WORK STRESS

UNIT-4

Introduction
We come across the word Stress everybody.
Managers ,financiers ,government officials,
administrators , politicians , students and also
housewives experience stress . Stress has its
effects on all walk of life. It is important to
understand the nature effects of stress so as to
effectives stress management. Stress can be
explained basically as pressure upon a persons
psychological set-up , it also , in turn , affects
his/her physical and behavioral systems . The
sources of stress can be individual , organizational
and social.

Meanings & Definition

Meanings :1. Stress is basically a pressure upon a persons
psychological system which arises out of
complexity or intensity of ones work life.
2. Stress can be positive or negative:
. Stress is positive when the situation offers an
opportunity for a person to gain something. It
acts as a motivator for peak performance.
. Stress is negative when a person faces social,
physical, organizational and emotional
problems.

Meanings & Definition

Definitions :1. Stress is a condition arising from the
interaction of people & their jobs and
characterized by changes within people
that force them to deviate from their
normal functioning .
-by Beeher & Newman
2. Stress as an adaptive response to an
external situation that results in physical ,
psychological and/or behavioral deviations
for organizational participants.
-by Fred Luthans

Organizational Stressors
Management
Stretegies and
Planning
Down sizing
Competitive
Processes
Pay Based on
Results
Strict Rules and
Regulations
High
Technology
Flexible Work

Organization
Designs &
Structures
Centralization
and
Formalization
Mechanical
Structure
Narrow
Specialization
Role Ambiguity
& Control

Organizational
Processes

Poor Working
Conditions

Tight Controls
Only Downward
Communication
Little
Performance
Feedback
Centralized
DecisionMaking
Automatic
Leadership
Styles
Use of Appraisal
for punishments

Crowded Work
Area
Noise , Heat ,
Cold
Pollution
Strong Odouor
Unsafe
Condition
Poor Lighting &
Ventilation
Toxic Chemicals

Job Stress

How to Manage Stress

Individual Techniques
1. Time Management
2. Work home Transition
3. Work-life balance

4. Physical-exercises
5. Yoga & meditation
6. Humour
7. Change in the food , drinking &
smoking habits

Need for Work-Life Balance

Work & life demands need to be balanced in
view of the following reasons:
Increased competition due to globalisation ,
liberalisation and privatisation , enhanced work
pressures on employees;
Increase in stress levels of employees due to high
demands of jobs in terms of targets, high productivity ,
high quality , customisation & better customer
relationship management;

Cntd
Increase in personal ambitions for higher level salary ,
status & power;
Increase in pressure of family obligations along with the
accelerating pace of living standards;
High performance culture eroded the long-term loyalty
& a sense of corporate community;
Managements expect more and more from their
employees yet offers little job security in return;
Job targets & attractive performance-based pay results
spending more than 18 hours a day on the job and
neglecting the normal family life including
interpersonal and sexual relationships.

Methods of Balancing Work & Family Life

The methods of balancing work & family life
include :
Flexible working hours and flexible working place;
Telecommuting;
Introduction of stress releasing measures;
On-the job training for imparting skills to do the job in a
smart way;
Introduction of employee-assistance programmes;
Conducting frequent surveys to understand the workbalance issues and designing appropriate measures to
reduce the imbalances

Any
Questions.
?