Cutting-Edge Research from BetterUp Labs

In 2018, we launched BetterUp Labs, the first-of-its-kind behavioral research lab bringing together business, academia, and science. Our team of more than 40 PhDs, embedded across the organization, brings expertise and innovative research techniques in organizational psychology, behavioral neuroscience, social psychology, and more.

Partnerships with leading universities

Recent peer-reviewed academic articles

Journal of Medical Internet Research: Time to Change for Mental Health and Well-being via Virtual Professional Coaching

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American Journal of Health Promotion: Beyond Hedonia: 5 Keys to Enhancing Workplace Well-Being at Scale

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International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring: The buffering effects of virtual coaching during crisis

A rigorous, multidisciplinary approach

The Labs team is dedicated to conducting validated studies and understanding lasting behavior change from from the world’s largest real-time dataset on coaching and personal and professional growth. The findings power everything from our evidence-based coaching methodology and interventions to our assessments to product development to talent insights and analytics focused on understanding organizational outcomes.

behavioral science PhDs

coaching sessions

investment in research

Explore the research of human flourishing

Proprietary Research Report

The Connection Crisis: Why Community Matters in the New World of Work

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Proprietary Research Report

The Future-Minded Leader: A Mindset for Moving Forward in Uncertainty

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Proprietary Research Report

Redefining Inclusive Leadership

Cutting-Edge Research from BetterUp Labs

Partnerships with leading universities

Recent peer-reviewed academic articles

A rigorous, multidisciplinary approach

Explore the research of human flourishing

The Connection Crisis: Why Community Matters in the New World of Work

The Future-Minded Leader: A Mindset for Moving Forward in Uncertainty

Redefining Inclusive Leadership

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The Journal of Positive Psychology: Mattering is an indicator of organizational health and employee success.

Inc.: If You Say Yes to This 1 Question, Your Leadership Skills Are Better Than Those of Most Bosses

Harvard Business Review: The Value Of Belonging At Work

Inc.: During the Great Resignation, Employers Are Forgetting 1 Key Strategy to Keep Their People

Forbes: What It Takes To Create A Culture Of Belonging In 2021

PLOS One: Outcasts and saboteurs: Intervention strategies to reduce the negative effects of social exclusion on team outcomes.

Fast Company: Why now is the time to address your languishing teammates

Review of General Psychology: Pragmatic Prospection is linked with positive life and workplace outcomes.

Harvard Business Review: 9 Out of 10 People Are Willing to Earn Less Money to Do More-Meaningful Work

Business Insider: Don't take your most engaged employees for granted. There's a good chance they could burn out and quit.

Language analysis reveals how coaching has evolved over the last 3 years

A new "belonging tax" is reshaping the employee experience

Forbes: Why Offering Remote Work Isn’t Enough To Attract Talent In 2022

Leaders are prioritizing well-being over leadership skills in the post-Covid workplace

Fast Company: How to foster human connection in a hybrid workforce

Inc.: Research Finds that People With This Mindset Are Surprisingly More Successful and Less Stressed

Better Science Sessions: How to build a culture of connection that retains top talent

Academy of Management Learning & Education: Coaching New Leaders: A Relational Process of Integrating Multiple Identities

Fast Company: Ask yourself these 5 questions to boost your resilience

What Parents Really Need From Employers to Return to the Workplace

HBR: How Leaders Can Build Connection in a Disconnected Workplace

With great power comes great … belonging?

Is poor mental health and well-being contagious?

It's time to let go of the myth that pressure drives performance

Harvard Business Review: America’s Loneliest Workers, According to Research

American Journal of Health Promotion: Beyond Hedonia: 5 keys to enhancing workplace well-being at scale.

Employees report greater creativity working remotely

Inc.: If You Say Yes to This 1 Question, Your Leadership Skills Are Better Than Those of Most Bosses

Forbes: Workplace Culture: 5 Key Elements For A Positive Employee Environment

The new skills every manager needs to lead inclusively in a hybrid world

Inc.:Research Uncovers One of the Most Important Things Your Employees May Be Lacking

Resilience in an Age of Uncertainty

Journal of Medical Internet Research: How Coaching Improves Mental Health

Meaning and Purpose at Work

The Future-Minded Leader: A Mindset for Moving Forward in Uncertainty

The Value of Belonging at Work

The Connection Crisis: Why Community Matters in the New World of Work

Redefining Inclusive Leadership

Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes: The liking gap in groups and teams

Enforcing pragmatic future-mindedness cures the Innovator's Bias

Fast Company: 22% of people don’t have any friends at work. Here’s how to change that

Psychological safety: We all know it improves teams, but it can boost careers, too

How keeping employees connected may actually keep them committed

Cambridge University Press: Evidence-based recommendations for improved design of sexual harassment training

Journal of Vocational Behavior: Home is where the mind is: Family interference with work and safety performance in two high risk industries

Journal of Vocational Behavior: Effect of illegitimate tasks on work-to-family conflict through psychological detachment: Passive leadership as a moderator

Journal of Business and Psychology: Switching Gears: A Self‑Regulatory Approach and Measure of Nonwork Role Re‑Engagement Following After‑Hours Work Intrusions

Entrepreneur: 1 out of 4 of your Employees Feel They Don't Fit In. Here's Why That Matters, and What to Do About It.

Yahoo!: Why employee mental health should be top priority for CEOs

43% of us don’t feel connected at work. Here's what to do about it.

Believe it or not, not everyone wants to work from home. Here’s why.

Having “too many” interests isn’t holding you back, it’s launching you forward

Meet the Future-Minded Leader: Your organization’s answer to uncertainty

The science behind Inner Work®

Managers say men and women differ in these five areas: Is it true?

Human Capital Innovations Podcast: The Connection Crisis

Herman Miller's Looking Forward Podcast: The Science of Social Connection

Thinking About Thinking About Leadership: Metacognitive Ability and Leader Developmental Readiness

Journal of Applied Biobehavioral Research: Work-life conflict and employee health

Illegitimate tasks are not created equal

Journal of Organizational Behavior: Attachment theory at work: A review and directions for future research

Psychological Reports: Extending the Boundaries of Illegitimate Tasks: The Role of Resources

Journal of Managerial Psychology: A tale of two leaders: Employees' work-family experiences in the context of dual leadership

5 Mistakes That Can Derail Your Company’s Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives

The science behind Inner Work®

Better Science Sessions: Building a healthy Organization

Forbes: The Practice Of ‘Future-Mindedness’ Is The Key For Leaders And Workers To Battle Back Against Unrelenting Uncertainty And Thrive

Build resilience like a (silver medal) winner

How to do Inner Work® (even if you're way too busy)

Meet some of the experts

Adam Grant, PhD