Take Home Messages:   

It is sometimes thought that stress claims come out of the blue, and employers are surprised by or disbelieving of them.

However, the authors of this study believe that it is more accurate to think of stress clams as part of a continuum or trajectory. There are two key indicators that stress is becoming a problem in a workplace:

1. Performance issues; and
2. Employee disengagement.

This means that employers have the opportunity to:

• Prevent stress by developing an appropriate workplace culture and helpful human resource strategies;
• Notice when the stress trajectory is tending downwards, and use supervisor / direct manager intervention to deal with the problem before it becomes worse; and
• Recognise when an employee / employees have disengaged because of stress and develop a workplace response and medical and statutory processes to positively influence performance and engagement.

Why the research matters:

Stress claims and costs and disability and suffering have risen enormously over the last ten years, however there is often a poor understanding about how stress claim comes about. This lack of understanding can make it difficult for employers to act quickly when stress becomes a problem, and may even cause employers to view all stress claims with suspicion, resulting in poor outcomes for everyone.

What the research involved:   

The researchers in this study put forward a model to assist in the understanding of the development of stress at work. The aim was to identify points at which a workplace could intervene, to take the situation down a more positive path.

Summary of research findings:   

The authors point out that there are three stages where there are options for management of a stress situation.

1. The first is primary management, which is basically a preventative approach, dealing with the workplace culture and factors such as human resources management.
2. The second is where an employee’s performance starts to slide, or the workers start to become disengaged. At this point there are options for management of the deteriorating situation through early intervention.
3. The last is where there has been a formal disagreement, and there is an obvious stress situation declared. The authors point out that tertiary management is appropriate at that stage.

In the early stages employers can build up a positive bond with the employee, through human resources practices, having appropriate job demands, and through socialisation and cultural influences at the workplace. The level of optimum performance and engagement of the employee goes up.

As the relationship deteriorates, i.e. the trajectory heads off in a negative fashion, the employee becomes disengaged, and there is a decrease in the performance in engagement with the employer.

At the bottom of the trajectory, a forward disengagement or notification about the stress situation occurs, and at this stage the workplace response is critical. If the workplace response is positive, then the trajectory of the optimum performance and engagement may go up. But if it is poor response it will stay flat or low.

Original research:

Stress at work: using a process model to assist employers to understand the trajectory.
Kendall E, Muenchberger H.
Work. 2009;32(1):19-25.

Link to PubMed abstract