Tensions of Health: Narratives of Employee Wellness Program Participants. (September 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Tang, Lu; Baker, Jane S.; Meadows, Cui Zhang
• Is Part Of: Workplace health & safety. Volume 64:Number 9(2016:Sep.)
• Page Start: 426
• Page End: 432
• Publication Date: 2016-09
• Subjects: employee wellness program -- health narratives -- dialectical tensions -- interview -- grounded theory; Industrial nursing -- Periodicals; 610.734605
• DOI: 10.1177/2165079916643966
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2165-0799

Abstract

This article examines dialectical tensions in the health narratives of participants of the Employee Wellness Program (EWP) of a large public university in the southeastern United States. Semi-structured interviews ( n = 12) with team leaders in the program indicated that health is a multifaceted concept characterized by three pairs of dialectical tensions: autonomy versus connection, private versus public, and control versus lack of control. These findings suggest that to better promote health and wellness in the workplace, EWP staff should consider employees' unique experiences and beliefs about health when designing organization-wide programs and campaigns.