Anima for HR: The Next Frontier in Employee Well-being

Andrii Solonskyi, MS in Psychology January 22, 2025
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In today’s competitive corporate landscape, human resources teams are at the forefront of creating environments where employees can thrive. Employee well-being directly impacts performance, engagement, and retention – making it an essential metric for HR professionals to address proactively. In a recent study [1], 25% of employees report experiencing significant stress, with mental health being the top concern for workers under 35. Additionally, 85% of employees state that their workplace directly impacts their mental health and well-being [2].

As an HR professional, your role is not only to recruit and retain talent, but also to ensure they thrive. Organizations that fail to invest in mental health risk losing valuable employees to competitors who prioritize well-being. Conversely, companies that proactively support mental health see a more engaged, loyal workforce and measurable ROI. Research demonstrates that every $1 spent on mental health initiatives yields an average return of $4 in productivity [3].

Ignoring mental health issues in the workplace can result in staggering costs. High turnover rates, absenteeism, and lost productivity are often rooted in undiagnosed or unsupported mental health challenges. For example, studies show that poor mental health costs employers billions annually, with significant financial losses linked to burnout, disengagement, and reduced performance. To address these challenges, Anima offers a powerful solution that combines cutting-edge technology with a practical approach for HR professionals.

The HR Advantage: Data-Driven Wellness Insights

Traditional HR tools and surveys often rely on self-reported answers, which are subjective and may not always reveal the full picture of an employee’s mental health. Anima changes the game by offering something entirely different: a scientifically proven method that uses eye-tracking technology to provide clear, unbiased insights into mental well-being.

Here’s how it works:

  1. The user takes a test on their laptop, which includes showing pairs of images. The webcam on the laptop functions as an eye-tracker, identifying where the user focuses attention on the screen.
  2. Anima analyzes the user’s attention and engagement with various visual stimuli, uncovering patterns known as attention biases that are closely connected to mental health.
  3. Then, Anima generates reports with actionable insights for users and allows HR teams to monitor overall team well-being while maintaining individual anonymity.

Why Eye-Tracking and Attention Bias Matter

Eye-tracking technology offers a revolutionary way to understand mental health by analyzing where individuals focus their attention on different types of content, such as images or text, presented during the test. Unlike traditional self-reported surveys, which can be influenced by bias or incomplete responses, eye-tracking provides objective, real-time data about how individuals engage with their environment.

At the core of this approach is attention bias – the natural tendency for people to pay more attention to specific types of information while overlooking others. This bias shows how individuals focus their attention, revealing patterns that provide valuable insights into their mental health. Attention bias metrics explain how employees handle stress, collaborate with others, and make decisions.

For example, one such metric is called hypervigilance. It refers to a heightened focus on potential threats or problems, often stemming from chronic stress or anxiety. While it may initially seem like heightened attentiveness, in a workplace setting, it can lead to significant challenges. For instance, a hypervigilant team might overanalyze risks during project planning, delaying execution and frustrating stakeholders dependent on timely outcomes. This “paralysis by analysis” can create bottlenecks in workflows, disrupt timelines, and frustrate other departments that depend on their output. Moreover, hypervigilant teams may prioritize risk aversion over innovation, leading to missed opportunities for creative problem-solving and strategic growth.

Another key feature is avoidance, characterized by a tendency to disengage from stressful or challenging situations. While avoidance may serve as a temporary coping mechanism, in the workplace, it often results in delayed decisions, unresolved conflicts, and a lack of progress on critical tasks. A team with avoidance tendencies may delay addressing performance gaps or avoid giving feedback, leading to unresolved conflicts and inefficiencies. This reluctance can lead to missed deadlines and a growing backlog of unresolved problems. Over time, avoidance behaviors can disrupt interdepartmental collaboration, as other teams struggle to compensate for the lack of clarity or responsiveness. Moreover, avoidance often hinders open communication, making it difficult for teams to engage in constructive feedback or conflict resolution, which are essential for long-term success.

Another critical element to consider is dysphoric bias and its effect on morale. This bias involves a disproportionate focus on negative content or outcomes, often tied to low mood or depressive tendencies. A persistent focus on what’s going wrong can indeed make teams or departments more pessimistic, leading to reduced productivity and a lack of realistic decision-making. Over time, this negativity can create a feedback loop where employees feel increasingly demotivated, disconnected from their goals, and even at risk of developing depressive tendencies.

Lastly, anhedonic bias – a reduced ability to find satisfaction or joy in positive experiences or achievements. Teams or departments with high levels of anhedonic bias may struggle to maintain motivation, as they are less likely to feel rewarded by their accomplishments. Identifying and addressing anhedonic bias is crucial to maintaining a motivated, dynamic workforce as it is also a valuable precursor to employee burnout.

To complement eye-tracking, Anima also incorporates standardized questionnaires, such as PHQ-9 for depression or GAD-7 for anxiety. By comparing objective attention-based metrics with self-reported data, Anima provides a holistic picture of employees’ mental health, ensuring reliable and actionable insights.

Empower Your HR Strategy Now

As an HR professional, you have the power to shape a healthier, more engaged workforce. Anima provides you with objective, actionable insights into employee well-being, enabling you to detect challenges early, improve team dynamics, and enhance retention.

Empower your HR strategy with actionable insights. Book a demo today and see how Anima can help you foster a stronger, more engaged team.

References

  1. Aligning Employee Benefits with Worker Desires.
    https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/all-things-work/employees-want
  2. National Safety Council and NORC at the University of Chicago Announce New Mental Health Cost Calculator to Demonstrate Why Investing in Mental Health is Good for Business.
    https://www.norc.org/research/library/national-safety-council-and-norc-at-the-university-of-chicago-an.html
  3. Workplace Stress: Guidance and Tips for Employers.
    https://www.osha.gov/workplace-stress/employer-guidance