Workplace and Johansson et al. (1978) Flashcards
What is intra-role conflict?
Competing demands within the same role
What is inter-role conflict?
Competing demands between different roles.
What are two effects of the work environment that may cause stress?
Temperature: too hot or cold temperature can lead to stress and frustration
Noise: noise is unpleasant, and especially loud and uncontrollable noise can cause stress
What are organisational effects and how may they cause stress?
An organisational effect is something within the organisation that can cause stress, such as opportunities for promotion, decision-making, and relationships with coworkers.
How does level of control in a workplace contribute to stress?
Things that cannot be controlled, such as loud and unpredictable noises, cause us to feel stress negatively when we appraise a situation as something we cannot cope with. Therefore, high levels of control in a job results in lower levels of stress, whereas low levels of control will contribute toward higher levels of stress.
What research supports level of control?
Bosma et al. (1997) found that low control in the work environment of civil servants is associated with an increased risk of future coronary heart disease. This supports the idea that a low level of control in the workplace contributes to high levels of stress.
How may cultural differences affect whether level of control causes stress?
Györkös et al. (2012) found that a lack of control in the workplace caused stress in individualistic cultures, whereas it did not cause stress in collectivist cultures. This shows that lack of control causing stress may only apply in individualistic cultures.
What was the aim of the study by Johansson et al. (1978)?
To measure the psychological and physiological stress response in two categories of Swedish sawmill employees.
What was the procedure of the study by Johansson et al. (1978)?
24 employees of a Swedish sawmill were split into two categories: high-risk and low-risk.
The high-risk group consisted of 14 sawyers, whose job was repetitive, fast-paced, isolated, low control but complex. They were also responsible for their own wages.
The low-risk (control) group consisted of 10 workers who were cleaners or maintenance, and their job had more control and flexibility.
Each participant was given a daily urine sample when they arrived at work and at 4 other times during the day, and there baseline was measured by taking a sample at the same time on a day when the workers were at home.
Participants also took a self-rating scale of works such as ‘sleepiness’, ‘wellbeing’, ‘irritation’ etc to measure mood.
How many participants did the study by Johansson et al. (1978) have?
24 Swedish sawmill workers
What did the high-risk group consist of in the study by Johansson et al. (1978)?
14 sawyers whose work was fast-paced, repetitive, isolating, complex, low control and they were responsible for their own wages.
What did the low-risk group consist of in the study by Johansson et al. (1978)?
10 cleaners/maintenance workers whose job was more relaxed and flexible, and they had more control.
What were the findings of the study by Johansson et al. (1978)?
The adrenaline levels of the high-risk group were two times higher than their baseline, and these levels continued to increase throughout their working day. The high-risk group had higher irritability ratings and reported being more ‘rushed’ than the control.
In the study by Johansson et al. (1978), how many times higher were the adrenaline levels of the high-risk group than their baseline?
Two times higher
What did Johansson et al. (1978) conclude from his study?
Repetitive, machine-paced and attention-demanding work in a Swedish sawmill contributed to a high stress level in the high-risk group.
