Effects of Workplace Supervised Exercise on Psychological Capital: An Intervention Study

Area of Science:

• Organizational Psychology
• Public Administration
• Health and Wellness

Background:

• Public employees face increasing professional challenges.
• Psychological capital (PC) is a key resource for navigating workplace demands.
• Workplace supervised exercise (WSE) programs show potential for enhancing personal resources but are underutilized.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the long-term impact of a WSE program on the psychological capital of public administration employees.
• To explore potential gender-specific differences in the effects of WSE on PC.

Main Methods:

• A nine-month longitudinal, quasi-experimental study involving 55 public administration employees.
• Participants completed psychological capital questionnaires at three intervals.
• A workplace supervised exercise (WSE) program was implemented from October to June.

Main Results:

• Men showed statistically significant increases in self-efficacy and hope over the study period.
• Women exhibited an initial upward trend in PC, followed by a slight decline.
• Overall, the WSE program demonstrated a positive influence on personal resources, especially hope and self-efficacy.

Conclusions:

• Long-term WSE programs can be effective in enhancing psychological capital, particularly hope and self-efficacy, among public employees.
• Program effectiveness may vary based on gender, suggesting a need for tailored interventions.
• WSE represents a viable strategy for organizations to support employee well-being and resilience.