Assessments and stress at work November 27th, 2021
Through the three surveys, I learned that I have a high life stress inventory that puts me 50% at risk of a major health breakdown in the next two years. Apparently I tend to lean more towards problem-focused strategies which is more helpful for actual problems but not for cases that cannot be controlled. Luckily, the type A survey results showed that I’m not likely to have an elevated rate of heart disease.
Ideas to help manage stress at work include tracking my stressors through journaling. Staying active and making more time for hobbies are also ways to lessen work stress. According to the CDC, early warning signs of job stress are headaches, sleep disturbances, difficulty in concentrating, short temper, upset stomach, job dissatisfaction, and low morale. St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company conducted several studies on the effects of stress prevention programs in hospital settings. These studies analyzed employee and management education on job stress, changes in hospital policies and procedures to reduce organizational sources of stress, and establishment of employee assistance programs.
Although there is no specific “how to” on how to prevent work stress, some companies are taking proactive approaches like building general awareness about the causes, costs and control of job stressors. Organizations are also implementing new programs with management commitment and involvement of employees for valuable input and decision-making. Research has shown that participatory efforts between management and employees can be effective in dealing with ergonomic problems in the workplace because they capitalize on workers’ firsthand knowledge of hazards present in their roles.
A specific example of this is a study performed on a large manufacturing company. The organization created a labor management team to focus on work-stress prevention. The program they designed was divided into two parts. The first focused on management practices and job conditions while the second was comprised of 12 weekly training sessions that were made available during both work and non-work hours. This company had no existing evidence of abundant stress and designed this program purely for prevention of future stress-related occurrences.
https://www.apa.org/topics/healthy-workplaces/work-stress
https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/99-101/default.html#Job%20Stress%20and%20Health
