In my critique of positiveness I raised a number of key concerns about the conceptualization and development of the positive perspective in organizational behavior and organizational studies. Roberts addresses some of my worries, but still leaves open some importance questions, in particular the ontological assumptions that underpin positiveness and the scope for embracing critical theory.

In this article I examine the attractions and shortcomings of the “positive” neohumanisitic turn in organizational theorizing and how positivity might be developed. I evaluate positivity's moral and cultural underpinnings and claims to separate positive from negative emotions, and I explore the deployment of positiveness in HRM programs of empowerment, emotional intelligence, and fun at work. I conclude with suggestions on how positive scholarship could be reconfigured in light of the present critique and against the emancipatory ideas of critical organizational theory.

The article reviews the book ?In Search of Meaning: Managing for the Health of Organizations, Our Communities and the Natural World,? by Thierry C. Pauchant.