Stress at Work and Satisfaction

There appears little doubt that one of the major adverse influences on job satisfaction, work performance, absenteeism, turnover and productivity, is the incidence of stress at work. Stress is a source of tension and frustration that may arise through a number of interrelated influences on behavior, including the individual, group, organizational and environmental factors. In a recent survey into attitudes to work, when a random sample of 1,000 workers was asked to specify the biggest problem at work, the second most common response (after poor pay - 18%) was stress at 17%. This would seem to support the contention that stress is a problem of the nineties.

The causes of stress are complex. Stress is also a very personal experience, as is the response of each individual to it and their beliefs about how best to cope with the causes and the effects of stressful situations. Although considered as having a negative impact, a certain amount of stress may be seen as positive and even as a good thing, which helps and promotes a high level of performance. Keeping the balance is the challenging task of management.

The five situations that are most commonly considered as stressful are the following:

- Responsibility for the work of others - conflicting objectives of groups and organizations, groups and individuals, self and superiors.

- Innovative functions - conflicting priorities and different psychological demands between the routine and administrative aspects of the job and the creative side.

- Integrative or boundary functions - the stressful role of the coordinator, due to the lack of control over the demand of their resources.

- Relationship problems - difficulties with a boss, subordinates or colleges.

- Career uncertainty - doubtful future career prospects affect the whole of a person's work

There are a number of techniques by which individuals may bring stress under control. For example, changing your viewpoint; putting your problems into perspective; learning to laugh at life; not worrying and working on stress reduction; not talking yourself down; and not attempting to slow your life down.

In addition, companies have initiated internal programs to reduce the fatigue or stress from working on a specific position for a long period of time. In fact, job rotation is the most basic form of individual job design. It involves moving a person from one job or task to another. It attempts to add some variety and to help remove boredom, at leads in the short term. However, if the tasks involved are all very similar and routine, then once the person is familiar with the new task the work may quickly prove boring again.

Job rotation may lead to the acquisition of additional skills but does not necessarily develop their levels. Strictly, job rotation is not really job design, because neither the nature of the task nor the method of working is restructured. However, it may help a person identify more with the completed product or service. It can also be used as a form of training and it can reduce stress that is associated with managing the increased responsibilities of a specific role in a company.

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