Workplace stress

• Key source of stress in the workplace:

  Work Overload:

  -Often reported as one of the most stressful aspects of the workplace.

  -Sometimes has knock on effects, working longer hours can eat into time spent with friends and family.

  -Too much work to do and not enough time to do it.
• Key source of stress in the workplace:

  Lack of control:

  -In many organisations, other people determine your workload and structure of your day (lunch break, start and finish time).

  -Having little control over working environment can be a major source of stress.
• The job-demands control model - Karasek

  -Suggested that the stressful demands of a job, such as work overload, can lead to poor health, dissatisfaction and absenteeism.

  -But this relationship can be modified by the amount of control the employee has over their work.

  -When two people have equally demanding job, only the one who lacks control gets ill.
• Research into workplace stress - Johansson


  -Aim: is to investigate the workplace as a source of stress.

  -Procedure: Swedish Sawmill workers was the sample. Johansson looked at two conditions: one condition was the 'finishers' who has a lack of control over their work (determined by machines), but also a high responsibility and demand, if fell behind the production slowed down and the second condition was the 'cleaners' who could work at their own pace.
• Research into workplace stress - Johansson

  -Stress was operationalised as measured levels of illness and absenteeism from both groups and measured stress hormones.

  -Results: finishers group had a higher level of stress hormones than cleaners and it increased over the day. Illness and absenteeism was higher in finishers as well.

  -This suggests that high demand and lack of control are linked with stress related illnesses.
• A strength of this research is:

  -Measuring biochemical responses is highly reliable and somewhat valid, as some biochemicals are present in different situations.
• A limitation of this research is:

  -the sample consisted of only Swedish workers in a mill, which is not representative of many jobs and therefore the results may be difficult to generalise.

  -Validity is questioned as the experimenter could not manipulate the variables so can't be sure it was the conditions or other variables which caused the change.