Effect of a participatory organizational workplace intervention on workplace social capital: Post-hoc results from a cluster randomized controlled trial

The study investigates whether measures that promote collaboration among kindergarten employees also strengthen the social capital of the workplace, thereby increasing employee well-being and reducing absence due to illness. The authors’ hypothesis is that interventions that promote participation and collaboration between employees will also increase social capital in the workplace. The study defines the social capital of the workplace both horizontally (that good relations exist between employees) and vertically (that good relations exist between employees and managers). 

Social capital in the workplace decreased in both the intervention group and the control group, and there was no significant difference between the groups, either for horizontal or vertical social capital. Nevertheless, a post-hoc analysis, in which the kindergartens with low implementation of measures were excluded, showed that the vertical social capital had decreased in the control group, but remained stable in the intervention group. 

The study has retrieved data from a previous study (The Pioner intervention study) that investigated the effect on participatory interventions among kindergarten employees. In the study, a sample of 606 employees in 78 Danish kindergartens was divided into an intervention group and a control group. Several interventions were initiated in the intervention group, in collaboration between management and employees, aimed at promoting employee well-being. Among other things, this could include reorganising workdays, improving communication and increasing social support for employees. Social capital in the workplace was measured through employees completing a questionnaire at the start of the intervention, as well as a follow-up questionnaire at the end of the intervention, two years later.  

Framke, E., Sørensen, O. H., Pedersen, J., Clausen, T., Borg, V. & Rugulies, R. (2019). "Effect of a participatory organizational workplace intervention on workplace social capital: Post-hoc results from a cluster randomized controlled trial". BMC Public Health, 19:e693.