Acceptance and Commitment Therapy delivered in the workplace – Effects of a 5-week training program on corporate employees’ psychological flexibility

Introduction A growing body of research has demonstrated the positive effects of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) delivered in the workplace on employees’ well-being and psychological flexibility. Delivering ACT in the workplace aims to enhance employee performance and reduce stress levels by promoting psychological flexibility, a skill to consciously live in the present, observing thoughts and emotions, and engaging in value-driven actions. Objectives The short-term effects of a 5-week ACT-based psychological flexibility training program were tested. Methods Participants were 21 corporate employees (62 % women, M age = 43.9 years, SD = 9.5) recruited from a large company in the financial sector. The six core processes of psychological flexibility were examined before the first training session and after the fifth training session of the 5-week training. Psychological flexibility, value-driven living, thought suppression, five facets of mindfulness and cognitive fusion were assessed. Results Results showed a statistically significant difference in one core process of psychological flexibility, namely Contact with the present moment. Acting with awareness , Describing and Nonjudge showed significant difference before and after the training. Presumably, changes in Cognitive defusion and Non-reactivity are also evident, however results did not show significant difference. Conclusions The present research has provided further empirical evidence for the effectiveness of ACT-based psychological flexibility training with regard to three aspects of Contact with the present moment , which is a core process of psychological flexibility ( Acting with awareness, Describing, and Nonjudge ). The findings provide a basis for future research to investigate longer-term effects, including monitoring how participants in the research program practice the learnt techniques in their everyday lives. Disclosure of Interest Á. Magyary Grant / Research support from: ÁM was supported by the ÚNKP-23-2 New National Excellence Program of the Ministry for Culture and Innovation from the source of the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund., Z. Demetrovics: None Declared, Á. Zsila: None Declared, N. Mészáros: None Declared