Mental health: Stress and the Workplace

In Portugal, a full-time job implies working 8 (eight) hours per day, when it's not more due to working overtime. That means dealing with about the same amount of time with work pressures and any stress that might arise from that.

This makes work-related stress a widespread issue with a negative impact on organisations and on the economy (Ornelas, & Kleiner, 2003; Sonnentag, & Frese, 2013).

Work-related stressors such as

• high job-demands (Alarcon, 2011; Körner, Reitzle, & Silbereisen, 2012), 
• the number of hours worked (Colligan & Higgins, 2005), 
• role ambiguity and role conflict (Colligan & Higgins, 2005; Eatough, Chang, Miloslavic, & Johnson, 2011; Fida, Paciello, Tramontano, Fontaine, Barbaranelli, & Farnese, 2014; van Veldhoven, de Jonge, Broersen, Kompier, & Meijman, 2002), 
• work environment and negative organisational climate (involving interpersonal conflict, managerial bullying, and harassment; Colligan & Higgins, 2005; Eatough, Chang, Miloslavic, & Johnson, 2011), 
• lack of job variety (van Veldhoven, de Jonge, Broersen, Kompier, & Meijman, 2002),  
•  lack of support and lack of decision latitude and autonomy (Colligan & Higgins, 2005; Eatough, Chang, Miloslavic, & Johnson, 2011; Fida, Paciello, Tramontano, Fontaine, Barbaranelli, & Farnese, 2014; van Veldhoven, de Jonge, Broersen, Kompier, & Meijman, 2002),
•  lack of learning opportunities, career planning and development (Colligan & Higgins, 2005; Körner, Reitzle, & Silbereisen, 2012; Schaufeli, Bakker, & van Rhenen, 2009) 

impact negatively on the workers' mental health (high levels of stress, burnout syndrome, and depression), leading to a higher rate of absenteeism, to a higher level of work disengagement as well as a low organisational commitment, and to higher levels of turnover intention (O’Driscoll, & Cooper, 2002; Schaufeli, Bakker, & van Rhenen, 2009).

It is important that corporations start paying attention to this sort of situations, to learn how to address mental health issues without stigmatising workers, without dismissing their issues, and without firing them. It is paramount that corporations really look inside and work towards how can they do and change in order to prevent the onset of mental illness in their human capital. It is of utmost importance that companies develop programs to help their workers improve their mental health conditions (Westman, Hobfoll, Chen, Davidson, & Laski, 2005; Wright, & Hobfoll, 2004).

By showing their workforce they care, by becoming more humane, companies will be promoting a higher level of organisational commitment, a higher work engagement, and improving their workers' organisational citizenship behaviour. 

Please, keep in mind that every business is a business of people. If you don't take care of your people, you will not be making much money.

I leave you with a brilliant TED Talk by Tom Oxley, Bamboo Mental Health's Lead Consultant & Relationship Director.

Workplace Mental Health - all you need to know (for now) | Tom Oxley | TEDxNorwichED

References

Alarcon, G. M. (2011). A meta-analysis of burnout with job demands, resources, and attitudes. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 79(2), 549–562. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2011.03.007

Colligan, T. W., & Higgins, E. M. (2005). Workplace Stress: Etiology and Consequences. Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health, 21(2), 89–97. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1300/J490v21n02_07

Eatough, E. M., Chang, C.-H., Miloslavic, S. A., & Johnson, R. E. (2011). Relationships of role stressors with organizational citizenship behavior: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 96(3), 619–632. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021887

Fida, R., Paciello, M., Tramontano, C., Fontaine, R. G., Barbaranelli, C., & Farnese, M. L. (2014). An integrative approach to understanding counterproductive work behavior: The roles of stressors, negative emotions, and moral disengagement. Journal of Business Ethics, 130(1), 131–144. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2209-5

Körner, A., Reitzle, M., & Silbereisen, R. K. (2012). Work-related demands and life satisfaction: The effects of engagement and disengagement among employed and long-term unemployed people. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 80(1), 187–196. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2011.05.004

O’Driscoll, M.P. & Cooper, C.L. (2002). Job-related stress and burnout. In P. Warr (Ed.),      Psychology at Work (pp. 203-228). Penguin Group.

Ornelas, S., & Kleiner, B. H. (2003). New developments in managing job related stress. Equal Opportunities International, 22(5), 64–70. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/02610150310787504

Schaufeli, W. B., Bakker, A. B., & van Rhenen, W. (2009). How changes in job demands and

resources predict burnout, work engagement, and sickness absenteeism. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 30, 893–917. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/job.595

Sonnentag, S., & Frese, M. (2013). Stress in Organizations. In I. B. Weiner (Ed.), Handbook of Psychology (pp. 560-592). John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

van Veldhoven, M., de Jonge, J., Broersen, S., Kompier, M., & Meijman, T. (2002). Speci®c relationships between psychosocial job conditions and job-related stress: A three-level analytic approach. Work & Stress, 16(3), 207–228. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02678370210166399

Westman, M., Hobfoll, S. E., Chen, S., Davidson, O. B., & Laski, S. (2005). Organizational stress through the lens of Conservation of Resources (COR) Theory. In P. L. Perrewé & D. C. Ganster (Eds.), Research in occupational stress and well-being: Vol. 4. Exploring interpersonal dynamics (p. 167–220). Elsevier Science/JAI Press. 

Wright, T. A., & Hobfoll, S. E. (2004). Commitment, psychological well-being and job performance: An examination of Conservation of Resources (COR) Theory and job burnout. Journal of Business & Management, 9(4), 389–406.