ABSTRACT

Widfeldt, M. (2011). Health motivators in the workplace – a study on the manager’s attitude. Public Health Science C: Theory and method with application and examination paper. Faculty of Health and Working Life: University of Gävle.

Within the Swedish Post office, health promotion is actively being carried out. In order to reach out with health promotion to all employees, health motivators have an important role. In order to succeed in achieving good results from this work, managers’ attitudes are seen as an important prerequisite. The purpose of this study was to investigate the attitudes to health motivators among managers in the Swedish Post office. The study was based on a qualitative design and involved 16 managers, of whom eight managers worked with health motivators and eight managers did not. The collected interviews were analyzed using a content analysis and the results showed that managers had a positive attitude towards working with health motivators. Managers with health motivators noticed positive effects in the form of healthier employees, reduced absenteeism, and an improved working environment. Managers without health motivators noted time constraints and lack of interest among employees as the main reasons for not working with them. In conclusion, this study has shown that managers have a positive attitude towards working with health motivators, but that the time and the interests among employees are required to work in this way.