Compassion Counts! The power of compassion at workEmpirical findings from several multi-samples studies

Abstract

Compassion is defined as an interpersonal process involving the noticing, feeling, sensemaking, and acting that alleviates the suffering of another person. Thus, compassion can be understood as a social process rather than as an emotion. With the purpose of contributing to the spread of knowledge about compassion in organizations, this thesis has tried to show why compassion matters at work. It has provided certain knowledge about how compassion can be created, maintained, and reinforced and has observed a variety of ways in which compassion enhances the human capabilities that are necessary for an organization to succeed. Although, in conventional thinking compassion have been seen at best as irrelevant in the workplace, it is actually key to effective and humane organizational cultures.