This study deals with one of the most discussed work environmental issues in the modern society of Sweden today - work related stress, its causes and how stress can affect people in their working situation. Our study is based on a questionnaire among aid handling officers in two municipalities of the middle of Sweden, and two interviews with their directors. We found that aid handling officers has a complex occupational role. We also found that the officers in these two municipalities experiences about the same level of stress. Further in the study, we will deal with whatever could be the cause of the stressful situation, using the demand/control model of Karasek and Theorell. The result shows that despite the similarity of the stress experience, the cause was shown to be different. The study shows that the stress sometimes leads to rash decisions and also that reviews may be less prioritized. We also studied the social coherence on the workplace and its meaning to the stress experience. Earlier studies, our empirical result and Karaseks and Theorells demand/control model shows that depending on how good workgroups are able to function, may have significance on the experience of stress at work. The result also shows that it may be hard, or maybe impossible, to create a work environment that is completely free from stress.

Syftet var att med en enkätstudie undersöka om det fanns någon upplevd skillnad mellan två produktionsflöden inom stålindustrin gällande arbetsrelaterad stress och tillfredsställelse. Val av flöde baserades på sjukfrånvarostatistiken då flöde 1 hade en högre korttidssjukfrånvaro än i flöde 2. Studien syftade även till att undersöka om det fanns någon mätbar skillnad mellan yngre och äldre arbetstagares arbetsrelaterade stress och tillfredsställelse.Resultaten visade en signifikans för delmåttet rolltydlighet där de äldre deltagarna skattade rolltydligheten högre än de yngre deltagarna. Resultaten visade också signifikans för arbetstillfredsställelse för delmåtten belysning, ljud, smuts och temperatur där deltagarna i flöde 2 var mer nöjda än i flöde 1. De yngre jämfört med de äldre visade sig uppleva mer psykosocialt stöd och deltagarna i flöde 1 upplevde sig ha en högre grad av autonomi än deltagarna i flöde 2, äldre deltagare upplevde sig även ha en bättre autonomi än de yngre deltagarna. Resultatet visade även att deltagarna i flöde 1 upplevde sig ha en lägre grad av arbetsbelastning än deltagarna i flöde 2. En interaktionseffekt mellan ålder och flöde på delmåttet upplevd mental hälsa, visade att yngre deltagarna i flöde 1 skattade sin hälsa högst och de yngre i flöde 2 skattade sin mentala hälsa lägst, medan det omvända resultatet gällde för den äldre gruppen.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur personalchefer upplever sin egna psykosociala arbetsmiljö, vad det gäller arbetstillfredsställelse (motivation och kommunikation), arbetsrelaterad stress och ledarskap. En kvalitativ studie genomfördes med sju semistrukturerade intervjuer och utifrån ett grundläggande tematiskt tillvägagångsätt analyserades det insamlade materialet. Sammanfattningsvis indikerade resultaten att personalcheferna upplevde sin psykosociala arbetsmiljö som god, trots höga krav och perioder av stress.  Kontakten och arbetet med människor visades ha en stor betydelse för personalchefernas arbetstillfredsställelse. Resultatet visade också att chefserfarenheten gav goda förutsättningar för stresshantering och ledarskap. / The purpose of this study was to explore how HR managers experience their own psychosocial work environment, concerning work satisfaction (motivation and communication). A qualitative study was carried out with seven semi-structured interviews and the collected material was analyzed from a basic thematic approach. In summary, the results indicated that HR managers experienced their psychosocial work environment as good, despite high demands and periods of stress. The opportunity to have contact with, and to work with, people were of great importance to HR managers' job satisfaction. Moreover, the results showed that the experience of the manager's role provided good conditions to deal with stress and leadership.

This essay focus on work related stress and psychosocial enviroment in working life. The purpose of this study is to present a detailed description of regulation of the the Occupational Safety and Health Act and investigate how well employees are being protected by the law. I will also explain with the help of statistic which employees that most often suffer from work related stress and the results is discussed from a gender perspective. Work related phycosocial health is a big issue in todays workplaces, and people who suffers from stress are supposed to be protecteded by the the Occupational Safety and Health Act, but is that really the truth? The Occupational Safety and Health Act is a frame law, meaning the law is general and needs binding regulations to define the rules, and there is no such act about work related stress at the moment. No employer has ever been convicted for work related stress. At the same time the Occupational Safety and Health Act explains that the employer has a responsibility to take arrangement to prevent mental illness in working life. It’s mostly women who suffer from work related stress. The most common reason for sick leave among women is caused by their mental health, and it often caused by organizational elements like a heavy work load or a minor self-monitoring. These elements commonly appear in occupations where the employee works with people. The fact that there is no binding regulation about work related stress can create problems, especially for women. The problems and effects that can occur will be treated and analyzed in this essay. Finally there will be a reflection about how binding regulations in the aspect of work related stress may help women get a better protection in the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

Antalet människor som känner sig stressade idag stiger i takt med det ökade tempot och de höga kraven både i samhället och inom arbetslivet. Därför är det viktigt att identifiera framgångsrika sätt att motverka och reducera stress. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka individer som bedöms arbeta i en stressfylld miljö men som inte anses påverkas negativt av stress. Vi ville undersöka vad dessa människor gör och hur de tänker när de hanterar en stressfylld situation på arbetsplatsen. Vi ville också undersöka vilka andra faktorer som påverkar deras förmåga att hantera stress samt hur de lärt sig att hantera stressfyllda situationer. Som datainsamlingsmetod har vi använt oss av intervjuer och vår studie baseras på sex stycken respondenter, vi gjorde ett bekvämlighets- samt snöbollsurval. Resultatet visar att dessa personer skapar struktur, accepterar situationen, behåller lugnet och tänker positivt för att klara av stressfyllda situationer i sin yrkesroll. Faktorer som påverkar deras förmåga att hantera dessa situationer visade sig vara synen på stress, personliga egenskaper, det sociala nätverket och graden av separation mellan arbete och fritid. Resultatet visar också att respondenterna lärt sig hantera stressfyllda situationer väl genom erfarenheter samt att de, till viss del, alltid haft den förmågan.

Considering the increasing levels of unemployment and underemployment, and the limited evidence concerning the impact of underemployment on health, my study examines the relations between subjective, objective, and time-related underemployment and employees’ health-related quality of life, as manifested through self-rated health, activity limitations and work-related stress. The study compares an expanded model of work-health relations that, along with the factors addressed by control-demand, and social capital theories, includes characteristics of the physical work environment, and employees’ economic class. In addition to the commonly examined factors related to employment and health (control-demand and social capital), my study explores the impact of the work environment (hazards, discomfort and physical demands) and economic class to determine the specific effects of underemployment on an employee’s health-related quality of life. My main argument is that underemployment, in conjunction with lower economic class, higher exposure to a harmful work environment, lack of control over work, and lower social capital, contributes to increased work-related stress and diminishes health-related quality of life. The study applies a mixed methodological approach based on data from the Canadian Work and Lifelong Learning Survey and the US General Social Survey, and qualitative analysis of interviews from the Ontario Survey on Education-Job Requirements Matching. Evidence based on cross-sectional and qualitative data analysis provides consistent findings and confirms the main assumption that high levels of underemployment have a significant effect on employees’ health-related quality of life. The study shows that employees’ economic class, characteristics of work environment and control over work carry the highest associations with health-related quality of life, while underemployment has a significant additive association with health-related quality of life, most importantly with work-related stress.

SAMMANFATTNING Syfte: Syftet med denna studie var att beskriva skattad förekomst av arbetsrelaterad stress och aktivitetsbalans hos universitetslärare. Metod: Uppsatsen hade en kvantitativ ansats och baserades på insamlat datamaterial från en enkätundersökning med självskattningsinstrumenten Work Stress Questionnaire (WSQ) och Occupational Balance Questionnaire (OBQ). Undersökningsgruppen var ett totalurval av all undervisande personal vid en institution på ett universitet i Sverige och totalt svarade 41 universitetslärare. Data analyserades explorativt och presenterades med deskriptiv statistik. Resultat: Deltagarna i studien skattade generellt en låg förekomst av arbetsrelaterad stress (utifrån WSQ) samt låg grad av aktivitetsbalans (utifrån OBQ). Vidare visade resultaten, gällande relation mellan arbetsrelaterad stress och aktivitetsbalans, att deltagare som skattat låg grad av aktivitetsbalans även skattat högre förekomst av arbetsrelaterad stress. Slutsats: Studien visade att deltagare som skattat en lägre aktivitetsbalans även skattat högre arbetsrelaterad stress inom kategorierna Konflikt mellan arbete och fritid, Upplevd stress pga. otydlig organisation och konflikter samt Upplevd stress pga. höga egna krav och engagemang vilket eventuellt indikerar att det kan finnas ett samband mellan låg aktivitetsbalans och hög arbetsrelaterad stress. / ABSTRACT Aim: The aim of this study was to describe self-perceived incidence of work-related stress and occupational balance among university lectures. Method: The essay had a quantitative approach and was based on data collected from a survey of the Work Stress Questionnaire (WSQ) and Occupational Balance Questionnaire (OBQ) self-assessment tools. The study group was a total selection of all teaching staff at an institution at a university in Sweden and 41 lectures responded. The data was explored exploratively and presented with descriptive statistics. Results: The participants in the study generally estimated a low incidence of work-related stress (based on WSQ) and low occupational balance (based on OBQ). Furthermore, the results, current relationship between work-related stress and occupational balance showed that participants who estimated a low level of occupational balance also estimated higher incidence of work-related stress. Conclusion: The study showed that participants who estimated a lower occupational balance also estimated higher work-related stress in the categories of Conflict between work and leisure, Experienced stress due to unclear organization and conflicts and Experienced stress due to high self-esteem and commitment which may indicate that there may be a correlation between low occupational balance and high work-related stress.

The aim of this study is to qualitatively examine the individual's perspective of work-related stress. The research has been delimited to one of Postnord's offices. The study is based on Antonovsky (1979) Theory Sense of Coherence (SOC) to investigate the individual's experience of stress. With the help of Sense of Coherence (SOC), the study investigated how postmen express their experience of work-related stress with the key components of comprehension, manageability and meaningfulness. In response to the goal of the study, semistructured interviews were conducted on eight participants from Postnord. The results of the study showed that high work demands were one of the reasons behind the stress they felt. The lack of support from colleagues due to the structure of the work was another reason that affected the individual's experience of stress. Finally, the results also revealed that the participants perceived that they were unable to decide on their own work, which affected the experience of a lack of opinion in the workplace.

Background: Long-term stress can lead to reduced health among nurses which can result in impaired quality of care. Stress in nurses' work needs to be studied in order to prevent stress and impaired quality of care. Aim: The aim of this study was to describe nurses' experience of occupational stress and factors that contribute to occupational stress. Method: The method used was a literature review. Results: The analysis resulted in five themes which describe nurses' experiences of occupational stress and factors that contribute to occupational stress. These themes are; The nursing profession's change, Experience and education, High workload, Organization and work environment and Practical nursing. The result in this study shows that the strongest factors contributing to occupational stress in the nursing profession was; administrative work, objectification of patients, nurses' work experience and level of education, understaffing, high workload, time pressure, lack of support from management, cost savings, patient safety and palliative care. The nurses' experienced that their profession is changing and that the management does not appreciate or listen to them. Nurses' experienced feelings of inadequacy and powerlessness when they could not give patients good care because of occupational stress. They were afraid to hurt patients because of the stressful work environment. Conclusion: This study gives a deeper understanding of how nurses experience occupational stress and found several factors contributing to occupational stress. These findings can be used by health management and others to prevent occupational stress for nurses.

Background: Physiotherapist is one health care profession with an increased exposedness for work-related burnout. Purpose: To investigate the experience of work-related stress in physiotherapists within primary health care in Sweden as well as coping strategies to manage stress at work.   Design and method: Qualitative design based on semi-structured interviews. Five physiotherapists from different workplaces in two different regions in Sweden attended in the study. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze and process collected data. Results: The physiotherapists experienced high workload, increased stress levels, working overtime, staff shortages as well as expectations and demands as stressors in the workplace. Poor quality at work and in meetings with patients were mentioned as consequences of work-related stress. Facilitating factors and coping strategies to abate stress were used in terms of good self-efficacy in the profession, having collegial support, physical activity as well as being content with the current life-situation outside of work. Conclusion: Social support in the workplace is an important factor to abate stress among physiotherapists in primary health care in Sweden. The result illustrates the importance of being observant on contributive factors for work-related stress. Coping strategies to counteract stress were also mentioned in the study. / Bakgrund: Fysioterapeuter är en av flera vårdprofessioner som har en ökad utsatthet för arbetsrelaterad utbrändhet. Syfte: Att undersöka upplevelse av stress i arbetslivet hos fysioterapeuter inom primärvård samt hur de hanterar den stress som kan uppstå. Metod: Kvalitativ design i form av semistrukturerade intervjuer användes. Fem fysioterapeuter, från olika arbetsplatser inom primärvården samt från två olika regioner i Sverige, intervjuades utifrån författarnas intervjuguide. Intervjuerna bearbetades och analyserades genom kvalitativ innehållsanalys.   Resultat: Fysioterapeuterna upplevde bidragande faktorer i form av bland annat ökad stressnivå, hög arbetsbelastning, övertidsarbete, låg bemanning samt krav inom arbetet. Underlättande faktorer som framkom var trygghet i arbetsrollen, kollegialt stöd på arbetsplatsen samt en god livssituation utanför arbetet. Nedsatt kvalité i arbetet och patientbemötandet var konsekvenser som uppkom till följd av arbetsrelaterad stress. Stresshanteringsstrategier såsom tydlighet i mötet med patienten och ta hjälp av kollegor nämndes. Utanför arbetstid användes även fysisk aktivitet samt att ”varva ned” som strategier. Konklusion: Stöd från kollegor och ledning är viktigt hos fysioterapeuter i primärvård för att minska risken för upplevd arbetsrelaterad stress. Studien uppmärksammar vikten av att vara observant på faktorer som tyder på upplevd arbetsrelaterad stress samt att använda individuella stresshanteringsstrategier hos fysioterapeuter inom primärvård.