Conference theme

Over the last 20 years or so, workaholism – that is, compulsive overworking, or work addiction – has been established as a significant individual, organizational, and social problem (e.g., Taris & de Jonge, 2024). Although previous research has contributed to a better understanding of the phenomenon, several gaps still interfere with the evolution toward targeted preventive actions. First, the accumulated evidence is still heavily based on qualitative observations and cross-sectional surveys, limiting our understanding of causal relationships between workaholism and related phenomena while reducing the robustness and persuasiveness of the emerged findings. Additionally, there are only a few prevalence studies on representative samples, meaning that we still know quite little about the spread of the phenomenon in general and in specific cultural contexts, work sectors, and occupations. Third, there is a scarcity of studies on modifiable organizational factors influencing the development or consolidation of workaholism, and their interactions with employee personality and mental health conditions. Fourth, there is a lack of evidence on interventions addressing workaholism, either adopting a primary (organizational) approach or based on a secondary (individual) prevention perspective.

To address these gaps, the first EAWOP Small Group Meeting (SGM) on workaholism brings together (a) contributions that implement robust research designs, such as (but not limited to) multi-wave and diary studies adopting an intra-individual perspective, person-centered studies, and research employing multisource data; (b) studies on organizational antecedents and correlates of workaholism; (c) interdisciplinary investigations (e.g., integrating work, organizational, and clinical theories and methods), and (d) intervention studies adopting either a primary or a secondary prevention focus, including case studies with a practitioner perspective. Additional studies may also be considered, particularly if they use a robust research design and focus on understudied correlates of workaholism.

Meeting format

The format of this EAWOP SGM is designed to foster in-depth discussion, constructive feedback, and research collaboration among participants. The program will include approximately 16 oral presentations (grouped by subtopic and chaired by subtopic discussants) to be presented to the entire group of participants, in addition to a poster exhibition on a continuous display. Moreover, Prof. Arnold Bakker will open the SGM with a keynote lecture, and the meeting will close with a small group discussion on the main SGM highlights, with the aim of developing the key points of a policy brief on workaholism, also based on input from invited stakeholders (e.g., corporate managers, trade union representatives, and practitioners expert in behavioral addiction). Output of the SGM, such as presentations, posters, and the policy brief, will be made available via the https://workaddiction.org  website.

In addition, the SGM involves a publication opportunity, as we plan to propose a Special Issue to an impactful applied psychology journal such as European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology. A selection of the papers presented during the meeting will be published.

Participation fee

• Regular fee: 120 EUR
• Student fee (undergraduates and Ph.D. students): 60 EUR

The participation fee includes two conference dinners, two lunches, and all coffee breaks. Participants are expected to cover their own travel and accommodation costs.

Submission of abstracts

Applicants are invited to submit their abstracts based on work-in-progress or emerging ideas around the conference theme. Abstracts should describe the study goals and relevance, method, results, and discussion (up to 300 words) and include full affiliations of all co-authors. The attending author should specify whether he or she is a current EAWOP member. Abstracts should be submitted to luca.menghini@unipd.it and pawel.atroszko@ug.edu.pl by March 15, 2025. Interested scholars are also invited to contact the organizers in advance to ask for further information or discuss potential ideas. Applicants will be notified about the acceptance of their proposal by April 15, 2025. Details on registration will be provided upon proposal acceptance, together with suggestions on accommodation options.