Exploring Theoretical Mechanisms and Perspectives

Overview
Pamela L. Perrew, Daniel C. Ganster

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Theoretical Mechanisms and Perspectives. Published online: 09 Mar 2015; vii-ix.
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OVERVIEW

We are pleasedto introduce you to the new annual series titled Researchin
Occupational Stress and Well Being, with the publication of Volume 1. The
objective of this series is to promote theory and researchin the fast growing
area of occupationalstress,health and well being, and in the process,to bring
togetherand showcasethe work of the best scholarswho contribute to this area.
Questionsof work stress span many disciplines, and it is increasingly difficult
to track, and even harder to integrate,the work from these diverse fields. Our
plan is to allow influential stress writers to critically examine cutting edge
researchfrom their respectivedisciplines. We hope to provide a multidisciplinary and internationalperspectivein each volume that will give a thorough and
critical assessmentof issuesin occupationalstressand well being. Furthermore,
our interest is in promoting the careful development of truly path-breaking
contributions that can significantly advancetheory and provide specific directions for future work. We will be publishing a volume every year on cutting
edge issuesin the field, and we aspireto have scholarsin this area look to this
series as a major publication outlet for their work. We feel that Research in
Occupational Stress and Well Being will fill an important niche by providing
a forum for monograph-lengthconceptualpieces in the field.
The lead paperin this volume is written by Jia Lin Xie and John Schaubroeck,
who begin by examininghow the different academicsdisciplines of researchers
in the stressfield shapehow they frame their researchquestionsand strategies.
In particular, they distinguish betweenresearchin the organizationalsciences
and epidemiologyand discusshow bridging the approachesand findings across
diverse disciplines can improve stress research.After summarizing the major
findings contributed by these two streams of research,they provide us with
specific areasfor conciliation and integration.
The next three papersexamine coping processesas well as types of coping.
Philip Dewe begins this section on coping by proposing that the transactional
perspective might be the best organizing concept that will sustain coping
research over the next decade. Dewe also critically examines measurement
issuesin coping researchand exploreswhat is meant by coping effectiveness.
The next paper, by Terry Beehr and Sharon Glazer, reviews the extensive
researchon social support as a coping mechanism,and introducesculture as a
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OVERVIEW

factor that might alter the relationship among stressors,strain, and social
support.Specifically, they focus on the influenceof culture on types and sources
of social support and examine how social support might affect occupational
stressin different cultural contexts.
The next coping paper is written by Dov Eden. Eden reviews the empirical
research on job stress and respite relief, encompassingoff-the-job periods
ranging from weekendsat home to yearlong sabbaticals.He not only examines
the research in this area but also proposes ways in which managersand
employees might use respites to maximize relief from cumulative burnout.
Finally, Eden introduces a new construct, fun efficacy that he arguesmay
predict enjoymentboth on and off the job.
In the next paper, Paul Spector and Angeline Gob examine the role of
emotions in the occupationalstressprocess.The authorsfocus on the role of
negative emotions and provide an overview of an emotion-centeredoccupational stress model. They examine the empirical evidence for the proposed
linkages in their model and conclude with suggestionsabout how a focus on
emotionscan lead to practicesthat can enhanceemployeewell being.
JosephHurrell examinesthe role of psychosocialfactors and musculoskeletal
disordersin the next paper. While the exact etiologic mechanismsare poorly
understood,there is increasingevidencethat psychosocialfactors relatedto the
job and work environment play a role in the developmentof work-related
musculoskeletaldisorders.Specifically, Hurrell examinesthe empirical research
evidencelinking work-relatedpsychosocialfactors to musculoskeletaldisorders
of the upper extremities and back.
The final paper is written by Michael ODriscoll and Philip Dewe. These
authorsexaminethe vast researchon various mediatorsand moderatorsin the
occupationalstressor-strainrelationshipand they discussthe role of mediators
and moderatorsin the context of the general transactionalmodel of stress.
ODriscoll and Dewe focus on the roles of primary appraisal,coping, dispositional characteristics,emotions, and perceptionsof the environment.
We believe that this volume provides a rich compilation of the insights of
top researchersconcerningwhat we know about occupationalstress, coping,
and well being, and which critical gapsneedthe most attentionin order for the
field to progress.No single volume can possibly mirror the diversity of research
issues and approachesthat characterizethe field of work stress.The chapters
in this volume, however, illustrate the differing views of those scholarswho
aremost concernedwith linking objectiveoccupationalexperienceswith specific
healthoutcomesand thosewho are most interestedin understandingthe psychological mediatorsthat causeoccupationalexperiencesto affect individualswell
being. Though this distinction has sometimesproduceda lively debatein the

Overview

ix

field, we are convincedthat the rigorous pursuit of both orientationsis needed

to allow the field to progress.We look forward to bringing new perspectives
and developmentsin occupationalstress and well being in future volumes of
this series.
PamelaL. PerrewC
Daniel C. Ganster

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Series Editors