Sources Of Stress : Workplace & Physiological Measures Flashcards
Who developed the demand- control model?
This model, developed by Karasek (1979), states that those who experience high demands at work with little control are more likely than other employees to feel stressed.
What is the demand-control model?
The demand-control model is focused on the balance of workload and control.
What was the Johansson study?
• 24 male workers at a Swedish Sawmill
• High risk/low control were 14 participants and classified as having repetitive, constrained and isolated jobs with little or no control of pace or work routine - known as ‘The Finishers’.
• 10 workers- control group high control, low risk- cleaners/ maintenance workers-The control group.
What is a problem with physiological measures?
A problem with physiological measures is that they can lack validity as we can’t be sure that we are measuring stress levels as caffeine, drugs and alcohol can cause the same effects.
Method of physiological measurement examples?
∙ Breathing Rate: tubes around the chest
∙ Voice stress analyser
∙ Blood pressure: specially designed
inflatable armband
∙ Heart Rate: Electrocardiogram (ECG)
∙ Sweating: Skin Conductance Response
(Galvanic Skin Response)
∙ Hormones & Steroids: Blood or urine or
saliva
What is the galvanic skin response? ( SCR)
Measures the electrical resistance of the skin which is an indicator of the levels of arousal in the nervous system.
What is SCR?
• Scientists in the 19th century realised that skin is electrically active and that this electrical activity is conducted when the skin is wet (skin conductance response).
• As sweat is produced, the amount of electricity that is conducted increases.
• This effect is strongest in the palms of the hands and soles of the feet (because there is a high density of eccrine sweat glands at these points glands which are responsive to emotional stimuli).
• To measure the skin conductance response, two electrodes are placed on a person’s index and middle finger.
• A very small voltage (0.5v) is applied across these electrodes. By measuring the current that flows, conductance can be reported (in microSiemens).
Evaluation of Physiological measures
•Physiological measures of stress can overcome the subjectivity of self-report measures.
• They rely on hormones, chemicals, heart rates and blood pressure.
•The main issue is the validity as other issues can cause physiological changes which can mimic stress responses- drugs/caffeine/alcohol
How does physiological measures avoid some problems of self report technique?
• Using physiological measures avoids some of the problems associated with self-report measures.
• Evidence: For example, using physiological methods avoids things like social desirability because participants are not asked to independently judge their stress levels. The measures that are used are independent of the participant and objective.
• Evaluation: This is a strength because removing participant judgement is more likely to produce accurate results, allowing the experimenter to measure what they are intending to measure this will increase internal validity.
What is an issue using physiological measures ? ( evaluation )
• However, an issue with using physiological measures is that what is actually being measured is sympathetic arousal, which occurs in response to any emotion, it may not just be stress that causes the activity of the SNS.
• Evidence: For example, it could be that the participant is experiencing fear, anger, surprise or sexual arousal which would all lead to increased sweat and increased skin conductance.
• Evaluation: This is a weakness because it may be the cause that the test isn’t actual measuring what it intends to measure (i.e. the stress response) which could cause inaccurate results.
What is a strength of SCR?
• However, a strength of skin conductance response is that it has led to other applications/uses.
• Evidence: For example, skin conductance response has been used as a way of determining whether someone is lying the polygraph or lie detector test.
• Evaluation: This is a strength because to have such a test is very appealing because it would make it so easy to detect dishonesty.
• However: as previously discussed, the skin conductance test is not a very dependable measure of deceitfulness. Furthermore, Oshumi and Ohira found that psychopaths generally lack emotional responsiveness which means they can lie without any associated physiological response.
