BIO
Doc. Mgr. Kateřina Zábrodská, Ph.D., is an associate professor at the Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, Charles University, and a senior researcher at the Institute of Psychology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague. Her expertise lies in occupational health psychology and higher education studies. Over the past fifteen years, she has led studies focused on the psychosocial factors impacting occupational stress and well-being in the Czech Republic, particularly within the higher education sector. Her most recent projects include research on workaholism and work-related depression among Czech employees, psychosocial risks to occupational health in the Czech workforce, or the occupational well-being of Czech elementary school teachers. In addition to basic research projects, she is also involved in applied research and knowledge transfer, especially in the areas of psychological safety and interventions targeting unethical workplace behavior. She is a recipient of the Otto Wichterle Award, the Fulbright-Masaryk Scholarship, the Endeavour Europe Award, and other honors. In 2024, she was included in Forbes magazine’s prestigious selection of the most influential Czech female scientists.
Preliminary title
Organizational Resilience in Challenging Times: Pathways to Positive Workplaces
Annotation
In today’s era of polycrisis, marked by geoeconomic confrontations, turbulent technological developments, environmental challenges, and a growing mental health crisis, fostering organizational resilience has become a critical focus of organizational psychology. There is an urgent need for scholars and practitioners alike to find effective ways to conceptualize, diagnose, and promote resilience in organizations. Organizational resilience can be defined as the capacity of an organization to navigate crises and adverse events successfully, adapt dynamically, and thrive amid ongoing challenges. At the same time, it is crucial to recognize that resilience is not a static outcome but a dynamic, continuously evolving process that enables organizations to respond and grow from one crisis to the next. In this State of the Art Talk, Dr. Zabrodska will examine case studies of organizations that have transformed from toxic workplaces—struggling with abusive leadership, counterproductive behavior, and poor performance—into positive work environments. Based on the analysis of these data, she will identify the key psychosocial factors that contribute to the transformation from toxicity to positivity. Drawing on these insights, the presentation will introduce a theoretical model for building organizational resilience and highlight evidence-based interventions at the individual, team, and organizational levels that are essential for fostering resilience and sustainable development in challenging contexts.