ASSIGNMENT OF INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGY (STRESS MANAGMENT) Subject Dushyant Kumar(1112821024) , EN-A .

Meaning & Definition Stress is inherent characteristic of human life. It indicates the pressure feel in life. As a result of the pressure, employees develop various symptoms that can harm their job performance. People who are stressed may become nervous, easily provoked to anger and are unable to relax. For example ,one employee will accept a new work procedure while another will reject it. However the major job conditions that cause stress for employees are: 1. work overload. 2. Time pressures. 3. Poor quality of supervision. According to Lazarus Stress denotes a general class of problems which deal with demands taxing the physiological and social system and the response of these systems .

Stages of stress According to Selye , there are three stages of stress as discussed below: 1. Alarm reaction Under this stage, an initial shock phase of lowered resistance is followed by counter-shock during which an individual s defence mechanisms are activated.

2. Resistance It is a stage of maximum adaptation when the individual restores the equilibrium. 3. Exhaustion It is stressor continues or defence mechanism falters,individual moves to this stage. STAGES OF STRESS

Alarm

Resistance

Exhaustion

 Relation between Stress & Performance The best known and most thoroughly documented pattern in the stress performance literature is the inverted-U relationship. This is show in fig. Performance High

Distress

Distress

Low

Entress
Low Stress Optimum Stress High Stress

Stress can be either helpful or harmful to job performance depending upon the amount of it. When there is no stress, job challenges are absent and performance tends to be low. As stress increase, performance increase. Ultimately stress reaches a plateau that corresponds with a persons top performance capability. At this point, stress tends to produce no improvement of performance. Finally, if stress becomes too heavy, performance will decline an if it increases to a breaking point,

Eustress and Distress Stress is anything that changes our physical, emotional o mental state while encountering various stimuli in our environment. Selye has used two separate terms to distinguished between the positive and negative effect. Eustress is positive stress that accompanies achievement an exhilaration. Distress occurs when we feel insecure, inadequate, helpless or desperate as the result of too much, or too little, pressure or tension. It suggest that optimum stress (or eustress) may be achieve at work an reflected in job performance when job provide adequate challenges. Stressors Causes Stress Stress results from failure to adequately cope with stressors. Stressors could be loud noise, uncomfortable air-conditioning, debts, ringing telephones, broken relationships, unrealistic deadlines, discouragement, fear, pain and thousands of other things that impact upon us in the normal course of life. It is impossible to avoid stressors. We experience stress as the body adjusts to the external demands placed upon it. Our body constantly seeks to maintain stability and stress is usually sensed as the body readjusts to too much pressure. Scientists use the term HOMEOSTASIS to define the physiological limits. Stress disturbs homeostasis by creating a state of imbalance. The graphs below show two ways of coping with stress. OneOh! called the Healthy Pattern, the other the Uh is Normal Excited Hazardous Pattern. Healthy Pattern Whew Relaxed

The Healthy Pattern recognises that we can assist the body to cope with the stress adjustment process by applying a positive coping strategy (e.g. leisure, relaxation, exercise etc.) after the stressful experience. This restores us to a steadystate.

Unhealthy Patten

The Hazardous Pattern develops when we fail to recognise the signals that the body sends seeking recovery actions. The continuing stress build up eventually leads to stress overload and physical or psychological breakdown results. Technique to control or manage Stress Stress is inevitable in human life. There is, therefore, no way out but to cope with stress or fight with it. People can learn to manage stress and lea happier, healthier lives. Here are some tips to manage or control to stress1. Keep a positive attitude.

4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Exercise regularly. Your body can fight stress better when it is fit. Eat healthy, well-balanced meals. arn to manage your time more effectively. Make time for hobbies and interests. Don't rely on alcohol, drugs, or food to reduce stress. Ease up on caffeine, too. 9. eek out social support. Spend enough time with those you love. 10. Get enough rest and sleep. Your body needs time to recover from stressful events. Stressors at work place Stress has become increasingly common in organizations, largely because of increased job complexity and increased economic pressure on individuals. Individuals at the beginning of their career, who are trying to establish themselves often experience stress. The factors which have the potential ti cause stress may be grouped under two headings, namely: 1. Organizational stressors 2. Extra-Organizational stressors

1. Organizational stressors Organizational stressors are various factors in the work place that can causes stress. The general sets of organizational stressor are as follow:
Factors Intrinsic to the job There are many factors intrinsic to the job

 Interpersonal Relationship at work Poor relationship involve low trust, low supportiveness and low interest in listening to and dealing with organizational problem of the members. The members feel more stress if the boss is low on consideration. Stress is generated not only by the pressure of relationship but also by a lack of adequate social from colleagues during difficult situations. Organizational structure and Climate This source of stress involves perception of being in the organization . Specifically such stressors include: little o no participation in decision making, lack of effective consolation, poor communication, restrictions on behavior and politics. 2. Extra-Organizational Sources of Stress The extra- organizational sources of stress are varied including family problem, life crisis, conflict between personal an companys beliefs and conflict between family and companys demands. Source of stress at work cause divergent reaction from different individual. Some individual are more capable of copying with the above stressors than other. They tend to adapt their behavior in a way which fits the environmental requirements. On the other hand, there are some individual who are some prone to stress than others. They are unable to cope with the stress- causing situations.