10/26/15 STRESS MANAGEMENT PRESENTER INDIVIDUAL & ORGANIZATIONAL CONSIDERATIONS. James Hunter. Director, Employee Assistance Program

Transcription

1 10/26/15 MANAGEMENT INDIVIDUAL & ORGANIZATIONAL CONSIDERATIONS PRESENTER James Hunter Director, Employee Assistance Program University of Missouri System 1

2 OBJECTIVES Define occupational stress Distinguish eustress and distress Review a taxonomy of stressors in organizations to include manifestations and interventions Summarize a theoretical framework for the study of stress in organizations Discuss practical stress management strategies WHAT IS OCCUPATIONAL? Occupational stress = the effort utilized by an employee, work group or entire organization to meet work demands Occupational stress is unavoidable Each day employees and their organizations are required to pursue work goals and must utilize tangible resources (psychological physical financial technological - political) resulting in the experience of stress EU & DI It is unwise to regard every organizational demand on the person as undesirable Employees seek activities they value, that are challenging and those that require use of their knowledge, skills and abilities Eustress = the stress of fulfillment (good stress) Many work activities fall into this category 2

3 EU & DI When work demands exceed employee or work unit capacity to cope the state of distress emerges Distress may also surface when there are insufficient demands (deprivation) That is, when employees or work units are deprived of challenging work opportunities they may experience a level of distress VARIOUS FORMS OF WORK Reference Attachment: Taxonomy of Stress Management Techniques Abbreviated A framework for the study of occupational stress can reside in the following domains Organizational Antecedents to Stress (a) The workplace social context (b) Organizational size (systems and subsystems) (c) Role sets (span of control, role conflict ambiguity, and attributes of supervisors' demands experienced by subordinates) (d) Job categories or occupational types (e) Stressful work-related events 3

4 Stressors in Organizational Life Task Content and Associated Features = simplicity complexity, variety monotony and physical conditions of work Role Properties = the social aspects of the job, including supervisory and peer relations as well as role conflict, ambiguity and overload Perception and Cognition: The Appraisal Process Event definition redefinition Judgment, in which the individual develops hypotheses about possible actions and outcomes Enactment, which involves the transition from cognition to behavior Employee Responses to Stress Physiological = blood pressure, cardiac activity, cholesterol level, epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine, corticosteroids, uric acid and gastrointestinal symptoms Psychological = alienation from organization, anxiety, boredom, burnout, confusion, depersonalization, depression, dissatisfaction, frustration, resentment 4

5 Behavioral = absence, accidents and errors, alcohol use on the job, caffeine intake, drug use and a range of counterproductive work behaviors such as theft and related behavior, destruction of property, misuse of information, poor work quality and inappropriate physical actions Ramifying Consequences of Stress Job stress has consequences beyond our immediate or apparent experience of stress and few of these consequences are listed here Coronary heart disease Elevated cholesterol levels Elevated blood pressure Increased heart rate Ramifying Consequences (continued) Lowered life satisfaction Decreased effectiveness in family role taking Lowered self esteem Note: other consequences such as decreased work role effectiveness, lateness, absenteeism or turnover intention are in this sense considered apparent and therefore not listed here 5

6 Properties of the Person as Stress Mediators Type A behavior (competitive, impatient, aggressive) intensifies the effects of job stressors Low levels of self esteem, decreased job satisfaction and decreased job performance Individuals with a low internal locus of control are more likely to experience job stress adversely Properties of the Situation as Stress Mediators Level of social support Ability to predict the onset of a stressor An understanding or awareness of why the stressor is present The level of control one has over the stressor PRACTICAL MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES Enhanced self care Reduce exposure to the stressor (physical psychological) Modify perception appraisal processes Health education - promotion Provide social support Evaluate modify organizational variables 6

7 DISCUSSION Reflections Questions??? Wrap-Up ADDITIONAL RESOURCES UM SYSTEM EAP benefits/eap 7