Managing Occupational Stress
Occupational health and safety is a strategic corporate responsibility objective, and this is most common in organizations operating in a society or community under the social regime model. Within the organization are occupational health and safety measures which include stress management in the workplace. The nature, amount and ways of doing the work of an employee have health impacts on individuals which may include stress. Stress acquired in the workplace contributes to poor health in addition to addressing a behavioural risk factor which is neglecting the overall health and not just mental or physical. Therefore, it is important for organizations to manage occupational stress by reducing stresses and stressors as experienced in the workplace.
Understanding stress greatly depends on how people take it. Paul Devito defined stress in his article The Immune System vs. Stress as ‘external forces of physical objects than to internal psychological states’. He maintained that stress is an extreme weight on a bridge platform rather than balancing family and professional pressures. He believed that stress implicates on the personality and health and psychological distress (1994). Control or the lost of it, over different circumstances is known as stress. It has biochemical and long-term effects.
Though there are many proven skills wherein anyone can use to manage stress, our normal life could be altered in ways we never imagined it would. People are always inclined to their feelings that are threatened by the situation as well as doubting their capabilities and resources in meeting the demands of the threats. The negative consequences of dealing with stress affects one’s social standing, people’s opinions, career prospects and individually-held values. The mobilization of the body for survival, in addition, negates an individual’s capability to interact effectively with other people. The intensity of stress can also make people more disoriented – incapable of making sound judgments and decisions, inattentive and more accident-prone (Levinson, 2004).
Jackson and Kochtitzky (2001) assert that human behaviours will play a critical role in determining and influencing human health. Further, stress is associated with impaired individual functioning in the workplace. Negative effects include reduced efficiency, decreased capacity to perform, dampened initiative and reduced interest in working, increased rigidity of thought, a lack of concern for the organisation and colleagues, and a loss of responsibility. Relating to stress, judgment, and the inadequacy of, of the importance people associate with those events affects the management of internal and external demands of events with respect to our resources. One’s ability to cope with these stressors based on the individual’s appraisal is optimal then (Priest and Welch, 1998).
Fairbrother and Warn (2003) argue that a number of aspects of working life have been linked to stress and that aspects of the work itself can be stressful, namely work overload, and role-based factors such as lack of power, role ambiguity, and role conflict. Organizations shall recognize a process to tackle stress and other health problems. It is in this way also that these organizations could address risk conditions. Having said this, quality of work life of the working patients may be also affected. Difficulties may develop that could affect the functioning of stressed employees particularly the physical and mental functioning. There is a need therefore to develop strategies pertaining to sustaining the quality of lives of stressed employees, reducing such and maintaining an effective stress management program. Creating organizational goals for occupational stress management is therefore relevant.
In organizations, more documentation, material and logistic support seemed necessary to develop effective stress management programs. Structured health service affiliation is also needed which can provide organization with linkages for potential health promotion initiatives related to stress management. In this way, workers may be ensured of counseling and health education and adequate follow-up. Administrative support is critical. The top management embodies the political aspect of the organization and securing political will is necessary to implement or sustain an existing cancer control plan applicable in the workplace. When creating goals, the organization must be certain that the stakeholders will support them. Goals therefore must be compatible with stakeholders’ personal health and values. Baseline data are also important for this. Aside from this, sufficient intervention timeframe is also needed to be devised (Priest and Welch, 1998).
References
Devito, P. (1994). The Immune System vs. Stress. USA Today, July, 27+.
Fairbrother, K. & Warn J. (2003). Workplace dimensions, stress and job satisfaction. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 18(1): 8-21.
Jackson, R. J. & Kochtitzky, C. (2001). Creating a Healthy Environment: The Impact of the Built Environment on Public Health. Monograph Series, 1-19. Sprawl Watch Clearinghouse, Washington, DC.
Levinson, M H. (2004). Managing Organizational Stress through General Semantics. ETC: A Review of General Semantics, 62(2).
Priest, S. and Welch, J. (1998). Creating a Stress-free Office: Gower Management Workbooks. Gower Publishing, Ltd.
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