A perception of low support from a supervisor can boost workplace happiness if a worker tackles exhaustion themselves, research has found.

A study by the University of East Anglia's Carlos Ferreira Peralta and Maria Francisca Saldanha from Wilfrid Laurier University in Ontario, Canada, discovered that workers' views of their manager's supportiveness and appreciation had an effect on how likely they were to overcome emotional tiredness themselves. Those who made plans to deal with the issue on their own were found to feel happier.

Dr Peralta, of the UEA's business school, said: 'Perceived supervisor support appears to be a double-edge sword, on the one hand preventing the emergence of emotional exhaustion but on the other hand diminishing the likelihood that employees will engage in planning to deal with the emotional exhaustion they are experiencing.'