Heal Your Heart by Michael Miller

Author:Michael Miller
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Potter/Ten Speed/Harmony/Rodale
Published: 2014-05-19T04:00:00+00:00

Stress in the Workplace

There are many causes of stress in the workplace, and you’re no doubt familiar with at least some of them.

• Too much responsibility

• Lack of adequate information or training for your responsibilities

• Lack of support from coworkers or your boss

• An overbearing or “toxic” boss

• Conflict with coworkers

• Lack of job satisfaction—a job that feels meaningless, unchallenging, or as if you’re a cog in a machine; a job that offers no possibility of advancement

• Poor working conditions—a job that exposes you to toxins or puts you in danger; a crowded or noisy environment; shift work that disrupts your body’s normal circadian rhythm; a job that is physically strenuous, etc.

But by far the most often cited source of job-related stress, no matter your occupation, is having little or no control over your situation. It can be an incredibly frustrating experience if, for instance, you don’t have enough input in when or how often you work, if fulfilling your job duties is largely dependent on a colleague who can’t or won’t get his or her job done, if you feel you’re at the mercy of an unpredictable boss, or if you feel you have little or no impact on outcomes. Any scenario in which your decision-making power has been attenuated or removed is going to provoke stress.

A landmark study from the late 1980s examined the relationship between the incidence of myocardial infarction (heart attack) and job-related stress. The study found that job stress is based largely upon two characteristics: decision making and job strain.2

Jobs with the highest decision-making ability and lowest job strain were associated with the lowest risk of heart attack, and the reason is simple: In these cases, you are the decision maker or have power over the decisions that are cast, and thus you have control over your environment. A sense of control alleviates or precludes a great deal of stress and anxiety. And an occupation with low job strain is generally less demanding and/or offers a relatively low-stress environment.

The 10 jobs with the highest decision latitude (i.e., ability to make independent decisions) and the lowest job strain were architect, civil engineer, dentist, foreman, health technician, machinist, natural scientist, programmer, repair technician, and sales representative. On the other hand, the 10 jobs with the lowest decision latitude and highest job strain were cashier, electrician, factory worker, firefighter, freight handler, gas station attendant, mail carrier, nurse’s aide, textile operator, and waiter.

The occupations that fall in between are those with high decision latitude but increased job strain—such as electrical engineer, farmer, high school teacher, physician, and public official—and those that are low in job strain but also low in decision latitude, such as billing clerk, carpenter, dispatcher, delivery person, and janitor.3

Other sources have compiled lists of the most stressful and least stressful jobs, as well. For a more current listing, see “The 2014 Top 10 Most Stressful and Least Stressful Jobs.”

If you’re like me, you may be surprised at some of the jobs on both lists, or you may want to take issue with some.

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