This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Job loss and career uncertainty can take a toll that extends well beyond the workplace. New research suggests that a psychological intervention based on the principles of acceptance and commitment therapy, or ACT, may help individuals navigate work-related challenges while improving well-being and reducing psychological distress.
The findings of the randomized controlled trial were published in the Journal of Counseling Psychology. "We expected the intervention to help people become more psychologically flexible—that is, better able to stay open to difficult thoughts and feelings while still acting on what matters to them—and less likely to get stuck avoiding or struggling against those experiences," said senior author Simon Grégoire, Ph.D., of the Université du Québec à Montréal in Canada. To evaluate the effectiveness of the ACT-based group intervention for individuals facing work- or career-related challenges, the study included 164 French-speaking adults in Quebec, Canada, the majority of whom held undergraduate and graduate degrees.
Their average age was 42, and approximately 81% were women. Some were going through career transitions or experiencing self-reported burnout symptoms or dissatisfaction at work, while others were struggling with career decisions or finding employment. Whereas a large body of prior research suggests that ACT might be helpful in workplace settings—especially for workers with full-time high-stress jobs—no previous study examined whether it could offer special benefits for those with less stable work arrangements.
Just over half of the study participants held permanent jobs; the rest were temporarily employed, self-employed, unemployed or on sick leave. "Workers in precarious employment are rarely studied, even though their numbers are rising across developed countries and their working conditions arguably put them at greater risk of distress," said Grégoire. "A significant portion of our participants held temporary jobs and almost half earned less than 70,000 Canadian dollars a year.
Our aim was not only to assist individuals in navigating career challenges such as burnout, but also to promote their well-being and flourishing." The intervention consisted of seven weekly 2.5-hour online group sessions. Participants were randomly assigned either to the intervention or to a waitlist group that received no intervention during the initial seven-week comparison period. Those on the waitlist were later offered the intervention.
Over the course of the study, participants explored difficult thoughts and emotions related to their work situations, identified what was important to them personally and professionally, and developed plans for pursuing goals consistent with those values. Sessions included group discussions, mindfulness and other exercises, educational strategies and activities to complete at home. Compared with participants on the waitlist, those who participated in the intervention reported greater psychological flexibility, well-being and meaning in their professional lives and less psychological distress and psychological inflexibility.
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