David J Paul Project Management Professional, Management Professor, Author and Small Business Manager
Do you remember the researchers who used caring computers to interact with their clients? Those researchers observed that “the perception of feeling cared for is a subjective feeling, not an objective behavioral trait, and it is situation specific and felt with respect to another person or agent, rather than a generalized disposition” (Bickmore & Picard, 2004). This means that as a manager, you can impact people’s perception of being cared for at work by creating an atmosphere of high mutual regard at work. The result is that people will enjoy doing what you have asked them to do.
Bickmore and Picard go on to conclude that feeling cared for is closely associated with the concept of perceived social or organizational support. Note carefully that this includes “the subjective feeling of belonging, of being accepted or being loved.” These feelings are also associated with trust. For the Gen-Y’ers in my ten year study, Trust was the single most often mentioned trait associated with being cared for at work. Trust includes “people’s abstract positive expectations that they can count on partners (or team members) to care for them and be responsive to their needs, now and in the future.” I remember being offered an opportunity to be on “the winning team” at work. Even though my position on the team would not be ‘the person in charge’, I jumped at the chance to be on the team because I expected they would ‘have my back’.
The data are clear that this element of caring seems to be present across a number of international settings as well.
Although it is less of a need than something like professional identity (What do you do at work? “I’m a lawyer, engineer, etc), the importance of inter-personal relations in the work place cannot be underestimated, no matter what country or culture you represent. Being accepted and cared for at work maintains linkage of a person to a workplace, to a function and to that team, or group of people. Researchers find that an individual’s interest in going to the workplace every day of the week seems to be stronger in a team environment when people feel cared for.
It turns out that the content of the group focus (knitting, book club, bible study, work issues, etc) can be less important than the need to be part of a small network of people that meets every day or at least regularly (Meda & Delay, 2008). Researchers report a rise of the expectations toward work as a means of personal fulfillment and as a means of relationship. As a manager, this is a hugely significant finding and one that should help you make sure that there is high mutual regard at work. It could spill over into after work or weekend get togethers as well.
Recalling our overall theory that, “People do work that matters (to them) for people who care (for them)”, when people have a higher level of education, having an interesting job is likely more important to them. Make sure your jobs are interesting, challenging, and that your appreciation is not just mechanical or output focused. Thank people for their insights, thoughtfulness, and strategic thinking.
Meda and Delay (2008) also studied many dimensions of work across six nations in Europe. The data from all the national reports converge by indicating a clear preference for being cared for at work. As levels of education rise in Europe in the 21st century, this preference for being cared for at work is more frequently reported. Having an interesting job coincides with the elements of intrinsic motivation and of a charismatic leadership that values individuality. Having a group of people who care for you is an extrinsic motivator. When intrinsic and extrinsic motivations both work in the same direction and combine positively, the productivity and engagement results are especially great.
This is especially true, according to Meda and Delay (2008), in France where their findings indicate that France is the country where people most frequently report that having an interesting job is important to them. However, analysis of their narrative interviews shows an equivalent result in five other countries. To Meda and Delay, the post-materialistic or expressive dimension of work means two different kinds of expectations: 1) that workers are able to find fulfillment and personal expression (work as an opportunity for self-expression and self-development); and 2) there exists a high quality of relationships at work such that the person is encouraged to express himself in the work. Expressed another way, Meda and Delay also found that “People do work that matters for people who care.
You might ask yourself whether people truly report they feel cared for by others at work, or whether they report feeling motivated to come to work every day when they are in the presence of a caring cadre of fellow workers with similar work goals? When I first started this research in 2004, Google reported not a single article under the heading of “Caring at work” that was not related to health care for elders. In March 2020, there are over 60,000 citations. It looks like Caring at work is catching on with others–how about with you?
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