Introduction
In this essay it is my intention to show how stress appears in working environment, what causes it and how it affects the workplace. I will start by defining what stress is and how it might be perceived. Then I will take a look at the factors that cause stress and how these might show in result when working. I try to look at all the possible reasons for stress and through that hopefully to show how to avoid a stressful environment. I will not try to put straight answers on to paper, but to think why workers might be stressed, and how this affects the organisation instead of just saying that things are like that because they just are.
I chose this topic because I'm studying psychology and I feel that this is the one topic I have most ( qualitatively and quantitatively ) information to put into.
What stress is and how do we recognise it
When I looked up the word 'stress' from the dictionary, the definition it brought back was: 'state of mental, emotional or other strain'. The word ';strain'; can be defined as being 'a severe demand on strength or resources'. ( Soanes, C. 2004: 1427, 1424 ) When we now look at these definitions, how do we end up classifying stress as something negative, something problematic? In the book psychology course 1006 uses stress is described as ';a pattern of physiological, behavioural, emotional and cognitive responses to real or imagined stimuli that are perceived as preventing a goal or endangering or otherwise threatening well-being.'; ( Carlson et al. 2004: 710 ) Stress is nowadays a very common state of mind. Almost everyone has at some point suffered from stress. But even this is happening, people are able to do their work properly and without problems. ';Hans Selye has said that the only person without stress is a dead person. He sees that stress should be viewed as 'stimulation to growth and development.. chalenge and variety.. the spice of life'. When our own personal ability to meet a demand exceeds our objective ability to cope with that demand, the resulting imbalance is acknowledged as a state f stress. Therefore stress is a subjective experience and is 'in the eye of the beholder'.'; ( Croome-Gale 1999: 77 ) This is why in certain situations two people might act differently; we feel stress differently. What causes anxiety in me, might make you more effective. And not all pressure causes stress. When t...
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...omalehtiyliopisto
( Strenght to work from selfknowledge ( free translation ) Open University by newspaper )
Vahtera, J; Kivimäki, M; Virtanen P ( 2002 ) Työntekijöiden hyvinvointi kunnissa ja sairaaloissa: tutkittua tietoa ja haasteita. Helsinki: Työterveyslaitos
The welfare of the employees in communes and hospitals: researches and challenges ( free translation )
Soanes, C; Stevenson, Angus ( 2004 ) Concise Oxford English Dictionary. New York, USA: Oxford University Press
Oxford English Dictionary Online. Colorado College Tutt Library, Colorado Springs, CO. Web 19 April 2015.
The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. Ed. J. A. Simpson and E. S. C. Weiner. 20 vols. Oxford: Clarendon, 1989.
Three out of every four American workers describe their work as stressful. According to the Holmes-Rahe Life Events Scale, which rates levels of stress, many of the most stressful events in life are related to the workplace. Some examples are firings, business readjustments and changes in financial status, altered responsibilities, a switch to a different line of work, trouble with the boss, changes in work hours or conditions, retirement and vacations. Workplace stress costs American employers an estimated $200 billion per year in lower productivity, absenteeism, staff turnover, workers' compensation, medical insurance and other stress-related expenses. However, stress may not always be a bad thing. It can stimulate creativity and productivity. The natural pattern of human behavior is to experience a stress-causing event or situation, react to it with increased tension and then return to a normal, relaxed state. The problem occurs when stress is so overwhelming or constant that this pattern is broken. This overwhelming feeling is usually caused by some lack of communication.
(AC 2)There are many causes of stress in the modern society due to the higher expectations and demands from different aspects of life. Work-related stress is one common cause of stress. People feel stressed out at their workplace for various reasons. For example, long working hours is one type of stressor because workers are overworked, which leads to...
Pearsall J (1999) The Concise Oxford Dictionary Tenth Edition page 286 by Oxford University Press in Oxford New York, America
Stevenson, Angus. Oxford Dictionary of English. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2010.
Stress is defined as “any circumstances that threaten or are perceived to threaten one’s well-being and thereby tax one’s coping abilities” (Weiten & Lloyd, 2006, p. 72). Stress is a natural event that exists literally in all areas of one’s life. It can be embedded in the environment, culture, or perception of an event or idea. Stress is a constant burden, and can be detrimental to one’s physical and mental health. However stress can also provide beneficial effects; it can satisfy one’s need for stimulation and challenge, promote personal growth, and can provide an individual with the tools to cope with, and be less affected by tomorrow’s stress (Weiten & Lloyd, 2006, p. 93).
Stress is the combination of psychological, physiological, and behavioral reactions that people have in response to events that threaten or challenge them. Stress can be good or bad. Sometimes, stress is helpful, providing people with the extra energy or alertness they need. Stress could give a runner the edge he or she needs to persevere in a marathon, for example. This good kind of stress is called eustress. Unfortunately, stress is often not helpful and can even be harmful when not managed effectively. Stress could make a salesperson buckle under the pressure while trying to make a sales pitch at an important business meeting, for example. Moreover, stress can increase the risk of developing health problems, such as cardiovascular disease and anxiety disorders. This bad kind of stress is called distress, the kind of stress that people usually are referring to when they use the word stress.
to the environment and social life. There are different types of stress and its stressors we face in our daily lives. A huge source of stress comes from the workplace. It is caused by work and workload. Many employees become victim of the stress in the workplace both physically and mentally. This is underlying the workplace stress. This essay will discuss internal and external stress.
First, stress is defined as an unpleasant state of emotional and physiological arousal that people experience in situations that they perceive as dangerous or threatening to their well being (Patel, 14). Stress is a universal feeling to everyone but the word stress means different things to different people. Some people define stress as events or situations that cause them to feel tension, pressure or negative emotions such as anxiety or anger (Patel, 15). Other people may view stress as a process involving a person’s interpretation and response to a threatening event. In any case, stress has many facets of how one perceives and responds to the certain predicament that is ailing them.
Hans Selye defined stress as “the non-specific response of the body to any demand for change.” He later defined it as “the rate of wear and tear on the body.” Stress can be good because the pressure placed on someone can motivate them to complete the tasks ahead of them. From this, small amounts of stress can be positive. However, long periods of stress wear the body down and begin to have negative effects on the body which could be long term.
"Stress is a natural physical and mental reaction to both good and bad experiences which can be beneficial to your health and safety." (8 Ways Stress Is More Dangerous Than You Think) Everyone 's body responds to stress by releasing hormones, also, you brain receives more oxygen. Stress starts to occur when we become worried about a task or responsibilities we face. Major stress is called chronic stress. It can cause symptoms that can affect your health in a larger way. Some people may say that they succeed more under stress, but sadly, that’s rarely the case. Research has shown that "stress makes a person more likely to make mistakes" (Stress Symptoms, Signs, & Causes). For most people, stress is extremely normal for them that they don 't see it as anything but ordinary. However, stress can motivate someone while under pressure and even get you through a tough or dangerous
Stress is in our everyday lives. We allow things such as the way we live, school, work, family, relationships etc to stress us out. Some people deal with stress way different from others. Some may know how to cope with stress better than others. We allow stress to take a major toll over our lives when we are suppose to fight it, but a lot of people can’t do that. Stress makes you act and do things that are not like yourself. Stress is a negative word; it comes in all different shapes and forms.
In order to find a solution to the issue of stress in the workplace, it is important to first understand what stress is. Stress is a difficult issue to solve because everyone experiences stress differently. According to the National Institute of mental health, stress can be defined as the brain’s response to any demand (“Fact Sheet on Stress”). When there is any sort of change going on, it usually triggers the stress response. Since people are always dealing with certain changes in their lives, they are always dealing with some type of stress. One of the biggest growing issues with stress is stress in the workplace. According to Northweste...
Long – term stress can even require the brain, leaving you more vulnerable to anxiety, and depression; it can be a main cause of moodiness and frustration. Many of us are aware of the physical symptoms of stress-muscle pain, rapid breathing or an increased pulse. At the same time, they also suffer from emotional of stress which can be like roller coaster of highs or lows. emotional effects rang from emotional overeating to a feeling of being overwhelmed and pressure. stress impact many other components, which leads to difficulties in making decisions, loss sense humor, poorer concentration, negative thinking. As can be seen, stress nearly brings serious effects to people. Apart from the effects above, it can be the main reason which creates your decreased productivity at work. stress makes people less control their pace work, which leads to dissatisfaction. about 40% employees said that they are burned out because of work-related stress and loss $300 billion each year in the workplace . In addition, your relationship with people around also become worsens because of your stress. In fact, stress makes people puzzled and their life can undergo a considerable