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The union official is only partially correct, in that poor management undoubtedly contributes to the stress level of employees. However, poor management is not the only cause, nor is stress always work- related. Sometimes, the stress involves time-based, strain-based, or role-base conflicts. Also, two individuals faced with the same stressors may not react in the same way, or experience the same level of stress. This is because individual differences in coping strategies, resiliency, and social support networks are important determining factors. Educating employees about stress management techniques also helps them cope with stress from many other sources, and not just those created by poor managers. The union official’s suggestion that management should try to reduce stress has merit. For example, instituting work-life balance initiatives, reducing harassment, and offering employee assistance programs have been shown to reduce stress levels for employees....

This incident describes two journalists with similar stressors experiencing different levels of stress and stress consequences. This illustrates the distinction between stressors and stress. It may also highlight the importance of individual differences in stress. One possible reason why these two journalists are experiencing different stress levels is that they might perceive the situation differently. The low stress journalist might have higher self-esteem and confidence that he/she can complete the work. A second explanation might be that the journalists have different threshold levels of resistance to a stressor . Both are recent graduates and we don’t know if they are a similar age. However, the high stress journalist might have less resistance because he/she has recently experienced other stressors , such as death of a family member. Finally, the different stress levels might be explained by the different strategies used to manage the stress. The ...

The impact of non-work-related stresses are significant. We believe organizations now engage in more “wellness-related” programs to deal with such stressors on a daily basis. For example, the care giving to an infant or a senior parent is now part and parcel of wellness programs across the globe. We know that care giving takes its toll on care givers , in terms of diseases, psychological consequences, accidents, aggressive behaviors and job burnout. The second author on the book noticed that in her consulting work with GE, that one of the business units had a “bet on” to see who would “ stroke out first” due to the stress of the job. That was not a joke, indeed it was due to work overload.