Workaholism

Is workaholism a “soul-destroying addiction” akin to alcoholism?

Or is there such a thing as the happy and productive workaholic--someone who enjoys his job, is a benefit to his employer and doesn’t destroy his personal life?

Researchers haven’t always agreed on the definition of workaholism--whether it’s a positive or destructive behavior, or perhaps both.

Barbara Killinger, a clinical psychologist in Toronto, has written extensively on the subject and believes that workaholism is a “dangerous and life-threatening addiction” that is becoming more prevalent amid continued corporate downsizing. Workaholism, she contends, is a destroyer of individuals and their families, and can wreak havoc on corporations.

Killinger has done extensive clinical research on the subject. She is the author of “Workaholics: The Respectable Addicts” and “The Balancing Act: Rediscovering Your Feelings.”

But a recent U.S. study by a team of management experts suggests that workaholism, while often a severe emotional illness, can have its good side.

Some workaholics may have “high work and life satisfaction” because they are highly motivated, achievement-oriented people, says Keirsten Moore, an assistant management professor at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio.

Moore and colleagues Marcia Miceli, a management professor at Ohio State University’s Max Fisher College of Business, and Kim Scott, a consultant at Hewitt Associates in Chicago, concluded that a lot more study is needed before conclusions can be drawn about workaholism’s positive or negative effects.

Killinger and Moore recently spoke with Times staff writer David Olmos about their research on workaholism.

Times: What is a workaholic?

Killinger: They are addicted to power and control. Their obsession is to work. The more chaotic their emotions get, the more they have to control everybody and everything around them. They gradually get on this gerbil-wheel syndrome. The main thing is they become emotionally crippled and lose their ability to feel.

Moore: We saw a lot of inconsistency in the definitions that were used. Barbara’s definition is widely used, but there are others that include more positive definitions of workaholics. We defined workaholism as having three elements: Workaholics spend a great deal of time in work activities when they have the discretion to do so; that results in them giving up social, family and recreational activities. They consistently think about work when they’re not at work. And they work beyond what is expected to meet the requirements of their job or to meet basic economic needs.

Times: Is workaholism becoming more or less prevalent in this society?

Killinger: Definitely it’s getting worse because of [corporate] downsizing. As soon as you get downsizing and the fear of being let go, the fear of failure is huge for these people because they are perfectionists.

Times: If someone works 10, 12 or 14 hours a day on a fairly regular basis, does that necessarily mean he is a workaholic?

Killinger: [Workaholic behavior] starts in the early teens. These people become overly responsible. So the seeds are there early on. In my work, I see three types of workaholics. There’s the narcissistic workaholic, who’s the chronic one. There’s the controller workaholics, who have to have their own way and always be right. And there’s the “teaser,” who can’t say no and can’t delegate.

Moore: Again, the one element we use to define workaholism is spending a lot of discretionary time at work. So I would say that if an organization requires mandatory overtime, that wouldn’t necessarily make a person a workaholic. It’s more of a behavior pattern that is consistent across jobs and across time.

Times: Can workaholism ever be a good thing?

Moore: We have proposed that it could be. We have proposed three types of workaholism. One of those is the achievement-oriented workaholic. These are people who are striving for achievement and success. They are motivated by moderately difficult tasks and stimulated by competition. They describe themselves as passionate and enthusiastic about work. We’ve proposed that this category may have positive consequences for the individual and the organization.

Times: If I’m a supervisor, why shouldn’t I value a workaholic for her hard work and reward her behavior? Aren’t I getting more work from these people for the same salary?

Moore: Not necessarily. The compulsive-dependent or perfectionist workaholics most likely would not be high performers within the organization. They are basically addicted to power and control. They can’t set reasonable standards and may not be able to compromise at work. They may not be creative.

Killinger: When you lose your feeling, you lose your intuition. The negative sensation that is the evil of workaholism means that a person gets stuck in a black-and-white, right-wrong mentality. They only see evidence of that which supports their own point of view.

Times: Are there certain professions that lend themselves to workaholism?

Killinger: Anything that’s open-ended like a minister, dentist, doctor, lawyer, where they don’t have anybody telling them to get out the door. Law school and medical school tend to encourage workaholism by virtue of the hours students are required to work and the fact they are made to feel special and different.

Moore: It could also be that people are attracted to those types of positions because of their workaholic tendencies.

Times: If I’m a supervisor with an employee who appears to be a workaholic, how can I deal with it?

Moore: It depends on the type of workaholic. What you have to look at are the causes and consequences of that type of behavior. Are they negative for the individual and the organization? Then you would need to encourage individuals to seek support.

Killinger: Workaholics are usually chaotic at home. They usually marry very loyal people to whom harmony and keeping the family together and happy is the most important thing. The spouse suffers terrifically because they end up not having a spouse. They sacrifice everything to this person’s success. Ironically, you’re encouraging workaholism by doing that. When I counsel people on this, I encourage the spouses not to support [workaholic behavior].

Times: OK, what if your boss is a workaholic? Does that create problems for their employees, and how can they deal with it?

Killinger: Eventually, you’re going to end up doing [the workaholic boss’] work because they do get immobilized and unable to make intelligent decisions. You end up getting a lot of their mistakes. In a workaholic organization, if there is such a thing, everybody is trying to get the fires out that these people set regularly. But the worst thing is, you can’t confront a workaholic without getting punished. A colleague could do that if they know them very well, perhaps tell them that they are personally worried about them. But an employee, never. You’ll end up losing your job somewhere along the line.

Times: Are men more prone to workaholism than women?

Killinger: I think women are about five years behind.

Times: Is technology--cellular phones, faxes and the like--having much effect on the degree of workaholism?

Moore: I definitely think that’s a possibility. We’ve all seen the commercial on TV with the woman working in her pajamas at the computer. Work never goes away and you never have to get away from work if you have all these technological tools.

Killinger: Last year, I went canoeing past a guy who was in a canoe with his laptop computer.

Times: Do workaholics exhibit certain behaviors when they are away on vacation?

Killinger: After a while, they won’t go on vacation. Or they’ll go for three days then make an excuse to come back to the city and work because something important is happening. They are on the phone all the time. Their anxiety is really very high when they are away from work.

Moore: Workaholics frequently and consistently think about work. And that would certainly interfere with their ability to enjoy their vacation time.

Times: What gets workaholics to change their behavior?

Killinger: Their falling off their pedestals. People are starting to criticize them, and their vision of themselves doesn’t correlate with other people’s vision. These people are alarmingly out of touch with their feelings. I encourage people to get help sooner than at the point where they aren’t feeling anything anymore.