Major Sources of Stress at Work - Coursework Example

Major sources of stress at work Contents Contents 2 Introduction 3 Main text 4 Theories of stress at work 4 Causes of stress at work 5 Application oftheories on real world organizations 9 Healthy organizations created by managers 12 Conclusion 17 References 19 Introduction The study is centred towards analyzing different aspects of stress. Stress at work is a common phenomenon observed within all organizations. There are various elements which contribute towards stress. Demand has a strong correlation with stress. It has been observed that an individual is stressed only when one is not being able to address demand. Stress encompasses two forms of responses such as psychological and physiological. There are factors which directly or indirectly causes stress. For instance, problems at home might create stress at work. Individual differences in workplace also can cause stress. Stress usually tends to alter attitude of team members. This in turn have adverse impact on overall job performance. The reason and causes of stress shall be well supported with case studies and theoretical frameworks. Pressure and stress though considered to be identical but still comprise of a line of distinction. Stress can be stated as an outcome of individual perception. It is a costly factor and results when there is excessive pressure. On the contrary, pressure is another component which is needed for development. Pressure serves as a motivational factor in a scenario where different individuals possess different potential. Apart from identifying different sources of stress, this study will even outline various strategies undertaken by managers to design a healthy organization. To certain extent background of individuals also play a critical role in initiating stress. In the first part of this essay different sources of stress shall be discussed. The second part of the study will comprise of a framework where some strategies would be recommended for organizational leaders. Main text Theories of stress at work Cognitive-relational theory states that stress is a connection between environment and people. Appraisals are determined by an individual through perceiving environmental demands and personal resources. There is always a change observed between relationship of environment and people with time. This form of change basically results due to altering requirements, personal abilities enhancements or coping up with effectiveness. The theory is centred towards analyzing the level of interaction between an individual and environment. Stress and Coping theory by Krohne mainly reflects upon an individual’s thoughts to address various demands, resulting into a stressful scenario. Fundamental challenges witnessed by an individual are examined in this theory. Major causes of stress are highlighted in this theory. The theory even emphasizes on relaxation need for an individual. Stress management techniques facilitate emotional and physical well-being, along with improving overall workplace productivity (Price, 2007). Managers play an active role in terms of reducing negative aspects of stress along with initiating positive aspects of stress at work. Causes of stress at work Some of the major causes of stress are job demand, individual differences, ineffective management, work underload, environmental factors, work overload, personality, change and lack of support socially. Demand of the job There is intense competition in workplace environment. Employees need to upgrade their skills and knowledge base so as to stay competitive in workplace. Job responsibilities given to an employee is at times stressful (Price, 2007). These job duties might encompass monitoring equipment or information, undertaking decision making, exhibiting hazardous jobs, exchange of job roles with other team members, being alert with changing work conditions and bullying. Work Overload At times enormous workload cannot be handled by employees. Unrealistic deadlines are often coupled with high workloads. This in turn supports an employee to become overwhelmed and perform tasks under pressure. Work overload is often regarded as an intrinsic aspect in relation to employee duties or jobs. This kind of work pressure within an organization tends to disrupt workplace environment (Bamberger and Meshoulam, 2000). Work Underload Insufficient work is also regarded as one of the causes behind stress at work. Team members due to work underload are often unoccupied or underutilized in work situations. It is often observed that team members develop feelings that they are not being able to utilize their abilities or skills appropriately. Individual Differences Individual differences at times are considered to be one of the reasons behind workplace stress. Personal issues are also a factor which creates stress in professional life. There is high demand in organizational environment and it eventually results into stress. Excessive work pressure cannot be managed by individuals effectively. This form of inability to address demand results into stress. Work related stress is all about linking work related problems with exposure, and even combines its overall negative impact. Individual perception is central component in any kind of stress. Pressure and stress are two different aspects since former is essential for self-development (Bamberger and Meshoulam, 2000). Employees usually differ in their capacities that are stimulated through pressure. On the contrary, when capacity of an individual is exceeded by pressure it causes stress at work. Stress is closely knitted with individual perception and it contradicts concept of pressure. There are certain factors in an organization, if not managed properly causes stress (Leopold, Harris and Watson, 2005). When employees are not able to address job demand it creates stress. Employees are supposed to have a control on their work procedure and if this aspect is not dealt appropriately it might lead to stress. There are circumstances when required information is not transmitted to employees. This leads to confusion in an organization (Boxall and Purcell, 2003). Confusion or rather interpersonal differences are key factors behind stress at work. In any organization relationship building is an important aspect. Team members at times are bullied and it creates a fear in their mindset. Employees if not given flexibility to perform may be stressful throughout their job tenure (Hiatt and Creasey, 2003). Responsibilities and roles are assumed to be well understood by employees. However constant reminder on their job duties is another source of workplace stress. Organizational change is an alarming issue when it comes to analyzing stress in an organization. It has been observed that organizational change brings forth certain alterations in job roles and responsibilities (Torrington, Hall and Taylor, 2014). Management should be able to communicate need for change else it may result into stress. This is simply because employees have to change their performance as per new business strategies. Work related stress has some common symptoms such as lack of appetite, body pains, constant tiredness, insomnia, nausea, indigestion, nervous twitches, frequent, high blood pressure, etc. These are all physical symptoms which are observed within employees who are going through a stressful circumstance. On the other hand, behavioural symptoms are feeling of failure, irritability, loss of interest in context of other people or own-self, suppressed anger, concentration difficulty and absence of sense of humour. Individual differences also results due to differing family backgrounds. These indifferences eventually results into lack of communication skills between team members. Vulnerability is a result of such individual differences and this causes negative aspects of stress. Absence of psychological or material resources within individuals makes them more prone towards stress. This is simply because they tend to react to any scenario in emotional context. Ineffective Management Weak management tends to leave employees feeling undervalued or not possessing any future direction. This factor affects commitment and self-esteem that is essential to accomplish set goals or objectives (Torrington, Hall and Taylor, 2014). Essential information is not communicated across team members in various circumstances and this leaves them in a dilemma about their future or career growth in the company. Employer and Employee relationship Stress at work might result due to poor relationship between employee and employer. There needs to be a strong relationship between employee and employer in order to deal with various job circumstances. Team members can even approach Employment Relations Authority so as to set a claim against contract violation, unjustified dismissal or any form of unjustified disadvantages (Hiatt and Creasey, 2003). Differences in this relation need to be addressed appropriately so as to effectively handle workplace challenges. Psychological Contract It is observed that positive psychological contract results into greater and constructive relationship between an employee and employer. This factor even brings forth changes in perception, informal obligations and mutual beliefs (Hiatt and Creasey, 2003). Psychological contract which is harmful causes negative impact on perceptions, mutual beliefs, informal obligations, workplace stress, team dynamics, understandings, etc. Other essential factors resulting into stress are redundancy and economic recession. Recession causes physical, mental and emotional depression. Personality The significance of worker’s characteristics and personality is greatly observed in level of job stress. However a situation or cause which appears to be stressful for a particular person might not be applicable for another person. Individual traits are regarded as an important factor that constitutes workplace environment. These differences in traits results into stress at work. Stress prevention strategies needs to be inclined towards personality of workers as it enables an individual to cope up with demanding work conditions. Type A and Type B personalities are two different personality traits. Type A personality often possesses strong duty sense, are under time pressure, impatient, cope poorly with workplace stress, competitive and respond quickly (Paauwe, 2009). Type B personality individuals are less hurried, less competitive but can cope with any stressful circumstance. Job Design Job Design is an effective approach to reduce stress at workplace. Excessive workload or conflicting job expectations are primary causes of stress at workplace. Job tasks are usually characterized by hectic work conditions, reduced rest breaks, extensive workload or long hours of daily work (Paauwe, 2009). Other sources of stress are inadequate workplace policies, poor communication, reduced participation of workers in any kind of decision making process, etc. Application of theories on real world organizations Research conducted by Health and Safety Executive stated that more than half million individuals were suffering from workplace stress. 5 million living in UK is extremely stressed out due to workplace responsibilities. 6.5 million of working days is eventually loss due to illness resulting from workplace stress (Schuler, Dowling and DeCieri, 2003). As per HEI or Higher Education Institutions of UK, main reasons of stress are long hours, communications and resources, work relationships and job security. There are real world organizations located in UK which has undergone many stressful scenarios and has even resolved it appropriately. These case studies would help to determine negative or positive stress. Hertfordshire County Council had witnessed great deal of stress. Management standards were introduced by the council during 2005 but there were even emergence of stressful scenarios. Communication was a major issue in this organization since information was not transmitted in desired way to different locations. It has already been discussed that communication and responses are one of the causes behind stress. There were locations involved in organizational change of Hertfordshire County Council that did not possess any such accessibility to computers or to any other resources. This in turn increased difficulty level for employees (Paauwe, 2009). They were unable to understand changing business scenario and felt management did not involve them in change process. Indeed this was negative stress at work because team members were unaware about critical information and it adversely affected job performance. John Lewis is a renowned company based in London that has even witnessed such workplace stress. This aspect of work related stress is rapidly increasing since last few years across the globe. It has significantly affected John Lewis with increasing percentage of employee turnover rate. Managers were unaware about such stressful condition in John Lewis and its long term impact on business operations. However training and development program which was not a major area of concern in this organization, gained importance due to high rate of employee turnover (Price, 2007). This can be stated as a positive stress since it facilitated development of a new program in the organization. Extensive training was provided to workers so as to enhance their well-being and retain their organizational commitment. Such stressful conditions were also observed in Starbucks and Easyjet. These two companies have set their mark in their respective operating industries. Starbucks is a leading player in coffeehouse chain and it has surpassed many other players. The company however encompasses stress in the form of improper message communication to employees, increased workload, shorter deadlines, lack of interpersonal relations, etc. It was a negative stress for the company since it resulted into high employee turnover and decreased organizational productivity. On the other hand, Easyjet was subjected to positive stress since productive employees were retained in the workplace. The company strived to remain competitive in low cost airline industry. Easyjet had to undertake different strategies to offer quality service to customers at lowest cost. This in turn influenced the company to incorporate training and development programs. Main objective of the firm was to encourage employees so that they perform efficiently. Easyjet had even increased their target for employees along with performance appraisal systems. Stress at work motivated employees to perform well and achieve desirable targets (Brewster, 2008). The real world cases reflect both positive and negative impacts of stress. In certain circumstances stress causes employee turnover, absenteeism, job strain, high human costs, etc. On the contrary, positive stress results into employee engagement, job satisfaction, increased performance level, organizational commitment, etc. Healthy organizations created by managers Management plays a vital role in developing healthy organizations. This kind of organization comprises of less stressful conditions and helps employees to become productive. It can be stated that negative impact of stress can only be eradicated by designing a healthy organization. Stress is indirectly or directly dependent on two components such as efficiency and pressure. Pressure curve have been further elaborated in figure1. Figure 1: Pressure Curve As per figure1, in initial stage of stress there is boredom and comfort observed within individuals. It eventually results into peak of performance level where employees opt for delivering better outcomes. However stress if not controlled initiates burn out stage, in which there is lot of pain and strain. In this particular study there are three important topics been focused on – motivation, stress and career management. Individual differences create stress because employees are not able to understand common business objectives (Mello, 2011). Healthy organizations can only be developed when team members work towards a common goal. A learning organization can also be regarded as a healthy organization. This is simply because continuous learning is encouraged in the organization with required support from employees. The learning cycle is further described in figure 2. Figure 2: Kolbs Learning Cycle (Source: Wilson, 2005) According to figure 2, the learning cycle usually starts with concrete experience. This kind of experience is linked with need for learning or its overall impact on organizational productivity. Managers are solely responsible for structuring such concrete experience for employees. The next phase is all about reflective observation in which managers have to observe behaviour of team members towards learning programs. This phase even encompasses communicating learning need to target audience. It is necessary that all team members are well aligned with learning objectives. In abstract conceptualization phase, managers work in collaboration with team members in order to impart necessary skills and knowledge (Kazmi and Ahmad, 2001). The actual training program is implemented in this stage. This is an appropriate mechanism to reduce stress at work because employees can bring forth their grievances and attempt to resolve issues. Learning cycle ends with active experimentation phase where managers evaluate training and development sessions. It is an important task because effectiveness of a learning program can only be determined through evaluation mechanism. There are certain multinational corporations which opt for experiential learning system. Experiential learning is a method by which employees are given flexibility to work. They can gain sufficient knowledge during performing tasks individually or in groups. These experiences can then form a learning base for employees. Managers have to distinguish between type A and type B employees. Type A individuals have high potential for achieving targets, sense of duty, respond quickly, cannot cope up with stress, etc. On the contrary, type B individuals can effectively cope up with stress, easy going, less competitive, less hurried, etc. Job performance totally depends on employee characteristics and attitude (Armstrong, 2006). It is responsibility of managers to identify these characteristics and allocate job accordingly. There are certain organizational changes that can build a healthy organization. They are improving training mechanism, focusing more on decentralized approach, improving channels of communication, reallocating organizational functions, job enrichment and job enlargement. Psychological contract also facilitates designing of a healthy organization. Constructive psychological contract enables building of a healthy relationship between employee and employer. It is essential that managers focus on communication skills and strategic vision in order to develop a high performing organization. Managers have to communicate information regarding failures or success of a firm. Healthy work conditions are enhanced through sharing information and craving for success or performance (Mello, 2011). Organizational culture plays a critical role in developing productive workplace environment. Culture is responsible for aligning employees with common business goals. Stress at work can be reduced if a motivating work culture is structured. Organizational culture is denoted by two important factors such as employer and employees. At times workplace conflict is solely responsible for deteriorating organizational culture. Cultural factor can be enhanced only through building strong interpersonal relationship between employer and employees. Participative work culture needs to be facilitated as it provides opportunity to employees to put across their innovative ideas or opinions. On the other hand, healthy organizations can also be developed by organizing regular meetings (Mello, 2011). Employers need to communicate directly with employees on a regular basis in order to analyze their issues and implement highly efficient strategies. Psychological work contract is another mechanism utilized by managers to develop healthy organizations. This form of work contract is highly distinguishable for other employment contract or regulation. It is about structuring a platform where managers can emphasize on mutual benefits. These benefits enable a firm to acquire and retain talent within the system. Extended job responsibilities usually make an individual feel that they are being valued in an organization. Sense of ownership is an important aspect when it comes to structuring a healthy organization. While managing, employee empowerment should be encouraged. There are other ways to reduce stress such as avoiding any form of role conflict, enlarging or enriching job, initiating flexibility, involving employees more into change initiatives, recognizing performance, providing opportunity and facilitating better physical working conditions. Employee motivation is another factor that should be taken into consideration by managers. Motivational theory framed by Maslow describes various elements motivating team members. Maslow’s hierarchy model has been stated in figure 3. Figure 3: Maslows Hierarchy of Needs (Source: Maslow, 2013) Figure 3 clearly states that physiological and safety needs are basic needs of an individual. An organization needs to take care of esteem and self-actualization needs. Esteem needs is all about gaining recognition from other team members. This area needs to be focused on by managers. They should formulate strategies through which employees feel acknowledged for their job duties. Reward management or performance appraisal system is one way of appreciating hard work of employees. It even helps to reduce stress because employees feel being valued. Workplace motivation helps to reduce level stress amongst employees. There exist different techniques through which employees can be motivated to perform well. Managers incorporate performance appraisal system as a means to eradicate stress and enhance group performance (Hoffmann, 2007). In certain circumstance individual performance is improved by providing monetary or non-monetary incentives. Managers even design this system to remove barriers amongst team members and build strong interpersonal relationships. Employees are stressful when they are not being able to share their problems with others. Motivation for collaborative work facilitates elimination of this cause for stress at work. As a team, higher performance standards can be established and desirable objectives can be accomplished. 360 degree performance appraisal technique is an effective method to build healthy organizations (Hoffmann, 2007). This technique is inclined towards gathering required information from all stakeholders. On basis of obtained information, individuals are offered rewards or given proper training. Apart from all these measures, stress at work can be reduced by allocating tasks as per employee potential. It can be stated that overburden often initiates stress and degrades level of job performance. Participative management style is another way to formulate healthy organization (Wright, Gardner and Moynihan, 2003). This style indicates that all team members will be given equal opportunities to contribute their opinions or ideas. Conclusion As per this study, stress is a common component in workplace environment. There is basically positive and negative stress. Positive stress enables an individual to develop necessary skills. It brings forth organizational changes that are essential for survival in the market place. On the contrary, negative stress reduces motivational level within employees. In this particular study, there are examples given of many organizations which have been adversely affected due to stress. Stress not only affects individual mind-set but even restricts an organization from further growth and development. There is a difference between stress and pressure. Pressure creates an atmosphere where employees can develop their skill set and knowledge base. Stress usually results when an individual’s capacity exceeds pressure level. It has been observed that employees reach burn out stage if stress is not being effectively controlled. The first part of this study includes various causes of stress. These causes mainly comprise of job demand, lack of control, lack of relationship building, job insecurity, etc. Managers have to empower employees for taking effective decisions and enhance creative thinking. Control or empowerment is a necessary factor since it aligns individual interests with business goals. Healthy organization is one when team leaders and members collaboratively work to accomplish a common goal. Organizational changes are a supporting factor for implementing employee empowerment. Employees are often subjected to stress because they are unable to share their problems. Group work is an important aspect which can help to reduce stress at work. Some companies like John Lewis, Starbucks, Easyjet, etc., have witnessed stressful scenarios. These companies have implemented strategies in order to eradicate stress from the system. It is clearly evident from the study that motivational concepts and training programs facilitates reduction of work related stress. References Armstrong, M., 2006. Strategic human resource management: a guide to action. London: Kogan Page. Bamberger, P. and Meshoulam, I., 2000. Human resource management strategy. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Boxall, P. and Purcell, J., 2003. Strategy and human resource management. Basingstoke: Plagrave. Brewster, C., 2008. Contemporary issues in HRM: gaining a competitive advantage. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Hiatt, J. and Creasey, T. J., 2003. Change management. USA: Prosci. Hoffmann, S., 2007. Classical motivation theories - similarities and differences between them. Germany: GRIN Verlag. 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