Toward A Better Workplace: Virtuous Emotions, Virtuous Actions, and Tensions In Social Relationships

Cultivating high-quality social relationships is key to building a better workplace and a better society. Yet, in today’s uncertain and face-paced environment, modern organizations and their leaders are facing unprecedented challenges in doing so. This symposium comprises five papers that examine virtuous emotions, virtuous actions, and/or tensions inherent in social relationships to shed light on challenges in building positive and healthy workplace. The papers employ diverse theoretical perspectives (e.g., social learning theory, risk regulation theory, social comparison theory, ambivalence theories), theoretical foci (e.g., trickle-down effects, leader-follower congruence, a third party’s countervailing reactions, the intra- or interpersonal influence of ambivalence), methods (e.g., scale development, multi-wave survey, experimentation, qualitative methods), and study populations (e.g., racial minorities, working mothers). Together, five papers in this symposium highlight some intriguing and complex issues related to virtuous emotions, virtuous actions, and tensions in social relationships and provide insights into the challenges and useful ways of relationship management. The Ripple Effect of Gratitude Presenter: Lauren Rachel Locklear; Texas Tech U. Presenter: Meghan Kane; U. of Central Florida Presenter: Mark G. Ehrhart; U. of Central Florida The Impact of Supervisor Gratitude Expressions on Subordinate Feelings of Appreciation and Voice Presenter: Dejun Kong; U. of Colorado Boulder Presenter: Sharon Sheridan; College of Business, Clemson U. Presenter: Liuba Belkin; Lehigh U. Presenter: Maureen L. Ambrose; U. of Central Florida Presenter: William J. Becker; Virginia Tech Majority Group Observers’ Reactions to Acts of Oppositional Courage for Social Equity Presenter: Christian Noble Thoroughgood; Georgia State U., J. Mack Robinson College of Business Presenter: Dejun Kong; U. of Colorado Boulder Presenter: Katina Sawyer; George Washington U. Presenter: Jennica R. Webster; Marquette U. Presenter: Paige Watson; Clemson U. An Ambivalent Story: Implications of Simultaneously Agreeing and Disagreeing with Stereotypes Presenter: Laura Rees; Oregon State U. Presenter: Allie Freshley; Queen’s U. The Relational Contexts that Harness the Benefits of Leader Emotional Ambivalence on Engagement Presenter: Jamie Strassman; U. of Texas at Austin Presenter: Kate Walsh; U. of Wisconsin-Madison Presenter: Jean-Nicolas Reyt; McGill U.