THE EFFECT OF STRESS ON WORKERS PRODUCTIVITY WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO AFIKPO NORTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA

CHAPTER ONE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

It has been acknowledged that job stress plays a role in employee performance. This nation has its root in what is called attention theory. Simply put attention theory asserts that the experience of stress has the effect of reducing on individual ability to concentrate on multiple tasks. Anyone who has worked feverishly to meet a deadline understands this relationship intimately. It has been “standard fare” in basic management training to point out that there exist some optimal level of stress below which employees are unmotivated and above which they are over whelmed. Unfortunately managers who attempt to find an optimal stress level for their work group frequently find their effort inconsistent result or downright negative results.

Stress is a universal element and persons from nearly every work of life have to face stress. The universality of stress is such that it is experienced by employees all round the globe and has become a major problem facing employers, particularly in developing nation where the employers do not realize the impacts of stress on employee productivity.

The work place stress is indeed a costly epidemic, Rebecca Maxan in her article published by FDU magazines in 1999 noted that three out of every four American workers described their work as stressful and the problem is not limited to those shores, in fact occupational stress has been defined as a “global epidemic” by the united nations international labor organization.

Stress is a factor in every one’s life. Particularly during major events such as marriage divorced or buying a home. But according to the Holmes-Rachs life event scale, which rates the level of stress caused by such event, many of the most stressful events are related to the work place firing business re adjustments, change in financial status line of work, trouble  with the boss, varieties in work hours or conditions retirement and vacations.

Surprisingly, stress is not always a bad thing. It can stimulate creativity and productivity. According to Robert Osterman, professor of psychology at FDUS Tecnneck-Hackensack campus, “No one reaches peak performance without being stressed whether an athlete, an office worker or a manager” the natural pattern of human behavior is to experience a stress-causing tension and then return to a normal realized state. The problem occurs when stress is so over whelming or constant that this pattern is broken and that is to say that stress leads to old age. An internationally applicable measure of occupation stress develop by Osterman, named SWS for Situation (s) work (w) and self (s), encompasses all three dimension because Osterman says survey that only look at work factors are not giving the full picture” for factory workers, stress    such as dealing with dangerous heavy equipment or working in an uncomfortable environment in contrast office workers are more likely to experience stress that is related to interpersonal relationship on job “people pressures” such as under supervision, tension among team members and fear aversion of conflict can cause stress “for many people, the core of their social life is the people with whom they work with” explains Ostermam” but work is not a socio situation to good relationship such as rumors and power play among executive who are comparing for the next promotion”.

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