Wednesday 21 October 2015

How immersed are you in your thoughts?

This cartoon has been on my mind for weeks. Do you ever consider how we are constantly swimming in our thoughts? Much of the time we don't actually notice. 

I found this metaphor through the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy community and it really stuck with me and seemed ideal for a cartoon strip. Let me know what you think.

Cheers

Ross



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Thursday 8 October 2015

Teachers' Well-being: Research at City University, London

I'm the Senior Research Associate for this project at City University, Psychology Department. The project is sponsored by the British Academy. Please do get in touch if you're a teacher and interested in taking part and/or forward this link to any teachers you may know. The project will run over the October, February and May half terms. For February and May we're keen to build an international sample.


ASSESSING TEACHERS’ WELL-BEING BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER THE HALF-TERM BREAK

An opportunity to be involved in research examining teachers’ week-to-week work pressures and experiences

Researchers at City University London are recruiting teachers to participate in a new research project. The project has been designed to assess teachers’ work demands and well-being on a weekly basis including working weeks and the half-term holiday.

The primary aims of the project are as follows:

1. To explore UK teachers’ experiences during the weeks before, during, and after half-term breaks

2. To understand the personal characteristics, aspects of work, and leisure time experiences that help teachers recover from the pressures of work

3. Provide teachers (and schools) with information on the importance of respite periods for maintaining well-being and performance

The project is being led by Dr. Paul Flaxman and Ross McIntosh, members of the organisational psychology research team at City University London. The project has been funded by a grant from the British Academy.

What’s involved?

If you participate in this project, you will be invited to complete an initial on-line questionnaire, followed by a brief on-line survey once per week for seven consecutive weeks. The surveys assess your experiences of work along with various aspects of your well-being. The brief weekly surveys take no more than 10 minutes of your time to complete on each occasion. Your responses to these surveys will be seen by the City University research team only and will remain strictly confidential.

What do I get in return for my participation?

In return for your participation, you will be provided with an overall summary of the results, along with some of the latest recommendations for enhancing personal well-being and leisure time experiences.

To register your interest in this project, or to request further information please email me at the University by clicking here.

Many thanks, Ross

Dr Paul Flaxman, Department of Psychology, City University, London

Ross McIntosh, Department of Psychology, City University, London


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Thursday 1 October 2015

What next?

My MSc course has finished & I've handed in my dissertation - hurrah. This post sets out what's happening next. 





I'm now working at City University as a Research Manager for two funded projects:
  • The first is in association with City and Hackney Mind and is an evaluation of resilience training for bankers, NHS workers and others.
  • The second is a project sponsored by the British Academy where we'll be exploring teachers' week to week work pressures and experiences. If you are a teacher or know teachers please do tell them about this research and ask them to contact me at ross.mcintosh@city.ac.uk for more information.
Both of these research projects are very closely connected with a range of psychological theory, processes and evidence known as Acceptance and Commitment Training, known as ACT. The evidence shows that ACT can increase resilience, psychological flexibility, well-being, innovation and performance in the workplace. 

I'll also be working with one of the leaders in the ACT field in a coaching capacity - more news very soon. If you're interested in coaching - get in touch for a free 20 minute conversation to find out more.

In other news I'm planning a workshop on Acceptance and Commitment Training for an organisation that manages customer loyalty programmes and preparing for a talk on psychological well-being for a large American Bank which will include a panel discussion with three of their Senior Vice Presidents where we will discuss personal values, change and work recovery.

By the way, my dissertation is a qualitative exploration of organisational politics in the Senior Civil Service with reference to psychological flexibility or "Yes Minister, how the Senior Civil Service experience and manage organisational politics". If that has set your imagination alight (I know....) get in touch and I can send you the executive summary! I've just heard that I'll be presenting this research at the British Psychological Society; Division of Organisational Psychology Conference in January.

Exciting times - I'd like to dedicate the rest of my career to continuing on the theme of discovering a more meaningful way to work. 

If you'd like to find out more please do get in touch.

Thanks


Ross

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