Managerial leadership is associated with employee stress, health, and sickness absence independently of the demand-control-support model.

• Objectives: Research on health effects of managerial leadership has only taken established work environment factors into account to a limited extent. We therefore investigated the associations between a measure of Attentive Managerial Leadership (AML), and perceived stress, age-relative self-rated health, and sickness absence due to overstrain/fatigue, adjusting for the dimensions of the Demand-Control-Support model. Participants: Blue- and white-collar workers from Finland, Germany and Sweden employed in a multi-national forest industry company (N=12,622). Methods: Cross-sectional data on leadership and health from a company-wide survey analysed with logistic regression in different subgroups. Results: AML was associated with perceived stress, age-relative self-rated health, and sickness absence due to overstrain/fatigue after controlling for the Demand-Control-Support model. Lack of AML was significantly associated with a high stress level in all subgroups (OR=1.68-2.67). Associations with age-relative self-rated health and sickness absence due to overstrain/fatigue were weaker, but still significant, and in the expected direction for several of the subgroups studied, suggesting an association between lack of AML and negative health consequences. Conclusion: The study indicates that managerial leadership is associated with employee stress, health, and sickness absence independently of the Demand-Control-Support model and should be considered in future studies of health consequences for employees, and in work environment interventions.

Nyckelord

Demands

control

social support

stress

self-rated health

MEDICINE

MEDICIN

Publikations- och innehållstyp

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