workplace sociology gerhard ohrband 7 th lecture job stress and health
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Workplace sociology
Gerhard Ohrband7th lectureJob Stress and Health
Course structure
Part I Introduction1 Managing diversity2 History and context for Work and Organizational
Psychology / Roles and methods
Part IIPeople at work3 Job Analysis and Design4 Personal Selection5 Training
Course structure
6 Performance Appraisal: Assessing and Developing Performance and Potential
7 Job Stress and Health
Part IIIHuman Factors at Work8 Workload and Task Allocation9 Work Environments and Performance10 The Design and Use of Work Technology11 Safety at Work
Course structure
Part IVOrganizations at Work12 Leadership and management13 Work motivation14 Teams: the challenges of cooperative work15 Organizational development (OD)
Part II – People at work7 Job Stress and Health
Outline:1. Job stress as a social problem2. What is job stress?3. Job stress as a process4. Interventions to prevent or reduce job stress5. Introduction to Health Psychology
1. Job stress as a social problem
- Implications not only for the employees but also for organizations and society as a whole
- Survey among nearly 16,000 European workers: 29 % considered that their work actively affected their health (Paoli, 1997)
- Most frequently mentioned work-related health problems:
back pain (30%)stress (28%)overall fatigue (20%)
- Britain: National Survey of Health and Development: 38 % - “nervous strain” at work
- Prevalence rates rising continuously
Stress-related absenteeism In Britain, from 1955 to 1979, absenteeism due to
“nervousness, debility and headache” increased by 528 per cent (Hingley and Cooper, 1986)
In the Netherlands in 1967, when the Disability Security Act was introduced, mental disorders accounted for 11 per cent of workers’ disability claims. This rate continued to rise steadily, so that 30 per cent are now assessed as work disabled on mental grounds – the largest single diagnostic group, followed by musculo-skeletal disorders (28 per cent) and cardiovascular disease (8 per cent), respectively (Houtman, 1997)
Modern legislation attempts to reduce work-related health problems
a broad and positive health concept, i.e. instead of solely combating ill-health; health, safety and well-being at work are being promoted
a comprehensive approach, integrating health, safety and well-being at work
active involvement and joint responsibility of employer and employee
self-regulation by providing a supportive environment, e.g. by institutionalizing occupational health and safety services
2. What is job stress?
stress: cause as well as the accompanying state of tension, and the negative consequences of this state
little agreement on definitions no general theory of stress explanation: large number of disciplines
with different perspectives involved in stress research (biology, psychology, sociology, occupational medicine, epidemiology)
Three meanings of stress
However, three different meanings of the term stress can be distinguished:
1) stress as a stimulus2) stress as a response3) stress as a mediational process between
stressor (stimulus) and reaction (response)
Stress as a stimulus: poor work situationsCategories of job-related stressors
CategoryJob content
Working conditions
Stressorwork over/-underloadcomplex workmonotonous worktoo much responsibilitydangerous workconflicting/ambiguous demands
toxic substancespoor conditions (noise, vibrations,
lighting, radiation, temperature)work posturephysically demanding workdangerous situationslack of hygienelack of protective devices
Categories of job-related stressors
Employment conditions
Social relations at work
shift worklow paypoor career prospectsflexible labour contractjob insecurity
poor leadershiplow social supportlow participation in decision makinglibertiesdiscrimination
Stress as a response: job-related strain
Hans Selye (1978): General adaptation syndrome (GAS)Exposure to a noxious stimulus triggers a complex of
non-specific physiological reactions that are intended to protect the individual against harmful consequences
Three stages of GAS:a) alarm reaction (mobilization by means of
physiological and hormonal changes)b) resistance stage (optimal adaptation by
activating appropriate systems)c) exhaustion (depletion of adaptation energy)
Stress as a mediational process
cognitive, evaluative and motivational processes that intervene between the stressful stimulus and the reaction (response)
person/environment interaction potentially stressful stimuli may lead to
different types of stress reactions in different individuals, depending on their cognitive evaluations (appraisals) of the situation and the resources they have at their disposal to cope with the stressful situation
Stress reactions / strains
Five clusters:A) affectiveB) cognitiveC) physicalD) behaviouralE) motivational
Three levels of expression:individualinterpersonalorganizational
Possible stress symptoms at the individual, interpersonal and organizational level
Type/level Individual Interpersonal Organizational
Affective Anxiety, tension, anger, depressed mood, apathy
Irritability, being oversensitive
Job dissatisfaction
Cognitive helpless-/powerlessness, cognitive impairments, difficulties in decision making
Hostility, suspicion, projection
Cynicism about work role, not feeling appreciated, distrust in peers, supervisors and management
Physical Physical distress (headache, nausea, etc.), psychosomatic disorders (gastric-intestinal disorders, coronary diseases etc.), impairment of immune system, changes in hormone levels
Possible stress symptoms at the individual, interpersonal and organizational level
Type/level Individual Interpersonal Organizational
Behavioural Hyperactivity, impulsivity, increased consumption of stimulants (caffeine, tobacco) and illicit drugs, over- and undereating
Violent outbursts, aggressive behaviour, interpersonal conflicts, social isolation/withdrawal
Poor work performance, declined productivity, tardiness, turnover, increased sick leave, poor time management
Motivational Loss of zeal, loss of enthusiasm, disillusionment, disappointment, boredom, demoralisation
Loss of interest in others, indifference, discouragement
Loss of work motivation, resistance to go to work, dampening of work initiative, low morale
3. Job stress as a process
A process model of stress
situational resources
personal resources
stress reactionsjob demands
Job stress as a process
Michigan models
Other models …
Person-environment (P-E) fit model Vitamin model (Warr, 1987) Job demand-control model (JD-C) Job demand-control-support model
(DCS) Effort-reward imbalance model
Individual differences and job stress (genetic, acquired and dispositional characteristics)
Person-environment (P-E) fit model
Vitamin model
Warr’s vitamin modelEnvironmental features Type Matching personal characteristic
Opportunity for control AD High GNS, high ability
Opportunity for skill use AD High GNS, relevant unused skills
Externally generated goals AD High GNS, high nAch
Variety AD High GNS
Environmental clarity AD High GNS, external control beliefs
Availability of money CE High desire for money
Physical security CE High desire for physical security
Opportunity for interpersonal contact
AD High sociability
Valued social position CE High desire for social esteem
AD – additional decrement; CE – constant effect; nAch – need for achievement; GNS – growth need strength
Job-related affective well-being
arousal
displeased pleased
depressed
enthusiasticanxious
comfortable
The job demand-control model (JD-C)
low highJob demands
low strain active
passive high strain
Job decisionlatitude
high
low
A
B
A – adverse health, B - work motivation
The job demand-control-support model (DCS)
Effort-reward imbalance model (Siegrist, 1996)
extrinsic intrinsic
high effort low reward
job demands overcommitment moneyesteem
security/career opportunities
Workplace social support and job stress
Important factors: social integration satisfying relationships perceived available support actually received support
Four content types (House, 1981):1. emotional2. instrumental3. informational4. appraisal
4. Interventions to prevent or reduce job stress
Three levels:
the organizationthe individual-organization interfacethe individual
Five purposes for job stress interventions:
identificationprimary preventionsecondary preventiontreatmentrehabilitation
Interventions primarily aimed at the organization
Job stress audit Improving the job content and the work environment Proper time scheduling Management development Career management Corporate fitness and wellness programmes Anticipatory socialization Communication, decision-making and conflict
management Organizational development (OD) Institutionalization of occupational health and safety
services Employee assistance programmes (EAPs)
Interventions primarily aimed at the individual/organization interface
Personal screening Time management training Interpersonal skills training Promoting a realistic image of the job Balancing work and private life Peer support groups Coaching and consultation Career planning Specialized counselling Guidance and assistance with rehabilitation
Interventions primarily aimed at the individual
self-monitoring didactic stress management promoting a health lifestyle cognitive-behavioural techniques relaxation
A stress reduction process model
Discussion Points1. Which perspective on (job) stress (stimulus,
response, mediational process) do you find most attractive, and why?
2. In what different ways may (a) individual differences and (b) workplace social support play a role in the relationship between job stress and health?
3. Which job stress model do you favour, and why?4. What are the two main hypotheses of Karasek’s job
demand-control model? What is the reason for its popularity in research on job stress and health?
5. At what levels may job stress interventions occur? Which seems to be most effective?
Health Psychology Definition: Health psychology is the branch of
psychology that applies psychological principles to the understanding of health and illness
Factors influencing health can be External (in the form of stressors, health promotion,
advertising of health-impairing products) or Internal (in the form of thoughts, beliefs, decision
making and coping responses) Relatively new branch of psychology Slight overlap with clinical psychology Many theories and explanations derive from social
and cognitive psychology
Health and Clinical Psychology Similarities:Both study stress and
how people cope with it
Differences:Health psychology
tends to concern itself with bodily illness whereas clinical psychology is primarily concerned with mental illness
Whitehead’s (1995) factors contributing to health
General socio-economic, cultural and environmental conditions
Living and working conditions
Social and community influences
Individual lifestyle factors
Age, sex and hereditary factors
Literature Hingley, P. and Cooper, C.L. (1986). Stress and the Nurse
Manager. London: Wiley. Houtman, I.L.D. (ed.) (1997). Trends in en rondom arbeid en
gezondheid (Trends in Work and Health). Amsterdam: NIA’TNO. Karasek, R.A. (1979). Job demands, job decision latitude and
mental strain: implications for job redesign. Administrative Science Quarterly, 24, 285-308.
Paoli, P. (1997). Second European Survey on the Work Environment 1995. Dublin: European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions.
Siegrist, J. (1996). Adverse health effects of high-effort/low-reward conditions. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 1 (1), 27-41.
Warr, P. (1987). Work, Unemployment and Mental Health. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Journals British Journal of Health Psychology British Journal of Medical Psychology British Medical Journal Health Psychology International Journal of Behavioural Medicine International Journal of Stress Journal of Abnormal Psychology Journal of Community and Applied Psychology Journal of Health Psychology Journal of Occupational Health Psychology Journal of Occupational Medicine Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Journal of Social and Occupational Medicine New England Journal of Medicine Psychology, Health and Medicine Psychosomatic Medicine Social Science and Medicine Stress Medicine The Lancet Work and Stress
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