Work Stress in organisational Behaviour

                 WORK STRESS 

1. Introduction

Work-related stress is a pattern of reactions that occurs when workers are presented with work demands that are not matched to their knowledge, skills or abilities, and which challenge their ability to cope. These demands may be related to time pressure or the amount of work (quantitative demands), or may refer to the difficulty of the work (cognitive demands) or the empathy required or even to the inability to show one's emotions at work. Demands may also be physical, i.e., high demands in the area of dynamic and static loads.

When the worker perceives an imbalance between demands and environmental or personal resources, this can cause a number of possible reactions. These may include physiological responses (e.g., increase in heart rate, blood pressure, hyperventilation), emotional responses (e.g., feeling nervous or irritated), cognitive responses (e.g., reduced attention and perception, forgetfulness), and behavioural reactions (e.g., aggressive, impulsive behaviour, making mistakes). When people are in a state of stress, they often feel concerned, less vigilant and less efficient in performing tasks. Stress occurs in many different circumstances, but is particularly strong when a person's ability to control the demands of work is threatened. Insecurity about successful performance and fear of negative consequences resulting from performance failure may evoke powerful negative emotions of anxiety, anger, and irritation. The stressful experience is intensified if no help is available from colleagues or supervisors at work. Therefore, social isolation and lack of cooperation increase the risk of prolonged stress at work. Conversely, work tasks with a high degree of personal control and skill variety, and a work environment with supportive social relationships; contribute to workers' well-being and health. When demands exceed one's abilities and knowledge, but one is able to perceive this as an opportunity to work towards achieving a state of balance, a situation of learning and development may arise.

Individual characteristics such as personality, values, goals, age, gender, level of education, and family situation, influence one's ability to cope. These characteristics may interact with risk factors at work and either exacerbate or alleviate their effects. Physical and psychological characteristics such as physical fitness or a high level of optimism may not only act as precursors or buffers in the development of stress reactions and mental health problems but may also change as a result of the effects. For example, if workers are able to deal with risk factors at work, they will be more experienced and self-confident in overcoming similar situations the next time they have to face them. On the other hand, stress reactions, like fatigue and long-term health problems, will often reduce a person's ability to perform well, and thus aggravate the experience of stress, which will ultimately result in exhaustion and break-down. 

2. Meaning and Definition of Stress 

Stress is an individual's response to a disturbing factor in the environment. Stress obviously involves interaction of the person and the environment. "Stress is an adaptive response to an external situation that results in physical, psychological, and/or behavioural deviations for organisational participants." The physical or psychological demands from the environment that cause stress are called stressors. They create stress or the potential for stress when an individual perceives them as representing a demand that may exceed that person's ability to respond.

Stress is created by a multitude of overlapping factors such as qualitative work overloads, ethical dilemmas, difficult relationships with bosses and colleagues, and uncertainties in life. Although stress can sometimes act as a stimulant and challenge us (eustress), too much stress for a long time has a negative impact on both, our work life and our personal life (distress). The notion of management of stress basically focuses on the management of distress. 

Stress refers to the body's physiological, emotional, and psychological responses to an individual's well-being. When the response is in the form of a deviation from healthy functioning, the state is called distress. The reaction which activates and motivates people to achieve their goals, change their environment, and face life's challenges is called eustress. In other words, this is the stress that is required for survival. However, most research focuses on distress because it is a significant concern in the organisational setting.

According to Fred Luthans, "Stress is an adaptive response to an external situation that results in physical, psychological and/or behavioural deviations for organisational participants".

According to Beehr and Newman, "Stress is a condition arising from the interaction of people and their jobs and characterized by changes within people that force them to deviate from their normal functioning".

3. Nature of Stress 

1) Stress is not Simply Anxiety or Nervous Tension: Anxiety or nervous tension does not constitute stress. People exhibiting these behaviours may not be under any stress. Similarly, individuals who are under stress may not exhibit anxiety or nervous tension. 

2) Stress Need not Always be Damaging: People frequently experience stress with out any strain at all. Daily activities of life may be stressful, but not always harmful.

3) Stress is not Always due to Overwork: Stressed-out individuals are not always those who are over-worked. Stress may also result from having too little to do.

4) Stress cannot be Avoided: It is necessary to realize that stress is an inevitable part of life and that it cannot be avoided. What can, however, be avoided are the negative reactions to stress. 

5) Body has a Limited Capacity to Respond: Stress is the body's biological response mechanism. The body has only limited capacity to respond to stressors. The workplace makes a variety of demands on people and too much stress over a long period of time exhaust the ability to cope with the stressors.

4. Stages of Stress

There are three stages of stress: alarm, resistance and exhaustion. GAS (General Adaptation Syndrome) is another name for stress. The three stages of stress are:

1) Alarm: The first stage of stress is alarm wherein the stress mobilizes the internal stress system. Many physiological and chemical reactions are observed during the alarm stage. Increased pituitary adrenaline secretions, increased respiration, heart trouble and high blood pressure are observed during the alarm stage. Many employees prevent themselves from becoming more stressed through physiological and psychological treatment.

2) Resistance: If the alarm stage is not prevented, resistance develops. The body organs become resistant but it paves the ways for the development of other stressors. Nervousness and tension are increased making individuals unable to relax. Individuals develop conflicts, frustration and uneasiness. Illness and diseases attached with stress are developed under resistance. Apparently, individuals feel free from stress, but serious diseases develop stealthily. It is essential to know the causes of stress and avoid them at the beginning stage.

3) Exhaustion: Resistance or resistant stress creates exhaustion. The immunity of the body is reduced. Individuals feel fatigue and inability. Exhaustion develops moodiness, negative emotions and helplessness. The impact of stress is visible in physics, psychology and the behaviour of the employees in an organisation wherein stress has reached the state of exhaustion. Health and psychological depression reduces the effectiveness of employees. Consequently, the success of an organisation is adversely affected. Stressed employees cannot contribute significantly. A large number of organisations have started stress education to prevent stress from negatively affecting the employees.

5. Forms of Stress

Stress can be categorized into two types: 

1) Eustress: The sources of stress need not always be bad. For example, receiving a bonus and then having to decide what to do with the money can be stressful. So, can getting a promotion, making a speech as part of winning a major award, getting married and similar "good" things. This type of stress is called eustress. Eustress can lead to a number of positive outcomes for the individual. Eustress is often viewed as motivator since, in its absence, th individual lacks that 'edge' necessary for peak performance.

2) Distress: There is also negative stress called as distress, this is what p people think of when they hear the word stress. Excessive unreasonable demands on the time and bad news all fall into this category. As the term suggests, this form of stress generally results in negative consequences for the individual. But it should be remembered that stress can be either good or bad. It can motivate and stimulate the individual, or it ca lead to any number of dangerous side effects. It is negative when stress is associated with heart-disease, alcoholism, drug abuse, marital breakdowns, absenteeism, child abuse and a host of other social, physical, organisational and emotional problems.

6. Stress Management

Stress is inevitable in human life. There is, therefore, no way out but to cope with stress or fight it out. There are two strategies that can help the employees to cope with stress. These are the coping strategies at the employee/individual level and at organisational level.

Stress management encompasses techniques intended to equip a person with effective coping mechanisms for dealing with psychological stress. Stress nagement defines stress precisely as a person's physiological response to an internal or external stimulus that triggers the "fight-or-flight" reaction.

In present, the term "stress management" refers to the identification and analysis problems related to stress, and the application of a variety of therapeutic tools ther either the source of stress or the experience of stress. These beneficial tools are utilized within an integrated and conceptually meaningful framework. The major goal of managing stress is simply to enable the individual to function this or her optimal level, in a healthy and positive manner. 

7. Mild Stress: Conducive for Organisational Effectiveness

Mild stress is very essential for effective and efficient working. The concept mild stress holds good especially in the Indian context, where mostly government employees at clerical grades are employed in routine jobs which do not pose any stress. In due course, the employee becomes a lazy-day dreamer.

Mild stress can always be caused through the following methods:

1) Time Frame: Determining the fixed time for each task results in mild stress. But care should be taken to provide sufficient time to get work done efficiently. 

2) Time and Motion Studies: Time and motion studies are very important devices that can he employed to find out the required time to perform each job. Time specification can pose some stress which will yield positive results.

3) Job Rotation: By rotating the employees among various jobs, they are made to undergo mild stress, apart from other benefits. Learning a new job and putting it into practice also result in mild stress.

4) Variations in Job Methods: Change in methods of doing the job from time to time leads to mild stress to the job holders. But it helps the employees to adapt to any kind of changes comfortably in the future.

5) Incentives: incentives are the best means of achieving mild stress. To avail off the incentives, the employees are under stress to perform the jobs in time and efficiently.

6) Proper Channel of Authority, Clear Cut Powers and Duties: These should be established. The superiors should be made responsible to get things done from his/her subordinates and he/she should be delegated with proper authority, so that the boss may put his subordinates under stress. The boss should plan the work, co-ordinate employees and control them.