Job Control, Job Demands and Social Support at Work in Relation to Cardiovascular Risk Factors in MONICA 1995, Göteborg

Abstract

Background Job control and work environment are related to risk of coronary heart disease (CHO), but there is limited understanding of the independent risks associated with these factors.Objective To investigate the association between psychosocial work characteristics and biological risk factors for both sexes for a random population sample in Goteborq, Sweden.Design A cross-sectional study.Methods We used an age-stratified random sample of men and women aged 25-64 years comprising 1200 men and 1412 women, from which 746 men and 872 women responded to the invitation for screening, which included questionnaires and physical/laboratory investigations in 1995.Results Women had lower job control than did men (p= 0.0000 1); job demands were equal and social support at work slightly higher among women (P=0.04). Job control was positively related to education and social group. Smoking women had low job control and high job demands. Women with high grades of psychological stress had low job control and low social support at work (P = 0.00 1 and P = 0.0 1). For both sexes job demands were high (P= 0.0001) among those who reported high psychological stress. Men with high job control and high social support at work were more physically active during leisure time. Subjects with job strain had low social support (P= 0.0 1).Job-stress factors were not related to biological coronary risk factors.Conclusions Women had lower job control than did men. Job control was positively related to education, social class and physical activity. Psychosocial factors were not related to biological coronary risk factors. J Cardiovasc Risk 6:379-385

Relationship of obesity to job stress and eating behavior in male Japanese workers

“…10 With male workers, Netterstrøm et al 11 showed a significant association between BMI and job strain. In contrast, Kornitzer and Kittel, 12 Steptoe et al 13 and Jönsson et al 14 did not find significant associations between BMI and psychological job stress in men. Thus, earlier findings about the relationship between obesity and job stress were inconsistent.…”

“…The questions have a total of 17 items to measure job stress factors of psychological workload (Table 1). These are categorized as quantitative workload (1-3), qualitative workload (4-6), physical workload (7), job latitude (8-10), application of technology (11), interpersonal conflict (12)(13)(14), workplace environment (15), and appropriateness of work (16,17). The section on psychological stress response (Table 2) has a total of 18 items to measure positive responses (activity (1-3)) and negative responses (anger (4-6), fatigue (7)(8)(9), tension/anxiety (10)(11)(12), and depression (13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)).…”

“…21,22 This questionnaire is used Obesity and job stress in male Japanese workers N Nishitani and H Sakakibara in some hospitals for obesity treatment in Japan. 23 These 30 questions are classified into the seven areas regarding cognition of constitution (1-3), eating style (4-6), eating rhythm abnormalities (7,8,16,17,30), feeling of satiety (9,10,24,25,28), substitute eating and drinking (11,18,19,(21)(22)(23), meal contents (12)(13)(14)(15)20), and motivation for eating (26,27,29).…”

Work stress, weight gain and weight loss: evidence for bidirectional effects of job strain on body mass index in the Whitehall II study

“…5 While some studies have found an association between high strain, 6,7 high demands, 6,8,9 low control, 3,10 and increased BMI, other studies have reported no associations between these psychosocial characteristics of the work environment and BMI, [11][12][13][14] and, in some samples, high strain or low control were associated with lower BMI. 15,16 Associations of job strain and its components with BMI have been found to vary by sex, but not in a consistent manner 17 and stress has also been proposed to be linked with BMI beyond the work context.…”

Interactive Effects of Job Stress and Body Mass Index on Over‐eating

“…This might explain, in part, the mechanism underpinning the interactive effects proposed by Kivimäki et al (J Occup Health 2010; 52: 66-73) Key words: Body mass index, Hyperphagia, Obesity, Psychological stress When stressed, some people lose and other people gain weight 1) . Although some studies have found associations between stressful work environments and increased body mass index (BMI) [2][3][4][5][6][7] , others have reported no associations between these variables [8][9][10][11][12][13] . Moreover, a highly stressful work environment was associated with low BMIs in several samples 14,15) .…”