Age differences in emotional experiences associated with helping and learning at work.

Area of Science:

• Organizational Psychology
• Gerontology
• Workplace Well-being

Background:

• Socioemotional selectivity theory and goal theories of emotion inform understanding of age-related work behaviors.
• Age differences in workplace helping and learning activities and their emotional correlates are not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine age differences in helping and learning activities at work.
• To investigate the emotional benefits derived from these activities for different age groups.
• To explore how to optimize work activities for employee emotional well-being.

Main Methods:

• A modified day reconstruction method was used to monitor employee activities and emotional experiences over 5 days.
• The study included 365 employees aged 18-78 years.
• Data collected included frequency of helping, learning, and emotional experiences.

Main Results:

• Older workers engaged in helping more frequently than younger workers and reported greater positive emotions from helping.
• Contrary to hypotheses, younger and older workers engaged in learning activities with similar frequency.
• Learning was associated with more positive emotions for younger workers, aligning with hypotheses.

Conclusions:

• Findings suggest older workers benefit emotionally from helping, while younger workers benefit from learning.
• Workplace strategies should consider age-specific benefits of helping and learning to enhance emotional well-being.
• Optimizing work activities can promote emotional health across different age groups in the workforce.