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Lecture 12 Conflict and Stress

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100% found this document useful (1 vote)
187 views39 pages

Lecture 12 Conflict and Stress

Uploaded by

Anannya
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Conflict and Stress

Psych 238 – Organizational Psychology


Stress in the Workplace
Lecture Outline
Conflict at work
Common causes
Is all conflict bad?
Stress in the workplace
The job
The environment
The person
Managing stress
The individual
The organization
Conflict at Work
Interpersonal conflict is a process that occurs when
one person, group, or organizational subunit
frustrates the goal attainment of another.

Some common causes:


• Interdependence
• Ambiguity
• Scarce Resources
Interdependence
• When individuals are mutually dependent on
each other to accomplish their own goals.
• Implies that each party has some power over
the other.
• Interdependence does not always lead to
conflict and it can be a good basis for
collaboration through mutual assistance.
Ambiguity
• Ambiguous goals, rules, or performance criteria
can lead to conflict.
• Ambiguous performance criteria are a frequent
cause of conflict between managers and
employees.

Copyright © 2014 Pearson


Canada Inc.
Scarce Resources

• Limited budget money, secretarial support, or lab


space can contribute to conflict.
Is All Conflict Bad?
Types of Conflicts
• Task conflict – the what
• Process conflict – the how
• Relationship conflict – the who
Is All Conflict Bad?
• There has been an emphasis on the negative,
dysfunctional aspects of conflict.
• There are some potential benefits of organizational
conflict.
Is All Conflict Bad?
• There has been an emphasis on the negative,
dysfunctional aspects of conflict.
• There are some potential benefits of organizational
conflict.
• Conflict can be functional when it promotes
necessary organizational change:

CONFLICT  CHANGE  ADAPTATION  SURVIVAL

• How does conflict promote change?


Is All Conflict Bad? (continued)
• Conflict can promote change when:
• It brings new ideas into consideration (creativity!)
• Each party monitors the other’s performance more
carefully
• It signals that a redistribution of power is necessary
• There are times when managers might use a
strategy of conflict stimulation to cause change.
• But how?
Stress in the Workplace
Lecture Outline
Conflict at work
Common causes
Is all conflict bad?
Stress in the workplace
The job
The environment
The person
Managing stress
The individual
The organization
Stress
• Stress is “a psychological reaction to the
demands inherent in a stressor that has the
potential to make a person feel tense or
anxious”
Stress Reactions (Strain)

Physical

Stress Psychological

Behavioural
Model of a Stress Episode
THREE CORE ELEMENTS
A Model of Stress in Organizations
• Stress is a leading cause of worker disability.
• Work is reported to be a potent source of
stress, edging out health and relationships.
• Costs organizations billions of dollars each
year.
Top Five Work Stress Factors
American Psychology Association, 2011
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
Very Significant
10%
Significant
0%
Other Work Stress Factors
American Psychology Association, 2011

Uncertain job expectations: 38%


Interference with personal or family life: 36%
Job insecurity: 33%
Lack of participation in decision making: 32%
Inflexible hours: 32%
Commuting: 28%
Problems with supervisor: 26%
Problems with coworkers: 26%
Physical illness: 23%
Work-Family Conflict
American Psychology Association, 2011
• One in four (25%) employed adults agree that job
demands interfere with family/home
responsibilities
• Only one in ten (10%) report the inverse, that
home/family responsibilities interfere with job
performance
Stressor: The Job
• Work(Role) overload
• Quantitative: too much to do and not enough
time or support
• Qualitative: beyond skills and resources; low
self-efficacy
• Note: can be real or perceived
• Work underload (Poor Job Design)
• Quantitative: not enough to do
• Qualitative: not challenged; boredom
Stressor: The Job
• Role conflict
• Incompatible demands
• Including boundary conflict
• Dealing with outside agencies and people
• Role ambiguity
• Lack of clear job description or procedures
• Unstructured tasks
• Difficult boss
• Ineffective, incompetent, hostile, abusive, etc
Stressor: The Job
• Unclear chain of command
• Lack of recognition
• Responsibility for others
• Burden of impacting others
Stressor: The Environment
• Work conditions
• Exposure to physically unpleasant and even
dangerous working conditions (e.g., excessive
heat, cold, noise, pollution, and chance of
accidents)
• Discrimination and harassment
• Age, gender, religion, race, ethnicity, etc.
Stressor: The Environment
• Change
• Economy and competition
• Globalization
• Technology (including 24/7 access)
• Downsizing and layoffs
• For those who lose their jobs
• AND for those left behind who may have to do more
with less
An Interactionist Approach:
The Role of the Person

P<E
P=E High
anxiety
Moderate
anxiety
P>E
Low
anxiety
Basic Model gets a bit more complex
The Person
• Locus of Control
• Concerns people’s beliefs about the factors that
control their behaviour.
• Externals are more likely to feel anxious in the
face of potential stressors.
• Internals are more likely to confront stressors
directly.
• Externals are more prone to simple anxiety-
reduction strategies that only work in the short
run.
Ganster, Fox, and Dwyer (2001)
Health Care Costs
2500

2000

1500

1000

500

0
Low Subjective workload High Subjective Workload
Low Control High Control
The Person
• Negative affectivity
• the propensity to view the world, including oneself and
other people, in a negative light.
• People high in NA report more stressors in the work
environment and feel more subjective stress.
• They are particularly likely to feel stressed in response to
the demands of a heavy workload.
• Can initiate self-fulfilling prophecy
People with high NA are more susceptible to stress for
a number of reasons:
• A predisposition to perceive stressors in the
workplace
• A tendency to provoke stress
• Gravitate to stressful jobs
• The use of passive, indirect coping styles that
avoid the real sources of stress
Neuroticism (NA) and Stress
• Liu, Wang, Zhan, & Shi (2009)
Number of Drinks

Low Stress High Stress


Mindset (Crum, Salovey, & Achor,
2013)
A B
• The effects of stress • The effects of stress
are negative and are positive and
should be avoided. should be utilized.
• Experiencing stress • Experiencing stress
depletes my health enhances my health
and vitality. and vitality.
• Experiencing stress • Experiencing stress
inhibits my learning facilitates my
and growth learning and growth.
Stress in the Workplace
Lecture Outline
Conflicts at work
Common causes
Is all conflict bad?
Stress in the workplace
The job
The environment
The person
Managing stress
The individual
The organization
Managing Stress: The Employee
• Time management
1) List daily activities
2) Prioritize
3) Schedule
4) Coordinate with day cycle (do most demanding tasks
when most alert)
• Work-life balance; eat healthy, socialize, etc
• Reappraisal of the emotion (ex on next slide)
Brooks (2014) – Reappraisal
The Karaoke accuracy score was calculated by the Nintendo Wii’s “Karaoke Revolution: Glee” voice
recognition software
Managing Stress: The Organization
• Job redesign – more freedom, autonomy, more
variety in work, etc
• Supportive environment
• Facilities and programs (e.g., daycare, gym, retreats,
stress-management)
• Human resources
• Ensuring person-job fit
• Realistic goal setting
• Effective communication
• Empowerment (with support and recognition)

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