Presentation on Stress

Presented by:-
Dr. Smita Choudhary
 Contents

Introduction

Types of stress

Potential sources of stress

Consequences of stress

Managing stress
 Introduction
Stress is defined as a physical, mental or emotional response to events
which cause mental or physical tension.
Stress is a part of every ones life. But it should not be greater than an
individuals capacity to handle stress.
In such a case, it will cause mental and physical imbalance in the person.

Depression is a state of low mood and aversion to activity that can

affect a person's thoughts, behaviour, feelings, and sense of well-being.

Anxiety is a general term for several disorders that cause nervousness,

fear, apprehension, and worrying.
 Types of Stress
Stress can be
1) Physical
This happens when the body suffers due to stressful situation.
Symptoms of physical stress are
Headaches
Tension in the neck, forehead and shoulder muscles
Long periods of stress can lead to
Digestive problems
Ulcers
Insomnia (lack of sleep)
Fatigue (tiredness )
High blood pressure
Nervousness
Heart problems

Stress Management 6
 Types of Stress
2) Emotional
These happens when stress affects the mind.
Symptoms of emotional stress are
Anxiety
Anger
Depression
Frustration
Over reaction to problems
Memory loss
Lack of concentration
Anxiety is response to loss, failure, or fear of the unknown.
Anger is response to frustration or social stress.
Depression is the response to upsetting events like death of a loved one, illness or failure.
 Types of Stress
3) Psychological
Stress for a long period of time may cause psychological
problems in some individuals.
Symptoms of psychological stress are
Social isolation
Phobias
Compulsive behavior
Eating disorders
Night terrors
Stress is classified into two types:
Positive stress (Eustress)
Negative stress (Distress)
A low level of stress can be handled by the body with the
help of use of resources and it includes positive emotions,
like, enjoyment, satisfaction, excitement, etc.
This beneficial part of stress is defined by Selye (1974) as
Eustress (EU means good).
Excessive stress for long period of time may first cause an
unpleasant feeling and then it may cause physical
damage, fatigue and in extreme cases, death of an
individual.
This bad part of stress is defined by Selye as distress (dys
means bad).
Positive stress (Eustress) -Moderate and manageable levels of stress for a
reasonable period of time can be handled by the body through mobilization of
resources and is accompanied by positive emotions, such as, enjoyment,
satisfaction, excitement and so on.
Negative stress (Distress)- an overload of stress resulting from a situation of
either over arousal or under arousal for long periods of time causes the
following: first an unpleasant feeling, followed by physical damage, fatigue and in
extreme cases, even death of an individual.
A Model of Stress
 Potential Sources of Stress
1) Environmental Factors
The uncertainty in environment affects stress level of
employees in an organization.
Changes in the business cycle cause economic uncertainties.
Political uncertainties may also cause stress.
Technological uncertainty may also cause stress because an
employees skills and experience may become outdated due
to new innovations.
2) Organizational factors
Pressure to avoid errors or complete tasks within a fixed
time, work overload, a demanding boss may cause stress.
Job related factors like job design, working conditions and
physical work layout may be causes of stress.
Pressure on an individual due to his role in the
organization is also a cause of stress.
Role conflict create expectations that may not be satisfied.
Role overload, i.e., working more than permitted time.
Role ambiguity is created when role expectations are not clearly
understood.
The pressure created by other employees leads to stress.
Organizational structure is also a cause of stress.
Excessive rules and lack of participation in decisions are
sources of stress.
3) Individual Factors

These are factors in employees personal life.

These include family issues, personal economic
problems, and an individuals personality.
Broken families and marriages and other family
issues may cause stress at the workplace.
Economic problems faced by individuals also
leads to stress.
A persons basic nature also affects stress. Over
suspicious, anger, enmity, mistrust increases a
persons stress and risk for heart diseases.
 4) Individual Differences

Perceptual variations of how reality will affect the individuals future

Greater job experience moderates stress effects
Social support buffers job stress
Internal locus of control lowers perceived job stress
Strong feelings of self-efficacy reduce reactions to job stress
 Consequences of Stress
Stress shows itself in three ways:
Physiological symptoms
Psychological symptoms
Behavioral symptoms
 Physiological Symptoms
Earlier stress was mainly considered as physiological symptom
because specialists in the health and medical sciences did
research on the topic.
But the physiological symptoms of stress have very little
importance to students of Organizational Behavior.
 Psychological Symptoms
Job related stress can cause job related dissatisfaction.
Job dissatisfaction is the simplest and most obvious psychological effect
of stress (Robbins, 2003).
High demands and lack of clarity about employees duties, authority and
responsibilities increase stress and dissatisfaction.
The less control people have on their speed of work, the more the stress
and dissatisfaction.
 Behavioral Symptoms
Stress symptoms related to behavior are:
Changes in productivity
Absence
Turnover
Changes in eating habits
Increased smoking or use of alcohol
Sleep disorders
Restlessness
 How Can One Manage Stress Better?
1) Become aware of the stressors and the emotional and physical reactions:
Find out what is causing distress.
Find how the body responds to the stress

2) Recognize what can be changed:

Is it possible to change the stressors?
Can their intensity be reduced?
Can the individuals exposure to
stress be reduced?
 How Can One Manage Stress Better?
3) Reduce the intensity of the emotional reactions to stress:
Stress is caused by our perception of danger: physical danger or
emotional danger.
Are we trying to please everyone?
Are we overreacting to situations?
We should try to see stress as something that we can handle rather
than something that rules us. This reduces stress internally.
4) Learning to moderate our physical reactions to stress:
Slow, deep breathing helps to bring heart rate to normal.
Relaxation techniques reduce muscle tension.
Medication also helps to regulate the physical reactions.
Individuals should learn to control these reactions on their own.
 How Can One Manage Stress Better?
5) Build our physical reserves
To remain physically fit, an individual must do exercises for fitness of the
heart like walking, swimming, cycling or jogging.
Diet should be well-balanced and nutritious.
Weight should be maintained.
Avoid nicotine, caffeine and other stimulants to reduce stress.
Do some leisure activity and take breaks from routine work to reduces stress.
Sleep should be proper.
6) Maintaining our emotional reserves
Develop friendships and share your emotions. This helps in reducing stress.
Try to achieve realistic goals and not goals set by others for you.
Expect for some frustrations, sorrows and failures in life. This helps us to
mentally prepare ourselves in handling stress.
Manage Stress before it manages you..

Stress is not necessarily something bad it all

depends on how you take it.
So Enjoy your Life as it
comes.and always be happy.
Thanks!!!