Transcript Chapter 7 Nelson & Quick - Department of Management

Chapter 7
Nelson & Quick
Stress and Well-Being
at Work
What is Stress?
Stress - the unconscious preparation to fight or flee that
a person experiences when faced with any demand
Stressor - the person or event that triggers the stress
response
Distress - the adverse psychological, physical,
behavioral, and organizational consequences that
may arise as a result of stressful events
Strain – distress
Homeostasis – a steady state of bodily functioning and
equilibriuim
A Model of Stress
Potential Sources
Environment:
economic uncertainty
political uncertainty
Organization:
Job demands,
Resources, change,
Difficult boss
Consequences
Individual
Differences:
Social support,
experience
Experienced
Stress
Individual Factors:
Family problems,
personality
Prentice-Hall, 2001, Ch. 18
Psychological:
Tension, irritability,
anxiety
Physiological:
Muscular tension,
Weakens immune
system, cardiovascular
disorders
Behavioral:
Sleep troubles,
Absence,
substance abuse
4 Stress Approaches:
Homeostatic/Medical Approach
Fight
Homeostasis
+
External environmental
demand
=
Flight
4 Stress Approaches:
Cognitive Appraisal Approach
 Individuals differ in their appraisal of events &
people
 What is stressful for one person is not for another
 Perception and cognitive appraisal determines what
is stressful
Problem-focused coping
emphasizes managing
the stressor
Emotion-focused coping
emphasizes managing
your response
4 Stress Approaches:
Person-Environment Fit Approach
 No undue stress
Good person-environment fit: a
person’s skills & abilities match
a clearly defined, consistent set
of role expectations
 Stress, strain, and depression
occur when role expectations are
confusing and/or conflicting, or
when the person’s skills &
abilities do not meet the
demands of the social role
4 Stress Approaches:
Psychoanalytic Approach
Ego Ideal - the
embodiment of a
person’s perfect
self
Self-Image - how a
person sees oneself,
both positively &
negatively
= the difference
between ego ideal and
self-image
The Stress Response
Release of
Sympathetic
chemical
nervous system
messengers,
& the
primarily
endocrine
adrenaline,
(hormone) system
into the
activated
bloodstream
• Blood redirected from the
skin & internal organs to
brain and large muscles
• Increased alertness:
improved vision, hearing,
& other sensory
responses
• Release of glucose & fatty
acids for sustenance
• Depression of immune
system, digestion, &
similar restorative
processes
Sources of Stress at Work
Work Demands
Task Demands
Change & uncertainty
Lack of control
Career progress
New technologies
Work overload/underload
Interpersonal Demands
Abrasive personalities
Sexual harassment
Leadership styles
Rol e Demands
Role conflict:
 Interrole
 Intrarole
 Person-role
Role ambiguity
Physi cal Demands
Extreme environments
Strenuous activities
Hazardous
substances
Stress Sources at Work
NonWork Demands
Fami l y Demands
Personal Demands
Marital expectations
Religious activities
Child-rearing/day care
Self-improvement tasks
arrangements
Traumatic events
Parental care
Stress Benefits and Costs
Benefits of Healthy, Normal Stress (Eustress)
Performance
Health
Increased arousal
Cardiovascular efficiency
Bursts of physical strength Enhanced focus in an
emergency
Costs of Distress
Individual
Organizational
Psychological disorders
Participation problems
Medical illnesses
Performance decrements
Behavioral problems
Compensation awards
Yerkes-Dodson Law
Performance arousal
High
Low
Low
(distress)
Optimum
(eustress)
High
(distress)
Stress level
Boredom from
understimulation
Optimum
stress load
Conditions
Distress from
perceived overstimulation
as stressful
Positive Stress/Negative Stress
 Stress response itself is neutral
 Some stressful activities (aerobic exercise, etc.)
can enhance a person’s ability to manage stressful
demands or situations
 Stress can provide a needed energy boost
 Negative stress results from
 a prolonged activation of the stress response
 mismanagement of the energy induced by the
response
 unique personal vulnerabilities
Stress
 79% of workers report that 1995 was one of the
most stressful years ever (Dale Carnegie survey)
 Work-related issues were the strongest source of
stress
Not doing the type of work you want was the major
source of stress
 Karoshi (Japanese): “Sudden death by heart attack
triggered by overwork”

 Japan is high on uncertainty avoidance, thus working hard is
one way to reduce uncertainty because the harder you work
the more productive your company should be
Individual Stress
Work-related psychological disorders
(depression, burnout,
psychosomatic disorders)
How Employee Stress Can
Impact the Organization
Participative Problems - a cost associated with
absenteeism, tardiness, strikes & work stoppages,
& turnover
Performance Decrement - a cost resulting from
poor quality or low quantity of production,
grievances, & unscheduled machine downtime &
repair
Compensation Award - an organizational cost
resulting from court awards for job distress
Dealing with Stress
Achilles’ heel
phenomenon - a
person breaks down at
his or her weakest point
Type A Behavior Patterns
Type A Behavior Patterns - a
complex of personality and
behavior characteristics
 sense of time urgency
“hurry sickness”
 quest for numbers (of
achievements)
 status insecurity
 aggression & hostility
expressed in response to
frustration & conflict
Personality Hardiness
Personality Hardiness - a personality resistant to
distress & characterized by the 3 C’s:
 CHALLENGE (versus threat)


Disruptions that create stress in others are
instead viewed as an opportunity for growth
rather than a threat to security
This is a great challenge – stress is viewed as a
necessary step toward learning
Personality Hardiness, cont’d
 COMMITMENT (versus alienation)


Believe in importance of what they do
Sense of purpose to their activities
 Recall, the most prevalent source of stress was
not doing the type of work you want
 CONTROL (versus powerlessness)

Feeling in control of your life
Organization Stress
Management
Employee Assistance
Programs
Wellness
Programs
Job
Redesigning
Organizational
Communication
Employee
Involvement
Selection
and Placement
Prentice-Hall, 2001, Ch. 18
Organizational Stress
Prevention
 Focuses on people’s work demands
 Focuses on ways to reduce distress at work
 Most organizational prevention is primary
 job redesign
 goal setting
 role negotiation
 social support systems
Social Support at Work & Home
Family
Spouse Children
Parents In-laws
Organizational
Supervisor
Colleagues
Subordinates
Clients
Professional
Physicians
Psychologists
Counselors
Lawyers
Individual
Church
Minister/Rabbi
Friends
Support groups
Clubs
Business associations
Social clubs
Athletic groups
SOURCE: From J. C. Quick J. D. Quick, D. L. Nelson and J. J. Hurrell, Jr., in Preventive Stress Management in Organizations, 1997, p. 198. Copyright© 1997 by The American
Psychological Association. Reprinted with permission.
Individual Stress Management
Time
Management
Physical
Exercise
Relaxation
Training
Social
Support
Prentice-Hall, 2001, Ch. 18
Preventative Stress
Management
Preventative Stress Management - an organizational
philosophy that holds that people & organizations should
take joint responsibility for promoting health and preventing
distress & strain
Primary Prevention - designed to reduce, modify, or
eliminate the demand or stressor causing stress
Secondary Prevention - designed to alter or modify the
individual’s or the organization’s response to a demand or
stressor
Tertiary Prevention - designed to heal individual or
organizational symptoms of distress & strain
Individual Preventive
Stress Management
Primary Prevention
Alters the person’s internal self-talk & reduces
depression
Time management:
Improves planning & prioritizes activities
Leisure time activities: Balance work & non-work activities
Learned optimism:
Secondary Prevention
Physical exercise:
Relaxation training:
Diet:
Improves cardiovascular function & muscular
flexibility
Lowers all indicators of the stress response
Lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease &
improves overall physical health
Tertiary Prevention
Opening up:
Professional help:
Releases internalized traumas & emotional
tensions
Provides information, emotional support, &
therapeutic guidance
Discussion Questions
 Why should organizations help individuals manage
stress?
 Isn’t stress basically the individual’s responsibility?
Discussion Questions
 Is there more stress today than in past generations?
 What evidence is available concerning this
question?
Discussion Questions
 Do you use any stress prevention methods that are
not discussed in the chapter?
 If so, what are they?