Job Stress and Mental Health among Workers in Asia and the World

Kawakami, Norito; Tsutsumi, Atsushi

doi:10.1539/joh.editorial1001

Cited by 19 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Low-skilled migrant workers face difficulties in accessing health services in many countries, let alone mental health or social services, due to lack of entitlement/access, language barriers, strict working hours, and lack of knowledge of services available in host countries [ 4 , 9 , 31 , 61 ]. Workers’ poorer quality of life can result in decreased productivity [ 32 , 62 – 69 ], and may also result in other social consequences, for example antisocial or criminal behaviour [ 70 – 73 ], or poor health outcomes [ 64 – 69 ]. The current study highlights the social and health needs of this population, and is consistent with previous research elsewhere including Hong Kong and Spain, pointing to the stressors and risk of exploitation experienced by domestic workers [ 74 , 75 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stress, health and quality of life of female migrant domestic workers in Singapore: a cross-sectional study

et al. 2017

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BackgroundThere is a global increase in migrant workers. In Singapore, there are over 230,000 migrant domestic workers (MDWs). Female MDWs may experience high levels of stress and social isolation, which may negatively impact on their health and quality of life. There have also been documented cases of abuse and exploitation. However, there is a lack of empirical research with this population. This study aimed to investigate factors impacting on the health and quality of life of female MDWs in Singapore, including socio-demographic and job related characteristics, stress, social isolation, and working management style.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was carried out with 182 female MDWs in Singapore. The survey examined health and quality of life (WHOQoL-Bréf), social connectedness (the Friendship Scale), and preferred and experienced working management style (the Theory X and Theory Y Questionnaire). Descriptive analyses were carried out in addition to ANOVA, t-tests, and chi-square tests, followed by a multivariate analysis using linear regression.ResultsParticipants were found to have good overall quality of life and satisfaction with health. Age and working experience were found to be significantly (p < 0.05) associated with overall quality of life and three domains (psychological, social, and environmental health). Agreement between experienced and preferred working management style was also found to be associated with higher quality of life scores (with the exception of the social relationships domain). Though women reported relatively good overall quality of life, more than half of participants reported feeling stressed. In addition, nearly 20% of participants reported being isolated or very isolated. Stress was identified to be associated with isolation. In the multivariate analysis, stress was found to contribute to worse quality of life in all domains except social relationships, after adjusting for confounders. Social connectedness was positively associated with all domains of quality of life, and agreement of working management style was positively associated with physical health, psychological health and environmental quality of life.ConclusionsThe findings serve as an evidence-base pointing to the need for policies aimed at decreasing stress and social isolation among female MDWs in order to improve their health and quality of life.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12905-017-0442-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stress, health and quality of life of female migrant domestic workers in Singapore: a cross-sectional study

et al. 2017

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“…Job stress is a substantial and growing concern for workers, their advocates, employers, occupational health and safety regulators, and workers' compensation programs [6,7]. The US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health defines job stress as "the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of a job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker" [8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Work-related stress and psychosomatic medicine

Nakao

2010

BioPsychoSocial Med

126

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This article introduces key concepts of work-related stress relevant to the clinical and research fields of psychosomatic medicine. Stress is a term used to describe the body's physiological and/or psychological reaction to circumstances that require behavioral adjustment. According to the Japanese National Survey of Health, the most frequent stressors are work-related problems, followed by health-related and then financial problems. Conceptually, work-related stress includes a variety of conditions, such as overwork, unemployment or job insecurity, and lack of work-family balance. Job stress has been linked to a range of adverse physical and mental health outcomes, such as cardiovascular disease, insomnia, depression, and anxiety. Stressful working conditions can also impact employee well-being indirectly by directly contributing to negative health behaviors or by limiting an individual's ability to make positive changes to lifestyle behaviors, such as smoking and sedentary behavior. Over the past two decades, two major job stress models have dominated the occupational health literature: the job demand-control-support model and the effort-reward imbalance model. In both models, standardized questionnaires have been developed and frequently used to assess job stress. Unemployment has also been reported to be associated with increased mortality and morbidity, such as by cardiovascular disease, stroke, and suicide. During the past two decades, a trend toward more flexible labor markets has emerged in the private and public sectors of developed countries, and temporary employment arrangements have increased. Temporary workers often complain that they are more productive but receive less compensation than permanent workers. A significant body of research reveals that temporary workers have reported chronic work-related stress for years. The Japanese government has urged all employers to implement four approaches to comprehensive mind/body health care for stress management in the workplace: focusing on individuals, utilizing supervisory lines, enlisting company health care staff, and referring to medical resources outside the company. Good communications between occupational health practitioners and physicians in charge in hospitals/clinics help employees with psychosomatic distress to return to work, and it is critical for psychosomatic practitioners and researchers to understand the basic ideas of work-related stress from the viewpoint of occupational health.

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“…Nevertheless, it is important to note that women presented lower values (representing an "average" classification for vigor, dedication and absorption). This underlies health promotion measures, such as worker participatory approaches to improve psychosocial work environment and mental health [21].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Postural analysis and psychosocial measurements of federal civil servants of an institution of higher education

Carregaro

Falcão

Massuda

et al. 2012

Work

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The aim was to evaluate work engagement (WE), ratings of perceived exertion (RPE), postural deviations and to characterize musculoskeletal symptoms of federal civil servants of an institution of higher education. Methods. Twenty four women (age 40.0 ± 11.2 years, 1.6 ± 0.1m, 66.6kg ± 10.0kg) and 13 men (age 38.3 ± 10.3 years, 1.7 ± 0.1m, 84.3kg ± 19.1kg) were recruited. The Nordic Questionnaire was used to evaluate musculoskeletal symptoms and the Borg Scale for the RPE. WE was quantified by the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (vigor, dedication and absorption domains). Posture was assessed by photogrammetry and analyzed with the Postural Assessment Software (PAS/SAPO). The independent student t test was used to verify WE and postural differences and the chi-square test to verify RPE and symptoms' differences between genders. Results. All subjects reported musculoskeletal complaints, mainly in the low back (28.4%). Women presented more musculoskeletal complaints (67%). RPE and WE did not differ between genders, however, women presented pronounced postural deviations compared to men (angle between leg and right foot dorsum, and horizontal pelvic alignment; p<0.05). Conclusion. Findings highlight the implementation of health promotion measures, such as postural reeducation and ergonomic guidelines, with specific activities according to gender.

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Job Stress and Mental Health among Workers in Asia and the World

Cited by 19 publications

References 27 publications

Stress, health and quality of life of female migrant domestic workers in Singapore: a cross-sectional study

Stress, health and quality of life of female migrant domestic workers in Singapore: a cross-sectional study

Work-related stress and psychosomatic medicine

Postural analysis and psychosocial measurements of federal civil servants of an institution of higher education

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