Researchers at Keio University have developed a smartphone diary app that significantly improved work engagement among Japanese employees after just two weeks of use, with effects persisting for three weeks after the intervention ended.
The app, called WEDiary, prompts users to set weekly goals and record daily work achievements, specifically encouraging them to focus on successes rather than shortcomings. The study is published in JMIR mHealth and uHealth.
The research team, led by Professor Akihito Shimazu from Keio University, conducted a randomised controlled trial involving 600 Japanese workers split evenly between an intervention group and a control group. Participants in the intervention group used WEDiary for two weeks.
“Through consistent engagement with this reflective practice, we expected participants to cultivate and accumulate positive emotions over time,” said Masahito Tokita, lead author of the study. “The transient experience of isolated positive emotions alone is insufficient for resource building toward work engagement. Instead, sustained accumulation of such emotions is essential, which is the goal of WEDiary.”
The app significantly improved employees’ work engagement in terms of vigour and dedication. “Our app significantly improved employees’ work engagement in terms of vigor and dedication. Notably, these improvements were observed after just 2 weeks of intervention and persisted for 3 weeks post-intervention,” said Tokita.
Professor Shimazu said the app’s low cost and scalability could benefit a wide range of organisations, including small and medium-sized enterprises and the public sector.
