The Role of Self-Regulation in Workplace Resiliency

Understanding resilience is important to creating and maintaining health in the workplace, and the focal article by Britt, Shen, Sinclair, Grossman, and Klieger (2016) raises valuable questions and recommendations for research in the field. In this commentary we consider several issues not discussed by Britt et al. but critical to understanding resilience in organizational settings. In particular, we discuss the utility of process-oriented models and, specifically, the role of self-regulatory processes as foundational mechanisms of resiliency. We agree with many of Britt et al.’s recommendations and provide additional perspectives and information based on recent research on resiliency in military personnel experiencing cross-cultural adversity, in executives experiencing unwanted career transitions, and in recent immigrants searching for employment.