Viewing archives for The Future Of Wellbeing

Sarah Cunningham: I hope the next government prioritises people’s wellbeing over GDP growth

Tortoise Media

Every area of policy has implications for our wellbeing, so it’s vital that whoever ends up in No10 considers every single policy decision through a wellbeing lens to ensure a healthier, happier, fairer society.

After all, wellbeing is a science: it can be measured, and improved.

But although the ONS (Office for National Statistics) has been tracking life satisfaction – the most reliable measure of population wellbeing – since 2011, these efforts have not been matched by effective actions to address declining trends.

Wellbeing is not a luxury. It’s a basic human right which the next government must protect

The Big Issue

With the general election just a few days away and the past few couple of weeks’ news being dominated by the launch of the party manifestos, I’ve been keeping a keen eye on the content of the manifestos but I’ve been disappointed. There has been a notable absence in the priorities of those vying for Number 10: wellbeing.

Wellbeing is a bit of a misunderstood term, often overlooked in discussions about what truly matters to people’s everyday lives. But let’s get one thing straight: wellbeing is not a luxury. It’s a basic human right that permeates every single issue at this general election and our politicians must sit up and take notice.

Work Wellbeing Playbook: A Systematic Review of Evidence-Based Interventions to Improve Employee Wellbeing

Sarah Cunningham, William Fleming, Cherise Regier, Micah Kaats, and Jan-Emmanuel De Neve

Abstract

The Work Wellbeing Playbook is a concise guide that distils insights from a large-scale systematic literature review of workplace wellbeing interventions. It presents high level insights in an accessible, and plain English format for ease-of use.

With support from Indeed, and in collaboration with our academic partner at the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre, the World Wellbeing Movement has curated this Playbook of evidence-based interventions categorised by 12 key drivers of workplace wellbeing.

The researchers reviewed more than 3,000 academic studies of workplace wellbeing interventions to identify strategies proven to increase the wellbeing of employees across diverse work environments. Recognising that business leaders often face time constraints, we have condensed the key insights into this open-access resource and distilled them into an accessible, high-level summary to support busy professionals.

This playbook builds upon the World Wellbeing Movement’s science-based recommendations for how to measure both how employees are feeling at work, and why they are feeling that way – just like the Indeed Work Wellbeing Score, also created alongside experts from the Wellbeing Research Centre, does. Once you have collected the data, you can then use this Playbook to address the areas for improvement within your organisation.

Business leaders are recommended to keep diversity top of mind when leveraging the playbook to craft a holistic employee wellbeing strategy for their organisation. When choosing interventions, employers should consider factors such as their workplace environment, industry, geographical location, and the unique needs of their employees.

Although there is no magic formula, and all interventions have their limitations, many companies start to affect positive change when they combine multiple interventions (organisational-level interventions, group-level interventions and individual-level interventions) across multiple drivers of employee wellbeing.

Four Leadership Lessons From The World’s Happiest Countries

Forbes

Given that work takes up a major part of many adults’ lives prior to retirement, we can assume that management approaches in these nations contribute to their citizens’ happiness.

So, what can leaders learn from the world’s happiest countries?

Lithuania is the happiest place in the world for under-30s — Gen Zs say low rent, free university, and good nightlife are to thank

Business Insider

The World Happiness Report ranks countries based on a happiness measurement survey conducted by Gallup, where respondents evaluate the quality of their lives.

Lithuania was ranked 19th on the overall happiness list, but secured the top spot in the under-30 rankings.

Lithuania’s under-30s rated themselves 7.76 out of 10 on the happiness scale. In comparison, those in the same age group in the US rated themselves 6.392 out of 10, placing it 62nd globally.

Sustaining Workplace Health & Wellbeing Programmes

‘You can do anything here!’ Why Lithuania is the best place in the world to be young

The Guardian

“This is a great place,” she says, gesturing around the manicured square where we’re sitting, on the edge of the city’s new town. “It’s pretty awesome that you can get these kinds of opportunities here.”

So good are the opportunities and so high is the level of optimism that Lithuania topped this year’s World Happiness Report rankings for the under-30s. The country’s gen-Zers and millennials rated themselves 7.76 out of 10 on the happiness scale, miles ahead of the UK and the US, at 32nd and 62nd respectively. While the report sounded alarm bells about young people’s welfare in the west, Lithuania’s twentysomethings could set to work meme-ifying and TikTokking about the confirmation that they had it pretty good.

Workplace wellbeing interventions: what works, what doesn’t and why?

journalism.co.uk

This year, a research paper went pretty viral on TikTok. It was seen by nearly a quarter of a million people and it was based on the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Centre work into mental health interventions in the workplace.

The key finding of the research was not too surprising: there is no evidence that individual interventions, like wellbeing apps and relaxation classes, improves employee’s mental health. It is organisational change which makes the difference.

Why are America’s youth so deeply unhappy?

USA TODAY

With the world’s largest economy and its highest GDP, you might think the United States would have the world’s happiest citizens. But you’d be wrong. This year, when the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network released its annual World Happiness Report, the U.S. had dropped out of the top 20, landing at 23rd on the list. The reason? America’s youth are deeply unhappy. What societal and cultural factors are at play here? Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, director of Oxford University’s Wellbeing Research Centre and a professor of economics and behavioral science, joins The Excerpt to share his insights into what truly makes people happy.

The state of wellbeing in California

Prof Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, Director of the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, California State Assembly’s Select Committee on Happiness & Public Policy Outcomes in May.

He shared data on the state of wellbeing in California, including a county-by-county breakdown of the ‘happiest’ counties in the state, as well as answered policymakers’ questions on wellbeing outcomes and the practicalities of creating a wellbeing-first policy approach.

Watch the full hearing on the Centre’s YouTube channel, courtesy of the California State Assembly.

With grateful thanks to Assembly Speaker Emeritus Anthony Rendon for the invitation.