What Is Stress at Work - Essay Example

What is stress at work? Stress at work is one of the biggest problems that individuals have to face in the workplace and this is because in most cases, individuals tend not to be well prepared for it. Stress at work is a condition where individuals do not follow the specified work design that they have been given by their managers and the result is that they cannot cope with the demands which are being placed on them by the latter. The instances of stress at work have been rising over the years, especially when one considers the highly competitive working environment in the modern world (Henry & Evans, 2008). In such scenarios, it is normal to find that out of a large number of individuals in the workplace, only a few opportunities for promotion exists and this makes these individuals work under a lot of pressure in order to be among the few who gain promotions. Moreover, the corporate world has become an extremely unforgiving place where the cost of failure is often the loss of one’s job, creating a situation where it is extremely difficult for employees to be able to work in a relaxed environment for fear of reduction in performance. The high demands and expectations that are placed upon employees by their managers often results in the development of work related stress as many more often than not are hardly psychologically well equipped to deal with the pressure. Therefore, stress at work has become a common problem in almost all organizations, making it imperative for them to take active measures to ensure that there is a reduction of this problem so that the work output can also be increased. Work related stress is a problem which occurs across many organizations and it can happen to anyone at any given work environment. This is the reason why many organizations have chosen to take an active step towards the development of better management practices which are designed to ensure that this problem is tackled (Schultz 2010, p.92). Among these is the creation of a comfortable environment where individuals can work in harmony without any threat to their livelihood. One of the major causes of stress at work is the fear among individuals that they might lose their jobs. The mere belief that job loss is imminent, while it might serve as a motivator for some to work harder and increase productions, does not do the same for others and might in fact be detrimental to their work output. The same applies to those who live in the fear that in the current dire economic conditions, there is the possibility that the organization for which they work might choose to undertake job cuts to ensure that it saves costs (Hart & Cooper, 2001). The result of such scenarios is that a large number of individuals end up suffering from work related stress. There are many reactions that individuals develop when they develop stress at work and these may vary according to the individual, from such minor issues as some reduction in their work output, to such serious situations as becoming either mentally or physically ill, forcing them to be absent from work for some time. The occurrence of the latter tends to further drive down productivity, especially among those individuals whose output has already been reduced during the initial stages of stress. In most instances, pressure to perform tends to be an extremely positive thing for individuals in the workplace and this is because it encourages them to become more productive and ensures that they remain focused on their work. However, there are instances where the pressure becomes too much and this leads to people not being able to cope with it. The result is that they develop stress, which if not dealt with swiftly might become detrimental to both the individual and the organization for which they work. Stress at work is not a desirable characteristic of individuals to have because it causes them not to be productive and might affect the way in which they represent the interests of the organization (Colligan & Higgins, 2006). Therefore, because of the need to reduce work related stress, it is important for an organization to ensure that it develops a working environment which balances pressure and the skills of the individuals on whom it is being applied do that they can be better able to cope with it. The scenario where an organization fails to develop such a balance is what brings about stress because the individuals can no longer be able to cope. If the pressure to perform is not reduced in time, then it is likely that the individual might end up being less productive and more of a burden for the organization. Work related stress can be caused by changes which are brought about in the organization and this normally occurs because of resistance towards these changes. In order for organizations to cope with the current competitive economic environment, they have found it necessary to develop constant changes so that they can be able to remain competitive. The changes which they institute sometimes do not go well with the members of these organizations and instead of helping in increasing their competitive edge, creates resistance from among their employees. In most cases of employee resistance, the cause is normally that the management of the organization does not consult with the employees on the intended changes and best manner of implementing them so that they can feel comfortable (Gyllensten, 2005). Instead, the management attempts to force changes which are not in line with the interests of the employees, hence the resistance. Because of the tension which develops between management and employees, there develops a lot of work related stress in the organization as each attempt to have their way. The stress which develops in the workplace under such circumstances is detrimental for all the individuals involved, although there are some individuals who thrive in these scenarios. This is because where one individual might find that the work situation has become stressful, there are others who do not find it so, and in fact thrive in it; becoming more productive than their counterparts. Stress can be derived from a situation where an individual loses his or her job for one reason or the other. The loss of one’s job is among the biggest causes of stress because it results in the development of low esteem in the individuals who has been affected as well as in his family (Ishikawa, et al, 2009). Moreover, because of the lack of a source of income, the individual finds it hard to cope outside work because he has no opportunity to make himself productive through the use of his skills. Because of the lack of employment, the individual come to develop a loss of professional integrity since he is not able to practice the skills which he has developed over a certain period of experience. In addition, the fact that an individual loses his job makes him lose his daily routine because it is this routine which kept him going throughout the day, directing where he should be at a given time. The result of the situations named above is that a large number of individuals end up becoming victims of stress because they can no longer cope with life without their jobs as well as the lack of security. If such people get the opportunity to work after a long period of being unemployed, it might also have an effect on their performance because they will feel under so much pressure to be productive that they lose focus and develop symptoms related to stress. This is the reason why a number of initiatives are being put in place by the government to ensure that the number of people who are unemployed in the society is significantly reduced. The need to ensure that an appropriate culture for dealing with work related stress is developed has come to the fore in recent years because it is this more than anything which helps to increase the work output of individuals within any organization. The fact that a large number of people currently have to deal with stress at work has made it one of the most talked about circumstances that need to be remedied through organizational culture (Gajendran & Harrison, 2008). A strong culture of cohesiveness in the workplace, where individuals rely on one another for support under any given circumstance is what keeps the level of stress in the workplace low. Moreover, it is important for the organization to ensure that it consults regularly with its employees before making critical conditions because it is these consultations which makes the management aware of the employees’ feelings about certain decisions. Furthermore, constant consultation makes it possible for the employees to have a say in the tasks that they have to undertake and this helps the organization through listening to the ideas provided by the employees about the best way to conduct their activities. With employee input, it is more likely than not that the organization will face a level of success in dealing with work related stress because most of the employees will feel satisfied with their positions in the workplace. A culture of consultation makes it possible for all the people in the organization to work in harmony towards the achievement of its goals without necessarily putting too much pressure on the individuals involved to increase their output. In this way, stress is dealt with in a decisive manner, making the working environment conducive for all of the people within it. In conclusion, the discussion above has shown that the instances of stress at work have been rising over the years, especially because of the highly competitive working environment in the modern world. Furthermore, it has been realized that work related stress is a problem which occurs across many organizations and it can happen to anyone at any given work environment, whether the person is a manager or an employee. In addition, in most instances, pressure to perform tends to be an extremely positive thing for individuals in the workplace, but while this may be the case, there are instances where the pressure becomes too much and this leads to people not being able to cope with it. Moreover, work related stress can be caused by changes which are brought about in the organization and this normally occurs because of resistance either from management or employees. Lastly, stress can be derived from a situation where an individual loses his or her job for one reason or the other and to deal with this, a strong culture of cohesiveness in the workplace, where individuals rely on one another for support under any given circumstance, can keep down the level of stress. References Colligan, T.W. & Higgins, M. 2006, "Workplace Stress - Etiology and Consequences." Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health vol. 21 no. 2, pp. 89–97. Gajendran, R. & Harrison, D. 2008, "Telecommuting Win-Win For Employees And Employers." Journal of Applied Psychology. Vol 92 no.6, p. 5. Gyllensten, K. 2005, "The role of gender in workplace stress: A critical literature review". Health Education Journal vol. 64 no.3, pp. 271–288. Hart, P.M. & Cooper, C.L. 2001. “Occupational Stress: Toward a More Integrated Framework.” In N. Anderson, D.S. Ones, H.K. Sinangil, & C. Viswesvaran (Eds), Handbook of Industrial, Work and Organizational Psychology vol. 2. London: Sage. Henry, O. & Evans, A.J. 2008, "Occupational Stress in Organizations". Journal of Management Research vol. 3, pp. 123–135. Ishikawa, S, et al. (2009). "Prospective Study on Occupational Stress and Risk of Stroke". Archives of Internal Medicine vol. 169 no.1, pp. 56–61. Schultz, D. 2010. Psychology and work today. New York: Prentice Hall. Read More