The University of Bologna has recently published extensive survey results on workaholism that have brought about a distressing discourse.
The study completely contradicts the general understanding that most people have concerning the zeal that is often exhibited by employees addicted to their jobs.
These new findings have shown the dark sides and global effects of workaholism, offering a serious stance as opposed to popular opinions over work addiction.
The Ill-Being of Workaholics Unveiled
This is because most studies suggest that workaholics have poor health, including such negative emotions as hostility, anxiety and guilt whenever they do not overwork themselves.
However, ground-breaking new evidence has emerged demonstrating consistently worse mood among individuals classified as workaholics compared to their counterparts even when they are doing what they love.
According to Professor Cristian Balducci, one of the leading members of this study, the presence of a negative mood among workaholics may be indicative of heightened daily stress levels.
He submitted that these elevated stress levels make individuals who suffer from workaholism more prone to burnout and cardiovascular problems.
The Pervasive Impact of Workaholism
Moreover, Professor Balducci also recognized that workaholism stretches its pervasive impact on the professional domains of its victims.
In his own words, he said that due to the fact that his job requires him to work tirelessly, his negative mood is likely to affect many subordinates as well as colleagues since most workaholics hold influential positions in organizations.
This is why this spreading of information is a huge problem for companies and it is important to discourage any behavior that is capable of inducing workaholic tendencies.
Unveiling the Research Insights
For this reason, a comprehensive battery of psychological assessments was given to a group of 139 full-time employees.
Later on, these participants were closely monitored for their feelings as they went about their daily duties through a mobile app designed specifically for that purpose.
The composite data surprisingly disclosed unexpected information about the emotional fluctuations experienced by these employees during working hours.
The findings contradicted the widely held belief that workaholics gain increasing pleasure from what they do.
Rather than supporting the notion that these people initially experience intoxication like other types of addiction, the study presented in this research identified a clear shift with time.
This change resulted in a transformation from an initial feeling of happiness to a sustained negative emotion throughout working activities.
Perpetual Negative Mood and Gender Vulnerability
Interestingly, workers consistently feel bad despite external conditions like weather and the position of holidays such as Christmas and Easter.
Dr. Luca Menghini noted that someone with a negative mood might struggle to be less involved in work as a workaholic.
As a result of this struggle, the potential for disconnection and recovery experiences could be diminished, leading to continued negativity.
Moreover, the research pointed out that women have a higher likelihood of turning into working addicts because of their gender roles ingrained in our community.
Urgent Need for Intervention
The researchers warned that workaholism is such an addiction that could in its most extreme form lead to serious health issues and even death.
Professor Balducci recommended that organizations need to send clear messages to their employees that they should not normalize overworking beyond the official working hours while emphasizing the need for interventions.
Rather than this, there is a need for creating an atmosphere in which dysfunctional work investment is discouraged through disconnection policies, specialized training and counseling interventions.
Published in the highly regarded Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, these findings have been seen as a call to action aimed at societal and organizational reforms aimed at addressing the rising menace of work addiction.
Indeed, it calls for an all-inclusive intervention that safeguards individual well-being as well as workplace concord by targeting against workaholism with specific interventions and supportive workplace cultures.
