Workplace Stress

CITATION LIST

Topic Area: Occupational Stress

1. McCourt-Mooney, Maggie, "Spotlight", Journal of Managerial Psychology, Volume 15, no. 1, 2000, pp. 98-104.

2. Shore, Barry, "The Legacy of Downsizing: Putting the Pieces Back Together", Business Forum, Summer/Fall 1996, Volume 21, Issue 3/4, pp. 5-11.

3. Stein, Franklin, "Occupational Stress, Relaxation Therapies, Exercise, and Biofeedback", Psychological Therapy: A Holistic Approach, Second Edition, 2001, pp. 235-245.

Topic Area: Workplace Motivation Strategies: Monetary and Non-Monetary

4. Alonzo, Vincent, "Cash Isn't King", Sales & Marketing Management, July 1997, Volume 149, Issue 7, pp. 26-30.

5. Stajkovic, Alexander, "Differential Effects of Incentive Motivators on Work Force Performance", Academy of Management Journal, June 2001, Volume 44, Issue 3, pp. 580-591.

6. Supervisory Management, "The Twenty-Somethings: Motivation Without Money", January 1996, Volume 41, Issue 1, pp. 1-4.

Topic Area: Self-Management Strategies

7. Kelley, Robert E., "How to Manage Your Work Life (And Become a Star)", Training and Development, May 1998, Volume 52, Issue 5, pp. 56-61.

8. Uhl-Bien, Mary, "Individual Self-Management: Analysis of Professionals' Self-Managing Activities in Functional and Cross-Functional Work Teams", Academy of Management Journal, June 1998, Volume 41, Issue 3, pp. 340-351.

9. Wah, Louisa, "Managing - Manipulating?", American Management Association International, October 1998, pp. 46-49.

Miscellaneous Topics

10. Ettorre, Barbara, "The Empowerment Gap: Hype Versus Reality", Management Review, July/August 1997, Volume 86, Issue 7, pp. 10-15.

11. Ferris, Gerald R., "Political Skill at Work", Organizational Dynamics, Spring 2000, Volume 28, Issue 4, pp. 25-38.

12. Sherman, Rob, "Do You Demonstrate Leadership Skills When You Speak", The Physician Executive, November/December 2001, pp. 24-29.

McCourt-Mooney, Maggie, "Spotlight", Journal of Managerial Psychology, Volume 15, no. 1, 2000, pp. 98-104.

This article offers the details of an interview between Cary Cooper, a leading professor of occupational stress and a leader from the Global Health Care and Environment Forum. Highlights of Cooper's interview include, distinction between pressure and stress, factors causing increased stress in today's workplace, impact of following "market forces" on job stress, and finally ways to reduce stress in today's workplace environment.

First, Cooper distinguishes between pressure and stress. Pressure can be stimulating and motivating, but when pressure exceeds ones ability to cope, it then becomes stress. Stress then manifests itself in several forms, which can include increased smoking or alcohol consumption, heart disease, immune system failure, or stress can be shown in the form of behavioral changes. Behavioral changes include aggression, social withdrawal, etc. The dividing line between pressure and stress is different for different people.

Stress levels in the work environment are increasing today. According to Coooper, this is attributed to the fact that today's jobs are intrinsically insecure. This translates to a short-term contract culture. A short-term contract culture creates a competitive environment which ultimately leads to increased stress in the work environment.

Today's companies are much more focused on the bottom line, and thus tend to let "market forces" regulate the business environment. According to Cooper, this forces employees to become more competitive, especially when they see co-workers being laid off. The competitive nature of today's business climate forces people to increase their efforts to a stressful level in order to keep from being laid off in the next round.

Finally, Cooper discusses primary, secondary, and tertiary initiatives industry is taking to manage stress. Tertiary means providing a vehicle by which people who are distressed can go and get help, such as employee assistance programs. Secondary initiatives arm employees so that they have the right skills to cope with pressures of the job. Primary initiatives, perhaps the most significant development, are stress audits and risk assessments. Such audits are now being carried out by a number of large companies.

Overall, Cooper is optimistic that companies and people are beginning to look at what underlies the changes that are exerting pressure on people. Managers of these companies are now very well trained now to look at all the factors leading to job stress.

Shore, Barry, "The Legacy of Downsizing: Putting the Pieces Back Together", Business Forum, Summer/Fall 1996, Volume 21, Issue 3/4, pp. 5-11.

Corporate downsizing creates not only victims that lose their jobs, but also creates psychological burdens on those who survived the cuts. This article deals with how downsizing affects the psychological and physical health of the workforce.

According to Barry Shore, author of the article in review, many people think that the survivors of job cuts should feel lucky. However, the opposite is true, as survivors often feel threatened, abandoned, burdened with more work, and subject to greater job stress. The author refers to these feelings as "Post-Downsizing Stress Syndrome" (PDSS).

PDSS is a psychological response that increases anxiety over work-related issues, ultimately affecting employees' health, personal life, and attitudes toward work. PDSS stress is different than traditional job stress because 1) it is often beyond immediate control of management, 2) it affects a wider percentage of workers in the organization than it would under traditional circumstances, and 3) it is long lasting and may recur with increasing intensity when job cuts become more prevalent in the marketplace. PDSS also creates health concerns. According to Shore, there is definite evidence linking PDSS job stressors to health outcomes. These health concerns have been the target of numerous studies.

Shore