Managing boundaries: exploring the experiences of line-managers who provide mental health support in the workplace
通过访谈15名来自私营、公共和志愿部门的直线经理，研究他们为有心理困扰的下属提供支持的经历，发现组织心理社会氛围和背景是关键因素，建议将支持责任从经理个人转向组织共享。
The increase in mental ill-health amongst the working population presents a serious challenge for organisations. Line-managers are an important provider of support to staff with psychological distress (PD), their experiences however, are under-researched. In response, we interviewed 15 line-managers from the private, public, and voluntary sector about their support provision to subordinates with PD. Drawing upon workplace social support and boundary management theory we explored line-manager confidence, boundaries of the manager/subordinate relationship, and how they navigate the competing demands of their role. We found that organisational psychosocial climate and context are key factors: a stressful or demanding working environment, and/or unsupportive colleagues can undermine the capacity of line-managers to provide social support. Theoretical contributions include focusing on the provider, rather than recipient, of social support and integrating social support and boundary management theory. Practical recommendations include removing the onus on line-managers to provide support and advocating shared organisational responsibility for support from multiple sources, underpinned by a wider remit of policies and procedures. This paper includes line-manager narratives around employee mental ill-health including reference to suicide, that some readers may find distressing.