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Stress Management: Learning Objectives
Stress Management: Learning Objectives
Stress Management: Learning Objectives
STRESS MANAGEMENT
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Learning Objectives
After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
1. discuss the type of stressors among individuals;
2. identify stress prevention techniques;
3. enumerate stress outcomes; and
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4. discuss approaches to stress.
·Chapter Summary
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The popular term for stress is "strain." To result in stress would mean that a particular event
or situation challenges, harms or threatens a person. This can be in the form.of role conflict, work
.
overload, or change. Stress produces harmful effects that harm psychological, cognitive, behav-
.
ioral, and physiological processes.
Individuals who undergo an excessive amount of stress result to "burnout."
T~ organizations, _the consequences ofstress are employee absenteeism and turnover, high
hospitalization and medical bills, and lost work time.
Stress prevention techniques are employed by organizations to cope with stress-related
problems. Organizations have employee assistance and wellness progral)1s which help employ-
ees cope with stress.
There are four approaches t~_studying .stress: homeostatic, cognitive appraisal, person·
environment fit, and psychoanalytic approaches.
Best Foot Forward talks about the power of successful partnerships in the business world
and Points of View discusses the stress created by striking a balance between family and workfife
in "What a Stress! What a Mess!"
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Overview of Stress
Accor~ing to lvancevich and Matteson, stress is a reaction to a situation or event that
places special de,:nands on the person. This reaction is further enhanced by individual dif-
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ferences. S ressor is the person or event that triggers the stress response, whereas distress is
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e adverse psychological, physical, behavioral, and organizational consequences that may
anse as a result of stressful events .
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. An~ther term for stress is strain."To result in stress would mea~ that a particular event
or s1tuat1on challenges, harm s, or threatens a person. Stress comes in when the "stressful"
situation is significant to the person.
1. Role Conflict. This is the most popular individual cause of stress. This happens when the
individual's expectat ions on a particular job is in conflict with another set of expecta-
tion from, let's say, the supervisor's or the company's expectations.
2. Work Overload. When a person is occupied with so many things· to do, there is a ten-
dency to cram because of_little time allotted to finish all the job assignments.
3. Change. Not all individuals can cope with change. Some are even resistant (o it.
1. Poor Intergroup Relations. Low trust and support among members may result to stress. ·
2. Organizational Politics. Intrigues and conflicts among employees are a source of stress.
3. Organimtiona/ Culture. The company's culture can be a source of stress for those who
cannot adapt.
4. Lack of Career Opportunities. Employees who feel they are deprived of career growth
opportunities can lead to stress.
5. Routine Jobs. Employees who work with the same routine tasks will get bored and may
lead to stress.
6. Downsizing. A company that reduces its manpower can lead to stress among i_
ts em-
ployees. They feel that their job security is threatened.
Stress Outcomes ,
1. Psychological Effects. Stress causes anxiety; self-pity, rejection, depression, and low self-
esteem.
2. Cognitive Effects. Stress induces poor concentration, irrati.onal thinking, and short
memory span.
3. Behavioral Effects. Stress causes drug abuse, accidents, smoking, and alcoholism.
4. Physiological Effects. Stress is manifested through .s_weating, increased heart rate, and
high blood pressure.
Individuals who undergo an excessive amount of stress result to "burnout." This is
brought about by emotional exhaustion and feelings of depression and self-pity.
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l 0 . I ee absenteeism and turnover•
organizations the consequences of stress are emp oy . ,
h .'9 h h osp,tahzation
· . ' . E ssive stress can a1so tncrea
and medical bills· and lost work time. xce i se
labor discontent due to job dissatisfa~tion. This can further result to poor per ormance and
reduced quality of work.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRESSORS: 0) r
Tasks, roles, physical, interpersonal HEALTH RISK FACTORS
PRIMARY PREVENTION:
Stressor directed. This reduce~,
modifies, or eliminates the
cause of stress.
STRESS RESPONSES
ASYMPTOMATIC DISEASE
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SECONDARY PREVENTION:
Response directed. It is designed
to alter the individual's response.
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TERTIARY PREVENTION:
Symptom directed. It is designed to heal individual or organizational symptoms.
(Source: J. D. Quick, R. S. Horn, and J. C. Quick, uHealth Consequences of Stress,N Journal of Organizational
Behavior Management 8, No. 2, Figure 1 (Fa/11986): 21 reprinted with permission of Haworth Press, Inc.,
10 Alice St., Birmingham, NY 13904. Copyright 1986)
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BEST FOO·T-FORWARD
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Williams and Stone started as rivals but ended as friends. How? Williams was work·
ing with Blogger when it was sold to Google. Then he hired Stone. Williams left Google for
Odeo.com. Stone followed him.
They were probably destined to work as a pair when Jack Dorsey, an Odeo engineer,
approached them with an idea, which is Twitter in 2006,. The3successful tandem is made pos·
sible by mutual respect and camaraderie. i• · 1
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Hewlett Packard's am and Dave
Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard became close during a two-week camping trip at Stanford.
Their professor, Fred Terman, encouraged them and they started Hewlett Packard (HP) in 1939.
Hewlett and Packard were best friends and their traits complement each other. They
both employed a hands-on approach in HP. They valued their employees very much, the
very reason for HP's success. ~ L
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Ben and Jerry's Cohen and Greenfield
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield were also childhood friends who both love food. In
1977, they both took a course in ice cream making and ventured in a $12,000 investment in
their first ice cream parlor t he following year.
The secret of their success is their quest for a two-part bottom line: for profit and for
giving back to the communit y. Their contribution to the community is essentially the reason
for their success.
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Founded in 1968, Moore and Noyce·built 'Intel after leaving Shockley Semiconductor
Laboratory. Moore is the technology wizard, whereas Noyce is the visionary leader. The two
founded Intel on the basis of technological breakthroughs and inspiring leadership. They
carry through with them the value of innovation.
Procter and Gamble's William and James
Most in-laws cannot stand each other but William Procter and James Gamble made
one of the best business partnerships in the history of world entrepreneurship. William and
James were a candle maker and a soap maker who became related to each other through
their marriage to the Noris sisters. Their father-in-law persuaded them to form a company.
Procter and Gamble was born in 1837 and the rest is history so they say.
Yahoo's Jerry Yang and David Filo
Yang and Filo first met at Stanford's PhD program in 1994. Their first project was the
design of computer chips. During dull moments, they skipped class to surf the web. Later
on, they organ_ized w hatever they have surfed into topics until such time that the lists of the
topics crashed the campus's system. Yang and Filo realized that the lists would eventually
become their own business. That was when Yahoo was born.
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Guide Questions
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1. How does communication help in sustaining relationships like ese part-
nerships mentioned in the article? ·
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2. Research further on these partnerships and identify the traits at they have
in common which have made them successful.
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POINTS OF VIEW
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CASESTUDYS
What a Stress! What a Mess!
Edward is a young achiever at an early age. Right after his graduation in college, he
I. landed a job which he particularly .wanted. The position calls for a daily worklpad that is
quite heavy but he does not mind, really. After all, he feels lucky to have been chosen from
the many applicants who vied for the position. Another thing, the pay is good and the ben-
efits right after he is regularized are competitive in the industry. The career path he always
wanted will be fulfilled, eventually. .
The position, he believes is almost like an assistant to the supervisor. The administra-
tive task that goes with it really eats a lot of his time and energy. Yet, he knows how to han-
dle it. In fact, he still has some spare time for his personal life.
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Until one day, his girlfriend broke the news that they will have a baby. It took awhile
before he finally accepted the fact that he, at the age of 20 will be~ome a father and a hus-
band, to a young girl, Gw~n, with the same age as his. They got married and he now has to
balance being a family man and an employee. Gwen is al$o working and she has not given
up her job as a secretary to a medium-sized firm despite her marriage with Edward.
In the J11ext several months, things have normali~ed into some kind of pattern. He has
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gotten used to it. Then the baby came. Gwen has to_give up ~, r job to take care of the baby.
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In the next several months, Edw~rd also received word from management that the
supervisor has resigned and he ~as being eye~ ~o take his place. It did not sink in at first. For
one, it seems that h_ e is not yet npe for _the pos1t1on. Second, it means more responsibilities.
However, he was _ t hinking of the pay raise once promoted. This would help in their everyday
I expenses especially now that they have a baby.
' The management. decided to put h,m ~n _probation for the supervisory position. It
would mean that he will _be ·obs~rved and will ~ust be an officer-in-charge, which means
hat the supervisory _title .is pending based on his, performance for the next th ree mo nthS,
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He will
still get the pay raise.
. •r.e changed ever since. Gwen noticed the tremendous ch anges of Edward. He
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started smoking. In many cases, he eas1 y ecomes angry. It seems that his life has becorne
stressful.
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His life is a complete turnaround and Gwen is worried that Edward will become worse
than she could ever imagine!
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Case Questions
1. What made Edward change?
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2. Is it normal to feel that ·way?
3. How can he handle stress?
4. What should Gwen do to help Edward?
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3. Which among the stress outcomes can greatly affect a person? Why?
Cognitive appraisal approach is concerned with the psychology of stress which · in-
volves problem-focused and emotion-focused coping mechanisms.
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• Homeostatic (medical) approach asserts that -stress is an emergency response to fight
emotions.
Person- environment fit approach is involved with the ·social psychology of stress.
Psychoanalytic approach is concerned with the ego-ideal and self-image which may
cause stress.
Stress is a reaction to a situation or event that places demands on the person.
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Stress management suggests ways on how individuals can cope effectively with stress.
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