title: Returning employees back to work: developing a measure for Supervisors to Support Return to Work (SSRW).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Evidence suggests that supervisors' behaviors have a strong influence on employees' health and well-being outcomes. Few have examined the specific behaviors associated with managing an employee back to work following long-term sick leave. This study describes the development of a behavior measure for Supervisors to Support Return to Work (SSRW) using qualitative and quantitative research methods.
  
  
  METHODS
  Qualitative data were collected between 2008 and 2010 from a UK population of organisational stakeholders (N = 142), line managers (N = 20) and employees (N = 26). Data from these samples were used to develop a 42 item questionnaire and to validate it using a further sample of line managers (N = 186) and employees (N = 359).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Based on a factor structure and reliability results, four scales emerged. The measure demonstrated good internal reliability, construct and concurrent validity. Longitudinal data analyses demonstrated test-retest reliability and promising predictive validity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This is a potentially valuable tool in research and in organisational settings, both during long-term sick leave and after employees have returned to work.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Global Health and Human Development, School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, UK. f.munir@lboro.ac.uk
authors.forename: Fehmidah
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Munir
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yarker
authors.forename: Ben
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hicks
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Donaldson-Feilder
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001290:Attitude; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology*; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016272:Occupational Health; D010559:Personnel Management; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018582:Sick Leave / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom