Is it possible to change working practices so that workers are happier, more productive and absent less often? How can growing numbers of older workers best adapt to working later in life and find new jobs in changing labour markets? What lifelong learning opportunities do adults require in order to thrive in globalised and technologically advanced economy? What are the societal costs of ignoring worker wellbeing? This research is concerned with addressing questions such as these and identifying practical interventions, tools and processes that can protect and enhance the wellbeing of workers, adult learners and those seeking work. Wellbeing comprises many components. In relation to work- and adult learning, wellbeing is formed from multiple factors including: the experience of positive emotions in work and in learning and infrequent experience of negative emotions; job satisfaction; work-life balance; work and learning performance; skills development. Understanding such a diverse concept requires expertise from a range of research areas, including economics, education, law, public health, employment relations and psychology. This project will build upon the wealth of existing research and data to identify what can be done to protect and enhance the wellbeing of workers, adult learners and those seeking work. In the first phase of the research, we will identify nine priority areas for action. To help us identify and refine priorities, we will engage with different user groups through public consultations. We will then address two main issues. 1. We will examine 'what works' for protecting or enhancing aspects of wellbeing. In each priority area, we will begin by identifying, systematically reviewing and evaluating the best possible research in order to identify factors that can protect or improve wellbeing. 2. Then we will examine 'what works for whom and in which circumstances'. We will do this by analysing the best existing data - for example the most comprehensive nationally and inter-nationally representative surveys. We will take the results from our reviews of existing research and examine if some factors promote wellbeing more for some groups (eg. younger workers, workers in service jobs) than for others. We will examine trade-offs and spillovers between different components of wellbeing within or between different groups. For example, do people take on new work that is difficult and stressful in the short-term so that they may acquire skills and have a more interesting job in the longer term? Do organisations that promote work-life balance also promote intergenerational benefits through the educational attainments of workers' children, as workers spend more time helping their children learn through culturally or physically rich activities? By examining what works for whom and in which circumstances, trade-offs and spillovers, we will produce a rigorous assessments of the costs and benefits of specific interventions for a range of groups. The team will be mindful of two major principles. First, 'what works' needs to be actionable by workers, adult learners, those seeking work and those close to them (eg. line managers, educators, careers advisors, job centre staff) - so the research will focus on what can be done 'on the ground'. Second, because wellbeing is comprised of many things, we will seek interventions that offer improvements across a broad range of the elements of wellbeing and a broad range of people. By doing so the results which speak more effectively to policy actors who have to account for the inter-dependencies of specific interventions in the context of heterogeneous users. Throughout the research, the team will engage with the public through extensive use of social and traditional media, public lectures, workshops and talks. This engagement will inform the guidance we offer so that it is heedful of the complexities, obstacles and trade-offs that stakeholders encounter when initiating action.Is it possible to change working practices so that workers are happier, more productive and absent less often? How can growing numbers of older workers best adapt to working later in life and find new jobs in changing labour markets? What lifelong learning opportunities do adults require in order to thrive in globalised and technologically advanced economy? What are the societal costs of ignoring worker wellbeing? This research is concerned with addressing questions such as these and identifying practical interventions, tools and processes that can protect and enhance the wellbeing of workers, adult learners and those seeking work. Wellbeing comprises many components. In relation to work- and adult learning, wellbeing is formed from multiple factors including: the experience of positive emotions in work and in learning and infrequent experience of negative emotions; job satisfaction; work-life balance; work and learning performance; skills development. Understanding such a diverse concept requires expertise from a range of research areas, including economics, education, law, public health, employment relations and psychology. This project will build upon the wealth of existing research and data to identify what can be done to protect and enhance the wellbeing of workers, adult learners and those seeking work. In the first phase of the research, we will identify nine priority areas for action. To help us identify and refine priorities, we will engage with different user groups through public consultations. We will then address two main issues. 1. We will examine 'what works' for protecting or enhancing aspects of wellbeing. In each priority area, we will begin by identifying, systematically reviewing and evaluating the best possible research in order to identify factors that can protect or improve wellbeing. 2. Then we will examine 'what works for whom and in which circumstances'. We will do this by analysing the best existing data - for example the most comprehensive nationally and inter-nationally representative surveys. We will take the results from our reviews of existing research and examine if some factors promote wellbeing more for some groups (eg. younger workers, workers in service jobs) than for others. We will examine trade-offs and spillovers between different components of wellbeing within or between different groups. For example, do people take on new work that is difficult and stressful in the short-term so that they may acquire skills and have a more interesting job in the longer term? Do organisations that promote work-life balance also promote intergenerational benefits through the educational attainments of workers' children, as workers spend more time helping their children learn through culturally or physically rich activities? By examining what works for whom and in which circumstances, trade-offs and spillovers, we will produce a rigorous assessments of the costs and benefits of specific interventions for a range of groups. The team will be mindful of two major principles. First, 'what works' needs to be actionable by workers, adult learners, those seeking work and those close to them (eg. line managers, educators, careers advisors, job centre staff) - so the research will focus on what can be done 'on the ground'. Second, because wellbeing is comprised of many things, we will seek interventions that offer improvements across a broad range of the elements of wellbeing and a broad range of people. By doing so the results which speak more effectively to policy actors who have to account for the inter-dependencies of specific interventions in the context of heterogeneous users. Throughout the research, the team will engage with the public through extensive use of social and traditional media, public lectures, workshops and talks. This engagement will inform the guidance we offer so that it is heedful of the complexities, obstacles and trade-offs that stakeholders encounter when initiating action. Planned Impact We have a highly interactive and user-led approach to our work (as detailed in the case for support and pathways to impact). Our focus primarily is on user-benefit and user-uptake of knowledge. Nevertheless, the knowledge we produced will be a synthesis of theoretically and methodologically rigorous and systematic interrogation of the best possible research and existing data. Beneficiaries fall into four major groups: 1) End users such as workers, adult learners, those about to enter the workforce such as students and job seekers. 2) Those that are close to end users, including GPs, trade union representatives, line managers, educators, job centre staff, careers and vocational advisors. For the end users and those close to them, benefits will come from improved understanding of wellbeing and its importance in 'living a good, productive and intellectually rich life'; how to make local adjustments in work and learning environments to protect and promote wellbeing; and, through tools and calculators to aid decision making, how different courses of action (eg. job choice) may affect different aspects of wellbeing. 3) Intermediate users, such as Local Enterprise Partnership board members, employer groups (Chamber of Commerce, Small Business Associations), further education college principals and other adult learning providers, County/City councils, public service commissioners, senior managers in private, public and voluntary organisations. For intermediate users, benefits will come through improved understanding of: wellbeing and interventions to improve wellbeing; wellbeing's contribution to organisational performance and social equality; trade-offs between performance and wellbeing; and tools and calculators for evaluating the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of wellbeing interventions. 4) High-level users, such as policy makers (politicians), implementers (civil servants, charities), influencers (professional and trades institutions and bodies such as the Institute of Directors) in the UK and elsewhere (eg. European Trade Union Confederation, EU Occupational Safety and Health Agency), and other What Works Centres (especially National Institute of Clinical Excellence {NICE}, Educational Endowment Foundation and What Works Centre for Local Economic Growth). The benefits for high-level users are similar to those for intermediate users. Improvements in understanding will be more sophisticated than other user groups, and will encompass an understanding of the evidence-base, the limitations of the evidence-base, and gaps in the evidence. There will be enhanced understanding of interventions to improve wellbeing that can be enacted, supported or encouraged through policy and how 'wellbeing' policy may contribute to, for example, national, regional and sectoral economic performance, tax revenues, and health service spend. High level users will be able to contact the team to solicit answers to specific policy questions, with answers provided through rapid evidence reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analyses and secondary analysis as appropriate. We will stress to all beneficiaries that interventions to improve wellbeing must be based on the best available evidence for cause and effect (which will necessarily involve developing and disseminating a simple and intuitive explanation and demonstrator for beneficiaries 1 and 2), that sometimes there may be trade-offs to be made between different aspects of wellbeing, that contextual factors need to be considered when choosing and implementing interventions, and users need to consider potential knock-on effects of unintended reductions in wellbeing outside of interventions' targets. We have requested a total of £44,990 for our impact activities. These include: 6 conferences in cities across the UK; 3 conferences in Norwich; 90 public lectures across the UK; meetings with senior civil servants; a web-portal; briefing reports, three high quality summary reports.
- HHP2 - Increasing Diversity All data was collected on the Qualtrics survey platform in one session in June and July 2021. 2. HHP2 - Symbolic Awards Survey data is collected from participants (data subjects) who fill in the surveys at two points in time. Administrative data collected from the organisational partner at two time points in time. 3. HHP2 - Ministry of Defence Staff Inspiring the Next Generation (MODING) Survey data is collected from participants (data subjects) who fill in the surveys at two points in time. Administrative data collected from the organisational partner at two points in time. 4. HHP2 - Social Workers Inspiring the Next Generation (SWING) Survey data is collected from participants (data subjects) who fill in the surveys at two points in time. Administrative data collected from the organisational partner at three points in time.
