Randi C. Wood’s research while affiliated with Metropolitan State University of Denver and other places

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Publications (4)


For each study condition (EAP and comparison), Fig. 1 displays the number of employees who were eligible for participation, enrolled into the study, completed a baseline survey, and authorized release of timecard data, matched via the propensity score analysis
Predicted sick hours by condition (obtained from model coefficients for logged sick hours in Table 3 when pretest hours and survey date take their mean value)
The Effect of Employee Assistance Services on Reductions in Employee Absenteeism
  • Article
  • Publisher preview available

December 2018

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2,440 Reads

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35 Citations

Ana P. Nunes

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Melissa K. Richmond

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Randi C. Wood

Personal and work-related stressors experienced by employees can result in substantial costs to employers in the form of employee absenteeism. Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) provide an important vehicle to assist employees with behavioral health issues, personal concerns, and work-related problems that impact employee absenteeism. This study tested the impact of EAPs on reducing employee absenteeism utilizing a well-matched control group and human resource timecard data. The study recruited employees from 20 areas of state government and used a prospective, quasi-experimental design with propensity score matching. EAP (n = 145) users were matched to non-EAP (n = 145) users on baseline demographic, psychosocial, and work-related characteristics that differentiate the groups. Hours of sick time recorded were provided by human resource offices. Differences in sick leave usage were tested using mixed model repeated measures. A steeper decline in sick leave usage for EAP than non-EAP employees was found, with estimates of 4.8 to 6.5% fewer hours lost per month to illness. Further analysis found that EAP services were most effective in helping clients move from moderate to low levels of sick leave rather than in reducing sick leave for those experiencing chronic absenteeism. Research on the effectiveness of EAPs rarely utilizes well-matched control groups and frequently relies on self-reported outcomes. Using an objective measure of work time lost, this study provides empirical evidence that users of EAP services tend to reduce their absenteeism at a faster pace than non-EAP users experiencing similar challenges to maintaining productivity.

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Impact of Employee Assistance Services on Depression, Anxiety, and Risky Alcohol Use: A Quasi-Experimental Study

July 2016

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334 Reads

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45 Citations

Journal of occupational and environmental medicine / American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

Objective: To test the impact of Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) on reducing employee depression, anxiety, and risky alcohol use, and whether improvements in clinical symptoms lead to improved work outcomes. Methods: The study used a prospective, quasi-experimental design with propensity score matching. Participants (n = 344) came from 20 areas of state government. EAP (n = 156) and non-EAP (n = 188) employees were matched on baseline demographic, psychosocial, and work-related characteristics that differentiate EAP from non-EAP users. Follow-up surveys were collected 2 to 12 months later (M = 6.0). Results: EAP significantly reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety, but not at-risk alcohol use. EAP reductions in depression and anxiety mediated EAP-based reductions in absenteeism and presenteeism. Conclusions: EAPs provide easy-to-access work-based services that are effective at improving employee mental health.


The Impact of Employee Assistance Services on Workplace Outcomes: Results of a Prospective, Quasi-Experimental Study

December 2015

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1,563 Reads

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67 Citations

Journal of Occupational Health Psychology

Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) are widely used to help employees experiencing personal or work-related difficulties that impact work productivity. However, rigorous research on the effectiveness of programs to improve work-related outcomes is lacking. The current study represents a major advance in EAP research by using a prospective, quasi-experimental design with a large and diverse employee base. Using propensity scores calculated from demographic, social, work-related, and psychological variables collected on baseline surveys, we matched 156 employees receiving EAP to 188 non-EAP employees. Follow-up surveys were collected from 2 to 12 months post-baseline (M = 6.0). At follow-up, EAP employees had significantly greater reductions in absenteeism (b = -.596, p = .001) and presenteeism (b = -.217, p = .038), but not workplace distress (b = -.079, p = .448), than did non-EAP employees. Tests of moderation of baseline alcohol use, depression, anxiety, and productivity indicate that for the most part, the program works equally well for all groups. However, EAP did more to reduce absenteeism for those who began with lower severity of depression and anxiety at baseline. Results provide the scientific rigor needed to demonstrate EAP impact on improved work outcomes. In the first study of its kind, findings confirm the value of EAPs to help employees address personal and work-related concerns that are affecting job performance. (PsycINFO Database Record


Associations Between Substance Use, Depression, and Work Outcomes: An Evaluation Study of Screening and Brief Intervention in a Large Employee Assistance Program

February 2014

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77 Reads

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16 Citations

Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health

Melissa K. Richmond

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Jennifer L. Shepherd

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Leigh Fischer

This study examined associations between behavioral health and workplace outcomes for 1,989 state employees served by a large Employee Assistance Program (EAP) over 19 months. Screening and brief intervention was used to identify and intervene for risky substance use and depression at intake. Employees completed psychometrically sound self-report measures of workplace functioning. About 80% of EAP clients screened positive for depression. There was a strong association between depression and impaired workplace productivity. About 90 days after intake, 438 employees (22.0%) participated in a follow-up interview. Analyses of intake to follow-up indicated significant improvements in depression and workplace productivity, translating to substantial cost savings.

Citations (4)


... Organizational support and resources for employee health can enhance work performance, decrease costs and contribute to improved engagement and productivity (Attridge et al., 2021;Nunes et al., 2018). Our study's findings should be interpreted in consideration of the following limitations. ...

Reference:

A comparison of work characteristics and health status between Korean and US hospital nurses
The Effect of Employee Assistance Services on Reductions in Employee Absenteeism

... In a systematic review of 17 studies evaluating the effectiveness of EAPs, Joseph et al. found that utilising EAPs lead to enhanced employee outcomes, specifically improving levels of employee presenteeism, productivity and psychosocial functioning [12]. The use of EAPs have also been shown to improve employee mental health, with a number of studies worldwide reporting reduced levels of employee depression, anxiety, and stress following EAP service utilisation by employees [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]. Additionally, several studies have further demonstrated that merely providing employees access to an effective EAP can significantly reduce turnover intention, whilst promoting employee retention and organisational commitment [21,22]. ...

Impact of Employee Assistance Services on Depression, Anxiety, and Risky Alcohol Use: A Quasi-Experimental Study
  • Citing Article
  • July 2016

Journal of occupational and environmental medicine / American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

... Employee assistance programs (EAPs) have a long history of workplace-based attempts to reduce the influence and impact of personal and work-related issues on job performance (Richmond, et al. 2017). EAPs offer counselling, consulting, and holistic wellbeing services (Kirk & Brown, 2003), focusing on the prevention and remediation of personal problems (Chellam & Divya, 2022). ...

The Impact of Employee Assistance Services on Workplace Outcomes: Results of a Prospective, Quasi-Experimental Study

Journal of Occupational Health Psychology

... A 1996 study found a positive ROI for the EAP serving the City of Los Angeles Water and Power Department [38]. A series of more recent papers tested the effectiveness of the internal EAP for the State of Colorado [39][40][41] This project is important because it secured a $100,000 research grant and was able to hire outside investigators to conducted a quasiexperimental longitudinal study using a design that included a group of users of the EAP and another group of employees who did not use the EAP but who were matched to the program user sample on basic demographics and starting levels of clincial risks and work problems. Although only based on small size samples of less than 200 employees per group, the findings documented superior improvement over time for the EAP user group compared to the non-user comparison group on anxiety and depression symptoms and work absenteeism and work presenteeism. ...

Associations Between Substance Use, Depression, and Work Outcomes: An Evaluation Study of Screening and Brief Intervention in a Large Employee Assistance Program
  • Citing Article
  • February 2014

Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health