A qualitative study of occupational stress management (PDF)

A qualitative study of occupational stress management techniques of personal assistants in Durban North By Tayla Creed- 16001791 Supervisor: Dr. Quraisha Dawood Bachelor of Arts Honors in Psychology Research- RESE8419 Signed: Date: (11 979 words) I hereby declare that the Research Report submitted for the Bachelor of Arts Honors in Psychology degree to The Independent Institute of Education is my own work and has not previously been submitted to another University or Higher Education Institution for degree purposes.  ABSTRACT: Stress can have a significant effect on the employee’s performance, and their psychological health, including burnout, increased amount of “sick days”, anxiety etc. (Volmink, 2014; Van Zyl, 2002). There is much literature on occupational stress in occupations such as engineering (Rothmann & Malan, 2004), and the educational sector (Botwe, Kenneth, Masih, 2017), yet the work of personal assistants has not been sufficiently investigated. The research problem is that there are many ways of dealing with stress, such as relaxation, and exercise (Fokeng, 2018). However, not knowing how to destress can lead to problematic outcomes which important to study as personal assistant can be overlooked. This study considers the South African context, which has not been explored in most literature. Three participants were approached and semi-structured interviews were conducted to allow participants to share their personal lived about their stressors, stress management techniques, and reasons why those techniques work best for them. This research is underpinned by Lazarus and Folkman’s theory, and through the concepts such as stressor, and stress management, and it has been found that there might not be an exact way personal assistants manage their stress, but rather manage their stress, according to their personality.  Table of Contents 1. Introduction:................................................................................................................................... 5 1.1. Background: .......................................................................................................................... 5 1.2. Rationale:............................................................................................................................... 5 1.3. Problem statement: .............................................................................................................. 6 1.4. Research goal and Questions: ........................................................................................... 6 1.5. Research Objectives: ........................................................................................................... 6 2. Literature review: .......................................................................................................................... 7 2.1. Theoretical foundation: ........................................................................................................ 7 2.2. Critical review of literature:.................................................................................................. 8 2.2.1. Theme 1: Occupational Stress ................................................................................... 8 2.2.2. Theme 2: Work Stressors ......................................................................................... 10 2.2.3. Theme 3: Effects of stress: ....................................................................................... 13 2.2.4. Theme 4: Stress management: ................................................................................ 15 2.3. Conceptualisation: .............................................................................................................. 18 3. Methodology: ............................................................................................................................... 18 3.1. Research Paradigm: .......................................................................................................... 18 3.2. Design/ conceptual approach: .......................................................................................... 19 3.3. Population:........................................................................................................................... 20 3.4. Sampling: ............................................................................................................................. 21 3.5. Data collection methods .................................................................................................... 23 3.6. Application of data collection methods: .......................................................................... 24 3.7. Data analysis methods ...................................................................................................... 27 3.8. Application of data analysis methods: ............................................................................. 28 4. Findings and Interpretation of Findings: ................................................................................. 29 4.1. Trustworthiness: ................................................................................................................. 29 4.1.1. Credibility: .................................................................................................................... 29 4.1.2. Transferability: ............................................................................................................ 29 4.1.3. Dependability: ............................................................................................................. 29 4.1.4. Confirmability: ............................................................................................................. 30 4.2. Presentation of Findings: .................................................................................................. 30 4.3. Interpretation of Findings: ................................................................................................. 32 4.4. Findings in context: ............................................................................................................ 33 5. Conclusion: .................................................................................................................................. 34 5.1. Research questions addressed: ...................................................................................... 34 5.2. Ethical considerations and implications: ......................................................................... 36  5.3. Limitations: .......................................................................................................................... 37 5.4. Implications of findings for future practices: ................................................................... 37 5.5. Final conclusion: ................................................................................................................. 37 APPENDIX A: Final research report summary document table .................................................. 39 APPENDIX B: Gatekeeper Letter .................................................................................................... 40 APPENDIX C: Ethical clearance letter ............................................................................................ 42 APPENDIX D: Ethics checklist ......................................................................................................... 44 APPENDIX E: Informed consent...................................................................................................... 45 APPENDIX F: Consent form for audio or video recording ........................................................... 48 APPENDIX G: Interview schedule ................................................................................................... 49 APPENDIX H: Originality report ....................................................................................................... 51 References: ......................................................................................................................................... 52  1. Introduction: 1.1. Background: Occupational stress has a major effect on a large proportion of the population in the working world. According to the American Psychological Associations (APA) work stressors include low salary, excessive workload, work that isn’t challenging, conflicting demands or unclear performance expectation. It has also been found that work stressors also include job insecurity, working hours, workload, and even managerial styles (Van Zyl, 2002; Volmink, 2014). Stress can have a significant effect on the employee’s performance as well as their psychological health (Volmink, 2014). These effects include burnout, decrease in productivity, increased amount of “sick days”, anxiety etc. (Volmink, 2014; Van Zyl, 2002). It is, therefore, important to be able to manage one’s stress and know what technique works for an individual in order to prevent the effects mentioned above. This research focuses on personal assistants in the workplace and their personal experiences of work stressors, their stress management techniques, and reasons why they feel their technique works best for them. 1.2. Rationale: Recent literature has pointed out that occupational stress can lead to burnout or even mental disorders when not managed properly (Amoaka et al., 2017; Sahoo, 2016). These effects of stress can have a major impact on a personal assistant, as well as the company they are working for as the company may experience high staff turnover and recruitment costs, high absenteeism and presenteeism levels, and reduced productivity levels (Sahoo, 2016). There is much literature on occupational stress in occupations such as engineering (Rothmann & Malan, 2004), the educational sector (Botwe, Kenneth, Masih, 2017), textile managers (Vadivu, 2017), and post office workers (Thabane, 2015). However literature has largely overlooked the work of personal assistants. All jobs can be stressful and some jobs are more stressful than others, however, all stress should be investigated. Personally I believe that personal assistants should not be overlooked because they also work in a stressful environment which includes support work for their managers and ensure everything is done exactly how they need it, which can be very stressful (Milner, 2015). Therefore, it is important  to gain an understanding of personal assistant’s work stressors, stress interventions, and reasons they feel it is the best fit for them. 1.3. Problem statement: This study researches which stress interventions personal assistants take on in order to help manage their stress and how they feel it helps them to do so. There are many ways of dealing with stress, however, they may not work for everyone, and not knowing how to destress can lead to problematic outcomes, such as depression, anxiety, burnout and a decrease in productivity in the workplace. This was important to study due to the fact that personal assistant can be overlooked because they are support staff, and as discussed in the review of previous literature, there can be many psychological and physical effects from stress. 1.4. Research goal and Questions: The purpose of this research was to gain a deeper understanding about personal assistant's work stressors, their personal stress interventions, as well as the reasons they feel their interventions work best for them. Research questions: • How do personal assistants In Durban North manage their work stress? • What are the main stressors of a personal assistant? • What techniques/ strategies do personal assistants use to destress from work? • Why do they feel their chosen technique works best for them? 1.5. Research Objectives: • To assess the ways in which personal assistant manage their work stress • To determine the main stressors of a personal assistant. • To determine what techniques/ strategies personal assistants use to destress from work. • To reveal the reasons they feel their chosen technique works best for them.  2. Literature review: 2.1. Theoretical foundation: Lazarus and Folkman (1980) suggested there are two types of coping responses emotion focused and problem focused: Emotion-focused coping is the regulation of stressful and negative emotions (Lazarus & Folkman, 1980; Folkman et al., 1986; Folkman, 2010), and usually comes into place once the harm has already been done (Lazarus & Folkman, 1980). Higher levels of emotion-focused coping are generated when situations have to be accepted, and in which the person has to hold back from acting. Folkman et al. (1986), Folkman (1997) and Folkman (2010) state that emotion-focused coping includes seeking social support, escape-avoidance, self-control, self-esteem, distancing, and accepting responsibility. Problem-focused coping is used for managing or altering the person-environment relationship that is the source of stress (Lazarus & Folkman, 1980), is used to deal with the problem that is causing the distress (Folkman et al., 1986; Folkman, 2010), and is goal-directed (Folkman, 1997). It usually comes into place to deal with upcoming harm (Lazarus & Folkman, 1980). Higher levels of problem-focused coping are generated when something constructive can be done and when more information is needed (Lazarus & Folkman, 1980). Strategies that can be used around this coping can be seeking information, getting help, inhibiting action, and taking direct action, decision making, planning, and resolving conflicts in order to solve or manage the problems that create distress (Lazarus & Folkman, 1980; Folkman, 1997; Folkman, 2010). Folkman et al (1986) adds that aggressive interpersonal efforts to alter the situation, and rational and deliberate efforts to problem solve can also be strategies in this type of coping. With reference to this research study, it has been found that in work contexts, problem- focused coping is more favourable (Lazarus & Folkman, 1980). The coping process involves both problem- and emotion-focused coping, and it has been found that in almost every stressful encounter, both forms of coping were used (Lazarus & Folkman, 1980). Lazarus (2006) states that problem- and emotion-based coping should not be used independently as in most stressful situations they  complement each other. This is relevant to this study because it looks into more specific stress management techniques, and applies it to the workplace in certain areas, as mentioned above. This theory will also assist the researcher find which type of coping is mostly used among personal assistants, and may help in finding out why their techniques fit best for them in their situation. This theory will be further used in the analysis of the findings. 2.2. Critical review of literature: 2.2.1. Theme 1: Occupational Stress Occupational stress has been termed as organisational stress, workplace stress, and job stress, which all stems from a broader phenomenon- stress (Narban, Narban & Singh, 2016). Stress occurs during all individual's lifespans, everyone experiences stress throughout their history, and throughout human history (Shahsavarani, Abadi & Kalkhoran, 2015). The focus of this research is occupational stress and stress management techniques; therefore, it is important to know what is meant by stress, and occupational stress. Stress can be defined as a complex psychological construct that people experience daily (Quick et al., 1997, as cited in Narban et al., 2016). It is an adaptive response to an external situation that results in physical, psychological, and behavioural variations (Narban, et al., 2016). Nordqvist (2015, as cited in Botwe, Kenneth & Mashi, 2017) simplifies stress in saying it is anything that poses a challenge or a threat to our well- being and states that it is inevitable and states that stress affects an individual’s thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and behaviour towards work and their relationships with people and their health. Occupational stress can be defined as a pattern of emotional, cognitive, behavioural and physiological reactions to negative and harmful aspects of work content, work organisation, and work environment and originates when workers feel an imbalance between their work demands and their capabilities and/or resources to meet these demands (Narban et al., 2016; Mirela & Midalina-Adriana, n.d). Employees’ response to stress may be positive or negative, depending on the demands placed on them, the amount of control they have over the situation, the support they have, as well as the individual response of the employee (Narban et al.,  2016). These types of organisational stress are eustress and distress (Mirela & Midalina-Adriana, n.d.). In terms of this research, distress is important as this is the type of occupational stress that will need stress management techniques. Distress is a negative stress and occurs when something affects one's routine for a short period of time (Mirela & Midalina-Adriana, n.d.). This can result in biological, psychological, and social problems, and do serious harm to people (Tucker et al., 2008, as cited in Shahsavarani et al., 2015), which relates to the research problem by showing the potential problems that can come about if stress is not managed properly. This study is attempting to avoid these potential harms by ensuring the effective use of stress interventions. Botwe et al. (2017) argue that there is a third type of stress- hyper-stress. This is when a person is pushed beyond what one can handle and can occur when constant heavy financial difficulties, work both at home and office, and continuous tension (Botwe et al., 2017). This is an important concept to consider as when an employee enters this type of stress, it is then known that the stress management technique is not working for the employee, and a new technique must be used to help manage the stress. This type of stress is what this research is wanting to avoid for personal assistants. Job stress results from the interaction between the worker and the work conditions (Narban et al., 2017). Individual differences such as an employee's personality and their coping skills can help predict whether certain job conditions will result in stress (Narban et al., 2017). These individual differences can help in the consideration of the personal assistant's occupational stress as an individual. Quick and Henderson (2016) state that these individual differences can be an employee's vulnerability to occupational stress, or the protection against the risks associated with this stress. In terms of vulnerability, there are three individual differences that can increase vulnerability, namely lower socioeconomic status, Type A behaviour, and social isolation or loneliness (Alder et al., 1993; Wright, 1998; Lynch, 2000, as cited in Quick & Henderson, 2016). In terms of protection, personality hardiness, characterized by commitment, control, and challenge, which provides protection as a stress-resistance variable (Maddi, 2002, as cited in Quick & Henderson, 2016). With reference to this study, which is located in South Africa, the country is known to  have many people living under the lower socioeconomic status level, therefore, this is an important factor to look at when researching possible vulnerabilities as this can contribute to an employee’s stress levels. Botwe, Kenneth and Masih’s (2017) research focused on the educational sector using quantitative research. Mirela and Madalina (n.d.) use a quantitative approach and look at organisational stress and its impact on work performance. Shahsavarani et al. (2015) and Narban et al. (2017) use secondary sources for their analysis of their research, with use of academic and scientific research. All these studies brings about a gap in the literature as they are all quantitative in nature, and none of the focus is on personal assistants. This research will be using a quantitative approach in order to gain a more in-depth understanding of occupational stress. 2.2.2. Theme 2: Work Stressors Now that organisational stress is understood, the causes need to be examined because in order to help manage stress, an employee needs to be able to determine the aspects that are causing their stress in their work life. In terms of this research, it is important to know what a stressor and workplace stressor is because an employee needs to know what is making them stressed in order to find an effective stress management technique to use. A stressor can be defined as an event or set of conditions that cause a stress response (Hashmi, 2015). A workplace stressor can be defined as the sources of stress in the work environment (Landsbergis et al., 2017). Causes of stress can be divided into two categories, namely internal and external causes (Panigrahi, 2017). Internal causes involve the individual's mindset, their way of thinking which originate within the individual and lead to stress and are based upon the perception of the individual (Panigrahi, 2017). This review is going to focus on external causes of work stress as this research is focusing on the employees as an individual. Cooper and Marschall (1976, as cited in Bankowska, 2016) distinguished five groups of job stressors related to this research, namely: (1) Factors related to work (Cooper & Marschall, 1976, as cited in Bankowska,  2016): Hashmi (2015) states that when looking at working conditions, one cannot ignore the importance of individual differences. Scientific evidence suggests that certain working conditions are stressful to most people and a greater emphasis on working conditions need to be looked at as the key source of job stress, and a primary prevention strategy needs to be put in place, such as job redesign (Hashmi, 2015). Panigrahi (2017) states that working hours refers to working very odd hours which may lead to many physiological problems which may lead to stress during work. Hashmi (2015) states that a significant number of Americans work very long hours, estimating 26% of men and more than 11% of women work 50 or more hours a week in 2000. These statistics are dated, however, these statistics are significant to show the importance of working hours and the effects they may have. It is also not based in South Africa, therefore, there needs to be more research done into this topic in South Africa. Much like Hashmi’s (2015) study, research on stress is mainly carried out in the North, while not much attention has been paid to South Africa in the literature, which identifies a gap in the literature in relation to the context. When looking at work load, there are two aspects that can be looked at, overload and underload (Panigraphi, 2017, Hashmi, 2015). Panigrahi (2017) describes over load as performing a large amount of work in a short time frame. He goes to explain that these high expectations may lead to stress of the employee (Panigrahi, 2017). Underload refers to a small amount of work and too much time to do it which leads to the employee questioning his/her work capacity and feels stressed (Panigrahi, 2017). Katz and Kahn (n.d., as cited in Hashmi, 2015) adds that underload is work that fails to use the employee’s skills and abilities. As discussed in the research problem, American Psychological Association (APA) include excessive workload and workload that is not challenging as work stressors, and Van Zyl (2002) and Volmink (2014) include working hours as work stressors. (2) Factors related to a performed role (Cooper & Marschall, 1976, as cited in Bankowska, 2016):  An employee's position or status in the workplace can also affect levels of stress (Hashmi, 2015). This stress can affect employees of all categories, however, Hashmi (2015) states that less powerful employees are more likely to suffer from stress than powerful workers. Panigrahi (2017) explains that this is because when the employee has very little to no control, he/she may lose interest in their work which lead to stress because the employee may find it difficult to meet the expectations of their superiors. (3) Relationships at work (Cooper & Marschall, 1976, as cited in Bankowska, 2016): According to Keenan and Newton (1985, as cited in Hashmi, 2015) interpersonal conflict among work colleagues and bullying in the workplace has been shown to be one of the most frequently noted stressors for employees. According to Colligan, Colligan and Higgins (2006, as cited in Hashmi, 2015) this can be divided into five categories, namely, (1) threat to professional status, (2) threat to personal status, (3) isolation, (4) excess work, and (5) destabilization. This effect can create a hostile work environment for employees that can then affect their work ethic and contribution to the organisation (Rhodes et al., 2010, as cited in Hashmi, 2015). (4) Factors associated with professional development (Cooper & Marschall, 1976, as cited in Bankowska, 2016): Job insecurity refers to the fear of losing one's job, which leads to chronic stress and causes reduced work quality (Panigraphi, 2017). Mbidoaka (2017) states that an employee may feel their job is not secure due to the fact that computer and communications revolutions have made companies more efficient and more productive. This has resulted in higher expectations and faster completion of work which, in turn, puts more pressure and stress on employees (Mbidoaka, 2017). In reference to the research problem Van Zyl (2002) and Volmink (2014) include job insecurity as work stressors. In the South African context, job insecurity can be seen as a major stressor as the unemployment rate is high and the economy is in junk status, which is a major concern to employee’s job security. Mbidoaka’s (2017) research was focused on strategies to reduce effects of organisational stress in health care workplaces in America, which brings about a gap in the literature to focus on personal assistants.  (5) Factors connected with the organisationsal structure and atmosphere in the organisation (Cooper & Marschall, 1976, as cited in Bankowska, 2016): Managerial styles may also contribute to the stress of less powerful employees (Panigrahi, 2017). For example, managers with autocratic managerial styles give their employees very little freedom in planning and decision making. Therefore, an employee may feel stressed due to the lack of control over their work and very high restrictions (Panigrahi, 2017). Van Zyl (2002) and Volmink (2014) agree with managerial styles as work stressors, as discussed in the research problem. 2.2.3. Theme 3: Effects of stress: Organisational stress can have a major impact on employees and the organisation. Organisational stress on individuals include physical effects, behavioural effects, intellectual effects, and psychological effects which will be discussed below (Amoaka et al., 2017; Sahoo, 2016; Singh, n.d.). These effects are important to consider as if an employee is experiencing these effects, they know that either their stress management technique is not working for them, or they need to begin looking for stress management techniques. All these effects are relevant to this study as it relates to the research problem, where Volmink (2014) and Van Zyl (2002) state that effects of organisational stress include burnout, decrease in productivity, increased "sick days", anxiety, and others. These aspects will be discussed further below. Physical effects include increased heart rate and blood pressure (Sahoo, 2016; Amoaka et al., 2017). Amoaka et al. (2017) includes that from these effects wear and tear on the body can become noticeable and problematic. The effects of this can include migraine headaches, insomnia, cardiovascular disease (Sahoo, 2016; Amoaka et al., 2017; Singh, n.d.), back pains, hypertension, diabetes, cancer (Amoaka et al., 2017), and ulcer problems (Singh, n.d.) Intellectual effects include loss of concentration, lack of motivation, poor decision- making, difficulty with thought process, and loss of memory (Sahoo, 2016). Singh (n.d.) adds with reference to decision making, stress can make this process tricky and confusing for an individual and even tend to make incorrect decisions in stressful situations.  Behavioural effects include substance abuse (such as alcohol), inappropriate display of behaviour, unpunctuality, segregation, and decreased libido (Sahoo, 2016). Mark (2012, as cited in Amoaka et al., 2017) adds that eating more or less, smoking, use of alcohol and/or drugs, rapid speech, nervous fidgeting can also be seen as behavioural effects on an employee. When looking at the effect of the employee’s behaviour on the organisation, these effects could lead to absenteeism, hopping from job to job, and even deterioration of the employee's performance (Mark, 2012, as cited in Amoaka et al., 2017). Absenteeism will be discussed in more detail later. Psychological effects include anxiety, irritability, depression, anger, nervousness, boredom, and aggressiveness (Sahoo, 2016; Amoaka et al., 2017). Singh (n.d.) includes that low self-esteem can also be an effect of stress. Mentioned above that workload, whether it is underload or overload, is a cause of stress and can lead to an employee feeling like a failure. From this cause of stress, the employee can attribute his/her failures onto himself/herself, which can lead to lower self-esteem (Singh, n.d.). Amoaka et al. (2017) states that these psychological effects of stress can lead to burnout. Barling, Kelloway and Frone (2005, as cited by Thabane, 2015) defines burnout as a prolonged response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors on the job. It is characterised by an array of physical and attitudinal symptoms, primarily exhaustion, and is accompanied by distress, a sense of reduced effectiveness, decreased motivation and the development of dysfunctional personal and societal attitudes and behaviours at work (Thabane, 2015). Landsbergis et al. (2017) mentions that burnout has three dimensions, namely:  Emotional exhaustion (a sense of being depleted and over-extended)  Depersonalisation (detachment or withdrawal from others)  Diminished personal accomplishment Effects of work stress on organisations include high staff turnover and recruitment costs, high absenteeism and Presenteeism levels, and reduced productivity levels (Sahoo, 2016). High staff turnover and recruitment costs refer to stressed employees that do not enjoy  their working environment (Sahoo, 2016). Some employees are able to confide in their employers to help reduce their stress while others do not (Sahoo, 2016). This results in the employee having no other option to leave the organisation and remove themselves from the stressful environment (Sahoo, 2016). Unfortunately, many organisations do not attempt to reveal the reasons for an employee's resignation and, therefore, are unable to reveal their own issues within the organisation regarding stress (Sahoo, 2016). High absenteeism refers to employees that are stressed that tend to take more time off due to illness, or are unable to cope with going into work and attempt to escape the stressful work environment by remaining at home where they feel safe (Sahoo, 2016). Presenteeism relates to employees who come into work, however, they are unable to contribute much (Sahoo, 2016). In other words, they are physically present but not psychologically present (Sahoo, 2016). Reduced productivity levels often occur when stress is prolonged and chronic exhaustion comes about, which makes it difficult for the employee to work at their highest level (Sahoo, 2016). Chronic exhaustion leads to a decrease in motivation and concentration, which leads to higher risks of mistakes (Sahoo, 2016). It also takes longer for the employee to complete their work, and the quality of their work can decrease (Sahoo, 2016). Looking at the research on this subject, Thabane (2015), Singh (n.d.) and Sahoo (2016) all used a quantitative approach, and Amoaka et al. (2017) used a mixed methods approach. This points to a gap in the literature by using qualitative approach to help gain more of an in-depth understanding into this subject. Thabane (2015) investigated stress experienced by post office workers in South Africa, which helps the researcher gain some context into the focus of South Africa, however, the focus was on postal workers, as already mentioned. Singh (n.d.) looked at impact of stress on employee performance, much like Mirela and Madalina (n.d.), as mentioned in theme 1. Yet the focus here was on employee performance, whereas this research positions its focus on the employees themselves. 2.2.4. Theme 4: Stress management: Stress management can be defined as a series of actions and measures which are implemented in order to reduce organisational stress and the effects it has on an