The DASS-21 is a well-established instrument for measuring depression, anxiety, and stress with good reliability and validity reported from Hispanic American, British, and Australian adults. However, the lack of appropriate validation among Asian populations continues to pose concerns over the use of DASS-21 in Asian samples. Cultural variation may influence the individual's experience and emotional expression. Thus, when researchers and practitioners employ Western-based assessments with Asian populations by directly translating them without an appropriate validation, the process can be challenging. We conducted a series of rigorous statistical tests and minimized any potential confounds from the demographic information. Following factor analyses, we performed multigroup analysis across six nations to demonstrate consistency of our findings. The advantages of this revised DASS-18 stress scale are twofold. First, it possesses fewer items, which results in a cleaner factorial structure. Second, it has a smaller interfactor correlation. With these justifications, the revised DASS-18 stress scale is potentially more suitable for Asian populations. Nonetheless, given limitations, findings should be considered preliminary.

Work-related stress is an important issue in any industry, particularly for construction workers where stressful environments are frequently encountered. Critical questions are therefore: what are the primary stressors in the construction workplace ; and what are the relationships between the strain effect of psychological distress and the countermeasures and coping mechanisms used by construction workers? The first question was addressed using Qmethodology survey with 18 participants. The results show that time and personal finance, and the task nature of the work, are important stressors. For the second question, a questionnaire survey administered to 91 participants on two construction sites of a single contractor was used to collect data about the stressors, psychological strain effects and coping strategies they used. Mediated regression analysis of the data showed that lack of personal and family time, increases in the cost of living, and fears about job security all act as powerful stressors. Coping strategies including acceptance, self-blame, and disengagement are associated with higher levels of psychological distress. Increased substance use, while associated with lower levels of anxiety, may only be a short term coping mechanism. An anomaly was found with humour as a coping strategy, where the relationship was found to be counter-intuitive and contrary to the findings of previous research. Future research should examine this more closely. Employers should better inform workers about the negative effects of maladaptive coping strategies, and offer opportunities for adopting more positive alternatives.

Despite more than three decades of research, there is a limited understanding of the transactional process of appraisal, stress and coping. This has led to calls for more focused research on the entire process that underlies these variables. To date, there remains a paucity of such research. The present study examined Lazarus and Folkman's (1984) transactional model of stress and coping. One hundred and twenty nine Australian participants with full time employment (i.e., nurses and administration employees) were recruited. There were 49 male (age mean = 34, SD = 10.51) and 80 female (age mean = 36, SD = 10.31) participants. The analysis of three path models indicated that in addition to the original paths, which were found in Lazarus and Folkman's transactional model (primary appraisal→secondary appraisal→stress→coping), there were also direct links between primary appraisal and stress level time one and between stress level time one to stress level time two. This study has provided additional insights into the transactional process that will extend our understanding of how individuals appraise, cope and experience occupational stress.

Purpose -E-learning is an organizationally risky investment given the cost and poor levels of adoption by users. In order to gain a better understanding of this problem, the aim of this paper is to conduct a study into the use of e-learning in a rail organization. Design/methodology/approach -Using an online survey, employees of a rail-sector organization were questioned about their use and likelihood of adoption of e-learning. This study explores the factors that affect the way in which learners experience and perceive such systems. Using statistical analysis, 12 hypotheses are tested and explored. Relationships between learning satisfaction, intention to adopt, and the characteristics of e-learning systems were established. Findings -The study found that e-learning characteristics can buffer the relationship between learner characteristics and intention to adopt further e-learning in the future. Further, the paper found that high levels of support can compensate individuals who are low in technological efficacy to adopt e-learning.Research limitations/implications -The cross-sectional design of the study and its focus on measuring intention to adopt as opposed to actual adoption are both limitations. Future research using longitudinal design and research employing a time lag design measuring actual adoption as well as intention are recommended. Practical implications -From a practical perspective, organizations can focus on the actual content and authenticity of the learning experience delivered by the e-learning system to significantly impact how employees will perceive and use e-learning in the future. Low technological efficacy individuals tend not to adopt new technology. Instead of changing individuals' personalities, organizations can implement supportive policies and practices which would lead to higher e-learning adoption rate among low efficacy individuals. Originality/value -The study integrates technology adoption and learning literatures in developing enablers for e-learning in organizations. Further, this study collects data from rail employees, and therefore the findings are practical to an industry.