Class: Business Leadership and Organizational Behavior Lecture: Stress Craig W. Fontaine, Ph.D. Spring, 2015

What is Stress? Stress refers to a psychological or physiological state that results when certain features in of an individual’s environment, called stressors, create discomfort, anxiety, or feelings of being overwhelmed.

Behavioral Psychological Work performance, accidents, absenteeism, aggression, poor decisions Dissatisfaction, moodiness, depression, emotional fatigue Physiological Cardiovascular disease, hypertension, headaches Consequences of Stress Effects of stress have been estimated to cost more than $300 billion dollars a year for organizations:

Detailed Consequences of Stress Stress Psychological Anxiety Depression Low self-esteem Sleeplessness Frustration Family problems Burnout Behavioral Excessive smoking Substance abuse Accident proneness Appetite disorders Violence Physiological High blood pressure Muscle tension Headaches Ulcers, skin diseases Impaired immune systems Musculoskeletal disorders Heart disease Cancer

Interesting Facts Work absences attributed to stress have tripled over the past 10 years More than 62% of the time when workers called in “sick,” they were not really “sick” (Mental Health Day) Most heart attacks occur on Monday’s and least occurred on Friday’s

Measuring Stress: Paper and pencil test(s) Holmes and Rahe life events scale Physiological measurements Catecholmine excretion o Epinephrine o Norepinephrine Measuring Stress

Stage 1 Alarm Reaction Stage 2 Resistance Stage 3 Exhaustion Normal Level of Resistance General Adaptation Syndrome

Occupational Stress Model

Interpersonal Stressors Considered the most common group of workplace stressors Include: –Team dynamics –Organizational politics –Bad bosses –Workplace violence –Psychological and sexual harassment

Role-Related Stressors Role conflict Incongruity or incompatibility of expectations associated with the person’s role Occurs when two roles conflict with each other Occurs when personal values conflict with work roles Role ambiguity Uncertain task and social expectations

Task Control Stressors Stress increases when employees lack control over: How and when tasks are performed Pace of work activity Low task control is a higher stressor when job also has high responsibility!

Organizational & Physical Stressors Organizational Most prevalent is downsizing, which affects layoff survivors reduced job security chaos of change additional workloads guilt of having a job as others lose theirs Task Overload (speed stress and load stress) Physical Environment –Due to excessive noise, poor lighting and hazards

Technology Induced Stress Nick Salaysay (shown in photo) admits that his work routinely gets mixed in with his personal time. “I have a BlackBerry, so I check my e- mail a lot when I'm supposed to be on vacation," says the corporate lawyer. Research indicates that when electronic devices spill work into home life, they increase the risk of strain-based stress. Calgary Herald/Mikael Kjellstrom

Time-based Stressors Time-based conflict Due to business travel, inflexible and/or rotating work schedules For women -- still do most household chores

Workaholism Work addicts (classic workaholics) Highly involved in work High drive to succeed Low enjoyment of work Have “Type A” behavior pattern -- impatient, competitive, temper, interrupts others Enthusiastic workaholics Highly involved in work, high drive to succeed, and high enjoyment of work Work enthusiasts –High work involvement and work enjoyment, but LOW drive to succeed

Gender and Occupational Stress Stressors that particularly affect women include: –Career blocks –Sexual harassment –Male-dominated climate –Performance pressure –Gender stereotyping –Isolation –Lack of role models

Burnout Adverse stress reaction to work with psychological, psychophysiological, and behavioral components Symptoms include: –Diminished sense of humor –Skipping rest and meals –Increased overtime/no vacation –Increased physical complaints –Social withdrawal –Changed job performance –Self-medication –Internal changes

Five Stages of Burnout Stage 1: The honeymoon- satisfied with job Stage 2: Fuel shortage- fatigue sets in Stage 3: Chronic symptoms- exhaustion/disease/anger Stage 4: Crisis- illness, absenteeism, relationship issues Stage 5: Hitting the wall- physical/psychological, can be life threatening.

© Photodisc. With permission. Individual Differences in Stress 1.Different threshold levels of resistance to stressor 2.Use different stress coping strategies 3.Perceive the situation differently –Knowledge and skill –Natural optimism and confidence (resilience)

Key Definitions (Selye) Eustress – positive stress that results from meeting challenges and difficulties with the expectation of achievement Dystress – negative stress; often referred to simply as stress. Often results in overload.. Hans Selye

Individual Differences: Resilience Capability of individuals to cope successfully in the face of significant change, adversity, or risk Personality traits Extroversion, low neuroticism, internal locus of control, high tolerance of change, and high self-esteem Adaptability to stressors High emotional intelligence Good problem-solving skills Productive coping strategies Inner strength/sense of purpose Workplace spirituality

Stress Management Strategies

Remove the Stressor Stress audits -- investigate sources of stress Change corporate culture and reward system Provide environment that supports empowerment Person-job matching Work-life balance initiatives

Work-Life Balance Flexible work time Job sharing Teleworking Personal leave Childcare support

Withdraw from the Stressor Permanent withdrawal Remove employees from jobs not aligned with their competencies Temporary withdrawal –Coffee/lunch breaks –Karaoke breaks (photo) –Sabbaticals Courtesy of Liggett Stashower, Inc.

Other Stress Mgt Strategies Change stress perceptions Self-confidence, self-leadership Control stress consequences Relaxation and meditation Fitness and wellness programs Social support –Emotional and informational

Psychological Stress Experiment (Fontaine, 1979)

Experimental Protocol

Experimental Design  3x2 Repeated Measures Design (Stress level/Gender) –Each subject was exposed to three distinct levels of psychological stress: Control condition (No Stress) Normal Stress Extreme Stress  Physiological Stress Measured  Performance Measured

Subjects entered through this Door!

Inside the room were several chambers and a work area

Subject’s Work Area

Apparatus

Monitor bunny chambers (T.V.’s), Monitor environmental levels Monitor “Alert” box TASK

Normal Stress Situation Environmental Meters look fine No system alert/failure indicators Bunnies are alert

Extreme Stress Situation Meters off normal Failure box alerts Bunnies “in trouble”

Physiological Response to Stress

Stress - Performance Interaction