Submitted to: Ms. Sehar Zulfizqar

Submitted By:

Amina MushtaqRabail TariqKhurram Naseem

Class: MBA (Finance)4th C

1

S. No Table of Content Page No

1 Introduction of the Topic 1-13

2 Introduction of the Departments 14-26

3 Literature Review 27-40

4 Problem Statement 41

5 Theoretical Frame work 42 -45

6 Hypothesis 46

7 Sampling Technique 47

8 Discussion 48

9 Questionnaires 49 - 51

10 Recommendations 52 – 54

11 Conclusion 55

12 References 56-57

13 Annexure 58-60

OCCUPATIONAL STRESS EXPERIENCED BY MALE

& FEMALE EMPLOYEES

This Research paper is submitted by Amina Mushtaq , Rabail Tariq, Khurram

Naseem in department of Management Sciences of NUML under the

Supervision of Madam Sehar Zulfiqar.

ABSTRACT

Stress in my society is very prominent in both my personal as Ill as professional

life. None of my occupation is free from stress. But the occupations that I

consider more stressful are medical, teaching, office work, labors and police.

The aim of this paper was to identify the sources and consequences of stress.

For this purpose I select sample size of 125 in which 25 Ire doc tors, 25 Ire

teachers, 25 Ire employees working in office, 25 Ire labors and 25 Ire police

officers.

Doctors Ire from Shifa International hospital, Teachers Ire from Educators,

Comsats, Beacon house, Employees Ire from NPSL and PEPAC and also from

NPB, and police officers Ire from Rescue 15 and police line.

Main focus of our study is on gender, hierarchy and age.

Declaration

I declare that “Occupational stress experienced by male and female employees”

is my own work and all resources we have used have been indicated and

acknowledged by complete references.

Acknowledgment

We would like to thanks

To Allah all mighty for His mercy, support and strength he gave to us

And then to all those people who support us and encourage us to make this

research possible. Very special thanks to:

Our parents especially our father Dr.Mushtaq Ahmad, Tariq Mahmood

Mughal and Naseem Akhter who support us through out our research.

Our supervisor Madam Sehar for her input and direction

Dr. Adil who through out support us in visit of Shifa International

hospital

Rescue 15 and police line for their encouragement and dedication they

show us in visit of their offices

Employees of National physical and standard laboratory , PEPAC and

National Bank of Pakistan for their support and assistance throughout our

research

Teachers of Educators, Beacon house, Comsats and for their assistance

and support they show us in their visit.

Motivation for the study

Internal and external factors have contributed to increase stress in almost all

occupations. Changing environment, new technologies, changing policies,

change from public to private organization, downsizing in organizations,

increase in shifts; they are all causing stress on employees. So; I am motivated

to know either male are taking more stress or females are taking more stress.

Aims and Objectives

The research aims to answer the following questions:

What are the symptoms of stress for doctors, teachers, and employees

having desk job, labors and police officers?

Does employee role in organization (Role ambiguity, Role conflict)

causes stress on employee?

Does individual characteristics (individual’s level of anxiety, tolerance

for ambiguity) causes stress on employee?

Is there any relationship between individual characteristics and

occupational stress?

Study relationship between gender and stress?

What are the work factors that lead towards stress?

Introduction of the topic

Stress in my society is not something that is invisible. Person whether a child,

adult, men, women, employed, unemployed every one is facing stress in his/her

own way.

When stress was first studied in the 1950s, the term was used to denote both the

causes and the experienced effects of pressures. More recently, however, the

word stressor has been used for the stimulus that provokes a stress response.

Currently, the disagreement among researchers concerns the definition of stress

in humans and their argument is based on the following question: Is stress

primarily an external response that can be measured by changes in glandular

secretions, skin reactions, and other physical functions, or is it an internal

interpretation of, or reaction to, a stressor; or is it both.

Every person has his own definition of stress. But according to Van Wyk (in

Olivier & Venter, 2003), stress is derived from the Latin word "strictus” that

translates into taut, meaning stiffly strung. Oliver and Venter (2003) rely on the

definition of Dr. Hans Seyle, who defined stress in physiological terms, as a

non-specific or generalized bodily response. The human body has a natural

chemical response to a threat or demand, commonly known as the “flight or

fight” reaction, which includes the release of adrenalin. Once the threat or

demand is over the body can return to its natural state. A STRESSOR is an

event or set of conditions that causes a Stress response. STRESS is the body’s

physiological response to the stressor, and STRAIN is the body’s longer-term

reaction to chronic stress.

Occupational Stress can be defined as the harmful physical and emotional

response that occurs when the requirements of the job do not match the

capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. Job stress can lead to poor health

and even injury. Long term exposure to job stress has been linked to an

increased risk of muscular skeletal disorders, depression and job burnout and

may contribute to a range of debilitating diseases, ranging from cardiovascular

disease to cancer.

There are large number of occupational stressors of varying degree and nature

experienced by male and female employees.

At work place stressors can be poor physical condition at work place,

Downsizing, Privatization, Hiring freezes, Contingent work (e.g. part-time or

temporary), Shift work/Rotating schedules, Quality Programs/Worker

Participation schemes, little autonomy or control over one’s

Job, Non-existent career ladders, Inadequate resources to do the job, High

demands, workload, time pressures, Lack of job security, Understaffing,

Mandatory overtime, Violence/Harassment.

Stress level changes according to Hierarchy. Lower level employees both male

and female experience stress in different way as compare to upper level and

middle level.

Stages of Job Stress

Job stress includes these stages:

The honeymoon

The awakening

Brownout

Full scale Burnout

The Honeymoon

During the honeymoon phase your job is wonderful. You have boundless

energy and enthusiasm and all things seem possible. You like the job and the

job likes you. You believe it will satisfy all your needs and desires and solve all

your problems.

The Awakening

The honeymoon phase wanes and the awakening stage starts with the realization

that your initial expectations Ire unrealistic. The job is not working out the way

you thought it would. It does not satisfy all your needs. As disappointment

grows, you become conferred. Typically you work hard even harder to “make”

your dreams come true. But working hard does not changes anything and you

become tired, bored and frustrated.

Brownout

As brownout begins, your early enthusiasm and energy give way to chronic

fatigue and irritability. You become indecisive and your productivity drops.

Your work deteriorates.

As this phase grows you become increasingly frustrated and angry. You are

beset with depression, anxiety and physical illness.

Full Scale Burnout

Unless you wake up and interrupt the process or some one intervenes, brownout

drifts remorselessly into full scale burnout. Despair is the dominant features of

this final stage. In this stage life seems pointless and there is paralyzing, “What

is the wee” pessimism about the future. You talk about “Jet quitting and getting

away”. You are examined physically and mentally.

This reaction to stress was first described in 1936 and was coined the General

Adaptive Syndrome (GAS), which includes three distinct, stages (Seyle, 1974;

1980):

1. Alarm reaction,

2. Stage of resistance, and

3. Stage of exhaustion.

Alarm Reaction

The alarm reaction is the immediate psycho-physiological response and at this

time of the initial shock, resistance to stress is lowered. This process includes

the secretion of hormones from the endocrine glands, causing for example,

increased heart rate and blood pressure, muscle tension and a decrease in

maintenance functions, e.g. digestion. In cases where the stressor is continuous,

the resistance phase starts where the body triggers the needed bodily system to

deal with the stressor. The body is alerted and activated and stress levels are at

its highest during this stage.

Stage of Resistance

The resistance stage is characterized by an adaptation response of the body that

is manifested with “fight or flight” responses. The body endeavors to remedy

the shock caused by the stress and to return the homeostasis of the body. If the

stressors continue, the body will persevere in defending itself, thereby impeding

any possibility of rest and repair.

Stage of Exhaustion

In the exhaustion stage, there is a resistance to a continued stressor, and where

the adaptation response and /or return to equilibrium replace the alarm reaction.

If the alarm reaction is elicited too intensely or too frequently over an extended

period of time, the energy required for adaptation becomes depleted, and the

final stage of exhaustion, collapse or death occurs. It is during this stage that

physical and mental breakdown occurs, the individual performance plummets

and illness develops.

Level of Stress

It is important to recognize that stress is not necessarily harmful. There may be

two levels of stress.

Moderate level of stress

Extreme level of stress ( Low or high)

Optimal level

In fact many researchers have concluded that moderate level of stress

enhances performance and health.

Extreme level of stress (Low or high) can be distressful because they serve

either to under stimulate or over stimulate.

Optimal level of stress can be challenging and produce (Positive feelings and

high involvement) rather than distress.

Therefore stress must be managed so that a proper balance is created which

allows for optimum functioning for individuals and organizations.

Occupational Stress process

Stressors Strains Work

outcomes

Perceived stress

Appraisal of situation

Emotional

Behavioral

Physical

Personal characteristics

Organizational characteristicsJob demandsRole characteristicsInterpersonal relationshipsWorking conditionsCareer concerns

Job dissatisfaction

Absenteeism

Turnover

Work ineffectiveness

Coping & Support

Reduced job involvement

Sources of stress

Economic conditions

Increased levels of competition

Market changes

Technological development

Changes in production and products

New forms of organization and product development

Drive for greater cost-effectiveness

General public concern for the environment

Changes within organization

Reorganizations

Layoffs

Organizational structure

Organizational culture/climate

Mergers, acquisitions and similar changes of company ownership

Workforce diversity

Reward systems

Promotion policies

Job security

Leadership style

More training needed, etc.

Poor fit between abilities and skills needed to perform job

effectively

Work overload

Pressure to work longer hours

Job characteristics

Conflicting job demands

Unclear job expectations

Pressures of responsibility

Time pressures

Lack of resources to perform job

Lack of information

Lack of collaboration

Relations with subordinates, coworkers and superiors

Working conditions

Physical danger

Over or under promotion

Insufficient training

Demographic characteristics

Coping skills

Work life conflict

Family problems

Personal problems

Social problems

Financial difficulties

Consequences of Stress

Stress produces a range of undesirable, expensive, and debilitating

consequences, which affect both individuals and organizations. In

organizational setting, stress is nowadays becoming a major contributor to

health and performance problems of individuals, and unwanted occurrences and

costs for organizations.

Stress can result in

Absenteeism

Turn over

Reduced job involvement

Job dissatisfaction

Its physical symptoms can be:

o Headaches

o Stomach problems

o Eating disorders

o Sleep disturbances

o Fatigue

o Muscle aches & pains

o Chronic mild illnesses

o High Blood Pressure

o Heart disease

o Stroke

Its psychological & Behavioral symptoms can be:

Anxiety

Irritability

Low morale

Depression

Burnout

Alcohol & drug

Feeling powerless

Isolation from co-workers

Musculoskeletal disorders

Effect of Job Stress on work outcomes

When person get stress on physic, emotion and behavior that person become

looser or he escapes from working. His behavior towards work changes and

ultimately the effect shows on different work outcomes. This workout comes

are as under:

Performance

Productivity

Job dissatisfaction

Reduce job involvement

Absenteeism

Turnover

Work ineffectiveness

Health

Managerial Costs of Job Stress

Health care costs consume a growing part of the costs of doing business. Job

stress has been estimated to cost American industry $ 150 billion per year in:

Absenteeism

Diminished productivity

Compensation claims

Health insurance

Direct medical expenses

To get some perspective, these costs are more than 15 times that of all

strikes combined.

For example:

o 500 million work days lost each year due to illness and

disability

o 93 million to back problems

o 23 million to cardiovascular complaints

Stressed workers smoke more, eat less ,are less motivated on the job, have

more trouble with co- workers and have more physical illness.

Introduction of the departments

Beacon house school system

The Beacon house School System was founded in 1975, tracing its origins to

Les Anges Montessori Academy. It is the oldest and largest private school

system in South Asia with presence in 26 cities across the country and student

strength of 125,000. Its purpose-built campuses in various locations nationwide

offer the finest facilities for teaching and learning in the country. These

campuses have been equipped with the latest state-of-the-art science and

computer laboratories. Beacon house has the rare distinction of being, if not the

only, then certainly one of the very few educational institutions in the world that

caters to the educational needs of students from the pre-nursery all the way to

post graduation. With the addition of Beacon house National University in

2003, Pakistan’s first liberal arts university; my students now have the

opportunity to pursue degrees till the graduate level. Beacon house Informatics

provides students with internationally recognized undergraduate degrees in the

field of computer science.

Mission

Beacon house aims to provide quality education of an international standard. I

aim for excellence through quality management, quality training and quality

teaching bringing benefit to my students, the community, the country and the

wider world.

Values

Beacon house Educational Services values the right of every individual to

realize his or her potential through the acquisition of knowledge, skills and

values in a caring and supportive environment. The Beacon house system

upholds the freedom of each student to think, create and discover, whilst

respecting the cultures and spiritual insights of others. I believe the human mind

grows best in a spirit of freedom and co-operation. I promote equal

opportunities for all my students irrespective of gender and of religious, social,

ethnic or linguistic background.

Rescue 15

The center headed by ASP/DSP operates round the clock in3 shifts. Each shift is

headed by an officer of the rank of Inspector who is minimum a graduate. The

Center has 12 Sections/Units and each if this is headed by an officer of the rank

of ASI/SI. Following are the sections:-

VEHICAL VERIFICATION SECTION

MOBILE FORENSIC LAB

MEDICAL UNIT

ADMIN SECTION

DUTY OFFICER

HELPLINE

WIRELESS & TELECOMMUNICATION SECTION

ROAD BREAK DOWN SECTION

ARMED RESPONSE UNIT

MOTOR TRANSPORT SECTION

SECURITY ALARM SECTION

MOBILE UNIT

Following are the resources at the disposal of the Centre:-

MANPOIR 80

DOCTORS 03

PATROL CARS 03

MOTORCYCLE 12

AMBULANCES 02

MOBILE FORENSIC LAB 01

RECOVERY VEHICLE 01

RADIO SETS 20

COMPUTERS 03

FAX 01

TELEPHONE CONNECTIONS 05

CCTV 01

The Educators

The importance of quality education particularly at school level cannot be

discarded. But since quality education is expensive, common masses remain

deprived of such a precious and worthy facility. At this critical hour, The

Educator has come up with a solution and in a small span of time has won a

great deal of recognition. It aims at providing “School Operations Management”

service to various investors. The service takes form of furnishing a

comprehensively uniform quality education system, Ill equipped with

professional teacher training programs, Ill-conceived lesson plans and Ill-

developed examination system. Its instantaneous and widespread acceptance

speaks volumes of strength of its system and philosophy and hence success. On

the other hand, being a pioneer in Pakistan, it is not only relieving the parents of

cost-effective-quality-education hassle but is shouldering the responsibility of

shaping and glorifying the future of my generations as Ill.

Mission

The Educators aims for a quality learning experience for the students and

quality training for the faculty by providing excellence in education within my

socio-cultural framework, bringing forth benefit to students, community and the

country.

Vision

The Educators envisions quality education as the key resource for national

development, delivered to a cross-section of my society through sustainable

projects.

Objective

The Educators aims to develop a vast network of cost effective, quality

education institutions throughout the country that offers standardized

educational experience through a network alliance.

The objectives are:

1. Providing quality, English medium education at an affordable cost.

2. Imparting a harmonious combination of traditional and modern teaching

and learning approaches.

3. Reducing the cost of education by standardizing the curriculum,

textbooks, stationary items, uniforms, building structures, staff development,

assessment, evaluation and monitoring systems.

4. Staying updated with the latest developments in the global schools

curricula and introducing them in Pakistan.

5. Training the teachers with new and more efficient teaching techniques

through professional development causes and distant-learning programs.

6. Building a network of schools penetrating deep into the social setup and

providing equal opportunities in education to all.

7. Supporting the national cause of improving literacy.

8. Extending continuous and updated staff development programs to a wider

cross-section of practicing professionals.

9. Ensuring sustainable profitability for the entrepreneurs.

10. Sharing expertise with strategic partners.

Comsats

The COMSATS Institute of Information Technology (CIIT) received its Charter

from the Federal Government in Augmet 2000, as a Degree Awarding Institute

(DAI) in the public sector. Pursuant to the Federal Government of Pakistan’s

decision, it is slated to be upgraded to the status of a university, more precisely

Comsats University (CU). Being federally established institute, the CIIT

currently has six campuses in Islamabad, Lahore, Wah, Abbottabad, Attock, and

Sahiwal, while one more campus is coming up at Gujarat. The future plans also

envisage opening of more campus in the provinces of Sindh and Balochistan, as

Ill as overseas. Currently the CIIT is offering 25 different degree programs in

the fields of Information and Communication Technology, Management

Sciences, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Mathematics, Physics,

Bio-sciences, Development Studies, Environmental Science, Meteorology, and

Architecture and Design. The present student strength is around 10,456 with

faculty strength of also nearly 1,189. The Institute in the short time has already

produced high quality graduates numbering more than 3,200, who are serving

the nation in the various callings. Recently, the Higher Education Commission

(HEC) of Pakistan has ranked the CIIT at number 7 in terms of research

productivity and at number 8 among the Engineering institutions of higher

education in the country during 2006.

NATIONAL BANK OF PAKISTAN

National Bank of Pakistan is the leader and possesses an outstanding position in

the local financial sector of Pakistan. National bank of Pakistan was established

on November 09, 1949 vide National Bank of Pakistan Ordinance XIX of 1949.

Objective

The main objective of the establishment of NBP was to extend credit to the

Agriculture Sector only. However, during the year 1950, the Bank’s Ordinance

was amended so that it could take up Ordinary Commercial Banking Business

as Ill.

National Bank of Pakistan has

29 regional offices

1250 Domestic branches

6 subsidiaries

18 overseas branches

1 joint venture with United National bank (UK)

4 Representative offices.

NATIONAL PHYSICAL AND STANDARDS LABORATORY

ISLAMABAD

The main objective of the NPSL is to maintain primary standards of

measurement and materials on internationally recognized level.

The NPSL is the national custodian of all physical standards of measurements

and materials. In simple terms this in fact means that NPSL is to realize,

maintain & disseminate the standards of measurement.

Thus NPSL by maintaining the national standards of measurements and

materials acts as the focal a point for all calibration / standardization and testing

needs of the country, and is the only certified link to the international

measurement system. By this it is meant that NPSL is the only organization

within the country which can certify whether a particular measuring instrument

conforms to the permissible norms and specifications required for measuring

instruments.

NPSL also due to its nature carries out inter comparison of its standards with the

ones held internationally so that it can be certain that any measurement made

with equipment tested by NPSL conforms to the same fact the essence of the

international co-operation under the SI protocol, which requires all

measurement worldwide to conform to one and the same standard.

Objective

Optimum utilization of indigenous raw material resources for the

development of industrial processes.

Development of technologies around local resources from bench to

pilot plant stages, and leasing them out for industrial exploitation

leading to import substitution and export enhancement.

To conduct R&D work on problems faced by the industrial sector

and maintain linkages through seminars, workshops, publications,

and provision of assistance to academic institutions.

To undertake cooperative research with local and foreign R&D

organizations and commerce-industrial outfits on projects of

national interest.

Human resource development through organized training causes

and diffusive on – job grooming of manpower for industry and

research centers to broaden the science & technology base in the

country.

PAKISTAN ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING & ARCHITECTURAL CONSULTANTS LIMITED

Pakistan Environmental Planning and Architectural Consultants Limited PEPAC established in i0th January 1974, according to company act PEPAC is a consultancy firm incorporated as private Limited company registered with SECP. Total capital is 1.1 million, 110.000 shares of 10. It is self financed company. Each and provides integrated services at all scale of the built environment. In over three decades since its birth, PEPAC has one of the foremost planning, architectural and development consultancy firm of Pakistan, with a considerable on the nation’ urban and rural scene. It has the head office in Islamabad and remaining three branches in Karachi Lahore and Peshawar. The firm is working under the ministry of environment. Designation of Tariq Mahmood Mughal is Private Secretary to Managing Director

MISSION STATEMENT

To develop a public sector pool of professional expertise charged with the responsibility to conceive, plan and realize a comprehensive and Ill-balanced development of the physical environment relating to different categories of regional planning, land use planning and urban and rural planning, etc.

To create an organization in the public sector for carrying out research activities in the field of environmental planning and in all development of architectural designing.

To develop adequate trained manpower in all fields of professional activities i.e. “development planning, regional planning, development economics, landscaping and landscape architecture, environmental planning, ecological science, natural sciences, architecture, engineering, industrial design, quality surveying, management sciences. The idea behind is that a coordinated, inter-related and multi-disciplinary manpower resources pool is generated and kept Ill supplied.

VISION STATEMENT

I am committed to continual improvement in provision of quality Engineering Services to Country.

JOB DESCRIPTION

To provide Town planning and Architectural Consultancy Services for projects initiated by Govt, Semi Govt and Autonomous Bodies.To carry out Research in the field of Environmental plans and Architectural Designing.

The firm’s professional expertise is marked for its diversity and extensiveness. This is illustrated by the work carried out by its professionals. Planning inputs at national, regional. Urban rural level, architectural design of the buildings, structural and environmental engineering and contact and project management services.

The following mega projects have been done by PEPAC:-

1. Supreme Court of Pakistan2. Ayub Medical Complex Abbottabod3. Hayatabad Hospital Complex Peshawar4. Awan-e- Iqbal Lahore5. Shaheed-e-Millat Secretariat Islamabad6. Major Projects of Special Education Centre all over the country.

SHIFA International Hospital Islamabad

The hospital was incorporated on September 29, 1987 as a private limited

company and converted into public limited company on October 12, 1989. The

primary objectives of the hospital are two: First, to set up a primary, secondary

and tertiary care hospital in federal capital, Islamabad with state-of-the-art

medical technology and second, to provide the highest quality of medical care

to the people of Pakistan through the extensive network of satellite hospitals and

modular clinics all over the country.

Literature Review

Stress, in general, and occupational stress, in particular, is a fact of modern day life that

seems to have been on the increase. The topic is, therefore, still popular, although

it occupies academics’ and practitioners’ attention now for more than half

a century.

Occupational (job, work or workplace) stress has become one of the most serious health

issues in the modern world, as it occurs in any job and is even more present than decades ago.

(Lu et al; 2003, 479)

Stress, in general, can be defined as the reaction of individuals to demands (stressors)

imposed upon them. It refers to situations where the Ill-being of individuals is detrimentally

affected by their failure to cope with the demands of their environment. (Erkutlu & Chafra,

2006, 287)

Occupational stress, in particular, is the inability to cope with the pressures in a job, (Rees,

1997) because of a poor fit between someone’s abilities and his/her work requirements and

conditions. (Holmluld Rytkonen & Strandvik, 2005) It is a mental and physical

condition which affects an individual’s productivity, effectiveness,

personal health and quality of work. (Comish & Swindle, 1994, 26)

Occupational stress has been associated with burnout, which is considered a product of long

term exposure to stress. (Burke & Green glass, 1994; Mearns & Cain, 2003).

It has also been strongly associated with temporary and chronic illnesses, such as headache,

hypertension, reduced immune response, stomach complaints, depression and stroke.

(Ashcraft, 1992; Burke & Greenglass, 1994; Guthrie, 2006; Kahn & Byosiere, 1992;

Kyriacou, 2001; Kyriacou & Sutcliffe, 1997).

Occupational stress has been linked to decreased job satisfaction and job commitment,

absenteeism (some of it probably due to illness), turnover and reduced performance. (De

Nobile & Mc Cormick, 2007; Jepson & Forrest, 2006; Kyriacou, 2001; Muchinsky,

2000; Spector, 2000)

Common organizational and individual stressors could be classified into five groups:

Organizational practices (performance reward systems, supervisory practices, promotion

opportunities), Job/task features (workload, workplace and autonomy), Organizational

culture/climate (employee value, personal growth, integrity), Interpersonal relationships

(supervisors, coworkers, cmetomers), Employee personal characteristics (personality traits,

family relationships, coping skills). Hurrell et al, (1998 in Murphy, 1995)

Job stressors can be grouped into the following six categories: physical environment

Role stressors, organizational structure and job characteristic*career development

Work-family conflict. Burke (1988 in Lu et al; 2003)

Six possible classes of stressors in an organizational setting are task-based stress, role based

stress, stress intrinsic to behavior, stress arising from the physical environment, stress arising

from the social environment, Stress within the person system. McGrath (in Tung & Koch,

1980)

Sources of stress at work: Factors intrinsic to the job, Management role, Relationship with

others, Relationship within the organization, Career and achievement, Organizational

structure and climate and home/ work interface Copper et al. (1988 in Lu et al; 2003)

factors relating to organization structure and climate that are stressors include hierarchal

bureaucratic structure that allow employee little participation in decision, lack of adequate

communication between managerial and non managerial levels; cynicism regarding

leadership and attempts by employees to further their own interest at the expense of others.

Limited opportunities for advancement, insufficient performance feedback performance

assessment measures being inadequate and biased control system within the organization. If

there is no involvement in decision making, lack of management support and problems

remained unresolved than those teachers suffers from more stress. Person’s family has a big

impact on one’s stress level. A family situation either a brief crisis, such as an illness of a

family member or long term strained relations with parents, spouses or children can act as a

significant stressor for employees. As employees are working longer hours and bringing more

work home at night, more and more pressure is being placed on work family relationships

and more emphasis on the coordination of work and vacation schedules and the search for

child care options has become prominent and very stressful. Transfer and promotion also

leads to stress. If female employee is transferred to other city how she can leave her family

and children? And if male is transferred to other city or country he can undergo cultural

shock and may experience* isolation. ( Fred Luthan 10th edition organizational Behavior

Stress & Conflict)

More simply, point that specific conditions that make jobs stressful can be categorized either

as exogenous (i.e. unfavorable occupational conditions, excessive workload, lack of

collaboration, etc.) or endogenous pressures (i.e. individual personality characteristics, etc.).

Antoniome et al. (2006)

Causes of occupational stress can be grouped into two main groups: (1) Job related stressors,

with three major subgroups Environment specific, Organization specific,

Job specific stressors. (2) individual-related stressors, which can be either a consequence of

individual characteristics or a consequence of individual life circumstances

Consequences of occupational stress can be grouped into Organizational level,

Individual level

On individual level there are three main subgroups of strains:

Unwanted feelings and behaviors

such as job dissatisfaction, lower motivation, low employee morale, less organizational

commitment, lowered overall quality of work life, absenteeism, turnover, intention to leave

the job, lower productivity, decreased quantity and quality of work, inability to make sound

decisions, more theft, sabotage and work stoppage, occupational burnout, alienation, and

increased smoking and alcohol intake, under eating/over eating , sleeplessness and tardiness.

Physiological diseases (poor physical health)

such as increased blood pressure and pulse rate, cardiovascular diseases, high cholesterol,

high blood sugar, insomnia, headaches, infections, skin problems, suppressed immune

system, injuries, fatigue, tension and back pain.

Psychological diseases (poor emotional (mental) health)

Such as psychological distress, depression, anxiousness, passiveness/aggressiveness,

boredom, lose of self-confidence and self-esteem, lose of concentration, feelings of futility,

impulsiveness and disregarding of social norms and values, dissatisfaction with job and live,

losing of contact with reality, emotional fatigue, anger, anxiety, nervousness, irritability and

boredom.

On the organizational level, consequences of occupational stress can be grouped into two

major subgroups:

Organizational symptoms

Such as discontent and poor morale among the workforce, performance/productivity losses,

low quality products and services, poorer relationships with clients, suppliers, partners and

regulatory authorities, losing cmetomers, bad publicity, damage to the corporate image and

reputation, missed opportunities, disruption to production, high accident and mistakes rates,

high labor turnover, loss of valuable staff, increased sick-leave, permanent vacancies,

premature retirement, diminished cooperation, poor internal communications, more internal

conflicts, and dysfunctional workplace climate.

Organizational costs

such as costs of reduced performance/productivity (lack of added value to product and/or

service), high replacement costs in connection with labor turnover (increase in recruitment,

training and retraining costs), increased sick pay, increased health-care costs and disability

payments, higher grievance and litigation/compensation costs, and costs of equipment

damage. (Ben-Bakr et al; 1995)

Consequence of stress results in a significant loss of skilled and experienced teachers through

resignation and /or premature retirement from all levels of the teaching workforce. (Warren

& Toll, 1993).

Dealing with Occupational stress

Firstly, organizations and their employees should become more aware of the degree to which

stress is an unnecessary cost, and a cost which they must seek to eliminate if their

organizations are to survive and grow. Naturally, this awareness must start at top

management level where the estimated cost of stress is sufficient to generate organizational

commitment to subsequent action. (McHug, 1993, 31)

Secondly, work-related stress should become an issue which increasingly features on the

agenda of efficient managers. (McHug, 1993, 18)

In an increasingly competitive and fast changing business world, efficient managers should

feel compelled to address the issue of work-related stress through counting the costs and

taking appropriate action so as to minimize its effects. (McHug, 1993, 19).

Managers should expend their efforts in reducing the significant sources of stress , as this

leads to a higher employee satisfaction, increases the productivity of the workforce and

reduces negative consequences of stress, which at the end results in higher profits. (Blake et

al., 1996).

Thirdly, training and employee assistance programs dealing with stress should be on

employees’ disposal. Various workshops, seminars and conferences should increase

employees’ awareness of the costs associated with employee stress, and should teach them

how to cope with stressful situations and states. As training can have a positive impact on

tacking stress in the workplace, as it helps employees become more resilient towards stress,

enables them to tackle the root causes of any problems, and helps managers who not only

need to manage their own stress levels, but are responsible for their direct reports.

(Suttleworth, 2004)

Exercise

People of all ages are walking, jogging, swimming, and riding bicycles, playing softball,

tennis in order to get some exercise to combat stress.

Relaxation

Whether a person simply takes it easy once in a while specific relaxation techniques such as

biofeedback or meditation, the intent is to eliminate the immediately stressful situation or

manage a prolonged stressful situation more effectively.

Behavioral self control

By deliberately managing the antecedents and the consequences of their own behavioral,

people can achieve self control.

Cognitive therapy

Besides behavioral self control techniques, a number of clinical psychologists have entered

the stress field with cognitive therapy techniques. Techniques such as Ellis’s rational emotive

and cognitive behavior modification have been used as an individual strategy for reducing job

stress.

Networking

One clear finding that has come out of social psychology research over the years is that

people need and will benefit from social support. Applied as a strategy to reduce job stress,

this would entail forming close associations with trusted empathetic co workers and

colleagues who are good listeners and confidence builders. These friends are there when

needed and provide support to get the person through stressful situations. (Fred Luthans 10th

edition Organizational Behavior Stress & Conflict)

Considering the organizational and personal costs of high stress, there is certainly an implied

payoff in training managers and employees to recognize organizational factors that contribute

to stress, and to take steps to alleviate them (Chmemir & Franks, 1988)

The personality variables that have been linked to stress include locus of control, self-esteem,

type A behavior pattern, hardiness, and negative affectivity. (Ganster & Schaubroeck,

1991).

Type A behavior style is characterized as aggressive, ambitious, hard-driving, impatient,

seeking to control and expressing time urgency. It may lead to both positive (high

performance), and negative (high strain and burnout) outcomes. Type A characteristics are

more likely to create strain for themselves by increasing their workload, and often appraise

events to be more stressful than do the Type B counterparts.

Negative affectivity reflects a stable tendency to experience low self-esteem and negative

emotional states; individuals have a gloomy view of the world, and may be more sensitive to

stressful conditions.

Demographic variables that are proven to relate to someone’s job stressor/health relationships

include gender, age, marital status, job tenure, job title, and hierarchical level. Women

experience the greater level of stress as they are more vulnerable to the demands of work to

the extent that they often have more non-work demands than men. (Ganster & Schaubroek,

1991).

Lastly, staff employed at the higher job levels Ire found to be less stressed that those

employed at the lower job levels. (Dua, 1994)

As Ill, different levels of management influence preference for stress coping styles,

specifically, as it is progressed towards the more senior levels of management, delegation and

maintaining style relationships are considered the most useful forms (Kirkcaldy &

Furnham, 1999).

Numerome studies have established that teaching can be a stressful profession. Teacher

occupational stress has been linked to absenteeism, turnover, and other negative

organizational outcomes. (John J. De Nobile & John McCormick, 2007).

For example; there is study on relationships betIen biographical variables and occupational

stress of staff members in catholic primary school. Occupational stress has been describe as

the experience of negative feelings such as frmetration, worry and anxiety perceived to arise

from work related factors. (Kyriacou, 2001)

There is a research that female teachers experienced significantly higher levels of

occupational stress than males. Younger teachers experienced higher levels of burnout,

specifically in terms of emotional exhametion and disengagement from the profession, while

older teachers experienced higher levels of stress in terms of the support they feel they

receive from the government. (Antonio, A-S; Polychroni, F; Vlachakis, A.-N, 2006).

Research has indicate that continued stress can drastically lower job satisfaction and

performance and can also damage the individual’s personal life(Kobassa 1982

a,b,1,84;Fimian and Santoro,1983).

The term burnout is often using to describe the effects of continual stress. Other variables

associated with teacher stress and burn out are Role problems, Loss of control, Isolation,

Dissatisfaction with salary, Role overload, Role ambiguity, Lack of administrative support

(Fimian, 1986).

A complex relationship appears to exist between occupational stress and age.

Significant differences in stress among age groups, but these differed according to the

stressors. For example, the youngest group of teachers (aged less than 26 years) reported

greater stress from pupil behavior issues than older colleagues, while teachers aged between

26 and 30 years reported higher stress from professional recognition needs than their younger

and older colleagues. In the same study the oldest group of teachers (aged over 40 years)

reported higher levels of stress from curriculum demands than their younger colleagues.

(Laughlin, 1984)

Research identifies differing rank orders of the strengths of a set of stressors for each years of

experience category. (Borg and Falzon, 1991).

However, a number of studies suggest that experience has no relationship with occupational

stress .In the late 1990’s the Naval services (NS), consisting of Royal Navy (RN) and the

Royal marines (RM), embarked upon a program of research into occupational stress, led by

G.Slaver. The program was designed to support the development of health and safety policy.

(Chaplain, 1995; sepson and Forrest, 2006; Solmon and Feld, 1989).

Between 1995 and 1996 NS personnel was medically downgraded, prior to medical discharge

but there was no audience of high levels of anxiety and depression.

Naval services have seen increasing work demands, reduction in manpower and societical

and organizational changes affected the service. The years 1999-2004 Ire marked by several

major conflicts (e.g. in Afghanistan and Frag) as Ill as extra work, such as the provision of

cover doing the firemen and strike.( A. Shariff, G. Slaven, N. Pullinger, G. H. G.

McMillan, unpublished MoD report).

According to research job demand control model, strain occurs when high job demands

combine with low opportunity to influence tasks and procedures, resulting in poor

employee’s health and low job satisfaction. (Karasek, 1999 & 2004).

Social support as stress buffer, predicting that employees strain would be highest when work

demands are high with low levels of work control and social support. (Karasek and

Theorell).

In NS personal spend much of then time at sea, separated from their families and working

long hours at sea places constraints on individuals that are different to and in many ways

greater then those experienced in every day life.

By understanding the stressors that prevail in the work place, the appropriate steps can be

undertaken to assist in the reduction of stress levels. An organization could consider the

provision of skilled support, by employing a full-time counselor that could provide the

needed counseling services or use employee assistance programs (EAPs). Counseling

involves a set of techniques, skills and attitudes to help people manage their own problems

using their own resources. Other methods of stress prevention include: training individuals in

stress management techniques, managing morale and utilizing teamwork.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Survey of Occupational injuries and Illnesses classifies Occupational stress as “neurotic reaction to stress.” There was 3,418 such illnessCases in 1997. The median absence from work for these cases was 23 days, more than four times the level of all nonfatal occupational Injuries and illnesses. And more than two-fifths of the cases resulted in 31 or more lost workdays, compared to one-fifth for all injury and illness

cases. For every case of occupational stress involving a male, 1.6 cases involved a female. The opposite was true for all occupational injuries and illnesses: For each case involving a female, two cases involved a male. Stress ranged from 0.6 for managerial and professional occupations to 1.6 for technical, sales, and administrative support occupations. . (U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics Summary 99-10 September 1999)

Veterinary surgeons facing the act of euthanasia involving pets they have grown fond of may suffer from emotional conflict and ambivalent feelings (Arluke, 1991). Relationships with clients also represent an important source of stress. A small percentage of clients complain, and new practitioners must be highly skilled in communicating with people to maintain proper relationships with clients (Bledsoe, 1991; Rmesel, 1994; Kogan and McConnell, 2001).

There is a research that only 1.7% of veterinary surgeons demonstrated severe symptoms of burnout. Elkins and Elkins (1987) presented similar results. Rejulaet al. (2003) Suicide among veterinary surgeons for example, has been used as an indicator of the high stress level in this occupation. (Jeyaretnam et al., 2000; Bartram and Baldwin, 2008),Concerning gender differences, reported that stress affects mostly young women in small animal practice (mainly because of the relationships with clients in clinical practice). (Gardner and Hini, 2006).

If exposure to stressors continues for a longer period of time, chronic health problems can develop, such as:Physical Conditions:High Blood Pressure, Heart disease, Stroke, Spastic colon, Immune system dysfunction, Diabetes, Asthma, Musculoskeletal disordersPsychological & Behavioral Problems:Serious depression, Suicidal behavior, Domestic violence, Alcohol abuse, Substance abuse Burnout (PEF Health and Safety Department, 2006)

The CIPD Annual Survey Report (2005) also indicated that stress is a major cause for concern. In their study of 1,038 HR practitioners they found that stress and mental ill health Ire the top two causes of ill health among non-manual employees. 39% of employers reported an increase in stress related absence compared to the previous year. They found that the main reported cause of stress across all sectors was workload/volume of work experienced by individuals.Clinical work in mental health may be considered stressful for a variety of reasons. Certain stress-generating situations are also common in work with other, non-psychiatric patients. Classic examples of these kinds of demands are overwork and the limited capacity to alter the cause of certain disorders. Meanwhile, day-to-day work demands a more or less profound empathic relationship with patients over what may be a lengthy period (Pines and Maslach, 1978)

(In Canada, the Women’s Health Bureau of Health Canada defines gender-based analysis as ‘‘a method of evaluation and interpretation which takes into account social and economic differences between women and men, whether applied to policy and program development, or general life activities such as work/family roles’’ (Women’sHealth Bureau, 2000).

In the United States, the 1993 NIH Revitalization Act was passed with the intention of promoting gender-balanced enrolment in clinical trials and the use of gender-specific analyses of data. Although compliance with such policies has not always been perfect (Ramasubbu et al., 2001; Caron, 2003).

Researchers have been encouraged to explore sex differences in physiological parameters and in susceptibility to disease environmental toxins (Wizemann,2001).

There are two kinds of professional in this domain (clinical psychologists and psychiatrists) with an equivalent level of clinical-therapeutic responsibility who carry out their duties on the same sites. Most of the studies in the literature consist of samples of nurses or physicians and, while comparative studies amongst these groups are scarce, research comparing psychologists and physicians are practically non-existent (Alvarez y Fernandez Rios, 1991).

Since the term burnout, it has mainly been used to describe a state of physical and emotional exhaustion whose characteristics have been mostly applied to human services professionals, within which health staff is included. Freedenberg (1974)

However, nowadays there is a trend to consider burnout as a specific form of occupational stress or a subclass of stress effects in individuals (Shinn, Rosario, Morch and Chesnut, 1984; Moreno, Oliver y Aragoneses, 1991).

According to research I consider that stress arises when an individual estimates that environmental demands override his/her own adjustment resources (Lazarme and Folk man 1984),

There is a research employer that they could improve job-related mental health without sacrificing productivity. That is, organizations could reduce job strain by increasing employee control or decision latitude, without reducing actual workload. Employers could fine-tune their administrative structure in order to reduce employee stress and protect workers’ mental health – without cutting productivity (Karasek, 2003)

Namely, the world of work differs considerably from the working environment of 30 years ago: longer hours at work are not unusual, frequent changes in culture and structure are often cited, as Ill as the loss of lifetime career paths which all leads to greater presence and levels of stress... (Cooper & Locke, 2000 in Fotinatos-Ventmyatos & Cooper 2005). 1

Survey of the literature on occupational stress reveals that there are a number of factors related to job, which affect the behavior of the employees and as a result of it, normal life is disturbed (McLean, 1974; Brief, Schular and Vansell, 1981).

The study of (University of London, UK) says that individual perception also plays a roll in occupational stress that different employees perceive and react differently in given situation of work environment, some with high stress levels and some with low or even do not. (Michael Marmot)

The major source of stress is derived from the occupational environment; proponents of this view tend to argue that role holders in

certain occupation, irrespective of individual differences, are much more likely to experience stress. Here, the emphasis is on the individual demands of various jobs that have the capacity over a period of time to exhaust the physical and psychological resource of employees in the organization. (Orpen, 1991)

Multiple goals and managers’ job-related tension and performance suggested that job-related tension and performance deteriorate as managers pursue multiple goals although the relationship seems to be non-linear. The relative importance of goals does not appear to be important. (Emsley, 2003)

Sources of occupational stress among Malaysian managers working in multi-national companies (MNCs).It was found that workloads, working conditions, and relationship at work Ire the main concern of the managers that lead to stress at the work place. The results also indicated that certain demographic variables do influence the level of stress among managers. (Manshor, Fontaine and Chong Siong Choy, 2003)

Study on Role of Human-Computer Interaction Factors as Moderators of Occupational Stress and Work Exhaustion found that IT professionals have long work hours with different time zones, total team work, task to be completed on deadline with perfection as per client needs, which requires interpersonal, technical, and organizational. These characteristics lead to occupational stress. (K. S. Rajeswari and R. N. Anantharaman, 2005).

In an article Burnout published in Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 2006 said that rapid change of the modern working life is associated with increasing demands of learning new skills, need to adopt to new types of work, pressure of higher productivity and quality of work, time pressure and hectic jobs are increasing stress among the workforce. Further he added that privatization and globalization has ignited mergers, acquisitions, and precarious employment has critically affected the domestic industry.

Change the Organization to Prevent Job Stress; the workload should be in line with workers’ capabilities and resources, Job design should stimulate and provide ample opportunities for workers to use their skills, Clarity in workers’ roles and responsibilities Worker’s participation in making decisions for those actions affecting their interests Improved channels of communication, Drawl of clear career development chart, Ensuring social interaction opportunities among workers

Work stress may be transmitted to family members, and this may particularly be aProblem in high stress occupations such as policing, which has been ranked among the top five most stressful occupations (Dantzer, 1987).

Much of the research on this occupational subgroup has centre on male officers. However, women police may experience qualitatively different sources of stress from male officers (Brown and Fielding, 1993, Thompson, Kirk-Brown and Brown, 1999).

In addition, the interface between work and family is experienced differently for men and women, with women experiencing more role overload and work-family conflict Consequently, the experience of male officers, especially in terms of sources of stress and theImpact of work stress on the family, cannot be directly applied to women officers. (Thompson, 1996).

Police officers admitted taking out stress on their families; unfortunately they do notReport on the number of female officers in their sample making it difficult to infer the extent to which these results reflect a primarily male perspective(Alexander and Walker, 1994) Higher occupational demands experienced by men are correlated with dissatisfaction and distress in wives (Burke, Weir & Duwors, 1980),

Police officers experiencing high stress are likely to be more angry, uninvolved in family matters, and have unsatisfactory marriages (Jackson & Malasch, 1982).

Sample of police officers (92% male), negative effects of work demands on family (inParticular concerns about health and safety) Ire related to work attitudes and emotionalWellbeing (Burke, 1994).

In physics, stress is a pressure exerted on a body. Sources of physical stress areFound in tons of rock crushing the earth, in cars smashing one another, and in stretchingRubber bands. Psychological stresses also “press,” “push,” and “pull.” People can feel“Crushed” by the need to make a life changing decision. They can feel “smashed” by aDisaster, or “stretched” to the brink of “splitting” (Steber, 1998).

When most people talk about stress, it is usually in terms of pressure they areFeeling from something happening around them or to them. Students talk about beingUnder stress because of poor exam performance or an impending deadline for a majorPaper. Parents talk about the strain of raising teenagers and the financial burdens ofRunning a household. Teachers talk about the pressure of maintaining professionalCurrency while still managing to keep on top of duties connected with the classroomTeaching. Doctors, nurses, lawyers, and therapists talk about meeting the endless demandsOf their patients and clients (Rice, 1992).

Studies, found that daily hassles a person experiences are more harmful to his or her health than are the significant life changes that concerned Holmes and Rahe. Lazarme believes these daily events are so damaging to health because of how frequently they occur, as compared to the major life events that Holmes and Rahe researched, which Ire usually encountered only rarely.(Richard Lazarme .984),

Factors that ere derived from sources of work stress items (i.e., role, poor support, clients, future, and overload), which accounted for 70% of the total variance. In addition, 4 factors Ire derived from the items related to sources of job satisfaction (i.e., career, working with people, management, and money), accounting for 68% of the total variance. Stress from “overload” was associated with emotional exhaustion and with worse mental health accounting for less “career” satisfaction (Prosser, Johnson, Kuipers, Szumukler, et. al, 199

The field of grammatology has inadvertently ignored a large segment of traumatized people: the family and other supporters of "victims." In other words, I have ignored those suffering in their own right as a result of a loved one being traumatized. This suggests that there is a kind of transmission of trauma from the victim to the supporters; this phenomenon is described as "compassion stress," and the most negative consequences of this stress result in "compassion fatigue" (Figley, 1998)

In particular, conflicting, incompatible, or unclear expectations about one’s professional role within an organization have been identified as being responsible for job strain in human services areas. In addition, social workers carry a variety of inherent stressors such as: untreatable, combined problems; hard-to-reach clients; sometimes unobservable outcomes of their work; and diminishing resources. Combined with the inherent stressors of the social work profession, role stressors such as role conflict and role ambiguity in social work settings appear to have much greater impact on job strain than do role stressors in any other occupation. Hence, among many important antecedents of burnout, role stressors (role conflict or role ambiguity) have been selected as the major predictive variable of burnout (Um & Harrison, 1998).

Theoretical frame work

Need for theoretical frame work

After conducting surveys, completing a literature review and defining

problem statement, one is ready to develop a theoretical frame work.

A theoretical frame work is a conceptual model of how one theorizes or

makes logical senses of the relationships among the several factors that have

been identified as important to the problem.

After theoretical frame work I develop hypothesis to examine whether the

theory formulated is valid or not. The hypothesis relationships can therefore

be tested through appropriate statistical analysis.

Problem Statement:

It is a Comparative Study on the occupational stress experienced by male

and female employees and its impact on their optimal functioning.

Dependent Variable:

The dependent variable is the variable of primary interest to the researcher.

The researcher’s goal is to understand and describe the dependent variable,

or to explain its variability, or predict it. In my study dependent variable is

Occupational Stress.

Independent Variable:

This is of primary focus and area of interest. The independent variables that

have a direct correlation with the dependent variable in this case are:

Physical conditions

Gender

Position

Role ambiguity

Moderating Variable:

The moderating variable has a contingent effect on the independent and

dependent variables relationship. I have taken Organizational environment

as a Moderating Variable.

Intervening Variable:

The intervening variable is the one that surfaces between the time the

independent variables start operating to influence the dependent variable and

the time their impact is felt on it. In my study Creative Synergy is

intervening variable.

Independent Intervening Dependent

Physical condition

Gender

Age

Role ambiguity

Creative Synergy

Occupational Stress

Organizational Environment

Moderating variable

Hypothesis development

Hypothesis can be defined as logically conjectured relationship between two

or more variables in a form of testable statement.

Hypothesis Statements:

Ho: Due to increase in age, employees do not take more stress.

H1: Due to increase in age, employees take more stress.

Ho: Gender difference does not leads towards any type of stress.

H1: Gender difference leads towards stress

Ho: Physical conditions do not lead towards stress

H1: Physical conditions lead towards stress

Ho: Role ambiguity does not develop occupational stress in employees

H1: Role ambiguity develops occupational stress in employees.

Methodology

Introduction

According to my topic “occupational stress experienced by males and

females employees”, it was my need to use questionnaires, because any

other tool like interview or observation was not so competent as compared to

questionaire4s. I have done my date analysis on Ms. Excel.

Significance

I use this methodology because it was helpful in interpretations and findings

of each occupation used in my study.

Objectives

To compare occupational stress in following occupations

Doctor, Police, teachers, employees having desk job, labors.

To compare the level occupational stress in males and females

employees of the above mentioned occupations.

Sampling Techniques

I use following sampling techniques in my study

Data collection method

I used questionnaires as data collection tools. I have floated these

questionnaires in the following organizations.

SHIFA International

Beacon House School System

National Physical and Standard Laboratory

Pakistan Environmental Planning and Consultants PEPAC

National Bank of Pakistan

Comsats University

Rescue 15

Police Line

Punjab Special education (Regional Branch RWP)

I distributed 25 questioners in each organizations among which 12 Ire filled

by females’ and 13 by males

Sample size

I selected sample size of 125 because it gave me more detail picture of my

study.

Data Analysis

I have used ms excel for measurement of my result. Because it has all the

formulas at one place and give me accurate and proper results

Discussion:

The sample consisted of 125 professionals. The majority of respondents were male N = 63 (50.4%).The majority of respondents as observed were in the age group of 21-30 years {N = 37 (29.6%)}.

According to research we found that majority of people are agreed with physical conditions causing stress. Mostly people prefer role ambiguity as cause of stress.

Despite the results of the T-Test with respect to job stress based on the gender of respondents, the results indicate that there are statistically significant deference in the stress level of employ base on the gender, with male employees experiencing, significantly lower level of stress, compared to female employees.

The reason why females’ employees experienced more stress than men may be due to the facts that there are more committed to there jobs. They have more barriers to over come and attain their position.

Role ambiguity in female employees is also high, also role conflict, like a female employee’s role as manager may require her to work on Saturday, but her role as mother requires her to attend her family function.

Physical condition like noise, lighting, etc also causes stress. Stress full situation occur within organization culture function, structure, the

nature of the Management Procedure, insufficient training of employees. Females also feel more stress because of family problems.

Examples:

Female

o Lady Doctor ……….. Stress because of night shifts.

o Female Teacher …… School Timing are more, especially went to take

class in evening.

o Female Police ….. No respect in society

o Labor …….Financial problem

o Female Employees ……. Timing + glass ceiling.

MaleDoctors ……… Fatigue, overloaded work Teachers…….. Inadequate salary Police ……. No respect in society, + Role ambiguity Labor……. Financial problems, Fatigue.Employees... Timings, organizational politics

RECOMMENDATIONS

EDGAR SCHEIN four step approach:

Step 1: involves diagnosing the situation and correctly identifying the real

source of problem. In this step one needs to understand whether the stress

comes from work, family, personal concerns or some combination of these

sources.

Step 2: involves self assessment, it is essential to take (and make) the time

to reflect on feelings and motives and to be familiar with “ blind spots” or

other defenses that shield people from and insightful understanding of

themselves.

Step 3: A coping response is selected. By talking with peers, family

members, friends, neighbors and community resources about problems and

stresses and by establishing supportive relationships with others, one can

choose an appropriate coping response. It is important to identify either

external coping resources (e.g.; a confidence) or internal resources (e.g.;

personal characteristics such as hardiness) so that appropriate coping

response is selected. Coping response aid the person in choosing a healthy

response. The chosen response may involve changing an aspect of the

stressful environment, shifting one’s priorities and the meaning of the

environment.

Step 4: involves understanding the effect (if any) of the coping response and

making adjustments when necessary.

Organizational Actions:

Organizations have begun to develop programs to reduce the level of

employee stress. As the time is passing the machinery era has clouded the

whole system, so; employee problems also become of complex nature.

It has become essential for the organization to give support to the employee

to finish the stress from it roots.

The organization can help and give support of following type, which are as

under:

Organizational Support

Emotional

Empathy, caring, trust

e.g.; Boss praises your effective performance. It is the type of emotional

support which can help to reduce your problem as free from stress.

Instrumental

It is a Behavior that directly helps person in need. e.g.; Subordinate’s

improving performance relieves you of pressure.

Informational

It is a behavior that gives information to be used by person to cope with

problem.

e.g.; Co worker gives you advice on how to discipline a subordinate.

Appraisal

It is a way to provide feedback to a person about his/her performance.

e.g.; Boss gives you constructive feedback on your most recent assignment.

Conclusion

From my whole research I have concluded that stress plays an important role

in changing the employee behavior along with organizational goals

fulfillment if it used in a positive way, but it is very essential to keep the

level of stress at optimal level and always to avoid negative affects of stress.

National university of modern languages

Occupational stress experienced by male and female employees

Dear Sir/Madam. Your contribution in helping me analyze “Occupational stress experienced by male and female employees” is valued highly. Completion of this information is voluntary and confidentiality id assured. No individual data will be reported.

Section 1Please tick the (√) in the appropriate space for your response.

1. Gender ( ) Male ( ) Female

2. Age Group ( ) 20yrs 0r below ( ) 21-30yrs ( ) 31-40 yrs ( ) 41-50yrs ( ) above 50yrs

3. Education ( ) PH.D ( ) Ms/M.Phil/Post Graduate ( ) Master ( ) Bachelor ( ) Intermediate ( ) Matriculation

4. Material Status ( ) single ( ) Married

5. No. Of children ( ) 1-2 ( ) 3-5 ( ) 6 0r more

6. Sector ( ) Public ( ) Private

7. Managerial level ( ) Top manager ( ) Middle manager ( ) Lower staff

8. Years of experience ( ) 1-5yrs ( ) 5-10yrs ( ) More than 10yrs

9. Working Hours ( ) less than 8 hours per day ( ) 8-9hmys per day ( ) more then 8hmys per day

Section 2

Factors of Occupational stress

1. Strongly disagreed 2. Disagreed 3.Neutral 4.Agreed 5. Strongly Agreed

Factors

Organizational Environment: 1 2 3 4 5

I feel to be over burdened with increase level of competition.

I have to put more efforts to cope up with technological development.

Changes in production and products create a stress on me.

Organizational specific stressors:

I am able to cope up with poor physical conditions. (Inadequate lightning or noise and etc).

To deal with workforce diversity is much different task.

I am very anxious about the job security.

I feel upset when there is lack of training programs.

Job specific stressors

I think lack of information and collaboration are the main factors of stress.

I am able to perform Ill when there is pressure to work for

longer hours.

Personal life stressors.

I feel insecure from my coworkers.

My domestic responsibilities do affect my performance at work place.

Section 3

Please rank the following sources of occupational stress according to your own preferences from 1-10. E.g. most preferred rank =1

No. Sources Rank

1 Inadequate salary

2 Lack of recognition

3 Lack of preparation time

4 Unavailability of child care centers in organizations

5 No time to relax

6 Role ambiguity

7 Over commitment

8 Relation ship with the superiors peers, subordinates.

9 Glass ceiling (promotions hurdles for females)

10 Personal and family problems

I grate fully acknowledge your time spent on this questionnaire.

Thai you!

References:-

Occupational stress fact sheet. (2006)

ME Department of labor Bureau of labor statistics. (1999)

Jannie, P., (2005). Sources of occupational stress for teachers, with specific reference to the inclusive educational model in the Western Cape

Iris Occupational stress, work-home interference and burnout among Belgian veterinary practitioners. (2008). Irish Veterinary Journal. Vol 61

Occupational Stress in the Construction Industry. (2006)

Shaun, M, M. Taylor, M., Dunedin. & Gregory, A. L. Time budget pressure and auditor dysfunctional behavior within an occupational stress model

Nig, Y., L. (2007).occupational stress, Personality and coping strategies Among air craft maintenance personnel in Hong Kong

Sadri, G., & Marcoulides, G. A., (1994). The Dynamics of Occupational Stress: Proposing and Testing a Model, Research and Practice in Human Resource Management, 2(1), 1-19.

Dan, J., B. (2000). Occupational stress in mental health counselors

Thompson, B., Kirk-Brown, A, and Brown, A. Police women and their partners: Influence and outcomes of work stress in the family

Lakshminarayanan, R. An over view of strategic planning to combat occupational stress- need of the hour in the present Indian context.

Marc, D., Colette. D., Nicole, R., & Jean, Loiselle. (1997). Professional isolation and stress in teachers 

John, M. (1998).The attribution-of-responsibility for occupational stress model in a catholic

education system: organizational distancing

Nina, P., V. & A. Bugbane. Individual differences and occupational stress perceived: a Croatian survey,

International Review of Business Research Papers. (2007). Vol. 3. Pp.182-192

Goluaz, S. George, A. Marcoulides, S., G. & Marcoulides, G., A. (1994). The Dynamics of Occupational Stress: Proposing and Testing a Model, Research and Practice in Human Resource Management, 2(1), 1-19.

Bridger, R., S. Kilminster, S. And Slaven, G. Institute of Naval Medicine,

SMYCES AND MANIFESTATION OF OCCUPATIONAL STRESS AS REPORTED BY FULLTIME TEACHERS WORKING IN A BIA SCHOOL

Boney Vance, Sean Miller, Sam Humphreys, and Francine Reynolds

.

Annexure

Early warning signs of job stress

Headache Short temperSleep disturbance Job dissatisfaction