Introductory Chapter: Occupational Stress and General Coping Strategies

1. Introduction

The American Psychological Association’s Dictionary of Psychology defines Occupational Stress as “a physiological and psychological response to events or conditions in the workplace that is detrimental to health and well-being” [1]. Such responses do vary from individual to individual, and it depends on several factors such as the level of autonomy, responsibility and independence that the individual has in his or her workplace, the amount, pace and type of work that needs to be performed, the level of safety and security associated to the work and finally the relationships that the individual maintains with his or her colleagues and supervisors.

Occupational stress may manifest itself in one or more of the following three different ways: (i) physical strain—affecting the various parts of the body and this is the most common way by which occupational stress manifests itself. It can range from having mild headaches or body pain to severe migraines; (ii) psychological strain—affecting the rationale thinking abilities of an individual and can lead to loss in memory and concentration or depression and anxiety; (iii) behavioral strain—causing a change in the usual or normal habits of an individual, like, for example, binge eating or starving, excessive or loss of sleep, ignoring to perform regular tasks or duties and avoiding responsibilities and absenteeism.

The necessity to study occupational stress stems from the fact that it can have significant effects on both the physical and mental wellbeing of an individual and also an impact on the productivity of the workplace, which can have a negative impact on the global economy in turn. The Safety and Health at Work team of the International Labour Organization (ILO) found that the direct and indirect costs of occupational stress are in the range of billions of dollars annually all over the world [2].

The “State of the Global Workplace 2022 Report” by Gallup reports the results of the worldwide survey on the workplace wellbeing and shows that around 44% of the employees experience occupational stress around the world. Looking at some of the important factors that could have contributed to the occupational stress from the study, the United States and Canada have the highest regional percentage of engaged employees (33%), whereas Europe has the lowest regional percentage of the engaged employees (14%). Engaged employees refer to the employees who enthusiastically participate in all the activities of their work and are happy as their basic needs are met and are able to contribute positively to the organization. We could consider the second important factor as the percentage of employees living comfortably on their present household income which was found to be highest (55%) in Australia and New Zealand and lowest (10%) in Sub-Saharan Africa. The third factor is the social factor, which refers to the way by which employees were treated in their organizations—South Asia, which includes India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Afghanistan, had the highest regional percentage of respondents (19%) who felt that there were not treated with respect at their workplaces [3].

2. Theories for the occurrence of occupational stress

There are a few theories in the field of psychology to explain the occurrence of occupational stress (Figure 1). The first and most accepted theory is the demand-control model wherein stress can happen when the workload is high; however, the decision-making authority is low. Alternatively, when the workload is high and there is a significant lack of resources or support to perform that job, that can also lead to stress and in that case, the demand-resource model would be applicable. Stress can occur when the skills, abilities and attitude of the employee do not match the requirements of the job, and this is called the person–environment fit model. When the efforts put in for a particular job are not rewarded appropriately in the form of pay or fair treatment or even a mere appreciation, it can lead to stress, and in this case, it is referred to as the effort–reward imbalance model. Finally, as indicated at the start of this chapter, it is also important to understand that the ability to cope to various stressful conditions differs from individual to individual, and when the stressors go beyond an individual’s ability to cope with stress, then, it is referred to as the diathesis–stress model.

Figure 1.

Models to explain the occurrence of occupational stress.

3. Cause of occupational stress

One may argue that the causes of occupational stress may not be solely due to the workplace conditions and that there are possibilities of personal factors stemming from an individual’s family or social life that could have an impact on their physical and mental wellbeing. However, scientific evidences do show that several workplace conditions contribute to occupational stress in a significant manner. The various causes of occupational stress are depicted in Figure 2.

Figure 2.

Causes of occupational stress.

4. Coping strategies

In order to manage stress, it is essential to change ones’ own cognitive and behavioral efforts in dealing with the external or internal stimuli that is causing the stress and this is referred to as coping. Coping strategies can be worked out at both organizational level and also at personal levels. When it comes to organizational levels, it is first important for the management to understand the causative factors in the organization and come up with suitable measures. NIOSH recommends the following strategies for organizations to help their employees cope with occupational stress [4]:

• Managers should keep monitoring the workload of sub-ordinates and see to it that the workers are allocated work that is well within their skills set and capabilities and can also be reasonably completed within the time frame given;

• Each job must come with a clear description of its scope of work and roles and responsibilities;

• Sufficient resources should be available for the employees to complete the tasks;

• If new tasks are to be performed, especially with advancements in technology require employees to do tasks that may be beyond their current capabilities, then, suitable training should be given to them before they can undertake those specific tasks;

• Communication channels must be transparent, and all employees should be given an opportunity to voice out their opinions and decisions;

• Different leadership styles can be explored to figure out which style works well for the organization and its employees.

On personal front, there are a few coping strategies that an individual can explore to overcome occupational stress. First among them is seeking social support—irrespective of what the social support can provide, be it in terms of advice or suitable contacts or material help or just a distraction, getting in touch with a human contact is valued when one is undergoing stress [5]. Seeking social support is also said to help an individual to overcome exhaustion and work–family conflicts [6]. The next strategy is the “problem-solving” strategy, wherein the individual can put up a fight against the stressor, and this goes beyond just identifying the stressor. Studies have also shown that the problem-solving strategy helps an individual to gain more control over the job and thus overcome occupational stress [7]. The last strategy is the “avoidance” strategy which is equated to running away from the stressor and is a form of escapism [8]. Even though studies have shown a positive correlation between avoidance and emotional exhaustion [9], certain longitudinal studies indicate that avoidance can potentially lead to depression 10 years down the road or more chronic and acute conditions 4 years later [10].

5. Conclusion

All kinds of work require some amount of physical and mental effort and hence when done over a long period of time can lead to stress. Mental wellbeing is being spoken about all over the world, and several leaders across the globe are coming up with strategies such as four-day workweek or remote working to reduce the amount of time that an individual spends at work and ensure that he or she is able to attain work–life balance. However, it is usually not the amount of time spent at workplace that is the stressor, but what happens during the work time, irrespective of whether it is at home (while working remotely) or at office is what matters. For example, it is almost impossible for an individual to forget a berating that he or she received during the day from his or her boss even after returning home and may even have a disturbed sleep due to that. Studies on burnout indicate that all the biggest sources of occupational stress come from an individual’s boss—unreasonable timelines, lack of support, heavy workload, unfair treatment and unclear communication [3]. Hence, managers have to realize that with the mental wellbeing of their workers comes an increase in productivity and profit; hence, they must lend a listening ear to their issues at the workplace and try to sort things out so that it becomes a win-win situation for both parties. When coping strategies are implemented from both fronts, that is, from the management and from the employee, it would be much easier to get relieved from occupational stress.