1. Chapter 7 Stress and Wellbeing
Michael A. Hitt
C. Chet Miller
Adrienne Colella
Slides by Ralph R. Braithwaite

2. Who Wants to Get Rid of All the Stress in Your Life?
Only One Group of People Have No Stress

3. Striking for Stress at Verizon
Issues:
Constant monitoring
Promised training – didn’t happen
Pressure to sell to every customer
Call center perceived as a “gold-plated” sweatshop
Exploring Behavior in Action

4. Striking for Stress at Verizon
Settlement changes:
Advanced notification of monitoring
Monitoring only during regular hours
Face-to-face feedback
Permission to be away for 30 minutes
Formation of a committee
Funding for work-family support programs
Team vs. individual performance measures
Split shifts and job sharing
Limits on overtime
Exploring Behavior in Action

5. Strategic Importance of Workplace Stress
26-40% of Americans find their work to be very or extremely stressful.
35% of respondents – somewhat or completely dissatisfied with job-related stress
THE GALLUP POLL
25% of people believe their jobs are the most stressful part of their lives

6. Knowledge Objectives
Define stress and distinguish among different types of stress.
Understand how the human body reacts to stress and be able to identify the signs of suffering from too much stress.
Describe two important models of workplace stress and discuss the most common work-related stressors.
Recognize how people experience stress.
Explain the individual and organizational consequences of stress.
Discuss methods that associates, managers, and organizations can use to manage stress and promote well-being.

7. Workplace Stress Defined
Job Stress
Acute
Stress – a feeling of tension that occurs when a person assesses that a given situation is about to exceed his or her ability to cope and consequently will endanger his or her well-being.
Job stress - the feeling that one’s capabilities, resources, or needs do not match the demands of the job.
Acute stress – a short-term stress reaction to an immediate threat
Chronic stress – a long-term stress reaction resulting from ongoing situations
Chronic

8. Acute Chronic Uneasiness and Worry Feelings of Sadness
Loss of Appetite
Increase in Energy
Immune System Suppression
Acute
Alertness and Excitement
Increased Metabolism
Chronic
Loss of Sex Drive
Anxiety and Panic Attacks
High Blood Pressure
Irritability
Depression
Diabetes
Lowered Resistance
Eating Disturbances
Adapted from Exhibit 7-1: Some Stress-Related Conditions

9. Stress Response
An unconscious mobilization of energy resources that occurs when the body encounters a stressor.

10. Hans Selye
Key Definitions
Stressor – environmental conditions that cause individuals to experience stress
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.
Job strain – function of workplace demands and the control an individual has in meeting those demands.

11. Signs of Stress You feel irritable. You have sleeping difficulties.
Edward Creagan, MD
Signs of Stress
You feel irritable.
You have sleeping difficulties.
You do not get any joy out of life.
Your appetite is disturbed.
You have relationship problems and have a difficult time getting along with people.

12. Two Models of Workplace Stress
Demand-Control Model
Effort-Reward Imbalance Model
Demand-control model – a model that suggests experienced stress is a function of both job demands and job control. Stress is highest when demands are high but individuals have little control over the situation
Effort-reward imbalance model – a model that suggests experienced stress is a function of both required effort and rewards obtained. Stress is highest when required effort is high but rewards are low.

13. Demand-Control Model Job Control Job Demands Passive Active (EUSTRESS)
High Strain
(DYSTRESS)
Low Strain
Job Demands
Job Control
High
Low
A model that suggests experienced stress is a function of both job demands and job control. Stress is highest when demands are high but individuals have little control over the situation.
Adapted from Exhibit 7-2: The Demand-Control Model of Workplace Stress

14. Effort-Reward Imbalance Model
Overcommitment
High Effort
Low Reward
Demands Obligations
Pay Esteem
Adapted from Exhibit 7-3: The Effort-Reward Imbalance Model of Workplace Stress

15. A situation in which different roles lead to conflicting expectations
Role Conflict
A situation in which different roles lead to conflicting expectations

16. Restoring and Maintaining Work-Life Balance
Managerial Advice
Restoring and Maintaining Work-Life Balance
Focus on what is truly important.
Take advantage of work-related options.
Protect non-work time.
Manage your personal time.
Set aside specific time each week for recreation.
Thoughts?

17. Work-Related Stressors
Role Ambiguity
Work Overload
Occupation
Resource Inadequacy
Job Security
Work-Related Stressors
Role ambiguity – a situation in which goals, expectations, and/or basic job requirements are unclear
Work overload – too much work or work that is too complex
Occupation – jobs with high demands and strong required efforts can cause stress
Resource inadequacy – not enough resources to get the job done
Working conditions – physical surroundings and psychological aspects
Management style – impacts the psychological climate
Monitoring – overseeing the activities of the employees
Job insecurity – mergers, acquisitions, downsizing, and moving work offshore
Monitoring
Management Style
Working Conditions

18. Individual Influences on Experiencing Stress
Type A vs. Type B Personality
Individual Influences on Experiencing Stress
Gender
Self-Esteem
Hardiness
Type A vs. Type B Personality - Type A – Competitiveness, Aggressiveness, Impatience, Increase their own volume of work overload. More susceptible to stress-related illnesses. Type B personalities are quite different. They tend to be less competitive, less aggressive, more patient, and more reasonable.
Self-esteem - People with high self-esteem - Experience greater well-being, More resistant to the effects of stressors, More likely to engage in active coping behaviors when stressed.
Hardiness - Persons high in hardiness tend to have strong internal commitment to their activities, have an internal locus of control, seek challenge in everyday life, experience less severe negative stress reactions.
Gender - Women are generally lower-paid, more likely to experience discrimination, stereotyping and work-family conflict, more likely to work in stressful service industries, experience more work-related stress than men.

19. Experiencing Strategic OB
Extreme Jobs
What are your thoughts on working 60 or more hours a week?
Do you think you could like a job that much to put in the extra time?
Do you think everyone who works these kinds of hours is a “workaholic”?
How does work-life balance fit here?
Why do you think the gender difference still persists?
Experiencing Strategic OB

20. Consequences of Stress
Individual
Organizational

21. Individual Consequences of Stress
Psychological
Anxiety
Depression
Low self-esteem
Sleeplessness
Frustration
Family problems
Burnout
Physiological
High blood pressure
Muscle tension
Headaches
Ulcers, skin diseases
Impaired immune systems
Musculoskeletal disorders
Heart disease
Cancer
Behavioral
Excessive smoking
Substance abuse
Accident proneness
Appetite disorders
Violence
Burnout – a condition of physical or emotional exhaustion generally brought about by stress; associates and managers experiencing burnout show various symptoms, such as constant fatigue, or lack of enthusiasm for work, and increasing isolation from others.
Alcoholics and drug users – less productive, more sick days, more safety hazards, more workers’ compensation claims, and miss more workdays due to hangovers

22. Organizational Consequences of Stress
Estimated cost to American industry of job stress $200 billion per year
Absenteeism
Diminished productivity
Compensation claims
Health insurance
Direct medical expenses
Some perspective:
Total U.S. corporate profits in 2006 – $897.6 billion
Entire U.S. gross domestic product (the market value of the nation’s goods and services) was approximately $13,246 billion in 2006
Adapted from Exhibit 7-4: Managerial Costs of Job Stress

23. Individual Stress Management
Find jobs that provide a personally acceptable balance between demands and control and between effort required and rewards.
Redesign a dysfunctional job.
Follow the tactics presented in the Managerial Advice feature.
Develop healthy ways of coping.
Exercise
Proper Diet
Support Network
Relaxation Techniques

24. Individual Stress Management
Exercise regularly
Practice healthy habits
Be realistic
Use systematic relaxation
Meditate
Develop and use planning skills
Simplify your life – Delegate
Take one thing at a time
Avoid unnecessary competition
Recognize and accept personal limits
Develop social support networks
Focus on enjoying what you do
Go easy with criticism
Take time off
Exercise regularly. Twenty to 30 minutes of exercise per day benefits you physically and mentally.
Practice healthy habits. Get enough sleep. Eat a healthy diet. Avoid tobacco, caffeine, alcohol, and other drugs.
Be realistic. Understand your limits and be willing to say “no!”
Use systematic relaxation. Meditate. Engage in breathing exercises. Sit quietly and think of only pleasant things. Ten to 20 minutes of reflection can raise your resistance to chronic stress.
Develop and use planning skills. Planning can help you avoid stressors and figure out ways to cope with those you do encounter.
Simplify your life. Delegate. Get organized. Drop unnecessary and unpleasant activities.
Take one thing at a time. Avoid unnecessary overload. Don’t take work problems home. Don’t take home problems to work.
Avoid unnecessary competition. No one is always the best. Give in occasionally.
Recognize and accept personal limits. Drop the urge to be “superman” or “superwoman.” No one is perfect.
Develop social support networks. Research consistently shows that social support helps mitigate the effects of stress. Don’t try to cope alone.
Focus on enjoying what you do. Laugh!
Go easy with criticism. Go easy on yourself and others. Look for the positive. Research from the Mayo Clinic suggests that people with a positive outlook on life are healthier and live longer than those with a negative outlook.
Take time off. Go on vacation. Spend time everyday doing something you enjoy.

25. Organizational Stress Management
Increase individuals’ autonomy and control
Ensure that individuals are compensated properly
Maintain job demands/requirements at healthy levels
Ensure that associates have adequate skills to keep up-to-date with technical changes in the workplace
Increase associate involvement in important decision making
Improve physical working conditions
Provide for job security and career development
Provide healthy work schedules
Improve communication to help avoid uncertainty and ambiguity

26. Peter Frost
Toxin Handlers
The following behaviors are necessary for handling the pain, strain, and stress of others:
Read your own and others’ emotional cues and understand their impact
Keep people connected
Empathize with those who are in pain
Act to alleviate the suffering of others
Mobilize people to deal with their pain and get their lives back on track
Create an environment where compassionate behavior toward others is encouraged and rewarded

27. Wellness Programs
Estimate suggests J&J’s program has saved the company $22.4 million per year. The initiative has several goals:
91% of employees will be tobacco free
90% of employees will have blood pressure of 140/90 or better
85% of employees will have a total cholesterol below 240
75% of employees will be physically active, define as 30 minutes of activity three or more times each week
60% of employees will be trained in resilience/stress management

28. Incentives for Participating in Wellness Programs
What are your thoughts about organizations that provide an incentive to employees who participate in wellness programs?
What about organizations that “penalize” employees who don’t complete programs or have medical evaluations?
Should higher risk individuals be expected (or required) to pay higher rates for coverage?
What exists in your organizations that are similar to these types of programs?
Experiencing Strategic OB

29. The Strategic Lens
How can good stress be distinguished from bad stress? How much stress is too much stress?
How can managing stress in any organization contribute to improved strategy implementation and organizational performance?
How much stress do you currently experience? How can reducing your stress increase your performance in school and enhance your life in general?

30. Questions