Individual well-being and performance at work: A conceptual and theoretical overview

Abstract

This chapter addresses the conceptualization of individual well-being and performance in the work context, and discusses theoretical perspectives linking these concepts. It also discusses theoretical and empirical notions on the structure of well-being, after which the conceptualization of performance and the relations between individual well-being and performance. The chapter shows that many different conceptualizations of well-being exist, ranging from simple "affect only" approaches to complicate and sometimes idiosyncratic multidimensional frameworks that incorporate different aspects of human experience. The individual-level conceptualizations of well-being can conveniently be classified on two dimensions, namely whether they focus exclusively on affective well-being or employ a multidimensional approach, and whether they are context-free. The chapter focuses on individual-level perspectives on worker well-being and work performance. It also addresses higher-level perspectives, and the combination of individual-level and higher-level perspectives could yield additional perspectives on the role of well-being as an antecedent of performance.