Positive and Negative Stress in the Workplace

1. Introduction The modern 21st century has posed new challenges for the organizations to survive and grow (Smith et al. 2010). As they are operated and managed by human beings, the challenges are ultimately faced by the individuals who are responsible for making decisions and implementing them (Nieuwenhuizen, Weiss and Rossouw, 2009). As challenges are multifaceted, and human lives are divided into various aspects, it is difficult to excel in every field.

The gap between desired and actual state of mind leads to stress and has a high impact on employee performance and productivity. The concept of supervision is not new in business settings. It may be rooted right in the main essence of organizational structure from where delegation of authority and chain of command were introduced. In lieu of human psychology to stay conscious when being observed and monitored, it is more likely that they are not in normal state of mind but in stress.

As relaxation leads to slow motion of work and decreased productivity consequently, many organizations deliberately introduce supervision and monitoring systems (Robbins & Coulter, 2007) so that employees perform at their optimum level. It can be concluded that when employees are in occupational stress, they tend to perform better (Hartley, 2010). As there is a perceived relationship between occupational stress and need to supervise employee, there is strong need to explore the possibility of any such relationship. It is because organizations can mould their supervisory techniques so that employees perform better.

In the present challenging world of 21st century, organizations are concerned about performance improvement of their employees and want to leave no stone unturned for it. The rapid advancement of both science and technology creates a host of challenges to the survival and development of organizations. Therefore, corporations have no choice but to experiment with various solutions to these obstacles, which will empower them to better, compete in the 21st century (Landstrom, 2008). 2. Research Aims This research has two main aims.

The first is to better understand the point at which work-related stress crosses over from being a positive (driving) factor for employees to being a negative (hampering) factor for employees. The second aim is to identify best practices that HR management can use to prevent stress levels from crossing over the critical point at which stress becomes a negative factor for employees.

This research has the following objectives: 1) to assess previous evidence available concerning work stress and the ways this can be scientifically monitored; 2) to monitor work-related stress among a population of corporate employees; 3) to determine whether the critical point is fixed or fluid for individual employees over time; 4) to determine whether there is a common critical point among employees; 5) to examine the stress-reduction practices of the employees’ HR management team; 6) to identify common triggers of stress; 7) to identify common stress-reduction techniques; 8) to determine which stress-reduction techniques work best in particular scenarios; and 9) to determine the extent to which supervision of work-related stress is effective in keeping stress at appropriate (i.e., productive) levels.

Three major questions will be answered by this study. The first is the scale and origins of work stress. Second are the effects of work stress on family, employees and the corporation involved. Third is the study of how supervision affects work stress. Furthermore, the paper will analyze strategies applied by other corporations as regards the management of work stress. The final part will aid corporations in checking whether it is important to participate in stress reduction and management via thorough supervision of their workers. 3.

Research Objectives The aim of this project is to achieve the study objectives, which includes; · To identify ways for monitoring work-related stress. · To monitor stress among the corporate population of employees. · To identify the common causes of work-related stress. · To identify critical point(s) at which stress becomes problematic for the population. · To discover the impact of work stress on employees, employee engagement, families of employees, and the corporation itself. · To determine the way effective supervision influences work stress.

· To analyze the methods applied by other corporations towards achieving effective stress management. · To determine how employee engagement is impacted by work stress. The final two objectives will aid corporations in analyzing if it is important to finance stress reduction and management via effective monitoring of their workers. The results derived especially with the aid of volunteers will be important in carrying out a survey with the basic intent of discovering how stress affects employees and the ways it can be reduced. 4.

Research Questions and Hypotheses This research tries to answer these questions; · What causes work stress? This paper hypothesizes that workplace stress is caused in a variety of ways for each individual, as it is such a complex problem. Workplace stress can be caused by poor management and leadership, poor organizational skills of those in supervisory positions, poor or non-existent communication between supervisors and employees, and unarticulated expectations for employees.

However, other times workplace stress is simple: it can be caused by overworking and overburdening employees with tasks or high-stakes scenarios. H1a: Work-related stress is caused by a variety of factors that differ for each individual. H1b: Some common factors will be found for work-related stress among the entire population that will help management to better monitor and supervise stress.

· How are the negative effects of too much stress evidenced in the workplace? This paper hypothesizes that employees will demonstrate negative biophysical signs of stress, such as weight loss or gain, sleeping issues, fatigue, mental exhaustion, emotional exhaustion, outbursts, sadness, and shortness of temper, among other symptoms.

Additionally, workers’ families will undeniably suffer as families are akin to a garden that need to be nurtured in order to grow and thrive in an adequate manner: workplace stress robs the employee of energy that can be given to the family. H2a: Employees will show the effects of too much stress through weight changes, sleep deprivation, fatigue, exhaustion, emotional turmoil, and loss of temper.

H2b: Workers negatively impacted by too much stress will face negative repercussions in their family lives as well as a result of work-related stress that carries over into the home life. · In what way does effective supervision impact work stress? This paper hypothesizes that appropriate supervision has a positive impact on workplace. Enlightened supervision means that channels of communication remain clear and that all team members are on the same page, allowing them to work in harmony towards common goals.

Nuanced supervision means that work is fairly divided and assigned to members of the team according to their strengths, so that members of the team receive tasks that they can excel at, and feel as though they are valuable members of the team, excelling at their jobs and making valuable contributions. H3a: Appropriate supervision has a positive impact on worker’s stress load. H3b: Appropriate supervision can help to keep stress levels at optimum levels in order to facilitate optimum productivity.

· At what point does good stress turn into bad stress? This paper hypothesizes that good stress (i.e., stress that facilitates productivity) turns into bad stress (i.e., stress that hampers productivity) when the work-related stress begins to impact the personal life of the worker, social relationships, and the employee’s ability to effectively respond to workplace demands.

This will differ for most workers and will depend on external variables as well as internal ones, though it is also hypothesized that some common characteristics will emerge to show that there is a common critical point at which stress becomes negative for workers. H4a: Stress turns from good to bad for workers based on individualistic variables related to internal and external factors.

H4b: Common characteristics will occur among the overall sample, indicating that a common critical line does exist among workers at which point stress goes from facilitating production to hampering production. · What methods are used by the other corporations in regards to stress management? This paper hypothesizes that other corporations engage in more preventative methods to thwart workplace stress before it becomes a negative factor in workplace productivity. This is achieved by having open channels of communication and realistic expectations of employee capabilities.

Furthermore, this paper further hypothesizes that creating a healthy workplace, stress levels will be lower innately as the environment will be conducive to positivity and general well being. H5a: Management can reduce negative stress by maintaining open channels of communication and providing workers with realistic expectations. H5b: A healthy workplace culture will also facilitate the reduction of negative stress for workers by promoting positivity and a sense of well-being. 5.

Literature Review It’s important to note that Framework for Study of Stress (Kahn and Byosiere, 1992) offer a major point of guidance for this study, even though it is not framework used.

Kahn and Byosiere viewed stress as more likely to manifest as the result of four separate pillars of influence: stressors in organizational life (such as light or noise, or haziness regarding one’s job), properties of the situation as a stress increasers or moderators (such as the presence or absence of social support), strains (physical, psychological, behavioral), and personal characteristics (such as low self-esteem, low self-control, hardiness).

While this framework isn’t the one harnessed by this thesis, it is relevant in that it offers a concise snapshot of the multi-faceted origins of stress and why stress in the workplace is such a complex problem. This framework also illuminates why some people deal with stress better than others, and that certain life factors can influence how much or how little stress one experiences, or how effectively one can confront stress. Defining occupational stress involves examining its two constituent words.

Occupational means all workplace-related activities and elements whereas stress talks about a natural body response to emotional or mental strain in a person. Therefore occupational/work stress can be defined as any system by which the body tries to conform to its workplace environment. These systems include the normal body system for managing work stress, popularly called the “fight or flight” response as well as all other likely or unlikely responses.

These responses include anxiety, eyestrain due to staring at a computer screen for a long period, depression, physical and emotional stress, reduced concentration, cognitive problems such as memory losses etc. All these responses could cause poor work performance, cardiovascular disease, higher employee turnover, injury, higher absenteeism and even mortality (Patterson et al., 2005). From this one can aptly conclude that occupational stress has an impact on employee engagement and enthusiasm.

Occupational stress can equally be defined as an occupational safety and health recognized hazard, which could have an adverse effect on employee health and which employers have to identify, evaluate and manage in every way possible. It is also referred to as the result when a person is not able to handle the pressures of the workplace, often when interpersonal factors are at play (Teodorczuk & Billett, 2017).

This is caused either because the person is not the right fit based on his/her strengths and the needs of that role or because the conditions of the workplace are not favorable. 5.1 Types of Stress As suggested by Nordstrom et al. (2001), two major forms of stress which a person can experience exists and they are mental and physical stress. Physical stress talks about the physical reactions the body gives to a number of triggers. Physical stress causes emotional stress because the two are interlinked.

Mental stress, however, talks about mental exhaustion. From Keegel et al. (2009), mental stress talks about mental strain caused by a harmful agent which could cause illness. These two different forms of stress do not have the same symptoms. Physical stress manifests when the sufferer’s heart rate increases and he/she starts breathing faster. In some cases, the person starts to sweat uncontrollably or experience cold hands, feet or skin.

Another major sign is that the person’s mouth becomes dry and they could also experience tiredness and fatigue more easily. Muscle spasms or tightness, body tension or breath shortness are also common symptoms (Iavicoli et al., 2001). The other typical signs are a higher or lower than normal appetite or a constant nervous feeling. This is identified via signs like fiddling, grinding teeth, muscle twitching, restless pacing, nail biting, rapid or excessive talking and other abnormal habits.

In some other extreme cases, the person could develop ailments or disorders like aches, pains, flu, stomach and skin disorders, migraines, asthma etc. Sometimes these physicals manifestations are a way to stimulate cognition, other times they are signs of inner anxiety or inflammation (Weijenberg & Lobbezoo, 2015). Mental stress, however, expresses itself majorly via sleeping problems which cause the sufferer to sleep less or more than normal, anxiety, constant worry, confusion and also regular mood changes like anger, irritability, frustration, irrationality, depression, overreaction, impatience, defensiveness or restlessness.

Other regular symptoms are substance abuse including alcohol, drugs or cigarettes (Okechukwu et al., 2010). In some cases, the person could develop poor memory or decision-making skills. In extreme cases, he/she might develop baseless fears of everyday events such as experiencing sunlight, washing with running water etc. All of these symptoms are due to the mental facility of the person being negatively affected. 5.2 Definition of Supervision Supervision simply means the control or regulation of behavior via laid out guidelines and restrictions (Kadushin & Harkness, 2014).

A large number of authors claim there are several supervision aspects that have to be analyzed before it can be defined. These aspects are application of practices and ideas which provides a suitable environment for the employees to follow the laid out restrictions, provision of support and advice, ensuring that employees have access to the proper equipment and resources necessary for succeeding in their job roles and organizing job functions in an orderly manner so as to ease decision-making processes.

5.3 Categories of Supervisory Models Supervision models are classified into three, based on their typical features. These classes are the developmental models, psychotherapy-based models, social role models and the integrative models (Aten et al., 2008). 5.4 The Stress Response Cannon’s (1915) groundbreaking study on the physical effect of emotions such as fear and rage has formed the basic framework of the stress response. He discovered that emotion and perception causes the secretion of catecholamines by epinephrine and norepinephrine, both adrenal glands.

The release of catecholamines has an immediate and vitalizing impact on the central nervous system (CNS) particularly, the reticular activating system (RAS), also known as reticular formation. Stimulation of the RAS causes the state of alertness, which is usually experienced when a person is under stress. Though fight or flight might seem to be the major physical reaction of both genders to stress, Taylor and her colleagues (2000) made a huge discovery concerning the female response to stress.

Specifically, they discovered that female behaviour have more tendency to follow a pattern of “tend and befriend”. This invigorating response is possibly an element which explains why females are more productive under stress than males and therefore outlive them by around five or seven years. Apart from this gender disparity, Lundberg (2002) discovered that women typically carry out repetitive tasks and they are more liable to stress due to unpaid work, which could cause a higher frequency of work-related extremity problems (Quick & Henderson, 2016). 6. Research Gaps 1.

Gaps in studies on work-related stress, job satisfaction, burnout and the overall health of workers emerge with consistency (Khamisa et al., 2015). 2. Gaps in worker engagement in systematic empirical studies, so as to substantiate subsequent studies (Shuck & Wollard, 2010). 3. The initial gap, which talks about the confusion in concepts can be reduced via the development of an appropriate definition for employee engagement (Soieb et al., 2013). 4.

The absence of theoretical reasoning and experiments on the effect the exaggeration of employee engagement has in both Cyprus and the global contexts have been marked as the next gap (Masvaure et al., 2014). 5. The reality that the association between employee engagement and personal character is not experimentally tested or theoretically debated both in Cyprus as well as the global contexts has been seen as the third gap (Sonnentag, 2003). 6.

The absence of research in Cyprus on the way the high performance work practices (HPWPs) affect employee engagement is the fourth gap (Macky & Boxall, 2007). 7. The next identified gap is the inadequacy of experimental evidence as regards the connection existing between financial performance of the organization and employee engagement in Cyprus context (Schneider et al., 2007). 8. The sixth gap is the unavailability of experimental confirmation on job performance of workers taking the place of an interfering factor for financial performance of an organization and employee engagement (Schneider et al., 2007) 9.

A similar unavailability is seen concerning empirical evidence on personal character, HPWPs, work-life balance, religiosity and leadership which has a considerable effect on employee engagement within a homological system in both Cyprus and global contexts and this forms the seventh gap (Nguyen, 2013).

Types of Stress, Scientific monitoring, corporate/financial performance Objectives Gaps Research Questions Key Action Types of Stress 1-3 What causes work stress? Identify stressors Scientific Monitoring 4-6 How are the negative effects of too much stress evidenced in the workplace? Determine ways to monitor stress Corporate/Financial Performance 7 In what ways does effective supervision impact work stress? Evaluate effects of supervision on work-related stress Scientific Monitoring 8 At what point does good stress turn into bad stress? Identify the critical line wherein positive stress becomes negative Corporate Performance 9 What methods are used by other corporations in regards to stress management? Compare and contrast corporate approaches to stress monitoring 7.

Research Positivism is selected for the purposes of this paper as it focuses on empirical data and scientific methods. This philosophy believes that world is made up of regularities, which can be pinpointed, and one can infer knowledge simply through observation. This method is superior to critical realism or interpretivist because positivism refocuses the researcher on general rules.

Positivism can be viewed as a branch of epistemology, as epistemology is a sector of science that often encapsulates the range of approaches used to understand the mysteries of existence, and is by definition the science of knowledge and of elucidating the scientific path (Roots, 2007). Positivism can at times illuminate ontology, as ontology specifies entities and their relationships and the origins of conclusions of these relationships.

7.1 Positivism The research concept assumed was one of Positivism following a deductive method applying quantitative data derived via self-administered survey questionnaires within a cross-sectional time horizon (Joshy, 2014). The justification for every choice taken above can be made clear via the “research onion” which is applied in comparing the numerous levels of research systems (Saunders et al 2009, p 108). The research onion contains six levels and all six are essential for an effective research.

They are; Research Strategy Research Approach Research Choice Research Philosophy Data Collection Method Time Horizons 7.2 Saunders’s Research Onion source: Saunders et al (2009 p 108) The ways in which this research should be carried out is based on the broader science philosophies. Research has its basis in observations (data) and reasoning (theory). The ways reasoning and observation are linked to one another is a long-term and still existing philosophical deliberation concerning knowledge development.

Though several researchers carry out thorough research without giving thought to basic philosophical knowledge, some of this knowledge is necessary for a researcher because it helps him/her to explain and back up the selection of a suitable research design (Blumberg et al 2011, p 16). Research Philosophy is the creation of knowledge and how that knowledge relates to research. The research concept employed by a research study should contain important theories which strenghtens the strategy and systems selected to make up the strategy. (Saunders et al 2009, p 108).

A number of researchers have the mind-set that management and business researchers have to be knowledgeable of the logical commitments which are made via a researcher’s strategy selection because it considerably impacts not just what is achieved, but equally helps the understanding about what is studied. Some research philosphies heve been discovered by Saunders (2009, p 108-119), nonetheless, the three major and distinct philosphies which are unique (Blumberg et al 2011, p 16) and will be elaborated on here are a) Positivism b) Realism and c) Interpretivism.

Positivism, the philosophy seen in this research is culled from the basic sciences and its major principles are a) the social landscape is external in nature and should be considered objectively b) research is free in value and c) the researcher works independently, assuming the function of an unbiased analyst. Positivism believes that knowledge grows via the investigation of social reality by studying unbiased facts.

This opinion has several essential impacts on the relationship existing between observations and theory as well as the methods by which the research is carried out. Developing a theory begins with postulating basic laws and determining the type of observations, which backs or nullifies the theoretical forecasts of the developed laws. As a result, the research system begins with the identification of the key causes of these basic laws and determining how much these detected causes can be simplified.

Positivism makes these assumptions a) the social landscape is studied via the collection of unbiased facts and b) the social landscape is made up of simple components, which can be broken down. A scientist who is working in line with this research tradition will have the conviction that observable truths are unbiased and due to their external nature, we cannot affect them and thus studies are carried out value free.

This means that several researchers studying a social trend will come to the same inference that the social landscape can be broken down into simple components. Collecting these components and breaking them down further to basic laws forms the most acceptable method of investigating a trend (Blumberg et al 2011 p 17). In this study, evidence present on work stress and the ways by which it can be scientifically observed is reviewed which is in line with the features of the positivism philosophy.

Other features a positivist method has include a) a very structured research methodology and b) use of several samples (Saunders et al 2009, p 118). As all the features enumerated are closely linked with this research, it gives a strong backing to the choice of the researchers in employing the Positivist philosophy. 8. Research Problem There have been suggestions that the present evidence backs a psychological attitude regarding the meaning of stress and also that operational models are one of the most useful and accurate presently available.

Under this system, stress can be defined as a mental condition, which forms a part and also shows a broader interaction process between the employee and his/her job environment. The above mentioned process has its basis on a succession of connections existing between the worker’s opinion and unbiased work environment, between his/her opinions and the feelings of stress as well as between those feelings, behavioral changes, bodily function and health.

This sequence gives a measurement basis, though the various results, which can possibly be gotten from it, cannot be lightly or justifiably merged into a sole stress index. Rationally, the appraisal of stress has to be majorly based on self-report methods which lay emphasis on the assessment process and the emotional part of stress, as well as an adaptive or maladaptive coping mechanisms used to deal with the presence of stress (Holton et al., 2016).

Measures regarding appraisal have to take into account the opinions of the workers concerning their job requirements, how they are able to meet these job requirements, their personal needs and how much their work is able to meet them, the amount of control they possess on their work and the level of work support they get. The stronger the communication pillars are within the workplace, the more resources and options employees will have in managing their stress, workload and the demands of their jobs (Beehr, 2014).

More so, these measures must be applied such that they make available an opportunity for association of opinions like demand and control (Bakker, & Demerouti, 2014) or control and demand with support (Payne & Fletcher, 1983; Cox, 1985a; Jourdain & Vézina, 2014). How important it is to the employee to manage with certain expressions and combinations of these work features equally needs to be considered, as well as the complexity of emotions that can be created from such circumstances (Seaward, 2017, Ashkanasy et al., 2016). 9.

Research Purpose and Design In order to determine, identify and measure the causes and effects of occupational stress, it will be important to conduct a multivariate OLS (Ordinary Least Squares) regression that controls for organizational size, number of working hours per week, gender, seniority, level of supervisory support, and ethnicity. The benefit of OLS regression is that unlike other regression methods, its helps to show if levels of supervisory support or other workplace stress management interventions substantially affect the predicted values for the dependent variable.

The questionnaire used will be closed-ended. So as to successfully answer this study’s questions, the study will involve the gathering of quantitative information so as to settle the impact and cause connection between the variable factors and to derive an accurate explanation of the research phenomenon from its respondents. The quantitative method is seen as better for answering the study’s questions. This will allow one to gather concrete numerical data and analyze it for undeniable patterns and trends, shedding light on the complexities of the situation. 10.

Research Data The researcher will attempt to balance the strengths and weaknesses of the quantitative research methods in order to ensure that the results will be a true reflection of the actual characteristics that are being studied. This will be done through expert opinion and pilot testing where the questionnaire will be handed over to experts in the field to critic and provide suggestions after which a pilot study on 10 participants will be conducted to ensure that the questionnaire is pretested for accuracy and reliability.

At this point it would be nice to note that the number of the questionnaire will be given is 500 (face-to-face, via email and Facebook), so that the results are representative would be able to have a clear image and a clear opinion of reality. 11. Sampling For participant selection, simple random sampling was used.

“Simple random sampling, or random sampling without replacement, is a sampling design in which n distinct units are selected from the N units in the population in such a way that every possible combination of n units is equally likely to be the sample selected” (Thompson, 2012).

The straightforward process of this probability method is ideal to gather a participant group of 200 and allows one to generalize the results collected from the sample back to the population, with the only drawback being that is not the most statistically effectual means of sampling. Given the complexity of the subject matter, and that fact that so much of occupational stress is connected to a host of factors and issues and manifests in such a wide variety of ways, a more streamlined and basic sampling method is an appropriate balance.

Simple sampling, which allows one to gather a sample that does not have classification mistakes, empowers one to engage in the research process with only slight prior knowledge of the participant group. It also allows an ease of interpretation. This will be ideal as there might not be a host of information already known about the population sampled, and can allow the research study to align itself with greater simplicity. 12. Methods and Procedures 12.1 Operationalization of Constructs Various constructs will be measured in this study.

These include demographic information such as age, education, and gender, which will be used to categorize the respondents per their education and functional background. These constructs will be operationalized by peer-review of the questionnaire and pre-testing it to ensure that it has the highest representation of appropriate choices in the questions. It also ensures that the questions are phrased in the simplest language possible for the respondents to understand and respond appropriately.

This will also aid the researcher in the greatest ease when it comes to interpreting the data for a workplace dynamic that is composed of a variety of complex factors. 12.2 Demographic Data Demographic data will be collected to help in identifying which may be confounders and thus beneficial in the OLS multivariate regression. Data collected will include gender, age, in what sector they work, duration of employment with their current company, total number of years of experience, and highest level of education.

These questions will be closed ended with equally distributed scales depending on the question. In order to reduce the chances of bias in the responses received, education will be dichotomized to show whether or not a person has a college degree. This will ensure that education is included as a control in the supplementary analysis. It will also help to test whether level of education shows any statistical significance with other aspects of the questionnaire.

12.3 Dependent Variables The causes and effects of organizational stress will be tested on six distinct dimensions of work. These are job satisfaction, morale, perceived opportunities for advancement and extra effort required to achieve organizational goals. These form the dependent variables for the study. They will be originally coded on a 3-item likert scale for example: (1) never (2) sometimes (3) often. The reason for choosing a 3-item likert scale is that it does not have a middle point therefore responses will either be on the negative or on the positive.

In addition, during analysis, it does not allow for a mean that is difficult to interpret as a result of the value being at the midpoint of the scale. Responses will be reverse coded in order to ensure that higher values indicate greater responses of job satisfaction, morale, effort or opportunities for advancement. Operational definitions for each of the variables will be defined to ensure the research has a baseline for understanding what is constituted in each of the variables.

Elements like the level of supervision, and the approachability of supervisors will be viewed as the independent variables. 12.4 Job Satisfaction For this research project, the definition of job satisfaction that is used is the overall satisfaction of an individual with the task and duties assigned to them. This is measured on a 3-item likert scale: (1) never (2) sometimes (3) often. As earlier suggested, the responses will be reverse coded in order for higher values to reflect greater satisfaction of employees with their job.

According to Hodson and Sullivan (2011), there are various factors that affect job satisfaction. These include intrinsic such as finding meaning in work and extrinsic rewards such as salary, promotion, etc. In order to adjust for these two factors of job satisfaction, should include some questions to capture this. The questions will be related to work and productivity issues. Through some questions that will be answered by employees will occur if their productivity has increased, decreased or remained stagnant.

In addition, officials will be asked to answer some other questions which will show if there is less productivity or not and that in due. The options in this question would include increased or decreased job stress, increased or reduced supervision, promotion, change of organizational culture, reduced / increased workload, etc.

12.5 Morale The operational definition of morale that will be used for this study is the capacity of the employees to maintain sufficient belief in the organization and its goals especially when faced with opposition in the form of change resistance, occupational stress and hardships such as difficult work environments (McGowan et al., 2006). For this variable, the study will attempt to identify whether occupational stress affects the morale of employees in carrying out their duties and functions. The question will be framed on a 3-item likert scale: (1) never (2) sometimes (3) often.

The data will also be reverse coded for the pre-specified reason. 12.6 Perceived Opportunities for Advancement This is a broad ended phrase that encompasses all opportunities ranging from study leaves, promotions, salary increments, fringe benefits and much more, and is one which can have a tremendous impact on job satisfaction (Sommer & Kulkarni, 2012). This has been chosen intentionally since it may be difficult to design questions that capture the responses for each individual value.

Through some questions that will be answered by employees will occur if they have opportunities for advancement in the company or organization where they work. The responses will be on a 3-item likert scale: (1) never (2) sometimes (3) often. Data on this question will also be reverse coded.

12.7 Extra Effort Required to Achieve Organizational Goals The operational definition of extra effort that is picked will focus on the employee’s willingness to put in extra effort towards the achievement of organizational goals, and ultimately lead to increased workplace satisfaction (Kurland & Hasson-Gilad, 2015). This question reflects on the idea of the organization providing the necessary resources required to achieve the goals and objectives stated. The question will be on a 3-item likert scale: (1) never (2) sometimes (3) often. Coding will be reversed during data entry and analysis.

The idea will be to determine whether the employees are willing to put in extra effort while at work. 12.8 Level of supervision & Approachability of supervisors Respondents will first be asked to state whether they receive supervision in their organization. For those whose organizations do not provide supervision, they will be asked to state how frequently they transfer difficulties to family or friends.

For those whose organizations provide supervision, they will be asked to fill in 6 different categories for supervision such as Secure Base Subscale, Construction Subscale, Enchain Subscale, Contemplative Education Subscale, Role Model Subscale and Instructive Feedback Subscale.

In the section of Secure Base Subscale respondents will also be asked to specify if supervisor respect them opinions and ideas, if the supervisor and them were equal partners in supervision, if the supervisor had a collaborative approach to supervision, if in them sessions for supervision they felt safe, if the supervisor was critical in supervision, if the supervisor treats them with respect, if the supervisor is open minded to supervision, if they felt criticized by supervisor to feedback concerning them performance, if the advice they received from supervisor were restrictive and only collaborative, if with supervisor felt able to discuss them concerns openly, if in supervision they feel that is an exchange of ideas, if the supervisor gave them feedback in a way that felt safe and if they openly discuss them feelings with supervisor, they would be evaluated negatively.

Approachability is crucial to creating a constructive and productive level of supervision that both encourages and corrects employees so they can reach their maximum level of excellence (Fowler, 2017).

In addition in the Section of construction Subscale respondents will be asked to specify if the sessions of supervision they performed regularly, if the sessions in them supervision are structured, if the meetings of them supervision regularly shortened by supervisor, if the supervisory sessions were focused, if the supervisory sessions were disorganized, if the supervisory sessions were arranged in advance and if the supervisor and them drafted an agenda for supervision together.

Moreover, in the Section of Enchain Subscale respondents will be asked to specify if the supervisor is excited with them supervision, if the supervisor shows them interest in supervision, if the supervisor is indifferent to them, if the supervisor cares about them as a person, if they feel like a burden to the supervisor, if the supervisor is accessible, if the supervisor is at them disposal, if the supervisor gives them attention when they were talking about them feelings and them worries.

Furthermore, in the Section of Contemplative Education Subscale respondents will be asked to specify if the supervisor drew a series of theoretical models, if the supervisor gave them the opportunity to learn a range of models, if the supervisor linking theory with practice very well, if the supervisor give them special attention to the process of supervision, if the supervisor recognize the power difference between supervisor and supervised and if they learned a lot by observing the supervisor.

In the Section of Role Model Subscale respondents will also be asked to specify if the supervisor is them connoisseur, if the supervisor is an experienced supervisor, if they respect the abilities of them supervisor, if the supervisor is aware of them organizational system in which work, if they respect them supervisor as a professional, if they respect them supervisor as a supervisor, if they respect them supervisor as an individual, if the supervisor gave them practical support, if the supervisor respects all supervised persons and if the supervisor is indifferent with supervisees.

Finally, in the Section of Instructive Feedback Subscale respondents will be asked to specify if the supervisor give them useful negative feedback on them performance, if the supervisor is able to balance negative comments about them performance with honors, if the supervisor give them positive feedback on them performance, if the opinion of them supervisors for them performance is constructive, if them supervisor give them attention to the level of them competence, if the supervisor helps them to track them learning needs, if the supervisor did not examine the impact of them previous skills and experience on them learning needs, if the supervisor thinks the training that they need, if the supervisor give them regular update on them performance, if the skills and them confidence grew because of them supervisor and if the supervisor adjusts them supervision at the level of them competence.

Measuring level of supervision is expected to be difficult to measure and therefore the method that will be used will provide the closest representation of level of supervision. Also, the approachability of supervisors will be defined as the ease of approaching a supervisor to resolve a problem or complaint. The responses on the 7-itm likert scale will be: (1) strongly agree (2) agree (3) slightly agree (4) neither agree or disagree, (5) slightly disagree, (6) disagree, (7) strongly disagree. By multiplying the reverse code of the questions, the level of supervision for each organization will be coded.

Therefore organizations with 2 (agreement) and 3 (strongly agree) point should be considered strict supervision and have effective supervision, so the supervisor uses the right roles and skills. While anything above 4 (neither agree or disagree) will be very lenient and therefore regarded as low supervision, so the supervisor used the wrong roles and skills or not giving the correct dedication during supervision to solve a problem. 12.9 Threats to internal and external validity Threats to validity are anticipated in the quantitative research design and will be addressed in various ways.

In order to ensure validity of the data, a standardized questionnaire will be used to gather in order to ensure that all respondents answer to the same questions. This will also ensure that the questions are phrased in the same way to ensure higher validity of the study. All persons interviewed in this study will also be required to give voluntary informed consent. This will be required after they are assured of the confidentiality of the data collected which will help to generalize the findings in the study population.

The interviewees will also be given clear instructions for the completion of the questionnaire to ensure they understand what is required of them. The questionnaire will also be pretested and peer-reviewed to help in ensuring questions are phrased in the best way possible and that the choices listed provide higher representation of the appropriate response choices. More questions will also be added as required to ensure there is higher representativeness in answering the research questions.

The validity of the research will be connected back to construct validity, determining the length to which operationalizations of such practical tests created from a set theory actually offer snapshot of the construct, as described by the theory. Construct validity is most appropriate here because it connects to the extent that inferences can reasonably be created from the operationalizations created in this research study and to the theoretical concepts these exact operationalizations were based.

Construct validity will open the door to making generalizations, something that offers the researcher greater ease, (much like the interpretations from simple random sampling). Construct validity will force the researcher to make generalizations founded in concepts. This more foundational approach will help to keep one geared towards the main concepts connected to the intricacies of occupational stress. 12.10 Ensuring quality of findings Since the study is designed to be quantitative, distributing questionnaires and collecting responses electronically through email will ensure the quality of findings.

This will ensure that the employees are able to fill in the responses honestly and candidly as a result of confidentiality being upheld. The results will also be triangulated with results from other previous studies to find whether they concur or differ. This will enable the researcher to confirm the findings that emerge from this study. 12.11 Ethical considerations All research projects require the highest levels of expertise, honesty, diligence, and integrity.

The questionnaires will in no way be coded or marked with any identification that can be traced to the respondent. No personal identifiable information such as name, staff numbers, and email addresses, etc. will be collected. All people involved in the research will be emphasized to the importance of confidentiality in this study and will be needed to uphold the highest ethical standards to make sure confidentiality is kept.

The respondents will be given the right to self-determination to agree or disagree to participate in the study, right to confidentiality, right to anonymity, and right to informed consent. Scientific honesty will also be ensured by making sure that all data is entered into the SPSS computer software as is in the filled questionnaire. The researcher will not manipulate the data in any way. An independent data entry assistant will be used to enter the data into the statistical program.

The same data entry assistant will be used to produce the results of the study independently of the researcher to avoid subjective collaboration. 13. Analysis Power analysis sample size and power are two important concepts in the design of research studies. The power of the study can be defined as the probability of rejecting the null hypothesis when in fact it is false (Zhang and Wang, 2009). Power analysis is a judgment of the researcher about the required level of confidence.

This study has an alpha level of 0.05 and the intention to ensure that the data integrity of the results reaches a confidence interval of 95%. In this study, definitions of morale, supervision levels, friendliness of supervisors, amount of extra effort needed to achieve company objectives, job satisfaction and the perceived development opportunities will be evaluated and these will be measured using a Likert scale. This study equally applies descriptive statistics in summarizing the acquired demographical information into a manageable format.

The descriptive statistics aids in explaining the connection and dispersal among variables. This study equally applies the inferential statistics in suggesting the most probable of the statistical outcomes to the entire population (Freshwater, Sherwood, & Drury, 2006). This section gives the descriptive statistics in tables. This research gives the demographical data in tables showing the overall years of experience, gender, length of employment with current company and age.

This chapter gives the data evaluation, which provides the process for transforming, inspecting and modeling data with the aim of improving data quality and aiding the provision of reliable and valid results. This study applies quantitative data evaluation using statistical methods in performing data analysis using the OLS (Ordinary Least Squares) regression technique. The multivariate OLS regression helps in ascertaining if the weekly work hours, organizational control, management involvement or supervisory control contributed most to stress.

The section of occupational stress will provide the results of the occupation stress revealing causes of stress within a workplace. The results will assist in providing evidence that occupation stress occurs in a workplace. The results also will assist in answering the research questions and the research outcomes provide a greater understanding on the strategies to prevent occupation stress in a workplace.

The study will assess the research results one after the other to reveal the cause, different type of occupational stress and the strategy to prevent and manage stress within a workplace. The results of the part scale of supervision will establish whether the scale of supervision has been the contributing factor leading to the workplace stress. This section will use Ordinary Least Squares regression analysis to determine whether the scale of supervision has been the contributing factor leading to an occupational stress.

Data analysis will be conducted using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Separate analyses will be conducted assessing the effect of the independent variable on each of the dependent variables using an alpha level of .05. In addition, this chapter will present the results based on the analysis of the collected data. My goal is to collect 500 questionnaires. If all respondents answer the questionnaire, then my sampling will be 100% successful. 14.

Research Correlation with Aims and Objectives 14.1 Theoretical Framework Hypothesis: Workplace stress is a complex dynamic, rooted in poor leadership and management can manifest in a host of symptoms for employees. This theoretical framework is so useful for this focused research.