Causes of Workplace Stress - Essay Example

Workplace Stress al Affiliation Stress refers to a factor that encompasses mental disturbances primarily due to some sort of changes from the normal routine or the usual set-up. In trying to cope up with various stringent changes in life, a stress factor tends to occur. This paper thus dwells on various forms of stress within the workplace set-up. This is based on the fact that employees often undergo various hurdles in their working environment especially due to the organizational changes (Cambridge Educational, 2005). Some of these changes that are usually aimed towards boosting the organizational standards comprise of some intellectual set-ups that needs a lot of concentration and expertise so as to cope with them. So, since most employees are used to their normal routines and working conditions, such form of changes leads to a wide range of psychological disturbance and strain that finally adds up to stress (Cambridge Educational , 2005). On the other hand, employees are faced with this menace especially when there are some standards that have been set within the organizational operations. Such standards often require employees to sign the performance contracts such that; they fully commit themselves towards attaining those set goals and objectives in whatever possible means (Cambridge Educational, 2005). Numerous studies indicate that workplace stress happens to be the main cause of stress in life, and has progressively escalated in the past few years Cambridge Educational (Firm) (2005) says that the increased job stress levels as appraised by the sole discernment of bearing minimal control with lots of upcoming demands have usually been exhibited to be interrelated with enhanced rates of hypertension, heart attack, among other disorders. It is an extremely personalized occurrence and can widely vary even in the most identical scenarios for various reasons (Cambridge Educational (Firm), 2005). A particular research study showed that completion of paper work is more stressful for several police officers other than the threats associated with dealing with criminals. The job severity sets basis on the enormity of the raised demands and the person’s sense of decision-making or control latitude that one has to deal with them. The Scientific research based on this form authenticates that employees who perceive the subjection to higher demands but possess minimal control are often at high risks of cardiovascular disease (Cambridge Educational (Firm), 2005). From the practical experience, the source of stress that I witnessed in the workplace is when the organization introduced the utilization of the aspects of emotional labor and emotional intelligence. This was essential since the entire firm dwells on marketing of various products, and hence the workers needed to act in a very captivating manner regardless of what they are undergoing through. The main aim of doing this was majorly based on the aspects of showing off greater hospitality to the customers so as to bring them back. Emotional labor is the process whereby workers or employees are anticipated to manage their general occupational feelings according to the defined organizational rules and regulations. These include interactive work and even research that is focused directly towards emotions and workers’ management. Emotional labor can be used as a vehicle for understanding the organizational structure, as well as the social relations regarding service jobs. This kind of change was introduced when the entire management was restructured, and the new top management personnel’s were adopted. The main aim of doing this was for the sake of increasing the Company’s levels of productivity since it had started dwindling to a greater extent. So, all the organizations’ workers had to be trained before subjecting them towards a critical vetting process so as pick up the best ones (Long & ERIC, 1995). For those of us who managed to remain behind, stress started engulfing us since we had to fake our stance regardless of other psychological disturbances, with the ultimate aim of meeting common organizational goals and objectives. The major source of stress based on this aspect of emotional intelligence management was that; the entire management went to the extent of employing the use of mystery shoppers. These were just people from the management board who acted part of the customers but with the sole aim of analysis the level of competence amongst the employees. So, with this perception in mind, we had to fully adapt to those changes for the sake of our job security, regardless of the stressful conditions that we are going through. This entire concept seems to have benefited both the employees and the organization at large since it works towards boosting satisfactions and commitments. These factors are very essential for the success of each and every organization. So, this operational strategy is considered as being significant since it emerges as an interesting concept in organizational and social psychology and seems to be playing a critical function in main organizational outcomes, including job performance and Job satisfaction, especially when main focus is on the element of human interaction (Long, & ERIC Counseling and Student Services Clearinghouse, 1995). In organizational psychology, a lot of concentration has been re-directed to the affirmative association between job satisfaction and emotional intelligence. The negative consequence of this strategy is that; as much as the employees are working towards satisfying the organizational needs and objectives, their personal feelings and mental pressures are not often put into consideration. This is due to the fact that those employees have to constantly fake their moods and expressions from the external perspective, hence failing to solve their personal mishaps (Gupta, 1980). From the psychological perspective, when an individual is faced with a particular problem or mental disturbance, the best thing has always been the aspect of releasing such pressures through subsequent expression of such mishaps to the relevant persons (Long, & ERIC Counseling and Student Services Clearinghouse, 1995). This is hence a nightmare for the employees since they rarely get such a chance at an opportune time. Thus, it works towards piling up of an individual’s mental pressure that will finally end up into greater stress factor. Such sort of stress will hence lead to lower productivity levels that can finally add up towards the act of sacking or demotions. The other major problem with such employees is that, they are always in constant fear and quilt mainly due to the aspect of intensive supervision that is often done without their knowledge (Gupta, Southwest Educational Development Laboratory., & Ford Foundation, 1980). Such kind of supervisions that is aimed towards previewing each and every employees work prowess encompasses the aspect of incorporating the mystery shoppers, who in the real sense are part of the corporate management panel. So, this situation often leads to a burn out of a number of problems since the aspect of working with such fear mainly impacts on their life situations even within other institutional set-ups (Gupta, Southwest Educational Development Laboratory., & Ford Foundation, 1980). In simple terms, it makes them to work in machine like nature without effect of any form of emotional feelings and moods. The only thing is that, they will entirely adopt towards fake emotions and moods even at their family backgrounds where they are supposed to feel at home by releasing all their pressures and emotions. In the course of these changes, there are three major problems that ensued between the employees, the top management and even the supervisors. They included the aspects of choosing personal pace of change, trying to control the uncontrollable, as well as the act of behaving like a victim. Analysis of these major factors can help towards counteracting with the prevailing workplace stress factors (Davies, 1998). References Cambridge Educational (Firm). (2005). Managing stress. Lawrenceville, NJ: Cambridge Educational. Davies, R. (1998). Stress in social work. London: J. Kingsley. Gupta, N., Southwest Educational Development Laboratory., & Ford Foundation. (1980). Stress in the work place. Austin, TX: Southwest Educational Development Laboratory. Long, B. C., & ERIC Counseling and Student Services Clearinghouse. (1995). Stress in the work place. Greensboro, NC: ERIC Clearinghouse on Counseling and Student Services. Read More