Control, stress, and job satisfaction in Canadian nurses

The main effects of four domains of control (task, decision, resource, physical environment) on job satisfaction and their interactions with three types of job stressors (task demands, role conflict, interpersonal conflict) were examined in a sample of 765 Canadian nurses. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine the proportion of variance in job satisfaction that could be accounted for by job stressors, control, and the interaction of stressors and control in that order. The job stressors were analysed separately and as a composite job demands score, as were the four domains of control. The results indicated that the proportion of variance in job satisfaction increased with the addition of control for the composite scores and for task, resource, and physical environment control. However, decision control did not account for additional variance in job satisfaction above that for any of the job stressors. In addition, none of the stressor x control interactions were significant. The results support previous attempts to test the moderating effects of control, suggesting that perceived control is not a moderator of job stress but rather that it has a direct influence. The relevance of the different domains of control for nurses is discussed.     

Job stress in managers,professionals, and clerical workers

Abstract

The intensity and frequency of occurrence of 30 job stressors as measured by the job stress survey (JSS) were examined in white-collar employees of a large manufacturing firm, consisting of 68 managers, 171 professional (mostly engineers), and 69 clerical personnel. The highest levels of stress intensity were attributed to ‘lack of opportunity for advancement’ and ‘poor or inadequate supervision’. Individual stressors rated as occurring most often during the past six months were ‘frequent interruptions', ‘meeting deadlines’, and ‘dealing with crisis situations’. Factor analyses of the ratings of individual job stressors identified two job-stress factors, job pressure and lack of support, which were differentially related to age, gender, occupational level, locus of control, and job tenure and satisfaction. All three occupational groups attributed greater intensity to stressors that reflected lack of organizational support than to job pressures. Managers reported experiencing job pressures more often than professionals/engineers, but attributed less stress intensity to these pressures. ‘Lack of opportunity for advancement’ and ‘inadequate salary’ were the most salient stressors for the clerical workers. Implications of the findings for the design of stress management and organizational change programmes were discussed.     

Job stress in managers, professionals, and clerical workers

The intensity and frequency of occurrence of 30 job stressors as measured by the job stress survey (JSS) were examined in white-collar employees of a large manufacturing firm, consisting of 68 managers, 171 professional (mostly engineers), and 69 clerical personnel. The highest levels of stress intensity were attributed to 'lack of opportunity for advancement' and 'poor or inadequate supervision'. Individual stressors rated as occurring most often during the past six months were 'frequent interruptions', 'meeting deadlines', and 'dealing with crisis situations'. Factor analyses of the ratings of individual job stressors identified two job-stress factors, job pressure and lack of support, which were differentially related to age, gender, occupational level, locus of control, and job tenure and satisfaction. All three occupational groups attributed greater intensity to stressors that reflected lack of organizational support than to job pressures. Managers reported experiencing job pressures more often than professionals/engineers, but attributed less stress intensity to these pressures. 'Lack of opportunity for advancement' and 'inadequate salary' were the most salient stressors for the clerical workers. Implications of the findings for the design of stress management and organizational change programmes were discussed.     

Occupational stress, rescue workers and English law

This paper shows how two strands of English case law, one establishing liability to compensate for shock suffered by those at the scene of disaster, and the other concerned with physical injury suffered by rescuers, were brought together in the 1960s to provide a remedy for a rescuer suffering from what the law describes as 'nervous shock'. It further traces the development of employers' liability in this context, but finds that the law provides few examples of the contractual duty of employers to protect employees generally against stress that may cause psychological injury. It points out that there is no case law on the liability of employers for stress suffered by rescue workers, whether professional or otherwise. It notes that law reports give little guidance as to the medical evidence judges require to persuade them that nervous shock has been suffered. Finally, it spells out that EC-inspired regulations could now be used to require employers to assess, and take steps to control, stress to which their employees, including rescue workers, are exposed.     

Occupational stress,rescue workers and English law

Abstract

This paper shows how two strands of English case law, one establishing liability to compensate for shock suffered by those at the scene of disaster, and the other concerned with physical injury suffered by rescuers, were brought together in the 1960s to provide a remedy for a rescuer suffering from what the law describes as ‘nervous shock’. It further traces the development of employers' liability in this context, but finds that the law provides few examples of the contractual duty of employers to protect employees generally against stress that may cause psychological injury. It points out that there is no case law on the liability of employers for stress suffered by rescue workers, whether professional or otherwise. It notes that law reports give little guidance as to the medical evidence judges require to persuade them that nervous shock has been suffered. Finally, it spells out that EC-inspired regulations could now be used to require employers to assess, and take steps to control, stress to which their employees, including rescue workers, are exposed.     

Occupational stress, and teachers in Northern Ireland

This article reports the results of a study of occupational stress undertaken with a large sample of Northern Ireland teachers, including qualified staff up to headteacher level. This study formed part of a wider interprofessional study of teachers, nurses and social workers.

The design and methods are described and demographic characteristics of the teaching sample are provided, with their views about teaching. Stressors are identified in both professional and private lives. The effects of stress as manifested through the General Health Questionnaire and the Maslach Burnout Inventory are examined and the teachers' views on various stress coping strategies are discussed.     

Occupational stress in universities: Staff perceptions of the causes,consequences and moderators of stress

In recent years, the Australian university sector has undergone large-scale organizational change, including restructuring, downsizing and government funding cuts. At the same time, research from across the globe reports an alarming increase in the occupational stress experienced by university staff. We report on the first phase of a longitudinal investigation of occupational stress. A total of 22 focus groups were conducted with a representative sample of 178 academic and general staff from 15 Australian universities. The groups focused on understanding staff 's experience of occupational stress, and perceptions of the sources, consequences and moderators of stress. Both general and academic staff reported a dramatic increase in stress during the previous 5 years. As a group, academic staff reported higher levels of stress than general staff. Five major sources of stress were identified including: insufficient funding and resources; work overload; poor management practice; job insecurity; and insufficient recognition and reward. The majority of groups reported that job-related stress was having a deleterious impact on their professional work and personal welfare. Aspects of the work environment (support from co-workers and management, recognition and achievement, high morale, flexible working conditions), and personal coping strategies (stress management techniques, work/ non-work balance, tight role boundaries and lowering standards), were reported to help staff cope with stress. The findings provide a timely insight into the experience of stress within universities.     

Occupational stress in universities: staff perceptions of the causes, consequences and moderators of stress

In recent years, the Australian university sector has undergone large-scale organizational change, including restructuring, downsizing and government funding cuts. At the same time, research from across the globe reports an alarming increase in the occupational stress experienced by university staff. We report on the first phase of a longitudinal investigation of occupational stress. A total of 22 focus groups were conducted with a representative sample of 178 academic and general staff from 15 Australian universities. The groups focused on understanding staff 's experience of occupational stress, and perceptions of the sources, consequences and moderators of stress. Both general and academic staff reported a dramatic increase in stress during the previous 5 years. As a group, academic staff reported higher levels of stress than general staff. Five major sources of stress were identified including: insufficient funding and resources; work overload; poor management practice; job insecurity; and insufficient recognition and reward. The majority of groups reported that job-related stress was having a deleterious impact on their professional work and personal welfare. Aspects of the work environment (support from co-workers and management, recognition and achievement, high morale, flexible working conditions), and personal coping strategies (stress management techniques, work/ non-work balance, tight role boundaries and lowering standards), were reported to help staff cope with stress. The findings provide a timely insight into the experience of stress within universities.     

Neuroticism,locus of control,type A behaviour pattern and occupational stress

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between individual differences in personality and susceptibility to stress in the workplace. Stress in lecturers employed by a computer training organization was assessed by means of self-report and measurement of salivary cortisol output during lecturing and non-lecturing weeks. Neuroticism, Type A behaviour pattern and locus of control were measured. Self-reported stress was found to be much greater during lecturing weeks, but cortisol levels were unaffected by working conditions. There was a significant positive correlation between neuroticism and locus of control and a negative correlation between locus of control and Type A behaviour pattern that approached significance. Multiple regression was employed to explore relations between personality and stress. Subjects with lower neuroticism scores yielded a bigger increase in reported stress, in the lecturing compared with the non-lecturing week, than subjects with high neuroticism scores. Type B subjects showed a progressive decrease in cortisol over the working week while Type A counterparts showed a resurgence of cortisol towards the end of the week. Finally, Type B subjects having an internal locus of control showed a faster decline in cortisol level during the lecturing week than the other subjects. Implications of these results are discussed in terms of the importance simultaneously incorporating a variety of individual differences in personality dimensions and stress indices in research designs.     

Social construction of work stress: Australian newsprint media portrayal of stress at work, 1997-98

Public understanding of health issues is influenced by the social and political interests of those who gather the information and by the media which disseminates it. This has implications for lay people's beliefs about work stress and has potentially serious personal implications in terms of recognizing, reacting to, and reporting stress in the workplace (Furnham, 1997). The somewhat ambiguous nature of work stress renders it vulnerable to political, social and economic manipulation. This study explores how the issue of work stress is represented in the Australian newsprint media. Fifty-one work-related articles from all major Australian newspapers from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 1997 were selected if 'stress' appeared in the headline. The articles were examined for dominant ideologies and themes. Attention was given to the language used to describe stress, the intended audience, and the voices represented in the articles. Results showed that work stress is represented in the media as an economically costly epidemic, as an outcome of unfavourable work conditions but with individual remedies, and as primarily situated within the public sector. The main voice represented in the media was that of the unions. The reproduction of work stress as a public sector phenomenon serves the interests of public sector unions, the newspapers, and the managers of private sector workers and is not consistent with available workers' compensation data (which is itself problematic).     

Work satisfaction,health, and stress: A study of Dutch nurses

Abstract

A study was conducted to compare nurses' work satisfaction and feelings of health and stress in five different nursing departments: a cardiac care unit and a general surgical ward in a general hospital; and an admissions department, a short-stay department, and a long-stay department in a psychiatric hospital. One hundred nurses took part in the study: the instruments used were questionnaires and structured interviews. The main results showed that:

(1) nurses in the cardiac care unit had the most positive satisfaction scores

(2) nurses in the general surgical ward had the most positive scores on the health and stress variables

(3) feelings of dissatisfaction and stress were most prominent in the short-stay department and, to a lesser extent, in the long-stay department.

The findings are interpreted in terms of the different work situations and die implications for hospital management are discussed.

Dr J. A. Landeweerd graduated in industrial and organizational psychology in 1968 (PhD in 1978). He has worked at Eindhoven University of Technology (Department of Industrial Engineering) and now holds a position as senior lecturer at Limburg University (Department of Health Sciences), where he is project-leader for a number of research projects on the relationships between work and health.

Nicolle Boumans, MA, graduated in health sciences in 1985 (specialization: nursing science) and is now a research assistant. She is working on a PhD thesis concerned with the relationship between task characteristics of nurses and their reaction in terms of job satisfaction, health and stress.     

Work satisfaction, health, and stress: A study of Dutch nurses

A study was conducted to compare nurses' work satisfaction and feelings of health and stress in five different nursing departments: a cardiac care unit and a general surgical ward in a general hospital; and an admissions department, a short-stay department, and a long-stay department in a psychiatric hospital. One hundred nurses took part in the study: the instruments used were questionnaires and structured interviews. The main results showed that:

(1) nurses in the cardiac care unit had the most positive satisfaction scores

(2) nurses in the general surgical ward had the most positive scores on the health and stress variables

(3) feelings of dissatisfaction and stress were most prominent in the short-stay department and, to a lesser extent, in the long-stay department.

The findings are interpreted in terms of the different work situations and die implications for hospital management are discussed.

Dr J. A. Landeweerd graduated in industrial and organizational psychology in 1968 (PhD in 1978). He has worked at Eindhoven University of Technology (Department of Industrial Engineering) and now holds a position as senior lecturer at Limburg University (Department of Health Sciences), where he is project-leader for a number of research projects on the relationships between work and health.

Nicolle Boumans, MA, graduated in health sciences in 1985 (specialization: nursing science) and is now a research assistant. She is working on a PhD thesis concerned with the relationship between task characteristics of nurses and their reaction in terms of job satisfaction, health and stress.     

Work-related stress, coping resources, and heavy drinking in the restaurant business

On the basis of findings of high levels of alcohol consumption and risk of alcohol-related disease among employees of the restaurant business, the ability of the Karasek work-strain model to predict heavy drinking was investigated in a cross-sectional study of 3204 Norwegian male and female waiters and cooks. In the logistic regression analyses, no strong associations between work stress and heavy drinking were found. However, the effectiveness of individual coping resources, measured as frequency of difficulty in relaxing after work, was an important predictor of heavy drinking, as were household type, age group, and occupation. Although no strong direct associations between work stress and heavy drinking were found, the results are consistent with a model where coping resources are the mediatiing variable between work stress and heavy drinking.     

Work-related stress,coping resources,and heavy drinking in the restaurant business

Abstract

This study aimed to test whether curvilinearity would add explanatory power to the long-term relationships between job characteristics and mental well-being. The study was based on cross-sectional and longitudinal data from phases 3 and 5 of the Whitehall II sample (N=4154 for job satisfaction and 6000 for context-free mental well-being, mean follow-up 5.8 years). The curvilinear components of the job characteristics were introduced after controlling for the baseline outcome measure, demographic factors, and the linear measures of the job characteristics. The cross-sectional analyses showed only a curvilinear association with the expected U-shape between job demands and context-free mental well-being. The longitudinal analyses showed no curvilinear relationships between the job characteristics and context-free mental well-being. While small non-linear relationships were found between social support and decision latitude and job-related mental well-being, the shape of these relationships was the reverse of that expected. Post hoc analyses revealed that only the positive segment of the relationship between decision latitude and job satisfaction was significant, while both segments of the relationship between social support and job satisfaction were significant. The findings from this study, based on a large sample with high variety in working conditions, provide little support for the assumption of curvilinearity in the long-term relationship between psychosocial working conditions and mental well-being. This has practical implications, as if associations are linear this would indicate that it would be reasonable to take a population (rather than individually targeted) approach to stress management interventions.     

Power motivation,illness, coping strategies and psychological stress in police trainees

Abstract

Research suggests that there are substantial differences in the ways in which people cope with strcss, and that certain coping strategies buffer the degree of psychological and physical illness resulting from stress. Furthermore, personality, the situational context and subjective appraisal of the situation are believed to mediate coping behaviour and its effectiveness. The present investigation reports the results of two studies of the relationship between coping behaviour and the personality disposition need for power, taking into account the environment and the subject's appraisal of the situation. Highly power-motivated individuals were hypothesized to utilize emotion-focused coping strategies more than problem-focused coping strategies, to find the training environment stressful and anxietyprovoking, and to report more illness, than low power-motivated individuals. A 19-wcck policc academy training programme was used to measure these relationships in 34 police trainees. Thc results did not support all hypotheses. Findings are discussed with reference to sample characteristics, training intensity, and the empirical work in this area.     

Power motivation, illness, coping strategies and psychological stress in police trainees

Research suggests that there are substantial differences in the ways in which people cope with strcss, and that certain coping strategies buffer the degree of psychological and physical illness resulting from stress. Furthermore, personality, the situational context and subjective appraisal of the situation are believed to mediate coping behaviour and its effectiveness. The present investigation reports the results of two studies of the relationship between coping behaviour and the personality disposition need for power, taking into account the environment and the subject's appraisal of the situation. Highly power-motivated individuals were hypothesized to utilize emotion-focused coping strategies more than problem-focused coping strategies, to find the training environment stressful and anxietyprovoking, and to report more illness, than low power-motivated individuals. A 19-wcck policc academy training programme was used to measure these relationships in 34 police trainees. Thc results did not support all hypotheses. Findings are discussed with reference to sample characteristics, training intensity, and the empirical work in this area.     

Neuroticism, locus of control, type A behaviour pattern and occupational stress

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between individual differences in personality and susceptibility to stress in the workplace. Stress in lecturers employed by a computer training organization was assessed by means of self-report and measurement of salivary cortisol output during lecturing and non-lecturing weeks. Neuroticism, Type A behaviour pattern and locus of control were measured. Self-reported stress was found to be much greater during lecturing weeks, but cortisol levels were unaffected by working conditions. There was a significant positive correlation between neuroticism and locus of control and a negative correlation between locus of control and Type A behaviour pattern that approached significance. Multiple regression was employed to explore relations between personality and stress. Subjects with lower neuroticism scores yielded a bigger increase in reported stress, in the lecturing compared with the non-lecturing week, than subjects with high neuroticism scores. Type B subjects showed a progressive decrease in cortisol over the working week while Type A counterparts showed a resurgence of cortisol towards the end of the week. Finally, Type B subjects having an internal locus of control showed a faster decline in cortisol level during the lecturing week than the other subjects. Implications of these results are discussed in terms of the importance simultaneously incorporating a variety of individual differences in personality dimensions and stress indices in research designs.     

Job stress, job strain, and psychological withdrawal among Dutch university staff: towards a dualprocess model for the effects of occupational stress

This study examined the antecedents of job strain (emotional exhaustion, health complaints) and withdrawal behaviour (e.g. lowered organizational commitment) among a cross-sectional sample of 131 academic staff members of the law department of a large Dutch university. Conservation of resources theory (Hobfoll, 1989) provided the theoretical background for this study. Strains and withdrawal behaviours were expected to be most prominent among those who reported having few resources and/or who reported high job demands. Structural equation modelling revealed that this was indeed the case. As predicted, differential patterns of effects emerged for job demands and job resources. Analysis of the effects of four job-specific stressors revealed that especially the structural aspects of a staff member's teaching task (e.g. the number of students in their classes) contributed strongly to perceived job demands. Theoretical and practical implications of the study are discussed.