‘Tis the Season: The Science of Saying Thanks
Needless to say, these last few years have been hard for many employees. The global challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic have forced workers to adapt to new conditions, and take on extra responsibilities during the crisis. The holidays are usually a time for employers to show their appreciation for their employees’ efforts—but this year, the usual options aren’t on the table. Christmas parties will be virtual, and year-end vacations will be more isolated as fewer families are able to travel to see loved ones.
Yet workers are in need of thanks—now more than ever. Recent research shows that 83% of organizations suffer from a recognition deficiency, with 87% of recognition programs based on tenure, not performance.1
In light of this year’s hardships, there are significant benefits to expressing gratitude, and behavioral science may inform how we do so in this uniquely challenging time.
References
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- Greater Good Magazine. (2020). Gratitude Definition | What Is Gratitude. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/topic/gratitude/definition
- access2interpreters. (2019, February 22). History of Thank You | Interpretation Company | Access 2 Interpreters. https://www.access2interpreters.com/the-history-of-thank-you-around-the-world/
- Dishman, L. (2019, October 8). The history and power of the simple thank-you note. https://www.fastcompany.com/90412019/the-history-and-power-of-the-simple-thank-you-note
- Waters, L. (2012). Predicting Job Satisfaction: Contributions of Individual Gratitude and Institutionalized Gratitude. Psychology, 3, 1174-1176. doi: 10.4236/psych.2012.312A173.
- Percival, N. M., & Pulford, B. D. (2020). Do say “thank you”: Verbal expressions of politeness and gratitude influence interpersonal perceptions. The Journal of General Psychology, 147(3), 228–243. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221309.2019.1690970
- Coates, D., & Howe, D. (2015). Combatting staff burnout in mental health: Key managerial and leadership tasks that are fundamental to staff wellbeing and retention. Asia Pacific Journal of Health Management, 10(2), 24.
- Percival, N. M., & Pulford, B. D. (2020). Do say “thank you”: Verbal expressions of politeness and gratitude influence interpersonal perceptions. The Journal of General Psychology, 147(3), 228–243. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221309.2019.1690970
- Vozza, S. (2016, November 24). The Science Of Gratitude And Why It’s Important In Your Workplace. https://www.fastcompany.com/3065948/the-science-of-gratitude-and-why-its-important-in-your-workplace
- Pillay, N., Park, G., Kim, Y. K., & Lee, S. (2020). Thanks for your ideas: Gratitude and team creativity. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 156, 69–81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2019.11.005
- Riskin, A., Bamberger, P., Erez, A., Riskin-Guez, K., Riskin, Y., Sela, R., Foulk, T., Cooper, B., Ziv, A., Pessach-Gelblum, L., & Bamberger, E. (2019). Expressions of Gratitude and Medical Team Performance. Pediatrics, 143(4). https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2018-2043
- Suttie, J. (2019, December 20). The Ripple Effects of a Thank You. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/the_ripple_effects_of_a_thank_you
- Suchak, M. (2017, February 1). The Evolution of Gratitude. Greater Good. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/the_evolution_of_gratitude
- Lechner, T. (2019, November 26). The Neuroscience Behind Gratitude: How Does Cultivating Appreciation Affect Your Brain? Chopra. https://chopra.com/articles/the-neuroscience-behind-gratitude-how-does-cultivating-appreciation-affect-your-brain
- Zahn, R., Moll, J., Paiva, M., Garrido, G., Krueger, F., Huey, E. D., & Grafman, J. (2009). The Neural Basis of Human Social Values: Evidence from Functional MRI. Cerebral Cortex (New York, NY), 19(2), 276–283. https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhn080
- Park, Y., Visserman, M. L., Sisson, N. M., Le, B. M., Stellar, J. E., & Impett, E. A. (2020). How can I thank you? Highlighting the benefactor’s responsiveness or costs when expressing gratitude. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 0265407520966049. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407520966049
- Ludden, D. (2020, December 7). How to Say “Thank You” for Maximum Effect. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/talking-apes/202012/how-say-thank-you-maximum-effect
- Ducharme, J. (2018, August 31). Why You Should Write More Thank You Notes | Time. https://time.com/5383208/thank-you-notes-gratitude/
- Benevity Labs. (2020). Benevity Goodness Engagement Study.
- The Economist. (2020, December 7). How to party like it’s 2020. https://applied.economist.com/articles/how-to-party-like-its-2020
- Salzgeber, N. (2016, December 7). Thanks! By Robert Emmons (Book Summary). NJlifehacks. https://www.njlifehacks.com/thanks-robert-emmons-book-summary/
About the Author
Kaylee Somerville
Kaylee is a research and teaching assistant at the University of Calgary in the areas of finance, entrepreneurship, and workplace harassment. Holding international experience in events, marketing, and consulting, Kaylee hopes to use behavioral research to help individuals at work. She is particularly interested in the topics of gender, leadership, and productivity. Kaylee completed her Bachelor of Commerce degree from the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary.
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