Due to employment equity legislation that opened up opportunities for women, women are under pressure to perform at work - something that may affect their occupational stress and impact on both the individual and the organisation. The respondents comprise six women managers in a market research organisastion. The respondents' perception of stress was supported by qualitative research methods and compared to the researcher's Organisational Stress Model. From the data it is evident that stressors at work such as workload, relationships, role overload and individual traits primarily affect the respondents' experience of stress. These stressors have an effect on respondents' perceptions of stress and impacts on their productivity and personal life. The respondents denoted a necessity for skills development in order to enhance themselves at work and on a personal level. The study has furthermore found that stress at work can, however, be somewhat alleviated by implementing stress programmes in organisations. / Psychology / M.A. (Navorsingsielkunde)

Due to employment equity legislation that opened up opportunities for women, women are under pressure to perform at work - something that may affect their occupational stress and impact on both the individual and the organisation. The respondents comprise six women managers in a market research organisastion. The respondents' perception of stress was supported by qualitative research methods and compared to the researcher's Organisational Stress Model. From the data it is evident that stressors at work such as workload, relationships, role overload and individual traits primarily affect the respondents' experience of stress. These stressors have an effect on respondents' perceptions of stress and impacts on their productivity and personal life. The respondents denoted a necessity for skills development in order to enhance themselves at work and on a personal level. The study has furthermore found that stress at work can, however, be somewhat alleviated by implementing stress programmes in organisations. / Psychology / M.A. (Navorsingsielkunde)