Exploring Positive Relationships at Work: Building a Theoretical and Research Foundation

Workplaces and work itself are increasingly interdependent, and relationships have become the means by which work occurs. As such, positive work relationships can enrich employee's lives, while conversely, the stress caused by corrosive work relationships adds to health care costs faced by organizations and can affect the personal lives of employees.Exploring Positive Relationships at Workis useful for both practical and theoretical reasons, offering a comprehensive and multidisciplinary understanding of how relationships enable people at work. It is designed to put the field of positive relationships in the workplace on the research map by uncovering the mechanism and dynamics of these relationships. The editors approach the topic from multiple levels, each level providing critical, valuable insights into the dynamic and generative process underlying positive relationships in organizations. These levels are arranged in five parts: *an introduction to positive relationships at work; *Individuals and Dyads; *Groups and Communities; *Organizations & Organizing; and *a conclusion pointing to the future direction of research on positive work relationships. This volume will appeal to academics and practitioners, as well as scholars and graduate students in organizational psychology, management, human resources, and inter-personal communications.

Jane E. Dutton is the William Russell Kelly Professor of Business Administration and Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan. Her research interests  include thriving at work, high quality connections, compassion, and job crafting. She is a founding member of the Center for Positive Organizational Scholarship (http://www.bus.umich.edu/Positive/). She is the recipient of best paper awards from the Academy of Management Journal, Administrative Science Quarterly, and the Journal of Management Inquiry. She has received the Distingusihed Scholar Award from the Organization and Management Theory Division. At the Univeristy of Michigan she has received the Researcher of the Year Award and the Senior Scholar Award. She is a fellow of the Academy of Management and chairs the Management and Organizations Department at the Ross School of Business.  
Belle Rose Ragins is a Professor of Management at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and the Research Director of the UWM Institute for Diversity Education and Leadership (IDEAL). Her research interests focus on mentoring and diversity in organizations. She has received a number of national awards for her research, including the Sage Life-Time Achievement Award for Scholarly Contributions to Management, the Academy of Management Mentoring Legacy Award, the American Society for Training and Development Research Award, the American Psychological Association Placek Award, and five Best Paper Awards from the Academy of Management. She is an elected Fellow of the Society for Industrial-Organizational Psychology, the American Psychological Society, the Society for the Psychology of Women, and the American Psychological Association.