11/18/20141CHAPTER 14 Stress and BurnoutThe nature of stress• Emotional and physiological aspects of stress: Selye’s stage theory• Alarm reaction• Resistance• Exhaustion• The nature of stressors• They are intense and/or overwhelming: overload• They evoke simultaneous incompatible tendencies• They are uncontrollable• Cognitive appraisal of an event as stressful• Perception that the situation threatens important goals• Perception that effective coping isn’t possible11/18/20142Major causes of stress• Work-related causes: heat, noise, crowding, danger, lack of privacy• Social conditions: high level of politics, abusive or uncaring management atmosphere, discrimination, and harassment• Occupational demands: highly stressful occupations• Frequent decisions• Constant monitoring of devices or materials• Repeated exchanges of information with others• Unpleasant physical conditions• Performing unstructured rather than structured tasks• Jobs that create problems for one’s relationships at home Major causes of stress• Multiple roles• Family stressors versus work stressors: gender differences• Drawbacks: role conflicts, divided attention and energy, increasing backlogs both inside and outside the work setting• Benefits: new areas of autonomy, control, self-definition, personal satisfaction, and social support• The benefits of working are evident for wives only when their husbands share family responsibilities.11/18/20143Major causes of stress• Types of role conflict• Inter-role conflict• Person-role conflict• Within-role conflict• Overload and underload• Qualitative and quantitative overload• Qualitative and quantitative underload• The desirability of the “middle course”Major causes of stress• Responsibility for others• Isolation and the lack of social support: advice, comfort, help, sense of perspective• Unemployment: uncertainty, financial strain, loss of self-esteem, concern with loss of esteem from others, sense of helplessness, depression11/18/20144Personal factors and stress• Stressful life events and physical illness• Daily hassles: You’re on your own• Individual differences in resistance to stress• Optimism as a buffer against stress: problem-focused coping, seeking social support, taking a time out from other activities• Gender and ethnic differences: Women report stronger positive and negative emotions and rely more on social support. Hispanics have both a social and a health advantage.• Attitudes and stress (see the list on page 414 of the text)Life events: some are more stressful than othersEvent Relative StressfulnessDeath of a spouse 100Divorce 73Jail term 63Death of a close family member 63Marriage 50Fired from job 47Retirement 45Trouble with boss 23Change in residence 20Vacation 13Christmas 1211/18/20145Stress: some important effects• Stress and physical health: 50-70% of physical illnesses are stress-related, including heart disease, ulcers, and diabetes• Stress and mental health: anxiety, depression, irritation, anger, fatigue, reduced feelings of competence, self-worth, and job satisfaction, and a sense of helplessness• Stress and behavior at work: impaired performance of complicated tasks, poor decision making, increased absenteeism, turnover, alcohol and drug abuse11/18/20146Stress: some important effects• Stress and physical health: 50-70% of physical illnesses are stress-related, including heart disease, ulcers, and diabetes• Stress and mental health: anxiety, depression, irritation, anger, fatigue, reduced feelings of competence, self-worth, and job satisfaction, and a sense of helplessness• Stress and behavior at work: impaired performance of complicated tasks, poor decision making, increased absenteeism, turnover, alcohol and drug abuseBurnout• Burnout begins with disillusionment: you can’t change things much, each day is the same old routine, each day brings more stress and more problems• Physical exhaustion: headache, nausea, poor sleep, loss of energy and loss of appetite• Emotional exhaustion: depression, emotional numbness, feelings of helplessness and feeling trapped, low sense of accomplishment11/18/20147Burnout• Major causes of burnout• Prolonged exposure to stress• Problems with the way the organization functions• Conditions implying that your effects are useless, futile, ineffective, unrecognized, and unappreciated• Supervisors who don’t show consideration• Personal factors: taking the job too seriously, working in helping professions, being a hypercontroller, not having a communal orientationBurnout• Major effects of burnout• Giving up and seeking new jobs or careers• Taking a desk job within the same profession• Countering the effects of burnout• Seeking increased social support• Developing hobbies and outside interests• Relaxation strategies: short breaks, exercise, meditation, power naps• List of recommendations on page 42111/18/20148Techniques for managing stress• Being married or having another strong social support network• Maintaining a healthy lifestyle: getting regular physical exercise, eating right, avoiding drug and alcohol abuse• Using effective coping techniques: emotional coping, mental coping, active behavioral coping• Getting control of emotions: relaxation training, deep breathing, meditation, biofeedback