Name

Muneek Shah (AM2112)

Subject

Executive Stress Study

Submitted To

Dr. D. M. Pestonjee
Date

19 November 2012

INTRODUCTION
The origin of the concept of stress is derived from the Latin word `Stringere", stress was popularly used in the seventeenth century to mean hardship, strain, adversity or affliction. It was used in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to denote force, pressure, strain or strong effort with reference to an object or person. In engineering and physics, the term implies an external force or pressure exerted to distort and being resisted by the person or object on which it is exerted. In psycho-physiology, stress refers to some stimulus resulting in a detectable strain that cannot be accommodated by the organism and which ultimately results in impaired health or behavior. (IGNOU) There are two type of stress on the basis of their nature. Productive or functional stress is called Eu-stress and dysfunctional stress is called Dis-stress. Research shows that positive stress or productive stress boosts immune functioning of human body. Too much stress can lead to distress We need to find ways of using stress in a productive way, reducing dysfunctional stress and dealing effectively with it.

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) has been widely held as a comprehensive model to explain the stress phenomenon. This three-stage model states that when an organism is confronted with a threat, the general physiological response occurs in three stages (Hans Selye's): 1. Alarm Stage: The first stage includes an initial "shock phase" in which resistance is lowered and a "counter-shock phase" in which defensive mechanisms become active. Alarm reaction is characterized by autonomous excitability; adrenalin discharge increased heart rate, muscle tone and blood content; and gastro-intestinal ulceration. Depending on the nature and intensity of the threat and the condition of the organism, the periods of resistance vary and severity of symptoms may differ from `mild invigoration' to `disease adaptation'. 2. Resistance Stage: Maximum adaptation occurs during this stage. The bodily signs characteristic of alarm reaction disappear. Resistance increases to levels above normal. If the stressor persists, or the defensive reaction proves ineffective, the organism deteriorates to the next stage. 3. Exhaustion Stage: When the adaptation energy is exhausted, signs of alarm reaction reappear and resistance level begins to decline irreversibly. The organism collapses.

Cooper, Cooper and Eaker (1988) have identified the following six major sources of stress at work. 1. Factors Intrinsic to the job: Working conditions: The physical surroundings, i.e. noise, lighting, smells and all the stimuli that affect an individual's senses can affect mood and overall mental state. Shift work: Many workers have jobs which require them to work in shifts; some of which go round the clock. Research studies have found that shift work is common occupational stress that affect blood chemistry, metabolic rates, blood sugar levels, mental efficiency, and work motivation. Shift work also affects sleep patterns, family, and social life. Work overload: Two types of workload have been described by researchers. Quantitative overload refers to having a lot of work to do. Qualitative overload refers to work that is too difficult for an individual.

2.

Role in the Organization: When a person's role in an organization is clearly defined and understood and when expectations placed on the individual are also clear and non-conflicting, stress can be kept minimum.

3.

Relationships at Work: The working relationships which one has with people working in the same organization can also be a major source of stress. Hans Selye 'suggested that learning to live with other people is one of the most stressful aspects of life. There are three critical relationships at work - those with superiors, those with subordinates, and those with colleagues/co-workers - which can produce stress.

4.

Career Development: A lot of issues such as job security, fear of job loss, obsolescence, or retirement and numerous performance appraisals can create pressure and strain. The

frustration of having reached a career ceiling or having been over-promoted can also induce a lot of stress. 5. Organizational Structure and Climate: People working in organizations have often complained 'that they don't have a sense of belonging and that they lack adequate opportunities to participate, they feel that their behavior is unduly restricted and that they are not included office communications and consultations. All this have been found to be related to overall poor health, escapist drinking, depression, low self-esteem, absenteeism, and plans to heave work. 6. Non-Work Factors: There are other various factors apart from work that cause stress in an individual such as family problems, economic problems, health problems etc. Even political uncertainties can create stress.

Organizational Stress The modem world, which is said to be a world of achievements, is also a world of stress. One finds stress everywhere, whether it be a family, a business organization enterprise or any other social or economic organization. The extent of stress is, however, a matter of degree. Some organizations are more harmonious whereas others have greater friction and tension. Stress in organizations has been defined in terms of misfit between a person's skills and abilities and the demands of his/her job and as a misfit in terms of a person's needs not being fulfilled by his job environment. Cooper and Marshall (1976) are of the view that by occupational stress is meant environmental factors or stressors such as work overload, role conflict, role ambiguity, and poor working conditions associated with a

PYSCOMETRIC INSTRUMENTS
Organizational Role Stress (ORS):
Role Space: Each individual occupies and plays several roles. A person 'X' is a son, a father, an executive, a member of a club and so on. Al these roles constitute role space. In the center of the role space is the self. Role space, thus, can be defined as "the dynamic interrelationship both between the self and the various roles an individual occupies, and amongst these roles." Role Set: The individual's role in the organization is defined by the expectations of other significant roles, and those of the individual himself/herself. The role set is "the pattern of relationship between the role being considered and other roles.

1) Inter-Role Distance (IRD): It is experienced when there is a conflict between organizational and non-organizational roles. For example, the role of an executive versus the role of a husband / wife

2) Role Stagnation (RS): This kind of stress is the result of the gap between the demand to outgrow a previous role and to occupy a new role effectively. It is the

feeling of being stuck in the same role. Such a type of stress results in perception that there is no opportunity for one's career progression.

3) Role Expectation Conflict (REC): This type of stress is generated by different expectations by different significant persons about the same' role; and the role occupant's ambivalence as to whom to please. 4) Role Erosion (RE): This kind of role stress is the function of the role. Occupants feeling that some functions which should properly belong to his / her role are transferred to / or performed by some other role. This can also happen when the functions are performed by the role occupant but the credit for them goes to someone else. Another manifestation is in the form of underutilization in the role.

5) Role Overload (RO): When the role occupant feels that there are too many expectations from the significant roles in his/her role set, he/she experiences role overload. There are two aspects of this stress: quantitative and qualitative. The former refers to having too much to do, while latter refers to things being too difficult and the accountability in the role.

6) Role Isolation (RI): This type of role stress refers to the psychological distance between the occupant's role and other roles in the same role set. It is also defined as role distance which is different from inter-role distance (IRD), in the sense that while IRD refers to the distance among various occupied by the same individual, role isolation (RI) is characterized by the feelings that others do not reach out easily, indicative of the absence of strong linkages of one's role with other roles. This can be geographic or systematic.

7) Personal Inadequacy (PI): This type of stress arises when the role occupant feels that he/she does not have the necessary skills and training for effectively performing the functions expected from his/her role. This is bound to happen

when the organizations do not impart periodic training to enable the employees to cope with the fast changes both within and outside the organization.

8) Self-Role Distance (SRD): When the role a person occupies goes against his/her self-concept, then he/she feels self-role distance type of stress. This is essentially a conflict arising out of mismatch between the person and his/her job.

9) Role Ambiguity (RA): It refers to the lack of clarity about the expectations of the role which may arise out of lack of information or understanding. It may exist in relation to activities, responsibilities, personal styles, and norms and may operate at three stages: When the role sender holds his expectations about the role, When he/she sends it, and When the occupant receives those expectations

10) Resource Inadequacy (RIN): This type of stress is evident when the role occupant feels that he/she is not provided with adequate resources for performing the functions expected from his/her role.

Role Efficacy:
Role efficacy means the potential effectiveness of an individual occupying a particular position in an organization. People with high role efficacy seem to experience less role stress and work-related tension.. A participatory environment provides staff higher satisfaction and contributes to role efficacy. An environment characterized by control seems to lower role efficacy.

Role efficacy has ten aspects. These aspects can be classified into three groups or dimensions, namely, role making, role centering and role linking.

1) Role making is an active attitude towards the role, i.e. defining and making the role one likes to take on. 2) Role centering is concerned with increasing the power of the role, making it more important. 3) Role linking is concerned with extending the relationship of the role with other roles and groups. The three dimensions have been further sub-divided into the ten aspects of role efficacy as shown in Figure.

Figure ten aspects of role efficacy 1) Role Making: 1. Integration All people have strengths, experience, technical expertise, special skills, and some unique contributions to make. The roles that people play should provide an opportunity to utilize these skills and strengths to ensure a high level of role efficacy. When their role provides them with greater opportunity for using their special strengths, their role efficacy is likely to be higher. If there is a gap between people and their roles, role efficacy is likely to be low.

2. Proactivity People respond to expectations of others in fulfilling their role at work. When that person is also expected to take the initiative in starting some activity, the efficacy will be higher. Reactive behavior (responding to the expectations of others) helps a person to be effective to some extent; proactive behavior (taking the initiative rather than only responding to others expectations) contributes much more to efficacy. If people like to take the initiative, but have no opportunity to do so in their present role in the organization, their efficacy will be low. 3. Creativity Any opportunity to be creative and try new and unusual ways of solving problems is important to increasing efficacy. If people perceive that they have to perform only routine tasks, it becomes counterproductive in terms of their role efficacy. If they feel that the role does not allow any time or opportunity to be creative, their efficacy is bound to be low. Managers need to appreciate and use new ideas given by their staff. 4. Confrontation Confronting problems and finding relevant solutions contributes to efficacy. When people facing interpersonal problems sit down, talk about them and search for solutions, their efficacy is likely to be higher compared to situations where they either deny having such problems or refer them to their higher officers. 2) Role Centering: 5. Centrality All employees want to feel that their role is important. If people feel that the role they occupy is central to the programme, their role efficacy is likely to be high. If people feel that their roles are minor, their potential effectiveness will be low. This is true for all persons and not only for those at the lowest level. 6. Influence The more influence and power people have in their roles, the higher their efficacy is likely to be. Influence and power at work come about from personal competence, position in the work place, leadership style, the ability to gain the respect of others and handle threats and bullying. One factor that makes roles in the public sector or in civil services more effective is the opportunity to influence a large section of the community. Health care providers have more influence because they treat people who are sick and are therefore, often highly respected by the community. 7. Growth Another factor, which contributes to role efficacy, is the perception that the position provides the individual with an opportunity to grow and develop. There are several instances of people leaving one position and becoming very effective in another. This happens primarily because they have greater opportunity to grow in the second

position, due to the role they play in that position. If people feel that they are stagnating in a position without any opportunity to grow, they are likely to have a low role efficacy.

3) Role linking: 8. Inter-role Linkage Linking ones role with that of others in the programme increases efficacy. If there is an exchange of ideas, discussions, greater communication, and an effort to understand problems and devise solutions etc., the efficacy of the various roles involved is likely to be high. The feeling of role isolation (that a person works without any linkage with other roles) reduces role efficacy. 9. Helping Relationship There are two kinds of helping relationships - feeling free to ask for help and expecting that help will be available when it is needed, as well as willingness to give help and respond to the needs of others. The opportunity for staff to receive and give help increases their role efficacy. If there is a feeling that no help is available when asked for, or that the other person is hostile, role efficacy will be low. Staff must be made to understand that helping is a two-way interchange. 10. Super-ordination When people performing a particular role feel that what they do is likely to be of value to a larger group, their efficacy is likely to be high. Super-ordination is working to serve large causes or groups, usually with some collaboration. One major motivating factor for health personnel, especially those working at the grass roots level is the feeling that their contribution to people They deal with, is likely to help larger sections of the community and society.

Depression:
Depression is a very common, yet highly treatable, medical illness that can affect anyone. About 1 in every 20 Americans get depressed every year. Depression is not a character flaw, nor is it a sign of personal weakness. Depression is a treatable medical illness. Unfortunately, many persons with depression do not tell their doctor how they are feeling. This is very regrettable since effective treatments are available for depression, and most people with depression can begin to feel better in several weeks when they are adequately treated. Talking with a doctor about how they are feeling is the depressed person's first important step toward getting better.

Depression isn't just feeling "down in the dumps". It is more than feeling sad following a loss or hassled by hard times. Depression is a medical disorder (just like diabetes and high blood pressure are medical disorders) that affects your thoughts, feelings, physical health and behaviors. People with major depression experience a number of symptoms all day, nearly every day, for at least 2 weeks.

Symptoms of Depression are: Feeling sad, blue or down in the dumps Loss of interest in things you usually enjoy Feeling slowed down or restless Having trouble sleeping or sleeping to much Loss of energy or feeling tired all the time Having an increase or decrease in appetite or weight Having problems concentrating, thinking, remembering or making decisions Feeling worthless or guilty Having thoughts of death or suicide The good news is that depression is treatable. Your primary care doctor can effectively treat depression by supportive counseling, prescribing an antidepressant medication and/or referring depressed persons to a mental health professional for counseling. Talking with your doctor about how you are feeling is a very important first step. You can further help you doctor treat you most effectively by participating actively in treatment by (a) asking questions and (b) following through with the treatment that both you and your doctor decides best for you.

Anxiety:
Anxiety (also called angst or worry) is a psychological and physiological state characterized by somatic, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components. It is the displeasing feeling of fear and concern. The root meaning of the word anxiety is 'to vex or trouble'; in either presence or absence of psychological stress, anxiety can create feelings of fear, worry, uneasiness, and dread. However, anxiety should not be confused with fear, it is more of a dreaded feeling about something which appears intimidating and can overcome an individual. Anxiety is considered to be a normal reaction to a stressor. It may help an individual to deal with a demanding situation by prompting them to cope with it. However, when anxiety becomes overwhelming, it may fall under the classification of an anxiety disorder.

People often experience a general state of worry or fear before confronting something challenging such as a test, examination, recital, or interview. These feelings are easily justified and considered normal. Anxiety is considered a problem when symptoms interfere with a person's ability to sleep or otherwise function. Generally speaking, anxiety occurs when a reaction is out of proportion with what might be normally expected in a situation. Self-Rating Anxiety Scale It is a 20-item self-report assessment device which includes measures of state and trait anxiety. Answering the statements a person should indicate how much each statement applies to him or her. Each question is scored on a Likert-type scale of 1-4, based on these replies: 1 - A little of the time, 2 - Some of the time, 3 - Good part of the time, 4 - Most of the time. Overall assessment is done by total score. The total scores range from 20-80.

20-44 Normal Range 45-59 Mild to Moderate Anxiety Levels 60-74 Marked to Severe Anxiety Levels 75-80 Extreme Anxiety Levels

Loneliness:
Loneliness is defined as a lack of desired social connection and social support. It is often associated with feelings of isolation, worthlessness, and sadness. Loneliness is not necessarily the state of being alone. One can be utterly lonely in a room full of people who dont seem to notice, in a college dorm with no special friend, in a marriage with no understanding. Loneliness is not the peaceful solitude we cherish. It is the pain of being without meaningful connection, a feeling of emptiness that entraps us in fears, longing and negative perceptions about ourselves and others. Higher the score, more lonely the person is. Behavior Type Behavior type A refers to ambitious, aggressive, business-like, controlling, highly competitive, impatient, preoccupied with his or her status, time-conscious, and tightlywound. People with Type A personalities are often high-achieving "workaholics" who multi-task, push themselves with deadlines, and hate both delays and ambivalence.

Behavior type B refers to a behavioral style which is characterized by low levels of competitiveness, time urgency and anger or hostility.

RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION:

ORS Scale: Dhruv Trivedi IRD RS REC RE RO RI PI SRD RA RIN Result 5 7 6 3 3 8 8 8 3 8 The person has low level of stress. Bhargav Dave 9 6 8 7 11 7 10 5 8 13 He is having stress due to many issues like IRD, RO, PI and RIN. Other is at low level. Type of Behavior B B A B Shashank Rana 7 7 2 5 6 2 4 3 3 3 He is having a very low level of stress. He is having a problem of RI, SRD and RIN. Harsha Shah 5 7 6 3 3 9 7 8 3 8 Jay Jadav 15 10 7 12 12 12 15 9 11 13 The level of stress is very high person is having issue in all stress except in REC. A

Dhruv Trivedi o Role Efficacy Scale: (68.30%) o Loneliness: (46) The person is suffering from moderately high level of depression and there are many issues which are going to lead to very high level o Anxiety: (43) The anxiety level is moderate. Having some worries and issues o Self-Analysis- I: (30) Low level of burnout. Can be managed o Self-Analysis- II: (30) The person is having a moderate level of burnout. And need to fix the few issues.

Bhargav Dave o Role Efficacy Scale: (63.30%) An average level of role efficacy. He has some high expectation and thats why he does not think of his role very effective in the organization. o Loneliness: (48) The person is suffering from moderately high level of depression and there are many issues which are going to lead to very high level. o Anxiety: (27) The person is suffering from very low level of anxiety. He needs to see to some of the issues and solve it. o Self-Analysis- I: (30) the person presently felt no such problem of stress, burnout or frustration. So he is almost normal. o Self-Analysis- II:(29) The person is feeling some moderate low level of burnout and frustration and need to consult some issues with relatives and friends to solve it.

Shashank Rana o Role Efficacy Scale: (76.67%) A moderately high level of role efficacy. He thinks of his role somewhat effective in the organization and morally he is happy.

o Loneliness: (31) The person is suffering from low level of depression, and there are some issues which are to be solved. o Anxiety: (23) The anxiety level is low and person has no fear or worry o Self-Analysis- I: (24) The person is almost normal, just some of the feeling may become an issue in future if not solved o Self-Analysis- II: (23) The person is having a very low level of burnout. Harsha Shah o Role Efficacy Scale: (68.30%) o Loneliness: (44) The person is suffering from moderate level of depression. o Anxiety: (45) The anxiety level is very high. o Self-Analysis- I: (30) Low level of burnout. Can be managed o Self-Analysis- II: (30) The person is having a moderate level of burnout. And need to fix the few issues. Jay Jadav o Role Efficacy Scale: (63.33%) An average level of role efficacy. He has some high expectation and thats why he does not think of his role very effective in the organization. o Loneliness: (49) The person is suffering from very high level of depression and there are many issues which are going to lead to very high level. o Anxiety: (42) The anxiety level is at moderate level. He needs to confront issues and need to remove the fear out. o Self-Analysis- I: (35) the person is feeling and having some serious problems of burnout. With a very high level. Consultation and social support is needed. o Self-Analysis- II: (46) The person is having high level of burnout generally and need to have a high social and emotional support.

CONCLUSION:
In the present study the obtained results may be attributed to the fact of, high performance and role efficacy naturally makes the employees to undergo higher emotional labour experiences. Also one can clearly understand that in the process of giving best service or performance, the employees are forced to suppress all their individualistic emotions. As employees are expected to fall in line with the demands of organization, in the process of doing so the employees automatically experiences high emotional labour and in turn leading to some psycho-somatic problems. Thus, in view of this, the employees of the organization are to be helped through intervention programmes to cope with their emotional labour as well as to manage their emotional labour experiences. Ultimately those who are trained in this direction will develop more employability skill and higher chances of sustaining in the occupation.

SUGGESTION:
The Following Steps are recommended for the organization to take to prevent employees stress: 1. Assessment and diagnosis: the identification of the problems in the workplace 2. Solution generation: developing appropriate actions to address these problems, and setting clear and realistic objectives for these actions 3. Implementation: planning the introduction of actions, their timescales, their communication and their eventual evaluation 4. Evaluation: assessing the consequences of the actions against the initial objectives 5. Ongoing monitoring and feedback: integrating the findings with other management initiatives and policies.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Aminabhavi, M. &. (n.d.). ROLE BASED PERFORMANCE AND ROLE EFFICACY . International Journal of Engineering and Management Science, 26-27. Devi, J. S. (2011). Role Stress among Employees. Gurukul Business Review, 1-2. IGNOU. (n.d.). Organizational Stress and Burnout. In IGNOU. IGNOU. K., R. (2011). Depression tool Kit for Primary Care. Sadock, K. &. (2003). Synopsis Of Psychiatry: Behavioral Sciences/Clinical Psychiatry. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Srivastav, A. K. (2006). Role Stress in Public Sector. Institute of Integrated Learning in Management, 2-5.