2. Causes of Stress
• The causes of stress can be grouped into three
broad categories:
• Before advancing the slide – what do you
think they are?
3. Causes of Stress
• The causes of stress can be grouped into three
broad categories:
– Personal Factors
• Some people are just more prone to stress
– Interpersonal Factors
• What happens between people can cause stress
– Organizational Factors
• Stuff beyond our control and yet within our work
– Each one of these could be a problem by itself but when you begin to combine them the impact is
not arithmetic but geometric – all three together can be a perfect storm – we’ll look at each one
separately
4. Causes of Stress: Personal Factors
• Type A vs. Type B Persoanlities
– Type A personalities are more prone to stress
– Competitive
– Impatient
– Time pressure sensitive
– Aggressive
– Multi taskers
– Difficulty relaxing
– Type A tied to certain physical disorders – heart problems
– Type A also predisposed to certain work – 60% of managers Type A – 12% Type B
– What gets A promoted (persistence, fanatic observance of deadlines, etc…) doesn’t
necessarily translate into better performance once at the top – B’s perform better
5. Causes of Stress: Personal Factors
• Changes in One’s Life
– Magnitude of change
• You have seen the scales of the impact of certain events?
– Frequency of Change
• Less dramatic impact in the moment but greater over time
6. Causes of Stress: Personal Factors
• Demographic Attributes
– Income?
– Race?
– Gender?
• On a scrap piece of paper – what do you think?
– Higher income means more or less stress?
– Minorities have less stress than whites?
– Men are more stress than women?
7. Causes of Stress: Personal Factors
• On a scrap piece of paper – what do you think?
– Higher income means more or less stress?
– Minorities have less stress than whites?
– Men are more stress than women?
• Higher income = less stress
• White = less stress
• Men = less stress
– However, minorities and women, in aggregate are in lower quality positions that
pay less and have greater demands – hence demographic differences may be
simply a reflection of differences in job attributes
8. Interpersonal Factors in Stress
• Jealousy and Envy
– Emotions are powerful – last few years have shown Jealousy and Envy
as strong negative emotions
– Employee jealousy -- a pattern of thoughts, emotions, & behaviors resulting from loss of outcomes in a
working relationship
– Envy – a pattern of thoughts, emotions, & behaviors resulting from loss of self-esteem because
someone else gets what is wanted
• Simple way to distinguish between the two – recall that jealousy involves three
people while envy only takes two.
• Men experience more envy – probably because of the issue of
competition
• Women experience more jealousy – probably because they
want to maintain social relations.
9. Interpersonal Factors in Stress:
• Workplace Romance
– From those outside the romance
• Fear of favoritism
• If/when it turns sour – caught in the fallout
– Issues
• Sexual harassment possibility
• Gossip
10. Organizational Factors
• Responsibility for Others
– Recognizing what I do has an impact on others
• Working Conditions
– The kind of job you have does make a difference
• Emotional Labor
– When you have to display a certain emotion
» Resorts, flight attendants, salespeople
• Role Conflict
– Expected to do two different things
» College prof – publish and teach
» Boss – supervisiors expect him to drive the troops, troops
expect him to stand up for them.
11. Organizational Factors
• Role Ambiguity
– Absence of clarity regarding how to perform one’s job
• Role Overload
– Too many activities are expected of an employee
• Shift Work
– 20% of U.S. workforce
– Rotating shifts
• Sleep
• Social activities
12. Reactions to Stress
• Physical Problems
– Heart
• Alcoholism and Drug Abuse
• Absenteeism, Turnover, and Dissatisfaction
• Workplace Violence
• Mass Psychogenic Illness
13. Coping with Stress
What are each of these mechanisms?
• Flight or Fight
• Exercise
• Social Support
• Job Redesign
• Relaxation Techniques
14. Coping with Stress
Practical Approach
• Time Management – active attempt to reduce
stress
– Time Log
– Structure Time – blocks
– Just say no
– Make a List
