I am interested in relationships in the workplace and the context in which
workers develop burnout, or alternatively, engagement with their work.
Worker burnout is not a sign of a dysfunctional person, it is a signal that
something in the workplace is not right, either the person has become physically and emotionally exhausted (there are many
reasons for this) or has lost faith in the integrity of the organisation. On the other hand an engaged worker is dedicated,
absorbed in the work and finds it energising. Because the engaged worker is not mentally processing the distress of
being exhausted and/or cynical (people don't enjoy being negative), s/he is miles more productive - good for the person and
fantastic for the organisation!
I was not prepared for how much I would enjoy research when I finally got
to do some of my own. It was really exciting to design a project from scratch, conduct the research and then analyse the data.
However I have also enjoyed the work I have done for other people, the "Girls and ICT" project was fun and it was great
to be a part of a project that has been so incredibly successful.
The discovery that my PhD research findings only partially supported the hypotheses was interesting and
it was important to try and gain an understanding of why this was so. I also find it exciting that the project has left me
with more questions, the answers to which will, in all probability lead to even more questions! However answering these questions
will provide us with more understanding about how relationships in th workplace unfold.
