Developing a comprehensive metric for worker well-being

The definition of worker well-being in the modern workplace has expanded beyond wages and material wealth to include elements of psychological wealth, such as job motivation and interpersonal relationships.

A study published in Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine presents the Abundance Index for Workers (AIW), a tool that comprehensively measures these aspects of workers’ well-being. The researchers designed a test battery combining various psychological tests and tests from other fields and validated its effectiveness.

Data from the Tsukuba Salutogenic Occupational Cohort Study (T-SOCS)—conducted among workers at research institutes, municipalities, and companies in the Tsukuba Science City Network, with the goal of evaluating workers’ daily lives, work situations, and mental health status—were used to develop the test battery.

The AIW, which was derived from this test battery, was compared with the measures of presenteeism (working with health problems) and depression among workers in the survey, and the results demonstrated the validity of the AIW.

This study found that the AIW effectively assesses worker well-being; it is hoped that the AIW will provide a more accurate and comprehensive understanding of worker well-being, leading to improved work practices and environments.