Occupational Stress Experienced By Male1
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Transcript of Occupational Stress Experienced By Male1
Submitted to: Ms. Sehar Zulfizqar
Submitted By:
Amina MushtaqRabail TariqKhurram Naseem
Class: MBA (Finance)4th C
1
S. No Table of Content Page No
1 Introduction of the Topic 1-13
2 Introduction of the Departments 14-26
3 Literature Review 27-40
4 Problem Statement 41
5 Theoretical Frame work 42 -45
6 Hypothesis 46
7 Sampling Technique 47
8 Discussion 48
9 Questionnaires 49 - 51
10 Recommendations 52 – 54
11 Conclusion 55
12 References 56-57
13 Annexure 58-60
OCCUPATIONAL STRESS EXPERIENCED BY MALE
& FEMALE EMPLOYEES
This Research paper is submitted by Amina Mushtaq , Rabail Tariq, Khurram
Naseem in department of Management Sciences of NUML under the
Supervision of Madam Sehar Zulfiqar.
ABSTRACT
Stress in my society is very prominent in both my personal as Ill as professional
life. None of my occupation is free from stress. But the occupations that I
consider more stressful are medical, teaching, office work, labors and police.
The aim of this paper was to identify the sources and consequences of stress.
For this purpose I select sample size of 125 in which 25 Ire doc tors, 25 Ire
teachers, 25 Ire employees working in office, 25 Ire labors and 25 Ire police
officers.
Doctors Ire from Shifa International hospital, Teachers Ire from Educators,
Comsats, Beacon house, Employees Ire from NPSL and PEPAC and also from
NPB, and police officers Ire from Rescue 15 and police line.
Main focus of our study is on gender, hierarchy and age.
Declaration
I declare that “Occupational stress experienced by male and female employees”
is my own work and all resources we have used have been indicated and
acknowledged by complete references.
Acknowledgment
We would like to thanks
To Allah all mighty for His mercy, support and strength he gave to us
And then to all those people who support us and encourage us to make this
research possible. Very special thanks to:
Our parents especially our father Dr.Mushtaq Ahmad, Tariq Mahmood
Mughal and Naseem Akhter who support us through out our research.
Our supervisor Madam Sehar for her input and direction
Dr. Adil who through out support us in visit of Shifa International
hospital
Rescue 15 and police line for their encouragement and dedication they
show us in visit of their offices
Employees of National physical and standard laboratory , PEPAC and
National Bank of Pakistan for their support and assistance throughout our
research
Teachers of Educators, Beacon house, Comsats and for their assistance
and support they show us in their visit.
Motivation for the study
Internal and external factors have contributed to increase stress in almost all
occupations. Changing environment, new technologies, changing policies,
change from public to private organization, downsizing in organizations,
increase in shifts; they are all causing stress on employees. So; I am motivated
to know either male are taking more stress or females are taking more stress.
Aims and Objectives
The research aims to answer the following questions:
What are the symptoms of stress for doctors, teachers, and employees
having desk job, labors and police officers?
Does employee role in organization (Role ambiguity, Role conflict)
causes stress on employee?
Does individual characteristics (individual’s level of anxiety, tolerance
for ambiguity) causes stress on employee?
Is there any relationship between individual characteristics and
occupational stress?
Study relationship between gender and stress?
What are the work factors that lead towards stress?
Introduction of the topic
Stress in my society is not something that is invisible. Person whether a child,
adult, men, women, employed, unemployed every one is facing stress in his/her
own way.
When stress was first studied in the 1950s, the term was used to denote both the
causes and the experienced effects of pressures. More recently, however, the
word stressor has been used for the stimulus that provokes a stress response.
Currently, the disagreement among researchers concerns the definition of stress
in humans and their argument is based on the following question: Is stress
primarily an external response that can be measured by changes in glandular
secretions, skin reactions, and other physical functions, or is it an internal
interpretation of, or reaction to, a stressor; or is it both.
Every person has his own definition of stress. But according to Van Wyk (in
Olivier & Venter, 2003), stress is derived from the Latin word "strictus” that
translates into taut, meaning stiffly strung. Oliver and Venter (2003) rely on the
definition of Dr. Hans Seyle, who defined stress in physiological terms, as a
non-specific or generalized bodily response. The human body has a natural
chemical response to a threat or demand, commonly known as the “flight or
fight” reaction, which includes the release of adrenalin. Once the threat or
demand is over the body can return to its natural state. A STRESSOR is an
event or set of conditions that causes a Stress response. STRESS is the body’s
physiological response to the stressor, and STRAIN is the body’s longer-term
reaction to chronic stress.
Occupational Stress can be defined as the harmful physical and emotional
response that occurs when the requirements of the job do not match the
capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. Job stress can lead to poor health
and even injury. Long term exposure to job stress has been linked to an
increased risk of muscular skeletal disorders, depression and job burnout and
may contribute to a range of debilitating diseases, ranging from cardiovascular
disease to cancer.
There are large number of occupational stressors of varying degree and nature
experienced by male and female employees.
At work place stressors can be poor physical condition at work place,
Downsizing, Privatization, Hiring freezes, Contingent work (e.g. part-time or
temporary), Shift work/Rotating schedules, Quality Programs/Worker
Participation schemes, little autonomy or control over one’s
Job, Non-existent career ladders, Inadequate resources to do the job, High
demands, workload, time pressures, Lack of job security, Understaffing,
Mandatory overtime, Violence/Harassment.
Stress level changes according to Hierarchy. Lower level employees both male
and female experience stress in different way as compare to upper level and
middle level.
Stages of Job Stress
Job stress includes these stages:
The honeymoon
The awakening
Brownout
Full scale Burnout
The Honeymoon
During the honeymoon phase your job is wonderful. You have boundless
energy and enthusiasm and all things seem possible. You like the job and the
job likes you. You believe it will satisfy all your needs and desires and solve all
your problems.
The Awakening
The honeymoon phase wanes and the awakening stage starts with the realization
that your initial expectations Ire unrealistic. The job is not working out the way
you thought it would. It does not satisfy all your needs. As disappointment
grows, you become conferred. Typically you work hard even harder to “make”
your dreams come true. But working hard does not changes anything and you
become tired, bored and frustrated.
Brownout
As brownout begins, your early enthusiasm and energy give way to chronic
fatigue and irritability. You become indecisive and your productivity drops.
Your work deteriorates.
As this phase grows you become increasingly frustrated and angry. You are
beset with depression, anxiety and physical illness.
Full Scale Burnout
Unless you wake up and interrupt the process or some one intervenes, brownout
drifts remorselessly into full scale burnout. Despair is the dominant features of
this final stage. In this stage life seems pointless and there is paralyzing, “What
is the wee” pessimism about the future. You talk about “Jet quitting and getting
away”. You are examined physically and mentally.
This reaction to stress was first described in 1936 and was coined the General
Adaptive Syndrome (GAS), which includes three distinct, stages (Seyle, 1974;
1980):
1. Alarm reaction,
2. Stage of resistance, and
3. Stage of exhaustion.
Alarm Reaction
The alarm reaction is the immediate psycho-physiological response and at this
time of the initial shock, resistance to stress is lowered. This process includes
the secretion of hormones from the endocrine glands, causing for example,
increased heart rate and blood pressure, muscle tension and a decrease in
maintenance functions, e.g. digestion. In cases where the stressor is continuous,
the resistance phase starts where the body triggers the needed bodily system to
deal with the stressor. The body is alerted and activated and stress levels are at
its highest during this stage.
Stage of Resistance
The resistance stage is characterized by an adaptation response of the body that
is manifested with “fight or flight” responses. The body endeavors to remedy
the shock caused by the stress and to return the homeostasis of the body. If the
stressors continue, the body will persevere in defending itself, thereby impeding
any possibility of rest and repair.
Stage of Exhaustion
In the exhaustion stage, there is a resistance to a continued stressor, and where
the adaptation response and /or return to equilibrium replace the alarm reaction.
If the alarm reaction is elicited too intensely or too frequently over an extended
period of time, the energy required for adaptation becomes depleted, and the
final stage of exhaustion, collapse or death occurs. It is during this stage that
physical and mental breakdown occurs, the individual performance plummets
and illness develops.
Level of Stress
It is important to recognize that stress is not necessarily harmful. There may be
two levels of stress.
Moderate level of stress
Extreme level of stress ( Low or high)
Optimal level
In fact many researchers have concluded that moderate level of stress
enhances performance and health.
Extreme level of stress (Low or high) can be distressful because they serve
either to under stimulate or over stimulate.
Optimal level of stress can be challenging and produce (Positive feelings and
high involvement) rather than distress.
Therefore stress must be managed so that a proper balance is created which
allows for optimum functioning for individuals and organizations.
Occupational Stress process
Stressors Strains Work
outcomes
Perceived stress
Appraisal of situation
Emotional
Behavioral
Physical
Personal characteristics
Organizational characteristicsJob demandsRole characteristicsInterpersonal relationshipsWorking conditionsCareer concerns
Job dissatisfaction
Absenteeism
Turnover
Work ineffectiveness
Coping & Support
Reduced job involvement
Sources of stress
Economic conditions
Increased levels of competition
Market changes
Technological development
Changes in production and products
New forms of organization and product development
Drive for greater cost-effectiveness
General public concern for the environment
Changes within organization
Reorganizations
Layoffs
Organizational structure
Organizational culture/climate
Mergers, acquisitions and similar changes of company ownership
Workforce diversity
Reward systems
Promotion policies
Job security
Leadership style
More training needed, etc.
Poor fit between abilities and skills needed to perform job
effectively
Work overload
Pressure to work longer hours
Job characteristics
Conflicting job demands
Unclear job expectations
Pressures of responsibility
Time pressures
Lack of resources to perform job
Lack of information
Lack of collaboration
Relations with subordinates, coworkers and superiors
Working conditions
Physical danger
Over or under promotion
Insufficient training
Demographic characteristics
Coping skills
Work life conflict
Family problems
Personal problems
Social problems
Financial difficulties
Consequences of Stress
Stress produces a range of undesirable, expensive, and debilitating
consequences, which affect both individuals and organizations. In
organizational setting, stress is nowadays becoming a major contributor to
health and performance problems of individuals, and unwanted occurrences and
costs for organizations.
Stress can result in
Absenteeism
Turn over
Reduced job involvement
Job dissatisfaction
Its physical symptoms can be:
o Headaches
o Stomach problems
o Eating disorders
o Sleep disturbances
o Fatigue
o Muscle aches & pains
o Chronic mild illnesses
o High Blood Pressure
o Heart disease
o Stroke
Its psychological & Behavioral symptoms can be:
Anxiety
Irritability
Low morale
Depression
Burnout
Alcohol & drug
Feeling powerless
Isolation from co-workers
Musculoskeletal disorders
Effect of Job Stress on work outcomes
When person get stress on physic, emotion and behavior that person become
looser or he escapes from working. His behavior towards work changes and
ultimately the effect shows on different work outcomes. This workout comes
are as under:
Performance
Productivity
Job dissatisfaction
Reduce job involvement
Absenteeism
Turnover
Work ineffectiveness
Health
Managerial Costs of Job Stress
Health care costs consume a growing part of the costs of doing business. Job
stress has been estimated to cost American industry $ 150 billion per year in:
Absenteeism
Diminished productivity
Compensation claims
Health insurance
Direct medical expenses
To get some perspective, these costs are more than 15 times that of all
strikes combined.
For example:
o 500 million work days lost each year due to illness and
disability
o 93 million to back problems
o 23 million to cardiovascular complaints
Stressed workers smoke more, eat less ,are less motivated on the job, have
more trouble with co- workers and have more physical illness.
Introduction of the departments
Beacon house school system
The Beacon house School System was founded in 1975, tracing its origins to
Les Anges Montessori Academy. It is the oldest and largest private school
system in South Asia with presence in 26 cities across the country and student
strength of 125,000. Its purpose-built campuses in various locations nationwide
offer the finest facilities for teaching and learning in the country. These
campuses have been equipped with the latest state-of-the-art science and
computer laboratories. Beacon house has the rare distinction of being, if not the
only, then certainly one of the very few educational institutions in the world that
caters to the educational needs of students from the pre-nursery all the way to
post graduation. With the addition of Beacon house National University in
2003, Pakistan’s first liberal arts university; my students now have the
opportunity to pursue degrees till the graduate level. Beacon house Informatics
provides students with internationally recognized undergraduate degrees in the
field of computer science.
Mission
Beacon house aims to provide quality education of an international standard. I
aim for excellence through quality management, quality training and quality
teaching bringing benefit to my students, the community, the country and the
wider world.
Values
Beacon house Educational Services values the right of every individual to
realize his or her potential through the acquisition of knowledge, skills and
values in a caring and supportive environment. The Beacon house system
upholds the freedom of each student to think, create and discover, whilst
respecting the cultures and spiritual insights of others. I believe the human mind
grows best in a spirit of freedom and co-operation. I promote equal
opportunities for all my students irrespective of gender and of religious, social,
ethnic or linguistic background.
Rescue 15
The center headed by ASP/DSP operates round the clock in3 shifts. Each shift is
headed by an officer of the rank of Inspector who is minimum a graduate. The
Center has 12 Sections/Units and each if this is headed by an officer of the rank
of ASI/SI. Following are the sections:-
VEHICAL VERIFICATION SECTION
MOBILE FORENSIC LAB
MEDICAL UNIT
ADMIN SECTION
DUTY OFFICER
HELPLINE
WIRELESS & TELECOMMUNICATION SECTION
ROAD BREAK DOWN SECTION
ARMED RESPONSE UNIT
MOTOR TRANSPORT SECTION
SECURITY ALARM SECTION
MOBILE UNIT
Following are the resources at the disposal of the Centre:-
MANPOIR 80
DOCTORS 03
PATROL CARS 03
MOTORCYCLE 12
AMBULANCES 02
MOBILE FORENSIC LAB 01
RECOVERY VEHICLE 01
RADIO SETS 20
COMPUTERS 03
FAX 01
TELEPHONE CONNECTIONS 05
CCTV 01
The Educators
The importance of quality education particularly at school level cannot be
discarded. But since quality education is expensive, common masses remain
deprived of such a precious and worthy facility. At this critical hour, The
Educator has come up with a solution and in a small span of time has won a
great deal of recognition. It aims at providing “School Operations Management”
service to various investors. The service takes form of furnishing a
comprehensively uniform quality education system, Ill equipped with
professional teacher training programs, Ill-conceived lesson plans and Ill-
developed examination system. Its instantaneous and widespread acceptance
speaks volumes of strength of its system and philosophy and hence success. On
the other hand, being a pioneer in Pakistan, it is not only relieving the parents of
cost-effective-quality-education hassle but is shouldering the responsibility of
shaping and glorifying the future of my generations as Ill.
Mission
The Educators aims for a quality learning experience for the students and
quality training for the faculty by providing excellence in education within my
socio-cultural framework, bringing forth benefit to students, community and the
country.
Vision
The Educators envisions quality education as the key resource for national
development, delivered to a cross-section of my society through sustainable
projects.
Objective
The Educators aims to develop a vast network of cost effective, quality
education institutions throughout the country that offers standardized
educational experience through a network alliance.
The objectives are:
1. Providing quality, English medium education at an affordable cost.
2. Imparting a harmonious combination of traditional and modern teaching
and learning approaches.
3. Reducing the cost of education by standardizing the curriculum,
textbooks, stationary items, uniforms, building structures, staff development,
assessment, evaluation and monitoring systems.
4. Staying updated with the latest developments in the global schools
curricula and introducing them in Pakistan.
5. Training the teachers with new and more efficient teaching techniques
through professional development causes and distant-learning programs.
6. Building a network of schools penetrating deep into the social setup and
providing equal opportunities in education to all.
7. Supporting the national cause of improving literacy.
8. Extending continuous and updated staff development programs to a wider
cross-section of practicing professionals.
9. Ensuring sustainable profitability for the entrepreneurs.
10. Sharing expertise with strategic partners.
Comsats
The COMSATS Institute of Information Technology (CIIT) received its Charter
from the Federal Government in Augmet 2000, as a Degree Awarding Institute
(DAI) in the public sector. Pursuant to the Federal Government of Pakistan’s
decision, it is slated to be upgraded to the status of a university, more precisely
Comsats University (CU). Being federally established institute, the CIIT
currently has six campuses in Islamabad, Lahore, Wah, Abbottabad, Attock, and
Sahiwal, while one more campus is coming up at Gujarat. The future plans also
envisage opening of more campus in the provinces of Sindh and Balochistan, as
Ill as overseas. Currently the CIIT is offering 25 different degree programs in
the fields of Information and Communication Technology, Management
Sciences, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Mathematics, Physics,
Bio-sciences, Development Studies, Environmental Science, Meteorology, and
Architecture and Design. The present student strength is around 10,456 with
faculty strength of also nearly 1,189. The Institute in the short time has already
produced high quality graduates numbering more than 3,200, who are serving
the nation in the various callings. Recently, the Higher Education Commission
(HEC) of Pakistan has ranked the CIIT at number 7 in terms of research
productivity and at number 8 among the Engineering institutions of higher
education in the country during 2006.
NATIONAL BANK OF PAKISTAN
National Bank of Pakistan is the leader and possesses an outstanding position in
the local financial sector of Pakistan. National bank of Pakistan was established
on November 09, 1949 vide National Bank of Pakistan Ordinance XIX of 1949.
Objective
The main objective of the establishment of NBP was to extend credit to the
Agriculture Sector only. However, during the year 1950, the Bank’s Ordinance
was amended so that it could take up Ordinary Commercial Banking Business
as Ill.
National Bank of Pakistan has
29 regional offices
1250 Domestic branches
6 subsidiaries
18 overseas branches
1 joint venture with United National bank (UK)
4 Representative offices.
NATIONAL PHYSICAL AND STANDARDS LABORATORY
ISLAMABAD
The main objective of the NPSL is to maintain primary standards of
measurement and materials on internationally recognized level.
The NPSL is the national custodian of all physical standards of measurements
and materials. In simple terms this in fact means that NPSL is to realize,
maintain & disseminate the standards of measurement.
Thus NPSL by maintaining the national standards of measurements and
materials acts as the focal a point for all calibration / standardization and testing
needs of the country, and is the only certified link to the international
measurement system. By this it is meant that NPSL is the only organization
within the country which can certify whether a particular measuring instrument
conforms to the permissible norms and specifications required for measuring
instruments.
NPSL also due to its nature carries out inter comparison of its standards with the
ones held internationally so that it can be certain that any measurement made
with equipment tested by NPSL conforms to the same fact the essence of the
international co-operation under the SI protocol, which requires all
measurement worldwide to conform to one and the same standard.
Objective
Optimum utilization of indigenous raw material resources for the
development of industrial processes.
Development of technologies around local resources from bench to
pilot plant stages, and leasing them out for industrial exploitation
leading to import substitution and export enhancement.
To conduct R&D work on problems faced by the industrial sector
and maintain linkages through seminars, workshops, publications,
and provision of assistance to academic institutions.
To undertake cooperative research with local and foreign R&D
organizations and commerce-industrial outfits on projects of
national interest.
Human resource development through organized training causes
and diffusive on – job grooming of manpower for industry and
research centers to broaden the science & technology base in the
country.
PAKISTAN ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING & ARCHITECTURAL CONSULTANTS LIMITED
Pakistan Environmental Planning and Architectural Consultants Limited PEPAC established in i0th January 1974, according to company act PEPAC is a consultancy firm incorporated as private Limited company registered with SECP. Total capital is 1.1 million, 110.000 shares of 10. It is self financed company. Each and provides integrated services at all scale of the built environment. In over three decades since its birth, PEPAC has one of the foremost planning, architectural and development consultancy firm of Pakistan, with a considerable on the nation’ urban and rural scene. It has the head office in Islamabad and remaining three branches in Karachi Lahore and Peshawar. The firm is working under the ministry of environment. Designation of Tariq Mahmood Mughal is Private Secretary to Managing Director
MISSION STATEMENT
To develop a public sector pool of professional expertise charged with the responsibility to conceive, plan and realize a comprehensive and Ill-balanced development of the physical environment relating to different categories of regional planning, land use planning and urban and rural planning, etc.
To create an organization in the public sector for carrying out research activities in the field of environmental planning and in all development of architectural designing.
To develop adequate trained manpower in all fields of professional activities i.e. “development planning, regional planning, development economics, landscaping and landscape architecture, environmental planning, ecological science, natural sciences, architecture, engineering, industrial design, quality surveying, management sciences. The idea behind is that a coordinated, inter-related and multi-disciplinary manpower resources pool is generated and kept Ill supplied.
VISION STATEMENT
I am committed to continual improvement in provision of quality Engineering Services to Country.
JOB DESCRIPTION
To provide Town planning and Architectural Consultancy Services for projects initiated by Govt, Semi Govt and Autonomous Bodies.To carry out Research in the field of Environmental plans and Architectural Designing.
The firm’s professional expertise is marked for its diversity and extensiveness. This is illustrated by the work carried out by its professionals. Planning inputs at national, regional. Urban rural level, architectural design of the buildings, structural and environmental engineering and contact and project management services.
The following mega projects have been done by PEPAC:-
1. Supreme Court of Pakistan2. Ayub Medical Complex Abbottabod3. Hayatabad Hospital Complex Peshawar4. Awan-e- Iqbal Lahore5. Shaheed-e-Millat Secretariat Islamabad6. Major Projects of Special Education Centre all over the country.
SHIFA International Hospital Islamabad
The hospital was incorporated on September 29, 1987 as a private limited
company and converted into public limited company on October 12, 1989. The
primary objectives of the hospital are two: First, to set up a primary, secondary
and tertiary care hospital in federal capital, Islamabad with state-of-the-art
medical technology and second, to provide the highest quality of medical care
to the people of Pakistan through the extensive network of satellite hospitals and
modular clinics all over the country.
Literature Review
Stress, in general, and occupational stress, in particular, is a fact of modern day life that
seems to have been on the increase. The topic is, therefore, still popular, although
it occupies academics’ and practitioners’ attention now for more than half
a century.
Occupational (job, work or workplace) stress has become one of the most serious health
issues in the modern world, as it occurs in any job and is even more present than decades ago.
(Lu et al; 2003, 479)
Stress, in general, can be defined as the reaction of individuals to demands (stressors)
imposed upon them. It refers to situations where the Ill-being of individuals is detrimentally
affected by their failure to cope with the demands of their environment. (Erkutlu & Chafra,
2006, 287)
Occupational stress, in particular, is the inability to cope with the pressures in a job, (Rees,
1997) because of a poor fit between someone’s abilities and his/her work requirements and
conditions. (Holmluld Rytkonen & Strandvik, 2005) It is a mental and physical
condition which affects an individual’s productivity, effectiveness,
personal health and quality of work. (Comish & Swindle, 1994, 26)
Occupational stress has been associated with burnout, which is considered a product of long
term exposure to stress. (Burke & Green glass, 1994; Mearns & Cain, 2003).
It has also been strongly associated with temporary and chronic illnesses, such as headache,
hypertension, reduced immune response, stomach complaints, depression and stroke.
(Ashcraft, 1992; Burke & Greenglass, 1994; Guthrie, 2006; Kahn & Byosiere, 1992;
Kyriacou, 2001; Kyriacou & Sutcliffe, 1997).
Occupational stress has been linked to decreased job satisfaction and job commitment,
absenteeism (some of it probably due to illness), turnover and reduced performance. (De
Nobile & Mc Cormick, 2007; Jepson & Forrest, 2006; Kyriacou, 2001; Muchinsky,
2000; Spector, 2000)
Common organizational and individual stressors could be classified into five groups:
Organizational practices (performance reward systems, supervisory practices, promotion
opportunities), Job/task features (workload, workplace and autonomy), Organizational
culture/climate (employee value, personal growth, integrity), Interpersonal relationships
(supervisors, coworkers, cmetomers), Employee personal characteristics (personality traits,
family relationships, coping skills). Hurrell et al, (1998 in Murphy, 1995)
Job stressors can be grouped into the following six categories: physical environment
Role stressors, organizational structure and job characteristic*career development
Work-family conflict. Burke (1988 in Lu et al; 2003)
Six possible classes of stressors in an organizational setting are task-based stress, role based
stress, stress intrinsic to behavior, stress arising from the physical environment, stress arising
from the social environment, Stress within the person system. McGrath (in Tung & Koch,
1980)
Sources of stress at work: Factors intrinsic to the job, Management role, Relationship with
others, Relationship within the organization, Career and achievement, Organizational
structure and climate and home/ work interface Copper et al. (1988 in Lu et al; 2003)
factors relating to organization structure and climate that are stressors include hierarchal
bureaucratic structure that allow employee little participation in decision, lack of adequate
communication between managerial and non managerial levels; cynicism regarding
leadership and attempts by employees to further their own interest at the expense of others.
Limited opportunities for advancement, insufficient performance feedback performance
assessment measures being inadequate and biased control system within the organization. If
there is no involvement in decision making, lack of management support and problems
remained unresolved than those teachers suffers from more stress. Person’s family has a big
impact on one’s stress level. A family situation either a brief crisis, such as an illness of a
family member or long term strained relations with parents, spouses or children can act as a
significant stressor for employees. As employees are working longer hours and bringing more
work home at night, more and more pressure is being placed on work family relationships
and more emphasis on the coordination of work and vacation schedules and the search for
child care options has become prominent and very stressful. Transfer and promotion also
leads to stress. If female employee is transferred to other city how she can leave her family
and children? And if male is transferred to other city or country he can undergo cultural
shock and may experience* isolation. ( Fred Luthan 10th edition organizational Behavior
Stress & Conflict)
More simply, point that specific conditions that make jobs stressful can be categorized either
as exogenous (i.e. unfavorable occupational conditions, excessive workload, lack of
collaboration, etc.) or endogenous pressures (i.e. individual personality characteristics, etc.).
Antoniome et al. (2006)
Causes of occupational stress can be grouped into two main groups: (1) Job related stressors,
with three major subgroups Environment specific, Organization specific,
Job specific stressors. (2) individual-related stressors, which can be either a consequence of
individual characteristics or a consequence of individual life circumstances
Consequences of occupational stress can be grouped into Organizational level,
Individual level
On individual level there are three main subgroups of strains:
Unwanted feelings and behaviors
such as job dissatisfaction, lower motivation, low employee morale, less organizational
commitment, lowered overall quality of work life, absenteeism, turnover, intention to leave
the job, lower productivity, decreased quantity and quality of work, inability to make sound
decisions, more theft, sabotage and work stoppage, occupational burnout, alienation, and
increased smoking and alcohol intake, under eating/over eating , sleeplessness and tardiness.
Physiological diseases (poor physical health)
such as increased blood pressure and pulse rate, cardiovascular diseases, high cholesterol,
high blood sugar, insomnia, headaches, infections, skin problems, suppressed immune
system, injuries, fatigue, tension and back pain.
Psychological diseases (poor emotional (mental) health)
Such as psychological distress, depression, anxiousness, passiveness/aggressiveness,
boredom, lose of self-confidence and self-esteem, lose of concentration, feelings of futility,
impulsiveness and disregarding of social norms and values, dissatisfaction with job and live,
losing of contact with reality, emotional fatigue, anger, anxiety, nervousness, irritability and
boredom.
On the organizational level, consequences of occupational stress can be grouped into two
major subgroups:
Organizational symptoms
Such as discontent and poor morale among the workforce, performance/productivity losses,
low quality products and services, poorer relationships with clients, suppliers, partners and
regulatory authorities, losing cmetomers, bad publicity, damage to the corporate image and
reputation, missed opportunities, disruption to production, high accident and mistakes rates,
high labor turnover, loss of valuable staff, increased sick-leave, permanent vacancies,
premature retirement, diminished cooperation, poor internal communications, more internal
conflicts, and dysfunctional workplace climate.
Organizational costs
such as costs of reduced performance/productivity (lack of added value to product and/or
service), high replacement costs in connection with labor turnover (increase in recruitment,
training and retraining costs), increased sick pay, increased health-care costs and disability
payments, higher grievance and litigation/compensation costs, and costs of equipment
damage. (Ben-Bakr et al; 1995)
Consequence of stress results in a significant loss of skilled and experienced teachers through
resignation and /or premature retirement from all levels of the teaching workforce. (Warren
& Toll, 1993).
Dealing with Occupational stress
Firstly, organizations and their employees should become more aware of the degree to which
stress is an unnecessary cost, and a cost which they must seek to eliminate if their
organizations are to survive and grow. Naturally, this awareness must start at top
management level where the estimated cost of stress is sufficient to generate organizational
commitment to subsequent action. (McHug, 1993, 31)
Secondly, work-related stress should become an issue which increasingly features on the
agenda of efficient managers. (McHug, 1993, 18)
In an increasingly competitive and fast changing business world, efficient managers should
feel compelled to address the issue of work-related stress through counting the costs and
taking appropriate action so as to minimize its effects. (McHug, 1993, 19).
Managers should expend their efforts in reducing the significant sources of stress , as this
leads to a higher employee satisfaction, increases the productivity of the workforce and
reduces negative consequences of stress, which at the end results in higher profits. (Blake et
al., 1996).
Thirdly, training and employee assistance programs dealing with stress should be on
employees’ disposal. Various workshops, seminars and conferences should increase
employees’ awareness of the costs associated with employee stress, and should teach them
how to cope with stressful situations and states. As training can have a positive impact on
tacking stress in the workplace, as it helps employees become more resilient towards stress,
enables them to tackle the root causes of any problems, and helps managers who not only
need to manage their own stress levels, but are responsible for their direct reports.
(Suttleworth, 2004)
Exercise
People of all ages are walking, jogging, swimming, and riding bicycles, playing softball,
tennis in order to get some exercise to combat stress.
Relaxation
Whether a person simply takes it easy once in a while specific relaxation techniques such as
biofeedback or meditation, the intent is to eliminate the immediately stressful situation or
manage a prolonged stressful situation more effectively.
Behavioral self control
By deliberately managing the antecedents and the consequences of their own behavioral,
people can achieve self control.
Cognitive therapy
Besides behavioral self control techniques, a number of clinical psychologists have entered
the stress field with cognitive therapy techniques. Techniques such as Ellis’s rational emotive
and cognitive behavior modification have been used as an individual strategy for reducing job
stress.
Networking
One clear finding that has come out of social psychology research over the years is that
people need and will benefit from social support. Applied as a strategy to reduce job stress,
this would entail forming close associations with trusted empathetic co workers and
colleagues who are good listeners and confidence builders. These friends are there when
needed and provide support to get the person through stressful situations. (Fred Luthans 10th
edition Organizational Behavior Stress & Conflict)
Considering the organizational and personal costs of high stress, there is certainly an implied
payoff in training managers and employees to recognize organizational factors that contribute
to stress, and to take steps to alleviate them (Chmemir & Franks, 1988)
The personality variables that have been linked to stress include locus of control, self-esteem,
type A behavior pattern, hardiness, and negative affectivity. (Ganster & Schaubroeck,
1991).
Type A behavior style is characterized as aggressive, ambitious, hard-driving, impatient,
seeking to control and expressing time urgency. It may lead to both positive (high
performance), and negative (high strain and burnout) outcomes. Type A characteristics are
more likely to create strain for themselves by increasing their workload, and often appraise
events to be more stressful than do the Type B counterparts.
Negative affectivity reflects a stable tendency to experience low self-esteem and negative
emotional states; individuals have a gloomy view of the world, and may be more sensitive to
stressful conditions.
Demographic variables that are proven to relate to someone’s job stressor/health relationships
include gender, age, marital status, job tenure, job title, and hierarchical level. Women
experience the greater level of stress as they are more vulnerable to the demands of work to
the extent that they often have more non-work demands than men. (Ganster & Schaubroek,
1991).
Lastly, staff employed at the higher job levels Ire found to be less stressed that those
employed at the lower job levels. (Dua, 1994)
As Ill, different levels of management influence preference for stress coping styles,
specifically, as it is progressed towards the more senior levels of management, delegation and
maintaining style relationships are considered the most useful forms (Kirkcaldy &
Furnham, 1999).
Numerome studies have established that teaching can be a stressful profession. Teacher
occupational stress has been linked to absenteeism, turnover, and other negative
organizational outcomes. (John J. De Nobile & John McCormick, 2007).
For example; there is study on relationships betIen biographical variables and occupational
stress of staff members in catholic primary school. Occupational stress has been describe as
the experience of negative feelings such as frmetration, worry and anxiety perceived to arise
from work related factors. (Kyriacou, 2001)
There is a research that female teachers experienced significantly higher levels of
occupational stress than males. Younger teachers experienced higher levels of burnout,
specifically in terms of emotional exhametion and disengagement from the profession, while
older teachers experienced higher levels of stress in terms of the support they feel they
receive from the government. (Antonio, A-S; Polychroni, F; Vlachakis, A.-N, 2006).
Research has indicate that continued stress can drastically lower job satisfaction and
performance and can also damage the individual’s personal life(Kobassa 1982
a,b,1,84;Fimian and Santoro,1983).
The term burnout is often using to describe the effects of continual stress. Other variables
associated with teacher stress and burn out are Role problems, Loss of control, Isolation,
Dissatisfaction with salary, Role overload, Role ambiguity, Lack of administrative support
(Fimian, 1986).
A complex relationship appears to exist between occupational stress and age.
Significant differences in stress among age groups, but these differed according to the
stressors. For example, the youngest group of teachers (aged less than 26 years) reported
greater stress from pupil behavior issues than older colleagues, while teachers aged between
26 and 30 years reported higher stress from professional recognition needs than their younger
and older colleagues. In the same study the oldest group of teachers (aged over 40 years)
reported higher levels of stress from curriculum demands than their younger colleagues.
(Laughlin, 1984)
Research identifies differing rank orders of the strengths of a set of stressors for each years of
experience category. (Borg and Falzon, 1991).
However, a number of studies suggest that experience has no relationship with occupational
stress .In the late 1990’s the Naval services (NS), consisting of Royal Navy (RN) and the
Royal marines (RM), embarked upon a program of research into occupational stress, led by
G.Slaver. The program was designed to support the development of health and safety policy.
(Chaplain, 1995; sepson and Forrest, 2006; Solmon and Feld, 1989).
Between 1995 and 1996 NS personnel was medically downgraded, prior to medical discharge
but there was no audience of high levels of anxiety and depression.
Naval services have seen increasing work demands, reduction in manpower and societical
and organizational changes affected the service. The years 1999-2004 Ire marked by several
major conflicts (e.g. in Afghanistan and Frag) as Ill as extra work, such as the provision of
cover doing the firemen and strike.( A. Shariff, G. Slaven, N. Pullinger, G. H. G.
McMillan, unpublished MoD report).
According to research job demand control model, strain occurs when high job demands
combine with low opportunity to influence tasks and procedures, resulting in poor
employee’s health and low job satisfaction. (Karasek, 1999 & 2004).
Social support as stress buffer, predicting that employees strain would be highest when work
demands are high with low levels of work control and social support. (Karasek and
Theorell).
In NS personal spend much of then time at sea, separated from their families and working
long hours at sea places constraints on individuals that are different to and in many ways
greater then those experienced in every day life.
By understanding the stressors that prevail in the work place, the appropriate steps can be
undertaken to assist in the reduction of stress levels. An organization could consider the
provision of skilled support, by employing a full-time counselor that could provide the
needed counseling services or use employee assistance programs (EAPs). Counseling
involves a set of techniques, skills and attitudes to help people manage their own problems
using their own resources. Other methods of stress prevention include: training individuals in
stress management techniques, managing morale and utilizing teamwork.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Survey of Occupational injuries and Illnesses classifies Occupational stress as “neurotic reaction to stress.” There was 3,418 such illnessCases in 1997. The median absence from work for these cases was 23 days, more than four times the level of all nonfatal occupational Injuries and illnesses. And more than two-fifths of the cases resulted in 31 or more lost workdays, compared to one-fifth for all injury and illness
cases. For every case of occupational stress involving a male, 1.6 cases involved a female. The opposite was true for all occupational injuries and illnesses: For each case involving a female, two cases involved a male. Stress ranged from 0.6 for managerial and professional occupations to 1.6 for technical, sales, and administrative support occupations. . (U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics Summary 99-10 September 1999)
Veterinary surgeons facing the act of euthanasia involving pets they have grown fond of may suffer from emotional conflict and ambivalent feelings (Arluke, 1991). Relationships with clients also represent an important source of stress. A small percentage of clients complain, and new practitioners must be highly skilled in communicating with people to maintain proper relationships with clients (Bledsoe, 1991; Rmesel, 1994; Kogan and McConnell, 2001).
There is a research that only 1.7% of veterinary surgeons demonstrated severe symptoms of burnout. Elkins and Elkins (1987) presented similar results. Rejulaet al. (2003) Suicide among veterinary surgeons for example, has been used as an indicator of the high stress level in this occupation. (Jeyaretnam et al., 2000; Bartram and Baldwin, 2008),Concerning gender differences, reported that stress affects mostly young women in small animal practice (mainly because of the relationships with clients in clinical practice). (Gardner and Hini, 2006).
If exposure to stressors continues for a longer period of time, chronic health problems can develop, such as:Physical Conditions:High Blood Pressure, Heart disease, Stroke, Spastic colon, Immune system dysfunction, Diabetes, Asthma, Musculoskeletal disordersPsychological & Behavioral Problems:Serious depression, Suicidal behavior, Domestic violence, Alcohol abuse, Substance abuse Burnout (PEF Health and Safety Department, 2006)
The CIPD Annual Survey Report (2005) also indicated that stress is a major cause for concern. In their study of 1,038 HR practitioners they found that stress and mental ill health Ire the top two causes of ill health among non-manual employees. 39% of employers reported an increase in stress related absence compared to the previous year. They found that the main reported cause of stress across all sectors was workload/volume of work experienced by individuals.Clinical work in mental health may be considered stressful for a variety of reasons. Certain stress-generating situations are also common in work with other, non-psychiatric patients. Classic examples of these kinds of demands are overwork and the limited capacity to alter the cause of certain disorders. Meanwhile, day-to-day work demands a more or less profound empathic relationship with patients over what may be a lengthy period (Pines and Maslach, 1978)
(In Canada, the Women’s Health Bureau of Health Canada defines gender-based analysis as ‘‘a method of evaluation and interpretation which takes into account social and economic differences between women and men, whether applied to policy and program development, or general life activities such as work/family roles’’ (Women’sHealth Bureau, 2000).
In the United States, the 1993 NIH Revitalization Act was passed with the intention of promoting gender-balanced enrolment in clinical trials and the use of gender-specific analyses of data. Although compliance with such policies has not always been perfect (Ramasubbu et al., 2001; Caron, 2003).
Researchers have been encouraged to explore sex differences in physiological parameters and in susceptibility to disease environmental toxins (Wizemann,2001).
There are two kinds of professional in this domain (clinical psychologists and psychiatrists) with an equivalent level of clinical-therapeutic responsibility who carry out their duties on the same sites. Most of the studies in the literature consist of samples of nurses or physicians and, while comparative studies amongst these groups are scarce, research comparing psychologists and physicians are practically non-existent (Alvarez y Fernandez Rios, 1991).
Since the term burnout, it has mainly been used to describe a state of physical and emotional exhaustion whose characteristics have been mostly applied to human services professionals, within which health staff is included. Freedenberg (1974)
However, nowadays there is a trend to consider burnout as a specific form of occupational stress or a subclass of stress effects in individuals (Shinn, Rosario, Morch and Chesnut, 1984; Moreno, Oliver y Aragoneses, 1991).
According to research I consider that stress arises when an individual estimates that environmental demands override his/her own adjustment resources (Lazarme and Folk man 1984),
There is a research employer that they could improve job-related mental health without sacrificing productivity. That is, organizations could reduce job strain by increasing employee control or decision latitude, without reducing actual workload. Employers could fine-tune their administrative structure in order to reduce employee stress and protect workers’ mental health – without cutting productivity (Karasek, 2003)
Namely, the world of work differs considerably from the working environment of 30 years ago: longer hours at work are not unusual, frequent changes in culture and structure are often cited, as Ill as the loss of lifetime career paths which all leads to greater presence and levels of stress... (Cooper & Locke, 2000 in Fotinatos-Ventmyatos & Cooper 2005). 1
Survey of the literature on occupational stress reveals that there are a number of factors related to job, which affect the behavior of the employees and as a result of it, normal life is disturbed (McLean, 1974; Brief, Schular and Vansell, 1981).
The study of (University of London, UK) says that individual perception also plays a roll in occupational stress that different employees perceive and react differently in given situation of work environment, some with high stress levels and some with low or even do not. (Michael Marmot)
The major source of stress is derived from the occupational environment; proponents of this view tend to argue that role holders in
certain occupation, irrespective of individual differences, are much more likely to experience stress. Here, the emphasis is on the individual demands of various jobs that have the capacity over a period of time to exhaust the physical and psychological resource of employees in the organization. (Orpen, 1991)
Multiple goals and managers’ job-related tension and performance suggested that job-related tension and performance deteriorate as managers pursue multiple goals although the relationship seems to be non-linear. The relative importance of goals does not appear to be important. (Emsley, 2003)
Sources of occupational stress among Malaysian managers working in multi-national companies (MNCs).It was found that workloads, working conditions, and relationship at work Ire the main concern of the managers that lead to stress at the work place. The results also indicated that certain demographic variables do influence the level of stress among managers. (Manshor, Fontaine and Chong Siong Choy, 2003)
Study on Role of Human-Computer Interaction Factors as Moderators of Occupational Stress and Work Exhaustion found that IT professionals have long work hours with different time zones, total team work, task to be completed on deadline with perfection as per client needs, which requires interpersonal, technical, and organizational. These characteristics lead to occupational stress. (K. S. Rajeswari and R. N. Anantharaman, 2005).
In an article Burnout published in Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2006 said that rapid change of the modern working life is associated with increasing demands of learning new skills, need to adopt to new types of work, pressure of higher productivity and quality of work, time pressure and hectic jobs are increasing stress among the workforce. Further he added that privatization and globalization has ignited mergers, acquisitions, and precarious employment has critically affected the domestic industry.
Change the Organization to Prevent Job Stress; the workload should be in line with workers’ capabilities and resources, Job design should stimulate and provide ample opportunities for workers to use their skills, Clarity in workers’ roles and responsibilities Worker’s participation in making decisions for those actions affecting their interests Improved channels of communication, Drawl of clear career development chart, Ensuring social interaction opportunities among workers
Work stress may be transmitted to family members, and this may particularly be aProblem in high stress occupations such as policing, which has been ranked among the top five most stressful occupations (Dantzer, 1987).
Much of the research on this occupational subgroup has centre on male officers. However, women police may experience qualitatively different sources of stress from male officers (Brown and Fielding, 1993, Thompson, Kirk-Brown and Brown, 1999).
In addition, the interface between work and family is experienced differently for men and women, with women experiencing more role overload and work-family conflict Consequently, the experience of male officers, especially in terms of sources of stress and theImpact of work stress on the family, cannot be directly applied to women officers. (Thompson, 1996).
Police officers admitted taking out stress on their families; unfortunately they do notReport on the number of female officers in their sample making it difficult to infer the extent to which these results reflect a primarily male perspective(Alexander and Walker, 1994) Higher occupational demands experienced by men are correlated with dissatisfaction and distress in wives (Burke, Weir & Duwors, 1980),
Police officers experiencing high stress are likely to be more angry, uninvolved in family matters, and have unsatisfactory marriages (Jackson & Malasch, 1982).
Sample of police officers (92% male), negative effects of work demands on family (inParticular concerns about health and safety) Ire related to work attitudes and emotionalWellbeing (Burke, 1994).
In physics, stress is a pressure exerted on a body. Sources of physical stress areFound in tons of rock crushing the earth, in cars smashing one another, and in stretchingRubber bands. Psychological stresses also “press,” “push,” and “pull.” People can feel“Crushed” by the need to make a life changing decision. They can feel “smashed” by aDisaster, or “stretched” to the brink of “splitting” (Steber, 1998).
When most people talk about stress, it is usually in terms of pressure they areFeeling from something happening around them or to them. Students talk about beingUnder stress because of poor exam performance or an impending deadline for a majorPaper. Parents talk about the strain of raising teenagers and the financial burdens ofRunning a household. Teachers talk about the pressure of maintaining professionalCurrency while still managing to keep on top of duties connected with the classroomTeaching. Doctors, nurses, lawyers, and therapists talk about meeting the endless demandsOf their patients and clients (Rice, 1992).
Studies, found that daily hassles a person experiences are more harmful to his or her health than are the significant life changes that concerned Holmes and Rahe. Lazarme believes these daily events are so damaging to health because of how frequently they occur, as compared to the major life events that Holmes and Rahe researched, which Ire usually encountered only rarely.(Richard Lazarme .984),
Factors that ere derived from sources of work stress items (i.e., role, poor support, clients, future, and overload), which accounted for 70% of the total variance. In addition, 4 factors Ire derived from the items related to sources of job satisfaction (i.e., career, working with people, management, and money), accounting for 68% of the total variance. Stress from “overload” was associated with emotional exhaustion and with worse mental health accounting for less “career” satisfaction (Prosser, Johnson, Kuipers, Szumukler, et. al, 199
The field of grammatology has inadvertently ignored a large segment of traumatized people: the family and other supporters of "victims." In other words, I have ignored those suffering in their own right as a result of a loved one being traumatized. This suggests that there is a kind of transmission of trauma from the victim to the supporters; this phenomenon is described as "compassion stress," and the most negative consequences of this stress result in "compassion fatigue" (Figley, 1998)
In particular, conflicting, incompatible, or unclear expectations about one’s professional role within an organization have been identified as being responsible for job strain in human services areas. In addition, social workers carry a variety of inherent stressors such as: untreatable, combined problems; hard-to-reach clients; sometimes unobservable outcomes of their work; and diminishing resources. Combined with the inherent stressors of the social work profession, role stressors such as role conflict and role ambiguity in social work settings appear to have much greater impact on job strain than do role stressors in any other occupation. Hence, among many important antecedents of burnout, role stressors (role conflict or role ambiguity) have been selected as the major predictive variable of burnout (Um & Harrison, 1998).
Theoretical frame work
Need for theoretical frame work
After conducting surveys, completing a literature review and defining
problem statement, one is ready to develop a theoretical frame work.
A theoretical frame work is a conceptual model of how one theorizes or
makes logical senses of the relationships among the several factors that have
been identified as important to the problem.
After theoretical frame work I develop hypothesis to examine whether the
theory formulated is valid or not. The hypothesis relationships can therefore
be tested through appropriate statistical analysis.
Problem Statement:
It is a Comparative Study on the occupational stress experienced by male
and female employees and its impact on their optimal functioning.
Dependent Variable:
The dependent variable is the variable of primary interest to the researcher.
The researcher’s goal is to understand and describe the dependent variable,
or to explain its variability, or predict it. In my study dependent variable is
Occupational Stress.
Independent Variable:
This is of primary focus and area of interest. The independent variables that
have a direct correlation with the dependent variable in this case are:
Physical conditions
Gender
Position
Role ambiguity
Moderating Variable:
The moderating variable has a contingent effect on the independent and
dependent variables relationship. I have taken Organizational environment
as a Moderating Variable.
Intervening Variable:
The intervening variable is the one that surfaces between the time the
independent variables start operating to influence the dependent variable and
the time their impact is felt on it. In my study Creative Synergy is
intervening variable.
Independent Intervening Dependent
Physical condition
Gender
Age
Role ambiguity
Creative Synergy
Occupational Stress
Organizational Environment
Moderating variable
Hypothesis development
Hypothesis can be defined as logically conjectured relationship between two
or more variables in a form of testable statement.
Hypothesis Statements:
Ho: Due to increase in age, employees do not take more stress.
H1: Due to increase in age, employees take more stress.
Ho: Gender difference does not leads towards any type of stress.
H1: Gender difference leads towards stress
Ho: Physical conditions do not lead towards stress
H1: Physical conditions lead towards stress
Ho: Role ambiguity does not develop occupational stress in employees
H1: Role ambiguity develops occupational stress in employees.
Methodology
Introduction
According to my topic “occupational stress experienced by males and
females employees”, it was my need to use questionnaires, because any
other tool like interview or observation was not so competent as compared to
questionaire4s. I have done my date analysis on Ms. Excel.
Significance
I use this methodology because it was helpful in interpretations and findings
of each occupation used in my study.
Objectives
To compare occupational stress in following occupations
Doctor, Police, teachers, employees having desk job, labors.
To compare the level occupational stress in males and females
employees of the above mentioned occupations.
Sampling Techniques
I use following sampling techniques in my study
Data collection method
I used questionnaires as data collection tools. I have floated these
questionnaires in the following organizations.
SHIFA International
Beacon House School System
National Physical and Standard Laboratory
Pakistan Environmental Planning and Consultants PEPAC
National Bank of Pakistan
Comsats University
Rescue 15
Police Line
Punjab Special education (Regional Branch RWP)
I distributed 25 questioners in each organizations among which 12 Ire filled
by females’ and 13 by males
Sample size
I selected sample size of 125 because it gave me more detail picture of my
study.
Data Analysis
I have used ms excel for measurement of my result. Because it has all the
formulas at one place and give me accurate and proper results
Discussion:
The sample consisted of 125 professionals. The majority of respondents were male N = 63 (50.4%).The majority of respondents as observed were in the age group of 21-30 years {N = 37 (29.6%)}.
According to research we found that majority of people are agreed with physical conditions causing stress. Mostly people prefer role ambiguity as cause of stress.
Despite the results of the T-Test with respect to job stress based on the gender of respondents, the results indicate that there are statistically significant deference in the stress level of employ base on the gender, with male employees experiencing, significantly lower level of stress, compared to female employees.
The reason why females’ employees experienced more stress than men may be due to the facts that there are more committed to there jobs. They have more barriers to over come and attain their position.
Role ambiguity in female employees is also high, also role conflict, like a female employee’s role as manager may require her to work on Saturday, but her role as mother requires her to attend her family function.
Physical condition like noise, lighting, etc also causes stress. Stress full situation occur within organization culture function, structure, the
nature of the Management Procedure, insufficient training of employees. Females also feel more stress because of family problems.
Examples:
Female
o Lady Doctor ……….. Stress because of night shifts.
o Female Teacher …… School Timing are more, especially went to take
class in evening.
o Female Police ….. No respect in society
o Labor …….Financial problem
o Female Employees ……. Timing + glass ceiling.
MaleDoctors ……… Fatigue, overloaded work Teachers…….. Inadequate salary Police ……. No respect in society, + Role ambiguity Labor……. Financial problems, Fatigue.Employees... Timings, organizational politics
RECOMMENDATIONS
EDGAR SCHEIN four step approach:
Step 1: involves diagnosing the situation and correctly identifying the real
source of problem. In this step one needs to understand whether the stress
comes from work, family, personal concerns or some combination of these
sources.
Step 2: involves self assessment, it is essential to take (and make) the time
to reflect on feelings and motives and to be familiar with “ blind spots” or
other defenses that shield people from and insightful understanding of
themselves.
Step 3: A coping response is selected. By talking with peers, family
members, friends, neighbors and community resources about problems and
stresses and by establishing supportive relationships with others, one can
choose an appropriate coping response. It is important to identify either
external coping resources (e.g.; a confidence) or internal resources (e.g.;
personal characteristics such as hardiness) so that appropriate coping
response is selected. Coping response aid the person in choosing a healthy
response. The chosen response may involve changing an aspect of the
stressful environment, shifting one’s priorities and the meaning of the
environment.
Step 4: involves understanding the effect (if any) of the coping response and
making adjustments when necessary.
Organizational Actions:
Organizations have begun to develop programs to reduce the level of
employee stress. As the time is passing the machinery era has clouded the
whole system, so; employee problems also become of complex nature.
It has become essential for the organization to give support to the employee
to finish the stress from it roots.
The organization can help and give support of following type, which are as
under:
Organizational Support
Emotional
Empathy, caring, trust
e.g.; Boss praises your effective performance. It is the type of emotional
support which can help to reduce your problem as free from stress.
Instrumental
It is a Behavior that directly helps person in need. e.g.; Subordinate’s
improving performance relieves you of pressure.
Informational
It is a behavior that gives information to be used by person to cope with
problem.
e.g.; Co worker gives you advice on how to discipline a subordinate.
Appraisal
It is a way to provide feedback to a person about his/her performance.
e.g.; Boss gives you constructive feedback on your most recent assignment.
Conclusion
From my whole research I have concluded that stress plays an important role
in changing the employee behavior along with organizational goals
fulfillment if it used in a positive way, but it is very essential to keep the
level of stress at optimal level and always to avoid negative affects of stress.
National university of modern languages
Occupational stress experienced by male and female employees
Dear Sir/Madam. Your contribution in helping me analyze “Occupational stress experienced by male and female employees” is valued highly. Completion of this information is voluntary and confidentiality id assured. No individual data will be reported.
Section 1Please tick the (√) in the appropriate space for your response.
1. Gender ( ) Male ( ) Female
2. Age Group ( ) 20yrs 0r below ( ) 21-30yrs ( ) 31-40 yrs ( ) 41-50yrs ( ) above 50yrs
3. Education ( ) PH.D ( ) Ms/M.Phil/Post Graduate ( ) Master ( ) Bachelor ( ) Intermediate ( ) Matriculation
4. Material Status ( ) single ( ) Married
5. No. Of children ( ) 1-2 ( ) 3-5 ( ) 6 0r more
6. Sector ( ) Public ( ) Private
7. Managerial level ( ) Top manager ( ) Middle manager ( ) Lower staff
8. Years of experience ( ) 1-5yrs ( ) 5-10yrs ( ) More than 10yrs
9. Working Hours ( ) less than 8 hours per day ( ) 8-9hmys per day ( ) more then 8hmys per day
Section 2
Factors of Occupational stress
1. Strongly disagreed 2. Disagreed 3.Neutral 4.Agreed 5. Strongly Agreed
Factors
Organizational Environment: 1 2 3 4 5
I feel to be over burdened with increase level of competition.
I have to put more efforts to cope up with technological development.
Changes in production and products create a stress on me.
Organizational specific stressors:
I am able to cope up with poor physical conditions. (Inadequate lightning or noise and etc).
To deal with workforce diversity is much different task.
I am very anxious about the job security.
I feel upset when there is lack of training programs.
Job specific stressors
I think lack of information and collaboration are the main factors of stress.
I am able to perform Ill when there is pressure to work for
longer hours.
Personal life stressors.
I feel insecure from my coworkers.
My domestic responsibilities do affect my performance at work place.
Section 3
Please rank the following sources of occupational stress according to your own preferences from 1-10. E.g. most preferred rank =1
No. Sources Rank
1 Inadequate salary
2 Lack of recognition
3 Lack of preparation time
4 Unavailability of child care centers in organizations
5 No time to relax
6 Role ambiguity
7 Over commitment
8 Relation ship with the superiors peers, subordinates.
9 Glass ceiling (promotions hurdles for females)
10 Personal and family problems
I grate fully acknowledge your time spent on this questionnaire.
Thai you!
References:-
Occupational stress fact sheet. (2006)
ME Department of labor Bureau of labor statistics. (1999)
Jannie, P., (2005). Sources of occupational stress for teachers, with specific reference to the inclusive educational model in the Western Cape
Iris Occupational stress, work-home interference and burnout among Belgian veterinary practitioners. (2008). Irish Veterinary Journal. Vol 61
Occupational Stress in the Construction Industry. (2006)
Shaun, M, M. Taylor, M., Dunedin. & Gregory, A. L. Time budget pressure and auditor dysfunctional behavior within an occupational stress model
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Sadri, G., & Marcoulides, G. A., (1994). The Dynamics of Occupational Stress: Proposing and Testing a Model, Research and Practice in Human Resource Management, 2(1), 1-19.
Dan, J., B. (2000). Occupational stress in mental health counselors
Thompson, B., Kirk-Brown, A, and Brown, A. Police women and their partners: Influence and outcomes of work stress in the family
Lakshminarayanan, R. An over view of strategic planning to combat occupational stress- need of the hour in the present Indian context.
Marc, D., Colette. D., Nicole, R., & Jean, Loiselle. (1997). Professional isolation and stress in teachers
John, M. (1998).The attribution-of-responsibility for occupational stress model in a catholic
education system: organizational distancing
Nina, P., V. & A. Bugbane. Individual differences and occupational stress perceived: a Croatian survey,
International Review of Business Research Papers. (2007). Vol. 3. Pp.182-192
Goluaz, S. George, A. Marcoulides, S., G. & Marcoulides, G., A. (1994). The Dynamics of Occupational Stress: Proposing and Testing a Model, Research and Practice in Human Resource Management, 2(1), 1-19.
Bridger, R., S. Kilminster, S. And Slaven, G. Institute of Naval Medicine,
SMYCES AND MANIFESTATION OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS AS REPORTED BY FULLTIME TEACHERS WORKING IN A BIA SCHOOL
Boney Vance, Sean Miller, Sam Humphreys, and Francine Reynolds
.
Annexure
Early warning signs of job stress
Headache Short temperSleep disturbance Job dissatisfaction