The word or term stress draws many anecdotal connotations. The term can be used flippantly to describe an individual's state of being, such as “I am stressed”, without real consideration or understanding of what this statement may really convey. Is the person to the point of physical and mental exhaustion or just feeling tired and overwhelmed at this particular point in time? Furthermore what are the consequences for the individual, the organisation or the people tasked with the responsibility for managing stress. Stress is expressed in many different ways and some are more obvious than others. An expression of “stress”, whether a passing comment that someone utters flippantly or perhaps even seriously is not a very well understood concept in society, but has gained recognition as a social issue that has personal and professional consequences.
Stress is a broad concept that has many far reaching implications for the individual, the organisation and for line managers, who often inherit the task of dealing with its adverse outcomes in the workplace. This book seeks to clarify the ambiguity that surrounds the concept of organisational stress by addressing it from the individual, managerial and organisational perspective. The key target audiences are HR managers, OH&S professionals and front line managers, however it is also appropriate for scholarly research at the inception phase.
The book is organised into six progressive parts that systematically introduce chapters aimed at building knowledge on the topic of organisational stress. Part one contains a general introduction of the topic material (chapter 1), provides an overview of how to use the book and places it in the business context of internal and external organisational drivers for managing stress (chapter 2). Part two of this book offers specific definitions of stress (chapter 3) and discussion of background and its importance at the organisational level (chapter 4). Parts three, four and five of this book are more expansive and respectively allocate several chapters in each part to the discussion of stress from organisational, management (HR and OH&S) and individual perspectives.
Part three examines stress from an organisational perspective and consists of chapters 5‐14. Early chapters in this part commence with an introduction (chapter 5) topic areas such as the cause of stress within organisations (chapter 6), considers categories of the most stressful jobs (chapter 7) and suggests very relevant tools for measuring (chapter 8) and managing stress (chapter 9). Other chapters in part three also consider stress from a legal perspective (chapter 10), offer suggestions for developing a stress policy (chapter 11) and consider the potentially positive side of stress for organisations (chapter 12). Part three concludes with suggestions for creating a culture and climate to build a resilient workforce to stress (chapter 13) and considers the organisational lessons learnt so far (chapter 14).
Part four tackles stress from a management perspective and is directed to the organisations' HR and OH&S managers and representatives. Chapters 15‐20 in this part cover a range of topics such as: introduction (chapter 15), the legal responsibilities of managers (chapter 16), best practice models for managing stress in teams and individuals (chapter 17), recognising and assessing stress in others (chapter 18), how to build rapport and have conversations about stress (chapter 19) and concludes with a summary of managing the stress of others (chapter 20).
Part five of this book focuses on understanding and dealing with stress from an individual perspective. This part consists of chapters 21‐27, that consider topic areas such as: an introduction (chapter 21), recognising and assessing individual stress levels (chapter 22), taking responsibility and developing control (chapter 23), managing emotions (chapter 24), building resilience (chapter 25), how to commit to action (chapter 26) and a summary of understanding and dealing with stress from an individual perspective (chapter 27).
Part six concludes this book by offering a way forward (chapter 28) for leaders, HR and OH&S personnel and operational managers who are often charged with the responsibility of dealing with organisational stress. The last chapter in part six of this book (chapter 29), offers further resources in the form readings by related topic areas and listings of current websites relevant to stress management.
The topics covered in this book provide a sound contextual over view of stress and related areas such as business environment, internal and external factors and mental and physical health and well being. The potential business and organisational drivers of stress in the workplace are put into perspective so that it can be tackled at the operational level. In addition to covering these tangible drivers of organisational stress, this book also addresses the more intangible aspect of workplace bullying as a source of stress.
There is a good balance between theory and practical application within a workplace context. A key feature of this book is the relevant appendix at the end of chapters that provide practical techniques and tools for dealing with workplace stress. For example chapter 8 examines the measurement of stress and its appendix provides the UK based Health and Safety Executive indicator tool for measuring work related stress. Similar tools for relevant topics appear in the appendix of chapters 10, 11, 16, 17, 22 and 26. The materials found in the appendix sections of these chapters seek to facilitate an instant response by management and individuals to stress related issues in the workplace.
The book is well structured, user friendly and practical, as it allows the reader to search for topics and relevant tools quickly and efficiently. The material is well organised and clearly labelled for easy reference. The authors have also crossed referenced chapters with related topics throughout the book. This feature allows the reader to “jump” or “fast forward” to particular areas of interest. The research material used for this book is current, relevant to the modern workplace context and is sourced from international and global organisations. This book also provides case studies, current research studies and statistics to illustrate key points, rather than solely relying on theoretical discussion of the practical problem of dealing with, and managing workplace stress.
Given the ambiguity that surrounds the understanding of workplace stress at an operational level in most organisations, I would recommend this book as a handy reference tool for HR professionals, health and safety representatives and front line managers. The authors' broad approach to the topic of stress makes this book suitable for a diverse range of private and public industry sectors that could range from service, manufacturing, production, construction, retailing, education to information technology. It is also useful for the academic researcher wanting to gain a peripheral view of the topic before embarking on further research.
