| 1. |
- Österberg, Kai, et al.
(författare)
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The Lund University Checklist for Incipient Exhaustion: a prospective validation of the onset of sustained stress and exhaustion warnings
- 2016
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Ingår i: Bmc Public Health. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2458. ; 16
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: The need for instruments that can assist in detecting the prodromal stages of stress-related exhaustion has been acknowledged. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether the Lund University Checklist for Incipient Exhaustion (LUCIE) could accurately and prospectively detect the onset of incipient exhaustion and to what extent work stressor exposure and private burdens were associated with increasing LUCIE scores. Methods: Using surveys, 1355 employees were followed for 11 quarters. Participants with prospectively elevated LUCIE scores were targeted by three algorithms entailing 4 quarters: (1) abrupt onset to a sustained Stress Warning (n = 18), (2) gradual onset to a sustained Stress Warning (n = 42), and (3) sustained Exhaustion Warning (n = 36). The targeted participants' survey reports on changes in work situation and private life during the fulfillment of any algorithm criteria were analyzed, together with the interview data. Participants untargeted by the algorithms constituted a control group (n = 745). Results: Eighty-seven percent of participants fulfilling any LUCIE algorithm criteria (LUCIE indication cases) rated a negative change in their work situation during the 4 quarters, compared to 48 % of controls. Ratings of negative changes in private life were also more common in the LUCIE indication groups than among controls (58 % vs. 29 %), but free-text commentaries revealed that almost half of the ratings in the LUCIE indication groups were due to work-to-family conflicts and health problems caused by excessive workload, assigned more properly to work-related negative changes. When excluding the themes related to work-stress-related private life compromises, negative private life changes in the LUCIE indication groups dropped from 58 to 32 %, while only a negligible drop from 29 to 26 % was observed among controls. In retrospective interviews, 79 % of the LUCIE indication participants confirmed exclusively/predominantly work stressors, while 6 % described a predominance of private life stressors. Conclusions: Negative changes in the work situation were the most prominent change related to a sustained increase in LUCIE scores. The findings seem to confirm that LUCIE is a potentially useful tool for clinical screening of incipient work-related exhaustion.
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| 2. |
- Persson, Roger, et al.
(författare)
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Two Swedish screening instruments for exhaustion disorder: cross-sectional associations with burnout, work stress, private life stress, and personality traits
- 2017
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health. - : SAGE Publications. - 1403-4948 .- 1651-1905. ; 45:4, s. 381-388
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims: To examine the relationships of two screening instruments recently developed for assessment of exhaustion disorder (ED) with some other well-known inventories intended to assess ED-related concepts and self-reports of job demands, job control, job support, private life stressors, and personality factors. Methods: A cross-sectional population sample (n = 1355) completed: the Karolinska Exhaustion Disorder Scale (KEDS), Self-reported Exhaustion Disorder Scale (s-ED), Shirom-Melamed Burnout Questionnaire (SMBQ), Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9), Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ), Big Five Inventory (BFI), and items concerning family-to-work interference and stress in private life. Results: Compared to participants without any indication of ED, participants classified as having ED on KEDS or s-ED had higher scores on all four SMBQ subscales, lower scores on the UWES-9 subscales vigor and dedication, higher JCQ job demands scores, lower JCQ job support scores, higher degrees of family-to-work interference and stress in private life, and higher BFI neuroticism and openness scores. In addition, participants classified as having ED on KEDS had lower scores on the UWES-9 absorption subscale, the JCQ job control scale, and lower BFI extraversion, agreeableness and conscientiousness scores, compared to the subgroup not classified as having ED. Conclusions: As expected, we observed an overall pattern of associations between the ED screening inventories KEDS and s-ED and measures of burnout, work engagement, job demands-control-support, stress in private life, family-to-work interference, and personality factors. The results suggest that instruments designed to assess burnout, work engagement, and ED share common ground, despite their conceptual differences.
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| 3. |
- Arvidsson, Inger, et al.
(författare)
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Should I stay or should I go? Associations between occupational factors, signs of exhaustion and the intention to change workplace among swedish principals
- 2021
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Ingår i: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. - : MDPI Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute. - 1661-7827 .- 1660-4601. ; 18:10, s. 1-20
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A high turnover among principals may disrupt the continuity of leadership and negatively affect teachers and, by extension, the students. The aim was to investigate to what extent various work environment factors and signs of exhaustion were associated with reported intentions to change workplace among principals working in compulsory schools. A web-based questionnaire was administered twice, in 2018 and in 2019. Part I of the study involved cross-sectional analyses of the associations 2018 (n = 984) and 2019 (n = 884) between occupational factors, signs of exhaustion, and the intention to change workplace, using Generalized Estimating Equations models. Part II involved 631 principals who participated in both surveys. The patterns of intended and actual changes of workplace across two years were described, together with associated changes of occupational factors and signs of exhaustion. Supportive management was associated with an intention to stay, while demanding role conflicts and the feeling of being squeezed between management and co-workers (buffer-function) were associated with the intention to change workplace. The principals who intended to change their workplace reported more signs of exhaustion. To increase retention among principals, systematic efforts are probably needed at the national, municipal, and local level, in order to improve their working conditions.
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| 4. |
- Håkansson, Carita, et al.
(författare)
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Organizational and social work environment factors, occupational balance and no or negligible stress symptoms among Swedish principals : a cross-sectional study
- 2021
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Ingår i: BMC Public Health. - : BioMed Central. - 1471-2458. ; 21:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Few studies have assessed the mental health of principals, or studied associations with both organizational and social work environment factors and occupational balance. The purpose of the present study was therefore to investigate associations between supporting and demanding organizational and social work environment factors, occupational balance and stress symptoms in principals. Methods: A total of 4309 surveys (2316 from the first round, 1992 from the second round), representing 2781 Swedish principals who had responded to at least one of two surveys, were included in the present study. The surveys include questions about socio-demographic factors, occupational balance, overtime work, and supporting and demanding organizational and social work environment factors, as well as questions about personal stress and exhaustion. Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) models were used to specify a repeated measures model with a dichotomous outcome (binary logistic regression) and multiple independent factors. Data from two surveys were combined, taking into account dependent observations due to the fact that many study subjects had participated in both surveys. Results: Associations were found between occupational balance (Q1: OR 2.52, 95% CI 2.03–3.15; Q2: OR 4.95, 95% CI 3.86–6.35; Q3: OR 9.29, 95% CI 6.99–12.34), overtime work (Once a week: OR 1.51, 95% CI 1.10–2.08; Sometimes a week: OR 1.31, 95% CI 1.03–1.66), supportive private life (OR 1.50, 95% CI 1.36–1.66), supportive colleagues at the leadership level (OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.14–1.36), supportive management (OR 1.17, 95% CI 1.07–1.28) and no or negligible stress symptoms. In addition, role demands (OR 0.72, 95% CI 0.63–0.83), having a container function (OR 0.72, 95% CI 0.64–0.82), collaboration with employees (OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.66–0.89), role conflicts (OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.66–0.89) and having a buffer function (OR 0.86, 95% CI 0.77–0.97) were associated with lower likelihood to rate no or negligible stress symptoms. Conclusions: The occupational balance of principals is strongly associated with no or negligible stress symptoms, and thus is a promising venue for promoting well-being. Improvements should be made to several factors in the organizational and social work environments to improve principals’ chances of having occupational balance, and therefore better mental health.
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| 5. |
- Persson, Roger, et al.
(författare)
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Prevalence of exhaustion symptoms and associations with school level, length of work experience and gender: a nationwide cross-sectional study of Swedish principals
- 2021
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Ingår i: BMC Public Health. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2458. ; 21:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: While poor mental health and psychiatric disorders attributed to stressful work conditions are a public health concern in many countries, the health consequences of the occupational stress experienced by school principals is an understudied issue. Although current data is lacking, some research suggests that principals have a stressful work situation that eventually may lead to burnout and exhaustion disorder, thus negatively affecting the ability of principals to function as leaders. To gauge the situation in Sweden, and as a basis for future preventive actions, we examined to what extent principals displayed signs of exhaustion and whether the prevalence rates of exhaustion differed across school levels, length of work experience as a principal, and gender.METHODS: Principals (N = 2219; mean age 49 years [SD 7 years]; 78% women) working at least 50% in pre-schools, compulsory schools, upper secondary schools or adult education completed a cross-sectional web survey entailing two validated inventories: The Karolinska Exhaustion Disorder Scale (KEDS) and the Lund University Checklist for Incipient Exhaustion (LUCIE). Data was analysed using traditional non-parametric methods. Gender stratification achieved covariate balance when analysing school level and length of work experience.RESULTS: Altogether, 29.0% of the principals met the exhaustion criteria in KEDS. The prevalence rates for the four LUCIE-steps of increasing signs of exhaustion were: no signs of stress, 48.8%; weak signs of stress, 25.6%; clear signs of stress but no exhaustion, 15.4%; possible exhaustion disorder, 10.2%. Compared with male principals, female principals reported more signs of possible exhaustion disorder in both LUCIE and KEDS. School level was not associated with reports of exhaustion symptoms in neither LUCIE nor KEDS. Among male principals, length of work experience was associated with exhaustion symptoms in KEDS.CONCLUSIONS: A large group of Swedish principals working in pre-schools, compulsory schools, upper secondary schools or adult education displayed a symptomatology of signs of exhaustion that if sustained might lead to poor health. This observation suggests that education authorities, or other relevant stakeholders, ought to take some form of preventive action. However, effective combinations of individual, group, organisational, and/or societal preventive activities remain to be identified and tested.
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| 6. |
- Persson, Roger, et al.
(författare)
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Supportive and demanding managerial circumstances and associations with excellent workability: a cross-sectional study of Swedish school principals
- 2021
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Ingår i: BMC psychology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2050-7283. ; 9:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BackgroundThe leadership of principals is important for school, teacher and student related outcomes. To be capable of doing their work (i.e., having sufficient workability), school principals need proper organisational preconditions, motivation, and good health. It is therefore concerning that some studies suggest that principals have a work situation that risks taxing their health and reducing their workability. However, few studies have examined the psychosocial working conditions of principals and no study has gauged principals’ workability. Accordingly, we decided to examine Swedish principals’ workability and their perceptions of eight demanding and five supportive managerial circumstances as well as the associations between managerial circumstances and reports of excellent workability.MethodsThe participants comprised 2219 Swedish principals (78% women) who completed a cross-sectional web survey in 2018. A brief version of the Gothenburg Manager Stress Inventory (GMSI-Mini) gauged managerial circumstances. Workability was assessed with the workability score (0–10; WAS). Unadjusted and adjusted logistic regression analyses were used to examine associations between managerial circumstances and reports of excellent workability (WAS ≥ 9). Covariates were: length of work experience as a principal, school level, self-rated health, and general self-efficacy.ResultsThe results showed that circa 30% of the principals reported excellent workability. The GMSI-Mini results showed that role conflicts, resource deficits, and having to harbour co-workers’ frustrations were the most frequently encountered managerial demands. Meanwhile, cooperating co-workers, supportive manager colleagues, and a supportive private life were the most supportive managerial circumstances. Adjusted logistic regression analyses showed that role conflicts and role demands were associated with an increased likelihood of reporting less than excellent workability. In contrast, supportive managerial colleagues, a supportive private life and supportive organisational structures were associated with an increased likelihood of reporting excellent workability.ConclusionCirca 30% of the participating principals perceived their workability to be excellent. Reducing role demands, clarifying the principals’ areas of responsibility and accountability in relation to other actors in the governing chain (role conflicts), striving for increased role clarity, and striving to find ways to separate work and private life, seem to be promising intervention areas if increasing principals’ workability is desired.
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| 7. |
- Carlsson, Frida, et al.
(författare)
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Salivary cortisol and self-reported stress among persons with environmental annoyance
- 2006
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Ingår i: Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment and Health. - 0355-3140. ; 32:2, s. 20-109
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVES: Increased vulnerability to stress has been suggested as a possible mechanism behind medically unexplained conditions such as sensitivity to electricity and common smells. This study examined whether subjective environmental annoyance among the general population is associated with increased physiological reactivity or subjective stress scores.METHODS: Four groups were studied (N=141): an electrically annoyed (N=17), a smell-annoyed (N=29), and a generally annoyed group (N=39) and a reference group matched for age, gender, and socioeconomic status (N=56). Over 5 days, the participants collected saliva for cortisol determination at awakening, 30 minutes after awakening, 8 hours after awakening, and at 9 o'clock in the evening. On the evening preceding the fifth day, the participants ingested a 0.5-mg dexamethasone tablet so that possible differential suppression of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis could be assessed. Each day, the participants also rated their subjective stress and health complaints.RESULTS: No significant differences were found between the groups regarding cortisol secretion over 5 days. The dexamethasone suppression test showed inhibited cortisol secretion in all four groups. No associations were found between the cortisol concentrations and the self-reported stress scores or subjective health complaints.CONCLUSIONS: Although the environmentally annoyed groups showed no signs of increased HPA-axis activation, being annoyed by both electrical devices and smells seems to be related to increased psychological activation in terms of self-reported stress. Because the participants were otherwise healthy and recruited from the general population, the results imply that subtle psychological stress processes may be important in the early development of environmental annoyance.
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| 8. |
- Carter, N, et al.
(författare)
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EUROQUEST - A questionnaire for solvent related symptoms: Factor structure, item analysis and predictive validity
- 2002
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Ingår i: NeuroToxicology. - 1872-9711 .- 0161-813X. ; 23:6, s. 711-717
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The study evaluates the factor structure and predictive validity of the symptom questionnaire EUROQUEST (EQ) that had been developed with the goal of simplifying the evaluation of health effects associated with long-term solvent exposure. The EQ was added to the normal evaluation procedures for 118 male patients with suspected solvent-induced toxic encephalopathy (TE) referred to seven Swedish clinics of occupational medicine during an 18-month period. EQ was also completed by 239 males from a random sample of 400 Swedish males aged 25-64 years selected from the general population and a sample of 559 occupationally active male spray painters aged 25-64 years. Factor and item analyses of EQ responses were performed. Ordinary least square regression analysis was used to evaluate sensitivity and correlation to evaluate the specificity of EQ and the separate components. Questions concerning memory and concentration symptoms alone showed better sensitivity than the other five EQ dimensions singly or combined for the entire EQ and for a subset of questions approximating Q16, a widely used organic solvent symptom screening questionnaire. However, the diagnosis of TE required information in addition to exposure and responses to EQ and Q16-like questions. The results indicate that the subset of EQ questions concerning memory and concentration might replace the more cumbersome EQ and less sensitive Q16 in screening for TE, although none of the screening instruments alone replaces current clinical diagnostic procedures. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.
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