A brief look at the APA 2023 Work Life Survey
- Gur Sengun
- Dec 4, 2025
- 4 min read
The American Psychological Association (APA) recently implemented the Work in America Survey to gain insights into the state of workplace mental health and identify areas for improvement.
The published report revealed workplace mental health and well-being as a critical factor affecting employee satisfaction, productivity, and overall organizational success. It also emphasizes the importance of psychological well-being, work-life harmony, and development opportunities for employees. However, it also highlights the challenges posed by workplace stress, toxic environments, and discrimination. In this blog, we will briefly examine the key findings of the APA-administered survey and their implications for employers, professionals, and managers.
Key findings of the study:
A significant 92% of employees think that it is very important to work in an organization that values and supports their emotional and psychological health .
A significant 95% of employees prioritize feeling respected at work , emphasizing the importance of a positive work culture .
95% of employees emphasize the importance of respecting boundaries between work and non-work time to achieve a healthy work-life balance. This suggests that most respondents prefer a segregated approach to work-life balance. When considering cultural differences, it would be beneficial to avoid a one-sided understanding of this finding and consider our country's culture as well.
Approximately 77% of employees reported experiencing work-related stress in the past month. Given the region where the survey was conducted, especially considering the busy national agenda that began with the pandemic and continues to this day, it's clear that individual and organizational proactive stress management strategies are needed, especially for our employees.
Approximately 19% of employees, or nearly one in five, described their workplaces as toxic . The fact that such results persist despite extensive training focused on mobbing, social pressure, and interpersonal communication highlights the need for improvements in corporate communication policies .
A remarkable 42% of employees reported feeling micromanaged at work, leading to increased tension and stress. Emphasizing this issue and focusing on raising awareness among our managers can be effective, especially considering the fine line between being well-intentioned and wanting to help and engaging in micromanagement in our culture.
A staggering 91% of employees expressed their desire for learning and achievement opportunities at work . While competency training and online programs are often the first things that come to mind when it comes to learning opportunities, many employees' desired learning opportunities are related to professional and current issues .
A significant 87% of employees find their work meaningful and emphasize the need to work with purpose. In our jobs, where we spend most of our day and impact our lives, it's increasingly important that each task be meaningful , or that employees be provided with sufficient autonomy to find meaning in their work .
More than half (57%) of employees surveyed reported that their employers do not offer health insurance or employee assistance programs that cover their mental health .
Nearly a third (30%) of employees reported feeling unsupported because of an aspect of their identity, a fifth (22%) reported witnessing discrimination in their workplace, and 15% reported experiencing discrimination . This highlights the importance of promoting inclusive workplaces and developing procedures that don't just remain in legislation but permeate the field.
When we combine the key points above with the other results in the APA report, employers, experts and managers can pay attention to the following points for positive institutional outcomes:
In the ever-increasing competition for talented personnel , prioritizing the psychological health of employees to strengthen the employee brand in recruitment and retention can increase the chances of attracting the best talent and be effective in encouraging employees to continue choosing the organization they work for.
While one aspect of productivity is prevention and the other is improvement , a psychologically healthy workplace can improve organizational performance and increase productivity by encouraging employee loyalty and job satisfaction.
Having a positive and inclusive workplace culture in the workplaces where we spend our weekdays supports morale, teamwork and collaboration among employees.
Although we may be constantly in touch with technological advancements , encouraging work-life harmony and respecting the boundaries employees choose can reduce their stress and improve work-life harmony, positively impacting their performance.
In an environment where competition between organizations is increasing and maintaining this competition in a wage-focused manner is becoming increasingly difficult, providing growth opportunities and meaningful work experiences for employees can increase their personal motivation and engagement.
Having an atmosphere where everyone feels heard and valued can support all employees to feel a sense of belonging through the culture conveyed by management through procedures and practices and the practices that will be spread among employees.
Informing managers , who have a direct impact on the quality of work life of employees, about employee well-being and psychological health, and reviewing performance criteria to allow them the space to implement decisions made as a result of this information, will play a critical role in prioritizing the psychological health of employees.
Finally, understanding the desires and needs of your employees to support their psychological health, making room for Employee Support Programs, Corporate Wellbeing Applications and employee experience opportunities that center on psychology can contribute to your organization achieving the above outcomes.
Reference:
2023 Work in America Survey: Workplaces as engines of psychological health and well-being . (n.d.). https://www.apa.org. https://www.apa.org/pubs/reports/work-in-america/2023-workplace-health-well-being
