10. Occupational Health Psychology

🧠 Occupational Health Psychology (OHP)

Focus: Promoting employee health, safety, and well-being at work.

⚠ Accidents & Safety

  • Accidents = 5th leading cause of death in the U.S.

  • Workplace fatalities (2014): 4,679

  • Cost: ~$250 billion/year (US)

  • Nonfatal injuries = very common.

🔍 Causes:

  • Poor safety climate, incentive systems, stress, low job satisfaction.

  • Personality traits: low conscientiousness or emotional stability.

🛡 Prevention:

  • Safety training, especially for supervisors.

🧪 Physical Work Conditions

  • Infectious Diseases: colds, HIV, Hep B → use universal precautions.

  • Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs):

    • Repetitive strain (e.g. carpal tunnel) vs. acute injuries.

    • Causes: biomechanical and psychological.

    • Prevention: ergonomic design + frequent rest breaks.

  • Toxic Substances

  • Sick Building Syndrome: indoor environments making people sick.

🔪 Workplace Violence

  • Rarely fatal, but very common in nonfatal forms (e.g. aggression).

  • 3% of all US homicides (2008) occurred at work.

  • 15% of workplace homicides by coworkers.

💥 4 Types of Workplace Violence:

Type

Definition

Example Occupations (victims)

1

Crime by strangers

Taxi drivers, convenience store clerks

2

By clients/customers/patients

Nurses, social workers

3

By other employees

Any job with coworker interaction

4

From personal relationships (e.g. ex)

Any job

🕰 Work Schedules

  • Night Shifts: Can disrupt health → manage carefully.

  • Long shifts (e.g., more than 8 hrs, 4/40 schedule):

    • Fatigue, health issues.

    • But more days off.

  • Flexible Schedules (Flextime): Better well-being.

🧠 Occupational Stress

  • Job Stressor: Work condition requiring adaptation.

    • Can be objective or perceived.

      • Objective: Clearly present in the environment, the same for everyone. ex: doubled workload

      • Perceived: Depends on how you personally interpret or feel about a situation ex: workload perceived as stressful while seeming manageable to others.

  • Job Strain = Negative reactions to stressors:

    • Psychological: Anger, anxiety

    • Physical: High blood pressure

    • Behavioral: Absences

⚙ Major Stressors (Job Stressors)

  • Role Ambiguity: Unclear job expectations.

  • Role Conflict: Conflicting job demands (within or across roles).

  • Workload:

    • Quantitative (too much to do)

    • Qualitative (too difficult).

  • Workplace Telepressure: Constant need to respond to messages.

  • Social Stressors: Politics, favoritism, incivility.

Examples:

🔹 Role Ambiguity

– Hired as “Project Coordinator” but no clear duties given.
– Different people expect different things.

🔹 Role Conflict

– Told to work faster and increase accuracy (intrarole).
– Expected to lead a team and do your own tasks at the same time (extrarole).

🔹 Workload

  • Quantitative:
    – Given more work than time allows (e.g., 15 reports in 1 day).

  • Qualitative:
    – Assigned a complex task you’re not trained for (e.g., budget report with no Excel skills).

🔹 Workplace Telepressure

– Boss messages you at night expecting replies.
– You keep checking your phone during dinner.

🔹 Social Stressors

– Promotions go to favorites (politics/favoritism).
– Coworker is rude or dismissive (incivility).

🔧 Control & The Demand-Control Model

  • Control = Autonomy over how/when/where to work.

    • Perceived or actual.

  • Karasek’s Model (1979):

    • High demand + low control → high stress

    • High control can buffer stress

    • Control over immediate tasks matters most

🍷 Coping & Recovery

  • Alcohol as a coping method → problematic if chronic.

  • Negative Affectivity: tendency to experience distress.

  • Respite: Short breaks to mentally detach from work.

    • Helps temporarily, but effects wear off quickly.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Work–Family Conflict (WFC)

  • Cause: Work and family demands clash.

  • Common Triggers: Inflexible schedules, heavy workload.

  • Effects:

    • Anxiety, depression

    • Health problems

    • Absenteeism, job/life dissatisfaction

🛠 Interventions:

  • Flextime

  • On-site child care

  • Manager support

🧯 Burnout

  • Definition: Psychological response to prolonged stress.

  • Symptoms:

    1. Emotional Exhaustion

    2. Depersonalization (feeling detached)

    3. Reduced Personal Accomplishment

  • Effects: Poor performance, turnover, health issues, CVD risk

🗂 Key Terms You Should Know

  • OHP: Occupational Health Psychology

  • Universal Precautions: Infection safety protocols

  • MSDs: Musculoskeletal Disorders (e.g., carpal tunnel)

  • Job Stressor: Any challenging work condition

  • Job Strain: Emotional/physical reaction to stressors

  • Role Ambiguity/Conflict: Confusing or clashing roles

  • Telepressure: Pressure to respond instantly

  • Demand-Control Model: Stress comes from high demands + low control

  • Respite: Short mental breaks from work

  • Work-Family Conflict: Clash between home/work life

  • Burnout: Extreme work-related stress response

💭 Bonus: Stress Process Flow (Table Example)

  1. Objective Stressor: Fire breaks out

  2. Perception: Employee sees the fire

  3. Appraisal: Interprets it as dangerous

  4. Short-Term Strain: Panic, nausea

  5. Long-Term Strain: PTSD