About the Study

A team of University of Ottawa researchers wants to understand how public servants in Canada experience and cope with meaninglessness while at work. The goal is to better understand this under-researched and under-acknowledged phenomenon. There is a serious need for such knowledge given the amount of time people spend on their jobs.

This study is currently full and we are no longer recruiting participants. For more information, please contact the principal investigator Christopher Belanger via email:

 Christopher Belanger, PhD


Who is Eligible?

Please note that we are not currently recruiting participants.

This study was open to any Canadian public servant at any level of government (Federal, Provincial, or Municipal) or public agency who works in areas like strategy, public policy, program administration, and related roles (e.g. legal analysis).

About the Team

Christopher Belanger, PhD

Dr. Christopher Belanger is a data scientist and researcher who is currently completing his MBA studies at the University of Ottawa. Previously, Dr. Belanger spent five years in policy and strategy roles with the Province of Ontario and the Government of Canada advising senior decision-makers across the health and natural-resources portfolios. He holds a PhD in the Philosophy of Modern Physics (2015) and a BSc Hon. in Physics (2007), both from the University of Toronto.

Silvia Bonaccio, PhD

Ian Telfer Professor of Workplace Psychology

Silvia Bonaccio is a Full Professor at the University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management. Her work focuses on the facilitators of positive work experiences for employees living with disabilities. She also conducts research on the influence of anxiety and emotions in the employee assessment and selection process. She is known for her work on advice and decision-making. She has published in leading management and applied psychology journals, such as the Journal of Management, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, and the Journal of Organizational Behavior. She serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Business and Psychology and the Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, and she is an Associate Editor at Personnel Assessment and Decisions. She is past Chair of the Canadian Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology.

Samia Chreim, PhD

Ian Telfer Professor of Organization Studies

Dr. Samia Chreim received her PhD from HEC-Montréal. She held research and teaching posts abroad, in Quebec and in Alberta, and has been associated with the Telfer School of Management since 2006. She teaches courses on change management, strategic management and qualitative research methods in the areas of Business Management and Health Management.