitations and research avenues are discussed.

/pdf/what-makes-indian-management-students-thrive-role-of-22tde21d.pdf

Raina Chhajer

Papers

Role of Self-efficacy, Optimism and Job Engagement in Positive Change: Evidence from the Middle East

Sleep Quality of Covid-19 Recovered Patients in India

Validating the Big Five Aspect Scale amongst B-School Students in India

Motivating Women to Travel in India: Embodying Safety as an Organizational Purpose

What Makes Indian Management Students Thrive? Role of Decision-Making Discretion, Broad Information Sharing, and Climate of Trust