Stress: The Unofficial Office Mascot

Raise your hand if you’re stressed! All of us, from all walks of life and age groups talk about stress! Stress from work, relationships, traffic jams, life events, a personal challenge or not being able to live up to the expectations of social media! Currently students are dealing with stress from looming assessments and exams. In an increasingly complex, harsh and fast paced technological world, the impact of stress on work performance continues to escalate.

The word “stress” originates from the Latin word ‘stringere’, meaning “to draw tight.” Hans Selye was the first psychologist to explore the physiological impact of stress. He demonstrated that stress could cause hormonal disruption and lead to serious illnesses such as heart disease and high blood pressure. However, he also made the vital distinction that not all stress is harmful. He identified “eustress”, as a positive form of stress that motivates us in situations like competitions, and “distress” as being the harmful kind that arises from chronic, demanding situations that can wear us down.

Furthermore, stress can be acute or chronic. The most common is acute stress, often caused by immediate pressures like deadlines, and sometimes referred to as emergency or critical incident stress. Chronic stress, on the other hand, is long-term and more insidious. Chronic stress can become so normalized that it is hard to recognize, yet it does the most damage. It can lead to serious outcomes such as depression, heart disease, stroke, and in some cases, even suicide.

Many of us spend long hours at our place of work. The pressure to deliver quick results, declining empathy, and fast-paced emotionless digital communication all contribute to rising stress levels and burnout. The UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) defines stress as "the reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them. It arises when they worry that they can’t cope.”  While stress itself is not a medical condition, the HSE warns that its effects can lead to longer-term psychological and physical health problems. The data is shocking: over 30 million working days are lost due to stress each year in the UK, accounting for 17% of all work absences.

To identify the source, research into workplace stress has taken many forms. Quite surprising the 2014 Work and Well-Being Survey by the American Psychological Association found that “heavy workload” was not among the top five sources of work stress, indicating other underlying issues. So, what could it be?

The Karasek’s Demand-Control Model found that people in “active” jobs - where high demands are balanced with high levels of control - tended to report better health and job satisfaction. Meanwhile, the Person-Environment (P-E) Fit model suggests that stress arises when there’s a mismatch between an individual’s perception of environmental demands and their perceived ability to cope and naturally considering personal, social, and family support. Another influential approach is Cooper’s Transactional Model of Occupational Stress, which highlights the interaction between individual characteristics and workplace stressors. This model identifies five key stressors: the job itself, role within the organisation, workplace relationships, career development, and the organisational structure. It should be noted that Cooper emphasises that stress is not always rooted in the workplace and can stem from personal life.

Additionally, individual personality plays a role in how one experiences and manages stress. For example, those with an internal locus of control believe they can influence outcomes and therefore, tend to handle stress better. In contrast, individuals with an external locus of control may feel powerless and as a result be susceptible to learned helplessness, which can also lead to depression. It is important to note that not all exposure to stress results in negative outcomes. In the short term, stress can energize and motivate us. However, excessive or unrelenting stress can affect behaviour - manifesting as aggression, withdrawal, or emotional outbursts as well as impairing cognitive function.

Stress has become an almost universal experience in modern life, particularly within the workplace. At the end of the day, we are all human. So, as organisations become more demanding, leaders and colleagues should recognise the value of empathy, patience, and support. While it may be tempting to pass down pressure through the hierarchy, this only succeeds in perpetuating the cycle of stress. A more human-centred approach to foster resilience would be to acknowledge individual differences and prioritise well-being. This could make all the difference. If line managers can learn to understand the nature of stress, and actively work to mitigate its impact, healthier workplaces could be more of the norm. People should not have to survive work; it is a place they should have the opportunity to thrive.

 NivsD (Sunday 13th April)

Further Reading

·      Arnold et al., (2020)

·      CIPD (2013) - Absence Management

·      Cooper (1983) - Identifying Stressors at Work