Life Changes and Daily Hassles

Workplace Stress

The workplace is one of the most significant sources of stress for adults in contemporary society. Work-related stress is associated with elevated risk of cardiovascular disease, mental health problems, musculoskeletal disorders, and increased sickness absence. Understanding its causes enables evidence-based interventions at both individual and organisational levels.

Sources of Workplace Stress

Key sources of workplace stress include: excessive workload (too many demands, insufficient time); lack of control over work pace, methods, and decisions; role ambiguity (unclear responsibilities) and role conflict (incompatible demands); poor social relationships with colleagues or management (bullying, poor communication); job insecurity; physical environment (noise, heat, hazard); and poor work-life balance. Of these, lack of control has been consistently identified as the most critical determinant of work-related stress and associated illness.

Johansson et al. (1978) — Swedish Sawmill Workers

Johansson et al. (1978) compared two groups of Swedish sawmill workers. The high-risk group were finishers — workers whose role was machine-paced, repetitive, required sustained attention, and determined the output and pay of the whole team (high demand, low control, high responsibility). The control group performed more varied, self-paced cleaning and maintenance work (lower demand, more control). The high-risk group showed significantly elevated levels of adrenaline on working days compared with rest days, and compared with the control group. They also showed higher rates of illness and absenteeism. This study supported the role of both job demands and, particularly, lack of control in generating physiological stress responses.

Karasek's Demand-Control Model (1979)

Robert Karasek (1979) proposed the demand-control model, which identifies two key dimensions of job characteristics:

  • Job demands: the psychological demands of the work — time pressure, pace, workload, conflicting demands.
  • Job control (decision latitude): the degree to which a worker can make decisions about how, when, and at what pace they work, and what skills they use.
Karasek's Demand-Control Model (1979) Job Control → ↑ Job Demands ↑ Low control High control HIGH STRAIN High demand + Low control ⚠ Highest stress and illness risk e.g. Assembly-line worker, waitress, call centre agent ↑↑ CHD risk (Marmot et al.) ACTIVE High demand + High control Moderate stress; high engagement e.g. Doctor, lawyer, senior manager, teacher Challenge appraisal; growth PASSIVE Low demand + Low control Some risk: boredom, learned helplessness e.g. Unskilled routine work, some manual jobs LOW STRAIN Low demand + High control ✓ Lowest stress risk Controlled pace; minimal overload e.g. Skilled craftsperson, watchmaker

The model predicts that the most stressful jobs — and those associated with the highest rates of illness — are high demand + low control (high strain) jobs. High demand + high control (active) jobs produce engagement and challenge rather than distress. Low demand + high control (low strain) jobs are the least stressful.

Marmot et al. (1997) — The Whitehall II Study

The Whitehall II study followed approximately 10,000 civil servants in London over several years. A gradient was found in cardiovascular disease risk and sickness absence by civil service grade — lower-grade civil servants showed higher rates of CHD and absences. Crucially, this gradient was partly explained by job control: lower-grade workers had less control over their work. After controlling for lifestyle factors (diet, exercise, smoking), low job control independently predicted higher CHD risk and greater sickness absence. Marmot et al. interpreted this as evidence that the psychosocial work environment — particularly control — has direct effects on cardiovascular health, beyond what can be explained by lifestyle.

Effort-Reward Imbalance (Siegrist, 1996)

Siegrist (1996) proposed that work stress arises from an imbalance between efforts (high demands, responsibilities, obligations) and rewards (salary, status, career prospects, job security). Perceiving high effort-low reward — working very hard for inadequate recognition or compensation — is associated with elevated physiological stress responses and increased cardiovascular risk. This model complements Karasek's by adding the dimension of outcome/reward alongside demand and control.

 Key Takeaways

  • Key workplace stressors: workload, lack of control, role ambiguity/conflict, poor social relationships, job insecurity. Lack of control is consistently the most critical.
  • Johansson et al. (1978): machine-paced finishers (high demand, low control) had elevated adrenaline, higher illness and absenteeism than self-paced control group workers.
  • Karasek demand-control model (1979): high demand + low control = HIGH STRAIN = highest stress and illness risk. High demand + high control = ACTIVE = engagement. Low demand + high control = LOW STRAIN = least stressful.
  • Marmot et al. (1997) — Whitehall II: civil servants in lower grades (less job control) showed higher CHD rates and sickness absence. Low control predicted CHD independently of lifestyle factors.
  • Effort-reward imbalance (Siegrist, 1996): high effort + low reward (salary, status, security) → elevated stress. Complements Karasek by adding the reward dimension.
  • Practical implications: redesigning jobs to increase worker control, clarify roles, and improve effort-reward balance can reduce work-related stress and its health consequences.