Well being at work :
Employee Experiences, managerial practices and specific contexts
Guest editors :
Nathalie Bernard -
Iaelyon School of Management – Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3 – Laboratoire Magellan
Virginie MOISSON - IAE Réunion – Université de la Réunion – Laboratoire CEMOI
Abstract
The study of well-being at work truly emerged at the turn of the 2000s when positive psychology encouraged the scientific community to study optimal human functioning (Seligman 1999) and when well-being at work measurement scales appeared (Abord de Chatillon and Richard 2015; Bietry and Creusier 2013; Dagenais-Desmarais 2010). Today, well-being at work has become a significant managerial and societal issue. As employee expectations have shifted towards finding more meaning in work (Commeiras et al. 2022), greater work-life balance, and more human-oriented management, companies are being pushed to reinvent themselves to remain attractive and to enhance their employer brand, without this becoming an implicit injunction to well-being at work (Genoud 2023; Le Garrec 2021).
Overview of the Call for Contributions
Article proposals can take various forms: systematic, meta-analytic, or bibliometric literature reviews synthesising the available scientific knowledge on the subject, conceptual analyses proposing new theoretical frameworks, and, of course, empirical analyses conducted through experiments, questionnaires, or qualitative case studies, for example. The different facets of well-being can be studied on their own or in relation to their antecedents and/or consequences. The theoretical approaches underpinning these contributions will draw from management sciences, particularly organisational behaviour, or where applicable, from disciplines such as psychology (including social psychology), ethnology, sociology, anthropology, philosophy, political science, economics, information technology, etc.
Expected Contributions
Without being exhaustive, submissions may focus on one or more of the following themes:
1. Employee Experiences
While well-being at work has objective dimensions, it is also a subjective, individual construct. It is about feelings that may not be governed by the same antecedents for all employees. What suits one person may not necessarily satisfy another. For example, the autonomy granted in certain job roles may be perceived as a source of fulfilment or, conversely, as a lack of organisation and management. An employee's personal history, career path, current situation, personality, and expectations, as well as the quality of relationships within the work team, influence these interpretations. So, what role do these dimensions play in the employee experience? Additionally, some authors suggest a link between emotional intelligence and perceived well-being (Bar-On 2005) and consider emotions in the employee experience (Rychalski et al. 2023). How can we address the question of employee experience based on personal and collective feelings? Is there an implicit injunction to well-being at work?
2. Managerial Practices and Their Impact on Well-being at Work:
Starting from the principle that managerial practices, and particularly working conditions, are partly responsible for situations of well-being at work (Bernard et al. 2021), the question arises of innovative managerial practices that promote well-being at work. With the advent of the four-day work week, the rise of remote working, the emergence of transformative artificial intelligence in various professions, the development of liberated companies, and intrapreneurship within organisations, how do such innovations impact the feelings of work teams and individual perceptions? What is the role of line managers, Human Resources departments, occupational health services, or even Chief Happiness Officers in these matters? Under what conditions can personal well-being at work converge with the collective well-being of the team? How can managerial practices that promote well-being be personalised without undermining the sense of organisational justice? What are the underlying explanatory mechanisms of the allocentrism of well-being at work? Just as emotions exist, are there phenomena of "contagion" and/or "trickle-down" in terms of well-being at work? Accordingly, submissions presenting innovative managerial practices will be particularly appreciated.
3. Contexts of Well-being at Work
Just as it has been shown that there is a link between the loss of meaning and ill-being at work in a hospital context (Moisson and Gardody 2021), could study contexts be determinants of well-being at work? In other words, are there points of convergence/divergence depending on the sector of activity: private sector (industries, retail...), public sector (hospitals, universities, local authorities...), non-profit sector (SCOOP, ESS...)? We will pay particular attention to empirical research submissions that highlight the importance of the work context in the broad sense (international and national contexts, territories, sectors of activity, workspaces such as coworking spaces, flex offices, for example). To shed light on these questions, all classic methods used in management sciences (semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, intervention research) are welcome, as well as more innovative methods (narrative approaches, ethnography, critical incidents, experiments) to address the complexity of contexts.
When submitting, authors must choose the special issue "Special Issue : Wellbeing at work" from the drop-down menu in the field " If the manuscript is destinated to a Special Issue, please make a choice" found in the "DETAILS" page of the submission. Proposals should follow the editorial standards of the journal: ripco-online.com/en/avantSoumission.asp
Review process
All articles submitted to the journal are reviewed on a double-blind basis and all resubmitted manuscripts go through the same review process, and the previously solicited reviewers give an assessment based on consideration of the changes suggested in the first round of review. The final editorial decision will be made on the basis of the proposed revised manuscript, in the form of either an acceptance for publication or a final rejection, possibly with an invitation to resubmit for a regular issue of the journal.
Tentative Schedule
November 30, 2024: Submission deadline
January 30, 2025: Notification to authors
May 3, 2025: Submission of revised manuscripts
June 28, 2025: Final decision
July 26, 2025: Submission of final version
References
Abord de Chatillon, E., & Richard, D. (2015). Du sens, du lien, de l'activité et de confort (SLAC) Proposition pour une modélisation des conditions du bien-être au travail par le SLAC. Revue française de gestion, (4), 53-71.
Bar-On, R. (2005). The impact of emotional intelligence on subjective well-being. Perspectives in education, 23(1), 41-62.
Bernard, N., Loup, P., Abord de Chatillon, E., & Commeiras, N. (2021). How do Working Conditions help us to understand the Paradox between Well-being at Work and Performance?. Revue de gestion des ressources humaines, (3), 62-78.
Biétry, F., & Creusier, J. (2013). Proposition d'une échelle de mesure positive du bien-être au travail (EPBET). Revue de gestion des ressources humaines, (1), 23-41.
Commeiras, N., Fabre, C., Loose, F., Loubes, A., & Rascol-Boutard, S. (2022). Le sens au travail: Enjeux de gestion et de société. Éditions EMS.
Dagenais Desmarais, V. (2010). Du bien-être psychologique au travail: Fondements théoriques, conceptualisation et instrumentation du construit.
Genoud, C. (2023). Leadership, agilité, bonheur au travail. Bullshit! En finir avec les idées à la mode et revaloriser (enfin) l'art du management. Paris: Vuibert.
Le Garrec, S. (2021). Les servitudes du bien-être au travail. Toulouse: Editions érès.
Moisson, V., & Gardody, J. (2021). Le rôle du cadre de santé dans la perte et la (re) construction de sens au travail à l'hôpital. Une étude exploratoire par entretiens semi-directifs auprès du personnel soignant. RIMHE: Revue Interdisciplinaire Management, Homme Entreprise, 4210(1), 49-68.
Seligman, M. E. (1999). The president's address. American psychologist, 54(8), 559-562.
Special Issue: Vol.XXXI, Num. CFP_SI_NORMS ( 2026)
Norms and organisationnal behaviour
Guest editors: Pierre-Antoine Sprimont et Arnaud Eve
Deadline : 31/12/2026
In a context where confusion between standards and legal regulations is common, it is essential to clarify that standards are voluntarily adopted management tools, co-constructed through consensus, designed to simplify organisational processes. Unlike laws, which are mandatory, standards offer flexibility in implementation. Some are obligatory, such as ISO 17021 for certifications, while others, like ISO 26000, provide non-certifiable guidelines. Recent research shows that the adoption of standards is influenced by cultural and organisational factors, with tensions sometimes arising, as seen in France's critical reception of ISO 45001. The proliferation of standards, referred to as "Tétranormalisation," also creates challenges by generating conflicts between different norms. This special i ...
Special Issue: Vol.XXXI, Num. CFP_SI_WELLBEING ( 2025)
Well-being / Ill-being at Work
Guest editors: Nathalie Bernard et Virginie MOISSON
Deadline : 31/12/2026
The study of well-being at work truly emerged at the turn of the 2000s when positive psychology encouraged the scientific community to study optimal human functioning (Seligman 1999) and when well-being at work measurement scales appeared (Abord de Chatillon and Richard 2015; Bietry and Creusier 2013; Dagenais-Desmarais 2010). Today, well-being at work has become a significant managerial and societal issue. As employee expectations have shifted towards finding more meaning in work (Commeiras et al. 2022), greater work-life balance, and more human-oriented management, companies are being pushed to reinvent themselves to remain attractive and to enhance their employer brand, without this becoming an implicit injunction to well-being at work (Genoud 2023; Le Garrec 2021). ...
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