Compassion momentum model in supervisory relationships

Uncovering paradoxes of compassion at work: a dyadic study of compassionate leader behavior

In today's business world, organizations tend to overlook that employees face suffering caused by work and non-work-related events that can negatively impact business organizations in the long run. One way to address this challenge is through leadership acknowledging and alleviating employees' suffering to ensure a company's success. However, research on compassion and leadership in business settings is still relatively scarce. In this study, we aim to extend the organizational compassion literature by addressing our research question: "What are paradoxes induced by compassionate leader behavior in the workplace in the context of social hierarchy?". We conducted a qualitative exploratory study based on 12 semi-structured interviews with six dyads of leaders and their direct subordinates from small, medium, and large firms representing different industries. The findings of our study indicate that compassionate leader behavior goes hand-in-hand with paradoxical situations that both leader and member face in the workplace, supporting the proposition that compassion as a social, interpersonal process is complex and multi-faceted. Our analysis identified 6 compassion paradoxes that spring from compassion from a leader towards a member. Our study differentiates from other research of compassion paradoxes in the sense that it also focuses on the interplay between leader and member. From that perspective, the findings of our study indicate that social hierarchy is playing a crucial role and exacerbating some paradoxical tensions. This consideration implies that to be effective, compassionate leaders need to have or develop the ability to continuously transcend those compassion paradoxes, as well as support their members in transcending the paradoxes they find themselves dealing with. Thus, the findings of our study contribute to management literature in the field of Positive Organizational Scholarship (POS) by highlighting compassion as a critical element of dyadic leader-subordinate relationships that could be reinforced by systematically building more competence in leaders and members to navigate the tensions emerging from the identified compassion paradoxes. Additionally, we provide limitations and recommendations for further research, along with several theoretical and practical implications of the results, which are particularly relevant for practitioners such as managing directors, leaders, employees, human resource managers, academics, and business and HR consultants.

A relational identity approach to study the antecedents of family supportive supervision

This research focuses on the antecedents of family supportive supervisor behaviors (FSSB) - the support from supervisors that can help employees manage their competing demands across work and nonwork domains. Drawing on theories of relational identity and self-construal, I conceptualize subordinates' likeability (interpersonal abilities) and competence (task abilities) as antecedents of family supportive supervisor behaviors, and examine whether supervisors' relational identification with subordinates mediates this relationship. In addition, I also examine the extent to which this mediation depends on the level of relational self-construal of supervisors. Data from 205 subordinates and 84 supervisors from a Chilean private bank and results support the hypothesized mediated moderation model. While supervisors' relational identification with subordinates fully mediates the relationship between competence and family supportive supervisor behaviors, supervisors' relational identification with subordinates partially mediates the relationship between subordinates' likeability and family supportive supervisor behaviors. Further, supervisors' relational identification with subordinates mediates the relationship between likeability and family supportive supervisor behaviors when supervisors' relational self-construal is high to medium but not when it is low. Overall, this research offers a novel lens for better understanding subordinates as more than mere recipients of supervisory behaviors.

Compassionate Practices for Nurse Managers in Colombia

Objective: To recognize compassionate practices and the obstacles to their use by nurse managers in Colombia. Method: This is a mixed cross-sectional, descriptive, exploratory, international study with an online survey administered in 17 countries. Data were extracted from Colombia with a sample of 69 nurse managers. Quantitative data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, and qualitative data were processed using the Nvivo software and thematic analysis. Results: 90 % women, mainly from a hospital setting (40 %). Compassionate practices in administrative nursing involve four categories: Listening; supporting and recognizing staff individuality; defining compassion practices, needs, and benefits; receiving compassion and complementary views of compassion and administration where the influence of cultural and organizational patterns become obstacles to compassion. Conclusion: For nursing, compassion demonstrates the intentional ability to recognize the singularity of someone else’s suffering, understand their needs, offer support, and find solutions based on an understanding of what being human means. These aspects require significant changes at the organizational and health legislation levels to mitigate the obstacles to compassion.