Page 266 - DMGT106_MANAGING_HUMAN_ELEMENTS_AT_WORK

Managing Human Element at Work

Notes time, the predators are imaginary rather than real. In a work situation, for example, a fight-or-
flight response is not usually appropriate. If an employee receives an unpleasant work
assignment from a manager, physically assaulting the manager or storming angrily out of the
office is obviously inappropriate. Instead, the employee is expected to accept the assignment
calmly and do the best job possible. Remaining calm and performing efficiently may become
difficult when the employee perceives the assignment as threatening and the body is prepared
to act accordingly.

12.2.2 Experiencing Stress
How an individual is going to experience stress is determined by a number of factors. Figure
12.1 identifies four major factors:
1. An individual’s perception of the situation,
2. The past experience,
3. Existence of social support, and

4. Individual differences.
Perception of Stressors
One of the major factors that determine the extent to which stress will be experienced depends
upon one’s perception of the situation. Consider this example. Two employees in a multinational
organization are relocated to different states in India. One of them may perceive this to be a
challenging and a scope to gain new knowledge and insights. He may view it positively and,
therefore, may not experience distress. The second one may look at it as a punishment imposed
by the authorities to delimit his competencies and expose his weaknesses and perceive it
negatively and, therefore, experience distress.

Past Experience
Depending on the familiarity with the situation and his prior experiences with the stressors,
an individual may perceive a situation to be more or less stressful. As a result of past experience
or training, an individual may be able to deal with the new situation more calmly and
competently as compared to a less-experienced or inadequately trained individual. For example,
if a department is going high-tech with full computerization an employee who has expertise
in the use of computers might be less stressed out than another employee who does not have
prior experience of working with computers.

Social Support
The presence or absence of other people influences how individuals in the workplace experience
stress and respond to stressors. If the coworkers or the colleagues in a stressful situation
behave confidently, it may give an impetus to the individual to cope with the stressful situation
more calmly as compared to another situation in which the colleagues behave in an irritable
and aggressive manner under stress. The presence of social support in the form of an
understanding boss, colleagues, family, and friends plays a very significant role in the process
of alleviating distress.

Individual Differences
Since individuals are different from each other, their propensity to experience stress also differs
significantly from each other. Individual differences in motivation, attitude, personality, and
abilities influence whether employees experience stress and if they do, how they respond to it.
Personality characteristics, in particular, may explain some of the differences in the way those
employees experience and respond to stress. For example, the “Big Five” personality factors
are important parameters that determine individual responses to various stressors in the work

260 LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY