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EFFECTIVE APPROACHES TO MANAGING STRESS OF EMPLOYEES

Urska Treven, Sonja Treven and Simona Sarotar Zizek
University of Maribor, Slovenia

ABSTRACT
n the paper, first of all, the problem of stress that employees in organizations face with is
presented. Then the economic impact of stress at the individual, organizational as well as
at the national level is discussed. Besides, various types of stress and various
approaches to stress management that employees can use at work or in their everyday life are
discussed widely as well. Such approaches include attacking the source of the stress, receiving
social support, relaxation techniques, cognitive-behavioral techniques, wellness through proper
exercise, diet, and rest, and others. Each employee can use those techniques that the best suit
him/her and reduce the level of stress in his/her work and personal life.

Keywords: Stress, Sources of Stress, Techniques for Managing Stress.

1 INTRODUCTION
Work stress is recognized world-wide as a major challenge to workers' health and the healthiness
of their organizations (WHO, 2003). The European Agency for Health and Safety at Work states
that stress within organization is the second most frequent trouble and affects as many as 22% of
employees from EU. And the number of people suffering from stress-related conditions caused or
made worse by work is likely to increase.

Workers who are stressed are more likely to be unhealthy, poorly motivated, less productive and
less safe at work. Their organizations are less likely to be successful in a competitive market.

Stress can be brought about by pressures at home and at work. Employers cannot usually protect
workers from stress arising outside of work, but they can protect them from stress that arises
through work.

Stress at work can be a real problem to the organization as well as for its workers. Good
management and good work organization are the best forms of stress prevention. If employees are
already stresses, their managers should be aware of it and know how to help. In order to solve this
problem, various approaches to stress management can be applied in organizations. In the paper
some of them, like attacking the source of the stress, receiving social support, relaxation
techniques, cognitive-behavioral techniques, and wellness through proper exercise, diet, and rest
will be discussed. Every employee should select those techniques that best fit his/her
\

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REVIEW OF MANAGEMENT INNOVATION & CREATIVITY

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circumstances and preferences. At the same time he/she should be seeking the amount of stress
that enables him/her to capitalize on the benefits of positive stress but not fall prey to the negative
symptoms of stress.

In the paper both descriptive and analytical approaches to research and dissemination are
considered. Within the descriptive approach various methods are applied, including compilation,
descriptive and comparative techniques; the analytical approach involves inductive and deductive
methods. The paper emanates from the research that has been carried out within the European
project with the title Development, implementation and evaluation of the programs for the
improvement of subjective well-being with the Acronym Chance4Change. In the first phase the
theoretical background (a part of it is presented in our paper) is structured, while in the second
phase the practical research will be conducted.

2 THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF STRESS
The word stress is one of the most frequently used words today. We live in a world developing
fast, requiring constant adaptation. Technology is changing, so are social habits, values, social
structures, and people. Besides, the economic crisis in global world has been present for almost
two years. Everybody has to cope with those changes, not only individuals, but organizations and
governments as well (Pettinger, 2002; Moss Leonard, 1981). The pace of life is getting quicker,
too. What was new yesterday is already old today. Many humans see positive values of those
changes, but very few think of the negative consequences that may ensue.

There are estimations, that humankind looses 100 million workdays every year due to aftermath of
stress. What matters more, 50 to 75 % of todays diseases are related to stress. The European
Agency for Health and Safety at Work states that stress within organization is the second most
frequent trouble and affects as many as 22 % of employees.

Loss of health due to stress constitutes neither the biggest nor the only cost in organizations.
Mistakes and/or false decisions, which employees make under the effect of stress, cost much
more. Hence, it is necessary to think carefully what to do to prevent stress, and how to cope with it
when it occurs.

The cost of stress has to be considered very carefully. Connection between its causes and
consequences is often quite unclear, so data may be based on assumptions. At the same time,
they cannot be compared between companies, let alone between countries. It is entirely impossible
to come to any conclusions or generalizations. In estimating the costs it is the duration of sick
leaves due to stress that must be taken into account with regard to the entire absenteeism. The
International Labor Organization (ILO) evaluates costs of stress on three levels: the individual, the
organizational and the national level.

At the individual level: the issue at stake is primarily the individual loss of income and the costs of
medical treatment. What sum the ill person is deprived of, depends on the manner of
compensation in different countries. In some of them the employer covers the cost, in some others
it is the state, while mostly it is a combination of both. In the case of job loss or early retirement the
individual costs are much bigger. Such costs may be difficult to estimate, as they depend on too



Effective Approaches to Managing Stress of Employees

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many factors and their synergies; they can also vary, even with a particular person, in different time
periods.

At the organizational level: organizations suffer loss due to the costs of absenteeism, early
retirement, replacement, law costs, damaged equipment, lower productivity, and loss of good name
and reputation. In 1990 NIOSH (The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health)
estimated the costs due to diseases and accidents caused by stress to amount to $6.6 billion per
year in the USA. The British HSE (Health and Safety Executive) estimated those costs between
1.1 and 2.2 billion per year. Australian insurance companies estimated those costs to ECU 9.2
billion per year. However, those costs have very probably been evaluated too low, as they do not
consider overtime, loss of costumers, individual problems or decrease of work moral and other
indirect consequences. If we take into account all these factors, the percentage of stress related
diseases may increase to 30 to 40 %.

At the national level: the costs due to stress at the national level cannot be calculated by summing
up of individual costs and the costs of organizations, since they are allocated among particular
groups. The state has to pay the costs of medical treatment, absenteeism and the costs due to
early retirement. According to rough estimates by NIOSH they would reach 0.5 to 3.5 % of the
GNP on average.

3 TYPES OF STRESS
There are several approaches to classifying stress, and at this point we will classify it in terms of
the type of stressor and when it takes its effect. In this way, we can identify three categories of
stress (Currie, 2001).

Transient stress occurs at the same time as the stressor and is a short-term experience. For
example, it may be of the kind experienced by emergency service workers when they are dealing
with events such as public disorder, accidents, fires and a variety of other types of incident. These
situations often involve people working at speed and perhaps using particular skills to head off a
potentially disastrous situation, such as attempting to save someone's life. Also, individuals
reacting to emergency situations at work, such as meeting deadlines or restoring crucial systems
that have gone down, may experience transient stress. In these kinds of example, however, the
emergency aspects soon leave the situation, and as the urgency diminishes, so those involved will
start to 'come down' and return to normal.

Post traumatic stress disorders (PTSD) occur after a shock owing to some critical life event, such
as involvement in a serious traffic accident, personal injury, divorce, birth of the child, or
redundancy. PTSD may succeed transient stress when, for instance, after someone has done all
they can to deal with an emergency and the cause of their transient stress is no longer present,
they believe, rightly or wrongly, that the aftermath the incident holds personal implications for them
with which they will have difficulty coping. This also may happen when the effects of shock emerge,
having been suppressed beforehand by the need to concentrate on taking urgent action.

Chronic stress occurs as a result of pressures being felt by the individual for an amount of time that
is too long for the person to endure. Those who experience this kind of stress perceive themselves


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to be in situations in which things are getting on top of them, causing them to feel anxious and
frustrated; they feel that the pressures will never go away and that there is no escape. Often the
pressures are small but numerous, having accumulated over many months or years, causing
feelings of futility and despair. Ultimately the person feels that his or her efforts are meaningless,
that the future is hopeless and that they cannot go on any more. This is a very dangerous kind of
stress, which can lead to serious physical ill-health, mental breakdown or even suicide. It is worth
mentioning here that chronic stress is the type that is most frequently related to the workplace.

4 APPROACHES TO MANAGING STRESS
In the battle against stress various approaches to managing stress can be applied. Hence, we shall
present some of them that are among the most effective ones, in this section. With the application
one or more of them simultaneously an employee may significantly reduce his stress level and,
hence live and work more released and happy.

4.1 Attacking the Source of Stress
Stress can be dealt with in the short range by indirect techniques such as exercise and relaxation.
But to manage stress in the long range and stay well, everybody should learn to deal directly with
stressors. Several of these techniques are described in this section.

Eliminating or Modifying the Stressor
The most potent method of managing stress is to eliminate the stressor giving you trouble. For
example, if individual's job is his primary stressor, his stress level would be reduced if he founds
more comfortable job. At other times, modifying the stressful situation can be equally helpful. Using
the problem-solving method, an individual searches for an alternative that will change the stressor.

Placing the Stressful Situation in Perspective
Stress comes about because of our perception of the situation. If an individual can alter his
perception of a threatening situation, he is attacking the source. A potentially stressful situation can
be put into perspective by asking, What is the worst thing that could happen to me if I fail in this
activity? The answer to this question is found by asking a series of questions, starting with the
grimmest possibility. For instance, an individual is late with a report that is due this afternoon. The
following questions and answers should be considered:

Will my reputation be damaged permanently? (No)
Will I get fired? (No)
Will I get reprimanded? (Perhaps, but not for sure)
Will my boss think less of me? (Perhaps, but not for sure)

Only if the answer is yes to either of the first two questions is negative stress truly justified. This
thought process allows stressful situations to be properly evaluated and kept in perspective the
individual therefore avoid the stress that comes from overreacting to a situation.

An analysis of many studies concludes that the most effective approaches to managing workplace
stress are cognitive-behavioral interventions - essentially a way of thinking constructively about a



Effective Approaches to Managing Stress of Employees

50
problem that includes perspective setting. Cognitive-behavioral interventions teach individuals to
recognize how their pessimistic and often distorted thoughts of gloom and doom become stressors.
Next, they learn to replace their unrealistic and highly pessimistic thinking with more realistic or
more optimistic thinking (Richardson and Rothstein, 2008).

Gaining Control of the Situation
A multipurpose way of gaining control is to improve individual's work habits and time management.
By being on top of things, heavy work and school demands can be made less stressful. A trend
related to reducing stress by gaining control is to simplify individual's life by getting rid of
unessential activities. Andrew Weil, the natural health guru, recommends that an individual should
downsize his life. He believes that significant stress stems from the complexity of our lives, a major
contributor being our material possessions. Many people have too many physical objects that
require attention and maintenance. Weil recommends that an individual should get rid of what he
can spare (Weil, 1997). Control of life situations will be gained by having less clutter.

It is also important for people that they assume control over how they spend their time. This is
especially important on the job, where many events threaten to distract us from doing whats most
important. In addition, to the extent we allow distractions to over-run our lives, the resulting
pressures we experience may bring still more stress to our lives. The key to managing time
effectively and to avoiding the stresses created by mismanaging time, involves taking control over
our own actions (Treven, Potocan, 2005). There are some effective ways to go about this:

Set priorities and stick to them,
Dont allow others to distract you,
Delegate responsibility to others.

4.2 Receiving Social and Organizational Support
An ideal way to manage stress is one that provides side benefits. Getting close contact with people
falls into this category. An individual will reduce some stress symptoms and form healthy
relationships with others in the process. By getting close to others he builds a support system, a
group of people on whom he can rely for encouragement and comfort. People within individual's
support network include family members, friends, coworkers, and fellow students. In addition, some
people in turmoil reach out to strangers to discuss personal problems.

The usual method of reducing stress is to talk over individual's problems while the other person
listens. Switching roles can also help reduce stress. Listening to others will make an individual feel
better because he has helped them.

A happy marriage is another support system that can help a worker copes with job stress.
According to one study with dual-earner couples, happily married women rebounded quicker from
daily stress than women with less blissful unions (Novotney, 2008).

Receiving organizational support refers here to using the organization as part of individual's
support system when experiencing heavy stress. The support might come from a friendly


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supervisor who will listen to the problem an employee is experiencing and perhaps offer some
advice. A widely used form of support is an employee assistance program that offers counseling
services for a variety of personal problems that could be impairing performance. A large employer
might have a full-time employee assistance program, whereas small employers use an outside
counseling group.

4.3 Loving Yourself and Positive Self-Perception
Self-love is necessary to a balanced and positive life and is crucial if a person wishes to manage
stress in his life effectively. It is a courageous declaration of the value and meaning of his/her life
(Hansard, 2003).

People who love themselves and feel good about themselves are far less likely want to hurt others
as well as try to stay in good relationships with their coworkers, friends, members of a family and
with others. There would be greater happiness for all and consequently less stress that may
appear from bad relations.

If a person lives without loving himself, he will lose energy and vitality and the personality shrinks,
so that he loses his individuality. He becomes more susceptible to stress at his workplace or/and in
his everyday life. How can a person experience self-love? It is simpler than he thinks, for no matter
how tough and unloving he has been towards himself. He has a deeper consciousness that
continually experiences self-love. All he needs to do is to bring this into his upper consciousness.
When he does this, he will discover that it is his birthright and the spark of his humanity. Loving
yourself is the starting point and the very foundation of all human existence.

Loving yourself is strongly connected with the positive or negative self-perception. And the self-
perception affects the way in which an individual handles stressful life events. One of the more
important facets of self-perception is self-esteem referring to the good or bad opinion about oneself
(Treven, 2001). People who have a positive and a reasonably accurate concept of self, have high
self-esteem. They have confidence in themselves, they know their capacities and potentials and
act accordingly. Self-esteem seems to moderate how one responds to stressors (Nowack, 1986).
People with low self-confidence tend to have more intensive reactions to high stress than those
with higher self-confidence (Davis et al., 2000).

4.4 Relaxation Techniques for Handling Stress
Relax is the advice that many people have always offered the stressed individual. Stress experts
give us similar advice but also offer specific techniques. Here are described some techniques that
can help an individual relax and, consequently, help him reduce stress and its symptoms.

Relaxation Response
A standard technique for reducing stress is to achieve the relaxation response. The relaxation
response is a physical state of deep rest in which a person experiences a slower respiration and
heart rate and lowered metabolism scientists have shown that the relaxation response lowers the
heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen consumption. Also, the relaxation response alleviates
symptoms associated with many disorders and conditions, including hypertension arthritis,



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insomnia, depression, infertility, cancer, anxiety, and even aging. By practicing the relaxation
response, an individual can counteract the fight-or-flight response associated with stress (Treven,
2005).

According to cardiologist Herbert Benson, four things are necessary to practice the relaxation
response: a quiet environment, an object to focus on, a passive attitude, and a comfortable
position. A person is supposed to practice the relaxation response for ten to twenty minutes, twice
a day. To evoke the relaxation response, Benson advises a person to close his eyes. Relax.
Concentrate on one word or prayer. If other thoughts come to mind, be passive and return to the
repetition.

The relaxation response can be released in many ways besides the ritual just described. Among
these methods are participating in repetitive sports such as running, progressive muscular
relaxation, practicing yoga, and playing a musical instrument (Benson, 1995).

Similar to any other relaxation technique, the relaxation response is harmless and works for most
people. However, some very impatient people find it annoying to disrupt their busy day to work
through the relaxation response. Unfortunately, these may be the people who most urgently need
to learn to relax.

Deep Breathing
Deep breathing is one of the simplest techniques for lowering physiological arousal. With this
technique, individuals receive instruction on how to breathe more deeply, avoiding shallow breaths
that are often associated with the stress response and instead breathing from the abdomen.
Physiological arousal is affected by this technique because of the close association between the
breathing centre and the reticular activating system (RAS) in the brain. The RAS controls
neuromuscular functioning and, thus, deep breathing leads to relaxation in the neuro-muscular
system (Matteson, Ivancevich, 1987).

An extension of deep breathing is progressive muscle relaxation (PMR), a technique developed by
Jacobson (1938), With PMR, an individual is instructed to assume a comfortable position and to
begin to breathe deeply. Then, the individual relaxes groups of muscles one at a time, beginning
with the muscles in the feet, the legs, etc. Jacobson proposed that the mind relaxes using this
technique because relaxed muscles are associated with a decrease in emotional tension.

Meditation
Perhaps the oldest stress management technique of all, meditation is back in vogue. Meditation is
a systematic method of concentration, reflection, or concentrated thinking designed to suppress the
activity of the sympathetic nervous system. The relaxation response is essentially a meditation
technique, and napping provides some of the benefits of meditation. The meditator reaches a deep
state of mental and physical calmness and relaxation, driving away accumulated stress. Meditation
is also recommended as a way of preventing and slowing down and reducing the pain of chronic
diseases such as heart disease, AIDS, and cancer. People who meditate learn to tolerate everyday
annoyances better. Meditation has been widely researched, and its key benefits in relation to
stress include calming the mind and eliminating anxiety (Walsh and Shapiro, 2006).


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A very important benefit of meditation as well as other relaxation techniques is that they enhance
mental alertness. It would therefore be beneficial to meditate shortly before an individual needs to
perform at his best, such as giving presentation to management about his project (Treven,
Potocan, 2005).

The usual approach to meditation involves four simple steps. First, a quiet place with a minimum of
distractions should be found. Second, a person should close his eyes so that he can close himself
off from the outside world. Third, a person should pick a word whose sound is soothing when
repeated. Fourth, the word should be said repeatedly. For most people, one fifteen minute session
daily will accomplish the benefits of meditation.

4.5 Cognitive-Behavioral Techniques for Handling Stress
These techniques focus on the thoughts and actions a person has in relation to stress. The
theoretical conceptualizations underlying these techniques are quite simple. In fact, Kendall and
Bemis (1983) suggested that cognitive-behavioral techniques include four basic guiding principles:

Individuals do not respond directly to their environment; they respond to their own cognitive
interpretation of the environment.
Cognitions (thoughts), emotions (feelings) and behaviors (actions) are causally interrelated.
The prediction and understanding of negative cognitions and behaviors are enhanced by
paying attention to a persons expectancies, beliefs and attributions.
It is possible and desirable to combine and integrate cognitive approaches to correcting
problems with performance-based and behavioral contingency management.

One of the cognitive-behavioral techniques is cognitive appraisal, also called perspective taking
(Ross, Altmaier, 2000). This technique involves teaching individuals to assess the severity of a
stressor by considering the perspective in which they view a particular stressful situation.

A related cognitive-behavioral technique is cognitive restructuring. This technique is based on the
premise that many people believe other people or events outside of themselves are responsible for
how they feel. The resulting beliefs can be irrational and quite often lead to increased stress
(Treven, 2005).

Both mentioned techniques are designed to help people tolerate stressors after they occur. A
related technique, cognitive rehearsal, involves helping people tolerate stressors by anticipating
them before they happen. This technique calls for visualizing a potentially stressful event before it
occurs and practicing or rehearsing how to respond.

4.6 Managing Stress by Staying Well
A far-reaching approach for managing stress is to both prevent and reduce negative stress by
leading a healthy lifestyle, or being well. Four major components to staying well are proper
exercise, yoga, diet, and rest. The four components are interrelated because each component
facilitates the other: For example, if a person exercises or practice yoga enough he tends to prefer
healthy food; if a person diets properly, physical exercise is easier, and so is obtaining rest. Also, if



Effective Approaches to Managing Stress of Employees

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a person rests well he will be in a better frame of mind to exercise, and he will not crave so much
caffeine and sugar to stay energized. Proper diet and exercise are also important in helping ward
off physical illness that creates stress for the individual.

Physical Activities
The right amount and type of physical exercise contributes substantially to wellness. Part of the
reason exercise is useful for managing stress is that it contributes to relaxation and being better
able to cope with frustration. To achieve wellness it is important to select an exercise program that
is physically challenging but that does not lead to overexertion and muscle injury (Treven et al,
2010). The most beneficial exercises are classified as aerobic because they make a person
breathe faster and raise his heart rate. Most of person's exercise requirements can be met through
everyday techniques such as walking or running up stairs, vigorous housework, yard work, or
walking several kilometers per day.

A major benefit is the euphoria that often occurs when brain chemicals called endorphins are
released into the body. The same experience is referred to as runner's high. Other mental
benefits of exercise include increased self-confidence; improved body image and self-esteem;
improved mental functioning, alertness, and efficiency; release of accumulated tensions; and relief
from mild depression (Rice, 1987).

To achieve the best possible results in physical exercises is to practice them regularly. It is
notwithstanding if an individual carries out any of such exercises once a month or twice a week. By
including exercising in one's life they will strengthen their muscles around the heart, improve the
quality and capacity of their breathing, enhance their efficiency at work and improve their overall
wellbeing. However, regular physical activity of the individual does not mean that they are then free
to smoke at will, eat and drink too much or expose themselves to the pressure of their job with
impunity. Such activity warrants merely a less harmful effect on their health.

People who take regular physical exercise are mentally more alert, too (Markham, 1995). This is
evident from the results of tests filled in by more or less active people. The beneficial effects of
regular physical exercise do not reflect only in better health or in greater ability to resist stress but
also in better decisions and considerable improvement of job performance.

Yoga
Yoga is another effective method which enables individuals to control stress on physical and
mental level. It includes knowledge about life and originated some decades ago in India.

According to the theory of yoga, we all consist of three basic selves: 1. the subconscious, 2. the
intellectual and 3. the creative. Ideally these three parts should be well-balanced, but in many
cases they are not. There are some people, for example, who are stimulating intellectually but are
lacking in the other two areas. In fact, the number of people who have a nature balance of these
three areas of themselves are few, as we have all been continuously programmed and affected by
such things as our environment and the people with whom we have come into contact.



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This acquired imbalance in our inner selves always causes tension and internal conflict. Yoga
works to restore the correct balance and thereby resolve this conflict. This is done by removing
stresses of all sorts within the body and the mind (Markham, 1995).

Once we have learned through yoga to eliminate the tensions of our body, we may find that we
have a far greater capacity for concentration, study and hard work (Chopra, Simon, 2004). We will
not be dissipating so much of our inner energies and so the making of decisions will be quicker and
easier for us. The benefits experienced by someone in any area of the business world will therefore
be significant (Treven, 2005).

It is possible to learn the technique of yoga by attending a regular class and then practicing what
we have learned. All we need to give is about fifteen minutes of our time every day.

Resting Sufficiently
Rest offers benefits similar to those of exercise, such as stress reduction, improved concentration,
improved energy, and better tolerance for frustration. Achieving proper rest is closely linked to
getting proper exercise. The current interest in adult napping reflects the awareness that proper
rest makes a person less stress prone and enhances productivity. A growing number of firms have
napping facilities for workers, and many workers nap at their desks or in their parked vehicles
during lunch breaks. Naps of about twenty minutes taken during the workday are used both as
energizers and as stress reducers. To keep the effectiveness of workday napping in perspective,
workers who achieve sufficient rest during normal sleeping hours have less need for naps during
working hours. But the meditation-like benefits of napping offer an advantage even for the person
who sleeps adequately at night.

Maintaining a Healthy Diet
Eating nutritious foods is valuable for mental as well as physical health, making it easier to cope
with frustrations that are potential stressors. Many nutritionists and physicians believe that eating
fatty foods, such as red meat, contributes to colon cancer. Improper diet, such as consuming less
than 1,300 calories per day, can weaken an individual physically. In turn, an individual becomes
more susceptible to stress. Some non-nutritious foods, such as those laden with caffeine or sugar,
tend to enhance stress levels. A healthy diet is one that (Treven et al, 2010):

emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products,
includes lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts,
is low in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, salt (sodium), and added sugars.

These recommendations are for the general public over two years of age. Recommended diet
should be personalized, taking into account our age, sex, and amount of physical exercise.

5 CONCLUSIONS
Potentially harmful stressors surround all of human beings in work and personal life. Therefore,
virtually everybody needs a program of stress management to stay well.




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We present some of the effective techniques for stress management in this paper. Among them we
suggest: attacking the source of the stress, receiving social support, loving yourself and positive
self-perception, relaxation techniques, cognitive-behavioral techniques, and wellness through
proper exercise, diet, and rest. Each individual can use one, two or more of those techniques that
the best suit him/her in the battle against stress and reduce the level of stress in his/her work and
personal life.

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