Main stress factors. Stressors are factors that cause stress

Stress can be caused by exposure to very strong or

Unusual stimuli (light, sound, etc.), pain (electric shock) at various intervals and for a long time; the presence of difficult conditions for brain activity, under which there is an overstrain of inhibition processes in the nerve centers. The cause of emotional stress can also be a “conflict situation” in which a person, under the influence of various limiting factors, cannot satisfy his leading biological and social needs.

The pathways through which the stress response is mediated are extremely complex. When an agent (stressor) affects the body, the effect will depend on three factors:

properties of the agent itself (stress factor);

external factors that determine its action (external conditioning);

endogenous factors conditioning (endogenous conditioning).

Thus, the fact that the same stressor can cause different damage in different individuals is explained by the influence of “conditioning factors” that can selectively enhance or weaken one or another effect of stress.

Conditioning endogenous factors are genetic predisposition, age or gender, and exogenous factors are treatment with certain hormones, medications, diet, etc. Under their influence, a normally well-tolerated stress reaction can become pathological and cause adaptation diseases. The stressor selectively damages those parts of the body that are weakened by both these conditioning factors and the specific influences of the primary agent. This is how a uniformly tense chain breaks in that link that is weakened as a result of internal and external factors.

There are a number of classifications of stress factors. Currently, the most common classification is proposed by domestic psychotherapist V.I. Levi. According to this classification, stress factors are divided into short-term And long-term .

TO short-term stress factors include:

failure (when people are reminded of their previous failures or are given another attempt to solve an intractable problem);

accompaniment of the activity being performed with meaningful or meaningless noises, light shining in the eyes, etc.;

fear (as a result of criticism, threats, dismissal, anticipation of physical danger, acceptance critical decisions);

physical discomfort (heat, cold, etc.);

pace, speed (demand to finish work as soon as possible, information overload).

Long-term Stressful conditions fall into four categories:

front-line stress (repelling attacks, stubborn defense);

dangers associated with the performance of duty;

imprisonment and any type of total or limited isolation;

prolonged activity leading to mental or muscular fatigue, or both.

Introduction……………………………………………………………………………….2

1. Stress in organizational behavior……………………………………...3

1.1. The essence of stress……………………………………………………….3

1.2. Dynamics of stress……………………………………………………….6

2. Causes and factors of stress………………………………………………………..8

2.1. External stressors………………………………………………………9

2.2. Organization-related stressors……………………………………11

2.3. Group stressors………………………………………………………. 15

2.4. The role of personality character on the development of stress in a person……………….15

3. Methods of dealing with stress………………………………………………………18

Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………22

List of used literature……………………………………………. 23

Introduction

The ability to self-regulate becomes extremely important in conditions of increased stress in our business and personal lives.

It is difficult to define what stress is, but it is even more difficult to qualify it. Stress is created by the environment, which requires adaptive behavior. The cause of their occurrence can be various factors, ranging from minor disturbances in the usual environment to serious circumstances, such as illness, bereavement, divorce, etc.

There are situations in an organization that provoke a state of mental tension, negatively affecting people, causing them stress. The formula for stress is: “activity – overexertion – negative emotions.”

Research on the effects of stress on humans is associated with medicine and the work of G. Selye, considered the discoverer of stress. Conducting research on the search for hormones, he discovered that damage to living tissue is caused by almost any negative impact, which he called general adaptation syndrome , and a decade later the term “stress” appeared.

Stress in modern world has become a source of justifiable concern and a major theme in organizational behavior theory and human resource management practice. For example, in the USA alone, stress costs production a huge amount (about $70 billion per year). It reduces labor productivity, contributes to absenteeism, negative physical and psychological state and well-being of workers, and loss of up to 10% of company profits. Healthcare experts indicate that up to 90% of patient complaints are related to various functional and psychological disorders caused by stress.

1. Stress in organizational behavior

1.1. The essence of stress

Stress is a nonspecific response of the body to any demand presented to it. The requirement is understood as any irritation that exceeds the threshold of perception of the sensory systems of the body.

Stress is usually perceived as negative a phenomenon caused by some kind of trouble (illness of loved ones, a boss reprimanding a subordinate for some small detail at work, and perhaps not through his fault). However, there is also positive stress, called u-stress(from Greek - “good”), associated with joyful events (meeting a loved one, attractive or respected acquaintance, offer of a promotion, etc.).

notice, that stress:

· not just worry covering the emotional and psychological spheres of a person (stress additionally covers both the physiological and social spheres);

· not just nervous tension;

· not necessarily something harmful or bad that should be avoided.

After all, u-stress also exists. Therefore, the main thing is how a person reacts to stress. Stress is inevitable, but its negative effects can be avoided or at least managed effectively.

Today, stress is increasingly synonymous with the popular concept "exhaustion" which is a type of stress and is characterized by emotional exhaustion, loss of personal orientation, and low self-esteem. It is most often characteristic of employees

working in areas related to human communications, as well as in education, medicine, state and municipal management, social activities and etc.

Finding an individual in an organization, performing various kinds of tasks, and mastering innovations is quite often accompanied by an increase in a person’s stressful conditions.

Concept "stress" borrowed from technology, where it means the ability of various bodies and structures to withstand load. Any structure has a stress limit, exceeding which leads to its destruction.

Transferred to the field of social psychology, the concept "stress" includes a whole range of personality states caused by many events: from defeats or victories to creative experiences and doubts. It should be clarified that all extreme influences can unbalance both physiological and psychological functions.

The effects of stress are closely related to the needs of the individual, the inability to realize any need that is significant to him, as a result of which there is a multiple increase in physiological capabilities and turns on psychological mechanisms protection.

Thus, personality stress- a state of general tension in the body that occurs as a result of various reasons. The physiological mechanism of stress is as follows. At the first sign of danger, signals from the brain put the body in a state of need to act. The adrenal glands produce adrenaline, norepinephrine and corticoids. These chemicals put the body into a state of increased activity for a short period of time, but if the glands produce them over a long period of time, negative consequences can occur. Blood flows from the skin to the brain (its activity increases), as well as to the muscles, preparing them for action. This chain reaction unfolds very quickly, and if it is started as a response to a single extreme situation, it does not entail any harmful consequences. If repeated many times, it can lead to harmful effects in the long term.

A person in a state of stress is capable of incredible (compared to a calm state) actions, all the body’s reserves are mobilized and a person’s capabilities increase sharply, but over a certain period of time.

For example, when a mother and child were crossing the street, an accident occurred and a car ran over a baby stroller. To get her child out, the fragile woman, in front of the crowded pedestrians, lifted the car and pulled out the stroller with the baby.

The duration of this interval and the consequences for the body are different for each person. Observations have revealed that heavy physical activity helps to neutralize the effect of the “stress hormone”: the harsher the living conditions, the more the body’s reserves are mobilized, but provided that the person is determined to survive.

As noted by the director of the Institute of Normal Physiology K. Sudakov, if stress continues for many months and has become the trigger for some disease, it is almost impossible to return the physiological functions of the body to normal.

Generally stress - The phenomenon is quite common and common. Minor stress is inevitable and harmless, but excessive stress creates problems for both the individual and the organization in performing assigned tasks. Psychologists believe that a person suffers more and more often from insults inflicted on him, a sense of his own insecurity, and the uncertainty of the future.

There are many types of stress a large number of, they are summarized in Fig. 1.

Rice. 1. Types of personality stress

Chronic stress presupposes the presence of a constant (or existing) long time) a significant burden on a person, as a result of which his psychological or physiological state is under increased stress (long job search, constant rush, showdowns).

Spicy stress is a state of a person after an event or phenomenon, as a result of which he loses his “psychological” balance (conflict with his boss, quarrel with loved ones).

Physiological stress occurs when the body is physically overloaded (too high or low temperature in the work area, strong odors, insufficient lighting, increased noise levels).

Psychological stress is a consequence of a violation of the psychological stability of the individual for a number of reasons: hurt pride, undeserved insult, unqualified work. In addition, stress can be the result of psychological overload personality: performing too much work, responsibility for the quality of complex and lengthy work. A variant of psychological stress is emotional stress, which appears in situations of threat, danger, resentment.

Informational stress occurs in situations of information overload or information vacuum.

1.2. Dynamics of stress

To determine the most rational ways to influence a person in a stressful situation, it is necessary to have an idea of ​​the dynamics of the development of the state of internal tension (Fig. 2).

There are three stages of stress development:

1) voltage increase or mobilization(segment AB);

2) adaptation(segment BC);

3) exhaustion, a decline in internal activity to the background level, and sometimes lower, or disorganization(segment CD).

Rice. 2. Dynamics of stress

Stage mobilization (anxiety) characterized by an increase in the intensity of reactions, an increase in the clarity of cognitive processes, their acceleration, and the readiness to quickly remember the necessary information. At this stage, the body functions under great stress, but it copes with the load using superficial or functional mobilization, without deep structural changes. For example, preparing urgent work for a given deadline, preparing students for a session.

Stage adaptation(segment BC) appears after the stage of mobilization, provided that stress continues for a long period of time. Optimal level - tolerated stress is perceived as a positive phenomenon, as a challenge from the situation, but at the same time control over the situation remains with the individual. This position allows you to achieve a high level of productivity. At this stage, there is a balance in the expenditure of the body’s adaptive reserves. All parameters taken out of balance at the first stage are fixed at a new level. But if this stage of stress drags on, then the transition to the third stage begins.

Stage disorganization(segment SV) occurs when the stress load remains stable. At this stage, a violation of the internal regulation of the individual’s behavior may occur, and a loss of control over the situation occurs.

Prolonged stress, even if the individual’s external condition remains unchanged, can lead to serious internal diseases. The watershed between optimal and excessive levels of stress, beyond which the third stage occurs, is very small and is individual for each person. It depends on personal characteristics and the individual’s ability to cope with the pressure of the situation.

Some studies have shown a relationship between the type of temperament of managers, the position held and the stress levels of these managers (Table 1).

The research was conducted at large enterprises of the Russian Federation in 1997. In Table 1, the sum of the answers is not equal to 100%, since during the survey the rest of the respondents did not recognize the fact of stress loads.

Table 1. The influence of temperament on stress levels among managers

2. Causes and factors of stress

Term stressor means a stimulus that occurs at work and has negative physical and mental consequences for the majority of people exposed to it.

Stressors affecting employees of an organization include many factors located both outside and inside organizations, firstly, and emanating both from the employees themselves and from some of their groups, which usually have a negative impact, secondly.

There are a number of reasons that cause personal stress in organizations (Fig. 3). These include organizational, extra-organizational, and personal factors.

Stress factors individual

Rice. 3. Factors causing stress y individuals in the organization

Based on what the organization is open system strongly influenced by the external environment (Figure 4), it becomes clear that stress in the workplace is not limited to those events that occur within the organization during the working day.

Fig.4. Structure of the organization's relationships

and various environmental interest groups

Let's consider main groups of stressors.

2.1. External stressors.

They include changes in society caused by scientific and technological progress, international and domestic political events, the situation and attitude in the family, economic, financial and social living conditions, race and class, and the environment in which the worker is located and lives. For example, the rapid pace of social and technological change has had a profound impact on lifestyles modern worker. Although advances in medicine contribute to increasing life expectancy and minimizing the threat of many diseases, the modern pace of life has increased stress and internal tension, internal mental discomfort. Involvement of the individual in the hustle and bustle of highly dynamic urbanized life, its constant movement and changes, crowds of people on the streets, in transport - significantly disrupted the mental well-being, harmony and productivity of the physical, mental and social components of a person, leading to a sharp increase in the potential for stress in the workplace.

The influence of family on the development and culture of a person’s personality is well known. The situation in the family, a short-term crisis, a quarrel or illness of relatives, protracted tense relationships between spouses or children, financial, social and domestic instability are serious stressors for the employee. In families where both spouses work, a person under stressful conditions can transfer his stress to the other. Dissatisfaction with work, low wages, family problems of Russians in conditions of all

rising costs of living and new cost-intensive “reforms” force people to look for any additional work, reduce leisure time and the time that families spend with each other, force the wife to give up raising a child and go to work to make ends meet. A direct connection has been found between the severity and suddenness of life changes and the subsequent state of health: the more serious the change, the worse the person’s health and well-being becomes.

Living conditions also have a direct impact on success professional activity. For example, psychologist F. Crosby (USA) showed that divorce, more than any other traumatic situation, negatively affects the quality of work: during the first three months, the abandoned spouse usually cannot concentrate on work. Social variables (race, gender, and class) can also be stressors.

Research has proven that women are more susceptible to psychological discomfort, and men are more prone to serious physical illnesses. Specific stressors for working women include: discrimination, stereotyping, difficulty balancing career and family life and social isolation, dual roles as family member and worker, personal and family stress, housing conditions, lack of infrastructure in the area of ​​residence, neighbors, noise or pollution levels air, etc. Even people belonging to the middle or upper classes are subject to both general and specific stress.

Non-organizational (external) factors cause stress as a result of the following circumstances:

· lack of work or a long search for it;

· competition in the labor market;

· the crisis state of the economy of the country and, in particular, the region.

Personal factors that cause stressful conditions are formed under the influence of health conditions, family problems, emotional instability, low or high self-esteem.

As a result of the above reasons, the following consequences of stress are possible: subjective, behavioral, physiological.

Subjective the consequences suggest a person’s feelings of restlessness, anxiety, and increased fatigue. When stress manifests itself in an individual, negative feelings intensify. behavioral consequences in the organization in the form of absenteeism, job dissatisfaction, the spread of rumors, gossip. Physiological the consequences manifest themselves as an increase blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, sleep disturbances, apathy.

2.2. Organization-related stressors .

In addition to potential stress factors outside the organization, the employee is affected by intra-organizational factors(Fig.5):

a) policy and strategy of the highest administration;

b) organizational structure;

c) organizational process;

d) working conditions.

Rice. 5. Organization-related stressors

Since today organizations are undergoing major changes aimed at adapting to phenomena in the surrounding business environment (globalization of the economy and education, development of information and computer technologies, the desire for universal quality management,

diversification of the workforce), stressors for personnel in their specific workplaces are also increasing. Permanent reduction of working personnel leads to a reduction in the number of employees and shifting the responsibilities of dismissed or resigned employees onto them.

As a result, the workload of workers and the number of absences from work due to illness caused by overwork have sharply increased. Survey of managers of leading US companies (from the list Fortune 500) showed that over 75% of respondents agreed that the demands placed on managers will increase if these firms are to cope with market competition from Japan and other rivals, which will inevitably lead to longer work hours and increased stress. A survey of ordinary personnel of these companies also showed that almost everyone works more than the standard norms of a 40-hour work week, and half of the respondents work from 6 to 20 additional hours a week, actually working an average of 10 hours a day, and sometimes up to 15 hours. At the same time, women, who earn less than men and are overloaded with work, experience even more stress.

Organizational factors causing stress are determined by the individual’s position in the organization. Let's look at examples.

· Labor activity individual - restrictions caused by the regime, shifts of work in the organization, implemented organizational changes, new technologies that the individual has to constantly master.

· Relationships in the organization - building and maintaining good relationships with your boss, colleagues, and subordinates. This reason is one of the most stressful for workers.

· Not enough a clear understanding by the employee of his role and place in the production process and team. This situation is caused by the lack of clearly established rights and responsibilities of a specialist, the ambiguity of the task, and the lack of growth prospects.

employee, in which the employee is not given the opportunity to fully demonstrate his qualifications.

· The need for simultaneous execution heterogeneous tasks, unrelated and equally urgent. This reason is typical for middle managers in an organization in the absence of delineation of functions between departments and management levels.

· Non-participation of workers in management organization, making decisions on the further development of its activities, especially during a period of sharp changes in the directions of work. This situation is typical for large domestic enterprises, where the personnel management system is not established and ordinary employees are cut off from the decision-making process. Many Western companies have

programs for involving personnel in the affairs of the company and developing strategic decisions, especially when it is necessary to increase production volume or improve the quality of manufactured products.

· Career advancement- an individual reaching a career ceiling or excessively rapid career advancement.

· Physical working conditions - too high or low temperature in the workroom, strong odors, insufficient lighting, increased noise levels.

Recent studies have shown that the presence of mild stress can have a positive effect on people, revitalize their work, improve blood circulation, and increase activity in achieving new production successes. People whose work involves constant initiative (managers, announcers, reporters, entrepreneurs, etc.) only benefit from minor stress, but other people (teachers, doctors, police officers) only suffer from it. In general, there is evidence that The performance of many work tasks is significantly affected by stress, and increasing levels of stress usually sharply reduce the level of quality of work.

The harmful effects of high levels of stress affect physical, physiological, psychological And behavioral aspects of people's life. It should be carefully studied by specialists, taken into account by managers and leadership of organizations, in order to improve the effective performance of people. Statistics show large expenses of foreign companies on physical replacement workers suffering from cardiovascular diseases. Unproductive expenses for US companies with up to 4 thousand employees. (Table 3) show the importance of solving the problem of preserving the health of personnel, as well as of any nation, its growing and working population.

Table 3. US firms' personnel costs

because of cardiovascular diseases workers

No.	Basic parameters of company personnel	Numerical data
	Number of employees
	Men aged 45-60 years
	Annual number of deaths from CVD (0.06*Indicator point 2)
	Number of premature retirements due to CVD (0.03*Indicator point 2)
	Losses in the staff of companies due to CVD (item 3+item 4)
	Annual cost of replacing sick employees (Indicator 5*$4300)
	The number of workers who may die from CVD if the disease remains at the same level (0.5*Indicator point 1)

High levels of stress may be associated with: psychological properties personality traits such as anger, anxiety, depression, nervousness, irritability, tension and boredom. Research has found a direct relationship between stress and aggressive actions of people such as sabotage, interpersonal aggression, hostile behavior and complaints. Psychological problems as a result of stress lead to unsatisfactory performance of official duties, low self-esteem, resistance to management instructions, inability to concentrate and make decisions, dissatisfaction with one’s work, which leads to direct losses for the organization.

A very serious concern is the not always noticeable but real impact of stress on the productivity of managers occupying key positions in US companies. They are constantly exposed to stress, fall prey to sudden mood swings, and their subordinates soon acquire the habit of not bothering them even on serious aspects, for fear of dispersal. Sometimes managers realize shortcomings own behavior, feel that they do not live up to the expectations associated with their high position, and suffer from a loss of self-esteem. They may hesitate and put off making decisions, become angry when management tries to get them back to work, and begin to hate their jobs. If such a manager suddenly has a heart attack or other relapse, they begin to feel sorry for him, they consider the incident to be a result of stress, and sharp mood swings, low self-esteem, inability to make decisions, dissatisfaction with work and management cause universal condemnation and give rise to the opinion that the manager is unsuitable and incompetent. get along with people. In general, both a heart attack and psychological problems are the result of excess stress, and psychological aspects have a great influence on the effectiveness of work.

Important has records behavioral aspects, caused by stress in the workplace. For example, the direct result of severe stress can be undernutrition or overeating, insomnia, smoking, alcohol and drug abuse. In the United States, for example, up to 6% of the population are alcoholics, and another 10% heavily abuse alcohol. About 6 billion tablets of amphetamines and barbiturates are consumed annually in the country. Many firms and banks spend huge sums on anti-drug programs and conduct mandatory drug testing of their employees. Research conducted in organizations has shown a direct correlation of stress with alcohol consumption, absenteeism and staff turnover. The economic and social damage caused by stress requires the use of individual and group methods of effective control and management of personnel both at the level of the individual, organization, and society as a whole.

2.3. Group stressors.

Factors influencing group behavior among workers are also potential sources of stress. All group stressors can be divided into three main categories:

1) lack of group cohesion(cohesion is very important for lower-level personnel; if an employee does not feel like a member of the team due to the specifics of the workplace, the instructions of the manager or the actions of the group, then this can be a serious source of stress for him);

3) the presence of intrapersonal, interpersonal and intragroup conflicts(conflict is usually caused by the presence of serious contradictions or incompatibility of individual personality traits, its goals, needs and values, relationships of people within the group and between them, which also has a stressful effect on employees).

2.4. The role of personality character on the development of stress in humans

All of the above stressors (extra- and intra-organizational, group) manifest themselves at the level of the individual, and the development of stress in him is influenced by both situational factors and personality character.

Individual differences in people's personalities and traits have different effects on their susceptibility to stress. M. Friedman and R.N. Rosenman highlighted the polar characters of people of types A And IN and the characteristics of their behavioral reactions (Table 2), which correlate with frequent stressful conditions and negative consequences in the form of cardiovascular diseases.

Table 2. Behavior of people with polar characters of types A and B

Type A people were originally thought to be most susceptible to heart attacks. However, recent studies could not confirm the previously obtained data and showed:

· people like A can give vent to their stress and cope with it better than people like IN;

It is not so much impatience that leads to cardiac problems as anger and hostility which people do not hide when communicating with other people.

A thorough study of the causes of stress among workers and other personnel of companies in the United States, Japan and Germany found that the decisive factor determining the most likely occurrence of stress leading to heart attacks, high blood pressure and disease is the way people cope with their aggressiveness.

Comparing the success of people of this type A And IN showed that, as a rule, A it is easier to reach the heights of success. However, on they are inferior to type B people at the very pinnacle of success, since the latter are more patient and take a broader view of things. In this situation, people type A necessary switch to Type B behavior, but most of them cannot and do not want to change or curb their character.

Besides character, another important personality trait is individual perception of control situations. Research has shown that if workers feel they have little control over their environment and their own work, they experience stress, which in turn affects physiological factors such as blood pressure and

psychological factor, such as job satisfaction. If workers gain a sense of control over their work environment, they participate in accepting decisions that directly affect them, this reduces the stress they experience and their blood pressure does not increase. For example, workers who perceive a loss of control, especially those employed in unskilled labor, three times more often than others suffer from hypertension. As a rule, loss of control turns stress into organic disorders.

Relatively people's lack of control over the situation Note that people are more willing to perceive a feeling of helplessness if the reasons for the lack of control have the following characteristics:

· they are related to their personal qualities, and not to external factors;

· are stable and long-term, not temporary;

· turn out to be general and universal, inherent in many life situations, and not just one.

Further research is needed in the areas of perceived control and learned helplessness to better understand stress and how to cope with it.

Regarding another such important personal characteristic of a person as self-efficacy, there is convincing evidence that assessing your ability to act and change the situation - an important characteristic of a person that helps him withstand stress. Such people tolerate stressful situations more easily and calmly. Excessive arousal due to stress interferes with decision making complex problems, since our motivation often exceeds the optimal level. People with high self-esteem have physiological and psychological reasons to remain calm.

People react differently to stressors:

· some cannot withstand even the slightest stress, while others successfully cope with it, outwardly remaining calm in extreme stressful situations;

· some people apparently have special psychological stability;

· managers with increased psychological stability are less susceptible to illness, are distinguished by their dedication to work, the desire to resolve complex problems and the ability to control the situation in dynamic market conditions;

· People endowed with psychological resilience can survive and even thrive in difficult stressful conditions, while others fall victim to the harmful effects of stress.

3. Methods for dealing with stress

The losses of organizations from stress are becoming increasingly significant in all industrialized countries.

In the United States, managers consider the causes of stress to be a lack of power, the incompetence of individual managers, and a conflict of trust within organizations. Japanese managers put stress associated with organizational changes and the need to master new technologies in first place among the causes of stress. German managers complain about pressure from the increasing pace of work and attribute the stress to insufficient staff training.

All these reasons, as well as the losses of employers caused by employee stress, force organizations to develop stress management programs, work out and implement ways to adapt the individual to the stress load.

Individual stress management represents ways of adapting the individual to a stressful situation. Exists several levels of stress management.

First - at the organizational level, as a result of changes in policy, production structure, development of clear requirements for employees, and assessment of their performance.

Some organizations, mainly foreign companies and some domestic banking structures, conduct relaxation training (after work, 2-3 times a week) under the guidance of a psychologist.

Trainings are also conducted to develop the communicative culture of employees, training in stress relief skills, and on-site game training to relieve tension in teams and strengthen connections between employees. They help a person feel better, relax, and restore strength. Similar programs exist and are used at the level of the entire organization, especially many of them have been developed at enterprises in countries Western Europe and in the USA.

Second level stress management - for an individual. Designed to be able to cope with stress individually, using recommendations and special programs to neutralize stress. Such programs include meditation, training, exercise, diet and sometimes even prayer. They help a person feel better and relax.

· Learn how to properly manage your time.

· Know how to switch your activities.

· Make stress work for you.

· Look at the situation sides.

· Everything passes, this too will pass.

Let's look at detailed techniques for individual stress management.

1. Learn to manage your time correctly.

The ability to properly organize your time is an important means of relieving or preventing stress. Here are a few simple rules:

· when compiling a list of necessary things, list in it, in addition to the necessary ones, those that you would like to do today. By regularly noting what you have accomplished, you get a pleasant feeling of satisfaction;

· categorize all tasks: the main ones and those that can be done later; it's important to be able to set goals and arrange priorities. This recommendation, despite its simplicity, is quite difficult to implement: it includes the ability to say “no,” limit oneself, plan one’s activities for each day, taking into account the goal set for a long period;

· avoid unnecessary promises; this leads to additional stress on nervous system when you cannot fulfill what you promised;

· clarify for yourself the difference between activity and productivity: activity - manifestation of external great energy, which is not always beneficial to the cause; sometimes it’s fussiness, a lot of movements, but few results; productivity - fulfilling what was planned, gradually approaching the goal;

· analyze the reasons for wasting time: long conversations on the phone, waiting in line, doing unplanned things.

There are many technical tools for daily planning of affairs and analysis of time losses: diaries, organizers, office programs for personal computers, etc.

2. Know how to switch your activities.

To get away from stress, it is necessary to find a substitute for the work being performed that is adequate in intensity, another type of activity. This could be another job or physical exercise, sports.

3. Make stress work for you.

If troubles cannot be avoided, then it is advisable to try to derive benefit from them, if possible:

· try to accept a negative event as a positive one (loss of a job as an opportunity to find a better one);

· Treat stress as a source of energy.

4. Look at the situation from the outside.

In a calm state, you could not do so much; in an excited state, you managed to do much more:

· perceive the problem as a challenge;

· do not think of past events as failure;

· you cannot be responsible for the actions of other people, but you can only control your reaction to them. The main thing is victory over emotions.

5. Everything passes, this too will pass.

· Try to see the future in a positive light. At least for a moment, remember how you felt when everything was fine. 19

· Learn physical relaxation techniques, avoid tense postures that cause stress.

· If you need to solve a large and complex problem, the mere thought of which makes you give up, break it down into small components and begin to solve them gradually.

· Do not allow yourself to drown in the pity of others, but do not refuse the help of loved ones.

· Remember that you are not alone. What you are experiencing now, others have endured and survived. So will it be for you.

Special Methods for managing inevitable and prolonged stress:

· exercises(maintaining an active lifestyle - playing sports: walking, running, swimming, cycling, tennis, etc., in order to successfully cope with stressful situations);

· stress relief(communication, meditation, good book, entertainment show, etc.; studies, for example, show positive physical and psychological impact meditation on people);

· self-control of behavior(by consciously monitoring the causes and consequences of their behavior, people can learn self-control, manage the consequences, rewarding themselves, for example, with an extra break if they managed to remain calm and collected in communication with an exceptionally aggressive client; people must understand the limits of their capabilities and recognize the first signs of impending troubles, avoid situations that threaten to cause stress);

· cognitive therapy using Alice's emotional model and Maichenbaum's cognitive behavior modification to reduce anxiety and reduce stress in the workplace, which have shown some practical effectiveness;

· mutual aid network(support and communication with other people who provide social and psychological support using group dynamics methods).

Each stressor should be identified within an organization to reduce or eliminate it in the workplace. For example, when determining a company's policy, attention should be paid to an objective assessment of employee performance, as well as to achieve the most equitable remuneration system. During development organizational structure High formalization and specialization should be avoided. In terms of working conditions, it is necessary to eliminate the risk of injury, noise, improve lighting and temperature conditions, communication systems and information dissemination, clarify ambiguities or eliminate conflicting goals. Today in the United States, about 12,000 firms offer a variety of stress management programs, ranging from consulting services, lunchtime stress management seminars for managers, and publications.

dedicated to health, and ending with special wellness centers with

equipment that helps relieve stress with physical exercise. In addition, the following are offered recommendations to include them in the strategy of organizations:

· create an atmosphere of mutual support in the company;

· enrich the content of employee responsibilities;

· mitigate conflicts and clarify organizational roles;

· plan a career and expand opportunities for advancement of your employees up the career ladder, provide them with consulting assistance.

One way to avoid stress is escape from a stressful situation . This is achieved through rest - active activity that excludes the thought of the cause of stress, switching attention to other objects not related to stress. Therefore, fishing, swimming, walks in the forest, drawing, knitting, etc. are anti-stress activities.

All this together should help reduce or prevent stress both in each workplace and in the organization as a whole.

Conclusion

Stress in professional activities is not only a problem that workers often face. It is increasingly seen as part of the price of being able to work. The fact that stress management programs are not about trying to make working conditions less stressful, but about developing our ability to cope with stress, indicates that not many people believe that it is possible to completely or significantly eliminate stress from professional work.

One of the consequences of downsizing is that fewer people have to do jobs that were previously done by more workers. Organizations are expected to produce more with fewer resources. Technological advances (particularly computer technology) also increase the speed at which work can be completed. These changes can worsen workers' mental health, reducing their autonomy and therefore self-esteem.

In the evolution of the world of work, workers are increasingly subject to situational factors rather than having control over working conditions. Research on physical health and stress suggests that decreased self-regulation (i.e., feelings of helplessness) has a negative impact on health and well-being. mental state. Without denying the reality of work stress or taking responsibility for it, organizations are paying increasing attention to this problem. Our country's annual health care costs amount to $500 billion, with businesses bearing half the costs. The annual cost to the American economy due to stress-related illnesses is estimated at $150 billion. Thus, it is cheaper to promote healthy behavior than to pay for not promoting it.

List of used literature

1. Arsenyev Yu.N. Organizational behavior. – M.: UNITY-DANA, 2005.

2. Organizational behavior / Ed. G.R. Latfullina. – St. Petersburg: Peter, 2007.

3. Smirnova G.B. Management. – M.: Dashkov and K, 2004.

4. Spivak V.A. Organizational behavior and personnel management. – St. Petersburg: Peter, 2006.

Federal Agency for Education

State educational institution

higher vocational education

Nizhny Novgorod State University them. N.I. Lobachevsky

Fourth Faculty of Distance Learning.

Test

by discipline: " Organizational behavior"

topic: “Stress, its causes, methods of dealing with stress”

Completed by: 2nd year student

Groups 4-32 MT/13

Porkhacheva I.N.

Checked by: Paidemirova E.A.

LECTURE No. 8. STRESS AS A GENERAL ADAPTATION SYNDROME. THE CONCEPT OF SHOCK. COMA

Stress concept

The idea of ​​stress as a general adaptation syndrome was formulated by the prominent Canadian scientist G. Selye. In 1974, G. Selye defined stress: “Stress is a nonspecific response of the body to any demand presented to it.”

Thus, stress– this is a special state of the body in response to the action of any stimuli that threaten homeostasis, and is characterized by the mobilization of nonspecific adaptive reactions aimed at restructuring the body’s defenses and increasing resistance to the active factor.

The body strives to ensure constancy (homeostasis) of its internal environment and the levels of functioning of its systems. When new conditions arise, a restructuring occurs, which, through a chain of transformations, restores the previous equilibrium, but at a different level.

Despite the variety of stressors - trauma, infection, hypothermia, intoxication, anesthesia, muscle strain, strong emotions, etc. - they all lead to the same type of changes in the thymus and adrenal glands, lymph nodes, blood composition and metabolism, i.e. influences (stressors) can be very different, but, regardless of their characteristics, they lead to a chain of homogeneous and similar changes that ensure the body’s adaptation to new conditions, i.e. adaptation.

The stress reaction is a psychophysiological reaction, i.e. it involves complex relationships between the mental and the somatic.

Research has also shown that a certain degree of stress can even be beneficial, as it plays a mobilizing role and contributes to a person’s adaptation to changing conditions. In this regard, stress is considered as a general adaptation syndrome.

If stress is strong and prolonged, then it overloads a person’s adaptive capabilities, leading to mental and physiological “breakdowns” in the body, causing adaptation diseases.

Main causes and factors contributing to stress

The pathways through which the stress response is mediated are extremely complex. When an agent (stressor) affects the body, the effect will depend on three factors:

1 - properties of the agent itself (stress factor), which, according to the classification of the domestic psychotherapist V.I. Levi, are divided into short-term and long-term.

TO short-term stress factors relate:

failure (when people are reminded of their previous failures or are given another attempt to solve an intractable problem);

accompaniment of the activity being performed with meaningful or meaningless noises, light shining in the eyes, etc.;

fear (as a result of criticism, threats, dismissal, anticipation of physical danger, making critical decisions);

physical discomfort (heat, cold, etc.);

pace, speed (demand to finish work as soon as possible, information overload).

Long-term stressful conditions are divided into four categories:

front-line stress (repelling attacks, stubborn defense);

dangers associated with the performance of duty;

imprisonment and any type of total or limited isolation;

prolonged activity resulting in mental or muscular fatigue, or both.

2 - external factors that determine its action (exogenous conditioning - treatment with certain hormones, medications, diet, etc. Under their influence, a normally well-tolerated stress reaction can become pathological and cause adaptation diseases.);

3 - endogenous conditioning factors (endogenous conditioning is a genetic predisposition, age or gender).

Thus, the fact that the same stressor can cause different damage in different individuals is explained by the influence of “conditioning factors” that can selectively enhance or weaken one or another effect of stress.

People say that all diseases are caused by nerves. And this statement is partly true. The effect of stress on human health is one of the most serious and pressing issues today. Rapid psychological stress and the desire to do everything make themselves felt. People often get sick, citing overwork or stress. What is it and what are the

What do we know about stress?

Stress has long been an integral part of the life of, perhaps, every person. Psychologists by this word mean special and neuropsychic stress. In modern conditions it is almost impossible to avoid. Moreover, different people have different reactions to the same loads. So, for example, one group reacts actively, that is, their work productivity continues to increase to the maximum possible limit (psychologists call this type “lion stress”). Another group of people exhibits a passive reaction, i.e. their work productivity immediately drops (this is “rabbit stress”).

In addition, stress can be acute. That is, it happens once and is characterized by severe physical and mental shock. An example of this form would be accidents. Once a person gets into prison, then rehabilitation begins. However, there is a long-term form when stress gradually accumulates, suppressing a person. This could be long-term conflicts in the family or a typical workload.

Stress and health are interconnected components. To find the key to recovery from illness, you need to understand the reasons that cause stress.

Causes

The causes of stress are external stimuli, or stressors. These are uncomfortable situations that a person finds himself in at work, at home, at school, etc. They have a different nature, degree of impact, and consequences.

Stressors include any changes in a person’s life. But not all situations can be regarded as negative, oppressive, or constraining. The severity of stress is deeply individual. And its root lies in uncertainty and loss of control over the situation. In many ways, the impact of stressors depends on a person’s awareness of personal responsibility and personal participation in the current state of affairs.

Classification

Experts divide the factors that cause stress into two main groups: physiological and psychological. This classification is based on the nature of the stressors. In terms of the degree of manifestation, stressors are a kind of restrictions. They can be actually active and possible (or potential).

The types of stressors of the second category depend on the psychological attitudes and individual abilities of a person. Simply put, does he know how to adequately assess the degree of load and distribute it correctly without harming his health?

However, stressors are not always external stimuli. Sometimes stress arises due to a discrepancy between what is desired and what is actually realized. That is, the stress factor focuses on the very collision of a person’s internal and external world. From this position, stressors are divided into subjective and objective. The first corresponds to the incompatibility of genetic programs with modern conditions, incorrect implementation of conditioned reflexes, incorrect communication and personality attitudes, etc. Objective stressors include living and working conditions, emergency situations, interaction with people.

Physiological

Physiological factors that cause stress include:

Painful effects

Extreme temperatures, noise and light exposure

Taking excessive amounts of certain medications (for example, caffeine or amphetamines), etc.

The group of physiological stressors includes hunger, thirst, and isolation. Depending on the degree and duration of exposure, these stressors can cause both significant and minor harm to health.

Typical reactions to physiological stress may include increased heart rate, muscle tension, tremors (tremors) in the limbs, and increased blood pressure.

Psychological

According to experts, the most destructive for human body are psychological stressors. They are conventionally divided into informational and emotional:

Threat to self-esteem or immediate environment.

The need for urgent decision making.

Excessive responsibility for someone or something.

Conflict situations (various motives).

Danger signal, etc.

It is known that emotional stressors are the most profound in their impact. They form resentments and fears in a person, which over time, without an adequate assessment of the situation, like a weed, will only grow. Thus, stress and health will become a single whole, a destructive mechanism.

Professional

Occupational stressors represent a mixed group. They connect psychological and physiological stressors. These are external stimuli and stress that every person experiences at work. Consider the example of a rescue worker. It most clearly accumulates the maximum level of stressors. Namely, with high responsibility, mental stress of readiness, negative environmental factors, information uncertainty, lack of time to make decisions and danger to life.

It is noteworthy that stressors tend to “infect” the masses. Using the same example of a rescue service employee, you can see that not only the performer of the task is exposed to stress, but also the team and the employee’s family. This is due to the psychological factors of interaction, trust, and solidarity in society. Thus, when distributing internal load and reserves, a person gets rid of accumulated stress.

Consequences of stress

The influence of stress on human health, regardless of its degree of impact, is a negative phenomenon and has a fairly wide range of psychological, physical and social consequences. All of them can be divided into:

• Primary- manifest themselves at the psychological and intellectual level in connection with the occurrence of extreme situations (loss of attention, fatigue, psychoneurotic states).
• Secondary- arise as a result of unsuccessful attempts to overcome a maladaptive state. Among these consequences are emotional “burnout”, abuse of nicotine, alcohol or sedatives, decreased performance, aggressive or depressive states.
• Tertiary- combine psychological, social, intellectual and physical aspects. They can be expressed in personality deformation, increased conflicts with others due to internal unsettlement, severance of family and work ties, loss of work, study, pessimism and social apathy. The extreme level of tertiary consequences is suicide.

Many people talk about stress today, and a large number of people consider it the cause of all their failures, including problems with their own health. Various failures and troubles contribute to the appearance of stress. It is worth noting that good deeds essential oils, physical exercise helps minimize the causes of stress.

Under the influence of a stressful state, a person feels tired, irritable, restless and is in constant tension. He does not want to sleep or, on the contrary, he is constantly in a half-asleep state. There may be no appetite or, conversely, a constant desire to eat, which leads to sudden weight loss or weight gain. But it is impossible to constantly be in a stressful state. After excitement, all functions begin to slow down, which leads to apathy and depression.

There are five types of stress:

1. Emotional stress. Typically, such stress occurs when we are threatened by critical, dangerous situations, and they cause too strong emotions. They can also arise as a result of unexpected and joyful events.
2. Psychological stress. The main reasons for the manifestation of this condition are unsatisfactory and unfavorable relationships with society, and are the result of a psychological state.
3. . Is a consequence of poor nutrition, large physical activity or lack of sleep.
4. Management stress. It occurs when there is great responsibility for the decision that you are just about to make or have already made your choice.
5. . The main reason for this condition is the lack of information or too much information, which makes it extremely difficult to make a decision.

Factors that provoke stress tension

Time limits create mental stress

The causes of stress predetermine the situations that provoke stress. Such situations are called stress factors. The inability to control oneself is the result of the accumulation of a significant number of stress factors, and the simultaneous exposure to such factors contributes to the emergence of psychological stress, which is difficult to get rid of. Stress factors, negative or positive, provoke stress to the extent that you perceive this factor.

There are two groups of factors that provoke stress:

Personal factor:

• death or illness of a close family member;
• divorce or wedding;
• change of type of activity;
• loss of all savings;
• dismissal.

Organizational factor:

• working conditions do not meet the stated requirements;
• time limit for completing a specific task or work;
• introduction of innovations;
• high demands placed on you;
• absolutely uninteresting and very boring work;
• increase in the volume of work.

Your own problems often make you feel stressed, because they constantly place many prohibitions, restrictions and expectations throughout your life, force you to do one thing and do not allow you to do another, creating negative emotions and states. Constantly following a problem can easily lead to stress, as it makes you worry, nervous, and tense.

Causes of stress and its types

It's pointless to list everything possible reasons stressful state, because they are all different, and, therefore, each of you has your own thinking and behavior patterns in one way or another life situation. It is because of this that there are a lot of situations of psychological tension and stress.

Positive life changes, such as the birth of a child, also cause significant stress

Many of us identify stress factors with not very pleasant events that often happen in life. But it is important to include positive aspects among these factors, such as increased pay for work done, receiving various kinds of awards, marriage, because they also cause stress.

The causes of overvoltage can be external and internal. External reasons are various changes in life that are under your personal control. Internal - located in your mind and in most cases are far-fetched or figments of the imagination.

External reasons:

• financial problems;
• drastic changes in your life;
• Job;
• high workload;
• personal life.

Internal reasons:

• pessimism;
• perfectionism:
• unfulfilled expectations;
• lack of perseverance, diligence and perseverance;
• negative self-talk.

Perfectionists experience stress more often due to increased demands on themselves and others.

Major stressors

Psychologists identify eight of the most common causes of stress arousal:

1. Personal connections. Relationships with friends, family, colleagues at work, or even complete strangers often generate stress, as they are always accompanied by emotional states.
2. Finance. Many psychologists believe that financial relationships are the main and main cause of stress.
3. Opportunity for self-expression. Many people try to express themselves, but not everyone succeeds in doing this.
4. Family. For any person, tense and strained relationships with any of their relatives can become one of the main causes of psychological stress, and in the future will lead to stress.
5. Own problems. A person always wants to control his own life, and some try to have control over someone else’s. When such control weakens, you become stressed because the person wants to control everything.
6. Safety and Health. Such problems are often perceived very painfully by us, since they really pose a threat to your life.
7. Job. It, like finances, is directly related to sources of stress. For some, being busy is an absolute priority.
8. Death. For every person, the death of a beloved pet is a huge stress, not to mention the loss of a loved one, which often leads to psychological disorders. The source of such a state can also be the anticipation of death itself.

The cause of psychological stress can be anything. Both men and women are susceptible. Everyone has their own characteristics. If you notice in yourself or someone else, then you should first find out the reasons for this condition. Because eliminating the consequences of stress overexertion is much more difficult than simply eliminating its causes.

Two types of stress

Stress is of a mental-emotional or physical nature. Psycho-emotional stress is common to both animals and people. Often occurs as a result of change environment and there is a high degree of ambiguity and psychological tension. They, in turn, cause tension, which is psychological emotional stress.

Sometimes stress overexertion is caused by certain physical phenomena or external stimuli, such as various weather changes or even an infection that has entered the body. In any of these cases, the body's reaction is the same. The body needs to be able to adapt and adapt to new conditions. Adaptation occurs due to the coordinated work of the adrenal glands, the pituitary gland and the brain.

Disease is the body’s adaptation to new conditions through stress.

During times of stress, all the adaptation mechanisms of your body are activated, increasing the stability of psychological perception and performance, all reactions are activated, and you feel a surge of vitality. All this contributes to adaptation to new situations, which has a beneficial effect on survival.

The body has the ability to eliminate the causes of stress itself if its adaptation mechanisms are strong enough. But if such mechanisms are weakened, then the pathogens will act for a long time. When the immune system is depleted and suppressed. All body systems respond to stress to varying degrees. In most cases, stress is the main cause of various disorders of a psychological nature, the endocrine system and diseases such as stomach ulcers, hypertension, atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction.

In order to save himself in moments of danger, a person is capable of many things that he had never even thought of doing before. All your body’s resources are directed towards fighting and overcoming all obstacles.

It has been proven that minor stress is not only not harmful to the body, but even beneficial. Because they encourage you to find a way out of current difficult situations. Developing willpower and self-education will prevent stress from moving into a more serious stage - depression, and helps maintain psychological balance.

As a result

Each person has different psychophysiological characteristics. Some people can easily adapt to stress and withstand enormous loads for long periods of time. For other people, a small load can simply unsettle them, and there are also those who work with full dedication under stressful conditions. So, a penchant for self-development will help cope with stress.