Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Employee Perceptions Of Stressors At Work: An Attachment Perspective, Emma Josephine Naudet

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The current study applied an attachment perspective to elucidate how individuals appraise stressors at work. Attachment theory proposes that individuals’ interactions with a caregiver shape their expectations and beliefs about the world, themselves, and others and predict how individuals behave. Attachment at work is a budding research topic because it informs the social aspect of work relationships, such as the leader-subordinate dyad. However, few studies have explored the potential of attachment security as a job resource. Our findings demonstrated strong support for our predictions about the relationship between transformational leadership, employee perceptions of demands and resources, and the potential explanatory …

Examining The Buffering Effect Of Mindfulness On The Relationship Between Stress And Ethical Decision Making, Irina Kuzmich

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Poor ethical decision making is an issue in many modern-day organizations. Academic research and the popular press have shown that failures in ethical decision making have resulted in harm to organizations, their employees, and the societies in which they exist. While there is much research into what may impact ethical decision making, this paper examined the effects of two understudied factors, stress and mindfulness, within a self-regulatory framework. A 2x2 experimental design with undergraduate student participants was used in which each participant was randomly assigned to a mindfulness training condition and a stress condition. Trait mindfulness was also measured as …

Stress And Its Interventions In Undergraduate College Students During Covid-19, Katie A. Jones

MSU Graduate Theses

Though stress in postsecondary education is a highly researched topic, the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic has created many new questions that require answers. It is important to connect total perceived stress in undergraduate students with academic, COVID-19, and distance-learning factors and examine the effectiveness of interventions on stress and anxiety during the pandemic. This research determines the efficacy of mindfulness stress interventions (cognitive-behavioral, guided meditation, and music) for individual differences in stress, self- efficacy, and anxiety and links these variables to performance. This study measures levels of different types of stress (total perceived, distance-learning, academic, and COVID-19) for undergraduate …

Stress Among Ncaa Division Ii Head Coaches, Dee Gerlach

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this quantitative study was to identify factors that create stress among head coaches at the National Association Athletic Association Division II level. Data was collected through a demographic questionnaire and the Coaching Issues Survey (CIS), a tool used to measure specific factors that may create stress among coaches. The factors of the CIS include four subscales: Athlete-Concerns, Time-Role, Program-Success, and Win-Loss. Participants (N=416) consisted of head coaches representing the following sports: baseball, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, men’s golf, women’s golf, men’s and women’s golf, softball, women’s tennis, and men’s and women’s tennis. The independent variables for this …

Assessment Of Perceived Levels Of Stress And Coping Mechanism Use Among Elementary School Teachers, Lauren Larson

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The teaching profession is known to be highly stressful. Teacher stress is a real concern as there is a well-established link between job stress, burnout, and teacher attrition. Teacher attrition rates are currently at concerning levels in the United States and around the world. A cross-sectional, correlational study design was used to assess the relationship between perceived levels of stress and coping mechanism use among elementary school teachers. Participants consisted of a convenience sample of 420 public elementary school teachers in Minnesota. A 48-item survey which included the Perceived Stress Scale and Brief COPE was used to measure perceived levels …

Developing A Nomological Network To Incorporate Learned Helplessness Into Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Nicholas Kovacs

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Employees are facing personal traumas, higher stress, and work pressures that are likely to result in both short- and long-term impacts. To mitigate these negative impacts, organizations should focus on applying research related to employees’ responses to trauma and stress. Learned helplessness, which is well-established within clinical psychology and less established within the industrial-organizational literature, occurs as a direct response to perceived control over trauma and could thus relate to the ability to overcome trauma. In relation to control-related constructs, industrial-organizational researchers have focused on resilience, hardiness, and work locus of control (LOC). However, each of these constructs account for …

Restortive Effects Of Meditation Apps, Kyle Hart

Honors Undergraduate Theses

We have investigated two different smartphone meditation apps to determine if they have any effects on stress and check if they are a viable tool that users can engage with to cope with stress during a work break. The dependent variables being measured include affective and cognitive restoration. The control group performed a coloring activity using a mandala figure. The experimental conditions engaged in app guided meditation through either 10% Happier or Calm. Both are health apps that are intended to help users practice a variety of mindfulness meditation exercises and help build healthy habits. This research focused on a …

Effort Reward Imbalance In The Nursing Profession - A Novel Way Of Gathering Data, Dorailys Fagundo

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The effort-reward imbalance model allows us to see disparity in effort and reward and how this can be a predictor for a variety of constructs. The present study seeks to gather data utilizing the ERI modal in the nursing profession. Previous research has utilized the ERI model but methods for gathering data were not quick and efficient. This study seeks to utilize a database called Glassdoor to rapidly and effectively gather data. The researchers are interested in seeing the likelihood of nurses to recommend their company to a friend based on perceived effort and rewards. The sample included a random …

Exploring The Relationships Of Email Overload, Stress And Burnout In Social Workers, Lisa M. Lowrie

Social Work Doctoral Dissertations

Technostress is the inability to cope with information and communication technology which may result in stress and burnout. Email overload, stress, and burnout among social workers is a phenomenon that may impact retention in social and human service organizations. This mixed methods design uses the transactional theory of stress as the theoretical framework for measuring the relationship of email overload (email invasion, email volume, and email rapid response extraction) to stress and burnout in the social work workforce. This dissertation also explores the generational cohort, gender, and social work degree as predictors of email overload. Participants in this study were …

The Moderating Role Of Culture In The Job Demands-Resources Model, James A. De Leon

Doctoral Dissertations

During the past few decades, occupational health researchers have examined the effects of work characteristics on job stress and employee wellbeing (Beehr & Franz, 1987; Caulfield, Chang, Dollard, & Elshaug, 2004; Jex, 1998; Jex & Britt, 2014; Schaufeli & Greenglass, 2001; Sparks, Faragher, & Cooper, 2001). With the help of the Job Demands-Resources model (JD-R model; Bakker & Demerouti, 2007; Bakker, Demerouti, & Schaufeli, 2003; Demerouti, Bakker, de Jonge, Janssen, & Schaufeli, 2001; Schaufeli & Bakker, 2004), researchers have been able to examine the impact of jobspecific work characteristics (demands and resources) on employee wellbeing. The work processes outlined in …

The Impact Of Stress On Resilience: Examining The Moderated Effects Of A Savoring Intervention, Hannah L. Newman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Resilience is characterized by the ability to bounce back from stress (Bonanno, 2004; Ong et al., 2006; Smith et al., 2008). Research suggests resilience is a personal resource that helps individuals effectively cope with stress and provides protection from negative outcomes (Loh, Schutte, & Thorsteinsson, 2013). Exposure to stress is a prerequisite to building resilience across many different contexts (Graber et al., 2015; Hennessey & Levine, 1979; Rutter, 2006). Interestingly, a high accumulation of stress detracts from an individual’s abilities to build resilience (Ong et al., 2006; Tuguade & Frederickson, 2007). However, it is unknown what types of interventions explicitly …

Mindfulness As A Vigilance Intervention: Examining Its Impact On Stress And Mental Demand, Kelli Huber

Dissertations

Occupations involving vigilance performance (i.e., sustained attention in monitoring for rare environmental threats) are known to experience vigilance decrement, a decline in performance over time. These occupations are known to be cognitively and emotionally challenging, giving rise to harmful effects for employees in them and presenting safety implications for the welfare of others. The current study investigated mindfulness as a potentially viable intervention to alleviate outcomes of vigilance demands: stress and mental demand. A mindfulness induction was compared to an unfocused control condition in which both were administered during a break from a vigilance task, specifically, a baggage screening task. …

Exploring The Influence Of Meditation Experience On Stress Responses And Empathy: The Mediating Role Of Self-Expansion, Jennifer N. Baumgartner

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The purpose of the present research was to examine the influence of meditation experience on biopsychosocial responses to stress, empathy, and sense of self. An expanded sense of self was examined as a pathway through which meditation experience influences appraisals, affect, and empathy. It was expected that meditation experience would predict greater challenge stressor appraisals in response to an acute psychosocial stressor and associated affective, behavioral, and psychophysiological stress outcomes. In addition, it was expected that greater meditation experience would predict higher trait empathy and empathic accuracy. Participants (N = 110) included experienced meditators from a variety of practices and …

Understanding Workplace Incivility Experiences And The Moderating Role Of Mindfulness, Rima C. Tarraf

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Rude treatment at work can lead to many negative consequences, as evidenced by the wealth of research available. This dissertation, addressed two important questions that have yet to receive adequate attention. First, how does an employee experience incivility, and second, what is a practical and cost-effective way of mitigating the negative outcomes associated with incivility and promoting positive ones? Incivility research has mainly employed quantitative methods to understand incivility experiences. Using qualitative methods however, would complement the knowledge and potentially move the field of inquiry in new directions. As such, the goal of Study One was to obtain a narrative …

The Phenomenon Of Teacher Burnout: Mitigating Its Influence On New Teachers, Kaila Sanford

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

Burnout is a psychological condition with physical, emotional, and mental dimensions. Burnout often includes feelings of exhaustion, long-term fatigue, negative self-concept, despair or hopelessness, frustration, and a lack of productivity at work.

Teacher burnout is a well-known and researched field. It has been documented in the literature that teachers experience high levels of stress and emotional exhaustion, which leads to high levels of burnout and professional attrition. This study examined the incidence of burnout in new elementary school teachers and offered recommendations for changes to organizational structure that may reduce professional burnout.

For the purpose of this study five new …

Quality Of Life And Sources Of Stress In Teachers: A Canadian Perspective, Jessica R. Danilewitz

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Previous research has reported that teaching is one of the most stressful occupations in the world. The present study examined the experience of teachers’ Quality of Life (QOL) and stress, and the relationship between QOL and the source (home life, work-life, or work-life balance) of stress in Canadian teachers. Data for the study was obtained from a comprehensive online survey of female full-time elementary and secondary school teachers across Canada (n = 227). Results demonstrated that all QOL scale scores were lower in the present study, as compared to previously published community sample literature. Of the three sources of stress, …

Effect Of Psychological Capital On Elementary Teacher Stress And Workplace Affect, Scott Stephen Casad

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

Calling upon principles of positive psychology, the quantitative study used structural equation modeling (SEM) to explore the relationships between teacher psychological capital (PsyCap), role ambiguity, role conflict, role overload, workplace stress, job satisfaction, job commitment, and intention to quit. Valid and reliable instruments from the literature were incorporated into a 64-item survey and distributed to 830 third through fifth grade teachers at seven northern Virginia school districts. In total, 225 complete responses were received. SEM testing rejected the exact-fit hypotheses and revealed insufficient overall fit between the study data and hypothesized models; thereby, providing no support for the proposed causal …

Career Decision Status, Career-Related Thinking, And Emotional Distress: A Structural Equation Model, Lindsey Marie Andrews

Dissertations

The choosing of a college major or occupation is an important decision with which many individuals struggle. Prior research has suggested that difficulty choosing a major or occupation affects a majority of students entering college and stems from multiple sources including lack of information, insufficient learning experiences, and ineffective decision-making processes. Cognitive-behavioral theory has shown utility in working with a diverse set of difficulties and with diverse populations through the examination of the influence of thoughts and emotions on resulting behavior. Research in the career literature has begun to emphasize connections between one’s thoughts and emotions in regards to career …

Workload Transitions And Stress: Changes Over Time, Erik G. Prytz

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Workload transitions are situations where operators are suddenly confronted with levels of workload substantially different from previously established levels. Workload transitions may affect the operators' state of stress and coping behaviors but previous research has not conclusively demonstrated the nature of those. The first goal of the current work was to investigate the discrepant findings of the previous literature. Two experiments were conducted where participants were asked to perform a digit detection task that suddenly shifted between low and high event rates (i.e., low and high workload, respectively). The first experiment used a large magnitude transition that resulted in a …

The Roles Of Social Support And Job Meaningfulness In The Disturbing Media Exposure-Job Strain Relationship, Hung T. Hoang

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This study examined the relationship between exposure to disturbing media and a number of strain outcomes. Past research suggests that individuals exposed to disturbing media report symptoms of secondary traumatic stress and burnout (Perez, Jones, Englert, & Sachau, 2010). This relationship was further explored in the current study. Additionally, the current study explored the roles of social support and job meaningfulness in the work place, as past research suggests that support and meaningfulness may help to mitigate the negative outcomes typically found among workers exposed to traumatic stressors (Britt, Adler, & Barton, 2001; Halbesleben, 2006; Morales, 2012; Stephens & Long, …

Challenge Accepted: Self-Enhancement Through The Pursuit Of Difficulty, Julie Anne Steinke

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Individual resilience is popular topic whereby researchers attempt to identify characteristics of individuals who react positively to stress. However, such research uses a reactionary approach, attempting to characterize successful individuals after they experience adversity and does not explain why some individuals proactively seek out challenging circumstances. Pursuing challenge is a new construct that explains why individuals proactively increase stress as a strategic mechanism for developmental purposes. I developed and validated a measurement tool for pursuing challenge in multiple studies. Additionally, I explored relationships between pursuing challenge and similar constructs (e.g., grit, proactive personality, and self-efficacy), as well as the extent …

Impact Of Binaural Beat Technology On Vigilance Task Performance, Psychological Stress And Mental Workload, Elizabeth Ann Shoda

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Currently, there is only one published study examining the impact of binaural beats on the performance of a laboratory vigilance task, however this study had mixed results and left many questions unanswered. I further examined this phenomenon by using a successive vigilance task, between-subjects design, and a control condition to determine whether beta frequency binaural beats could affect vigilance performance over time and across conditions. I hypothesized that participants listening to beta binaural beats would have more hits and fewer misses on the vigilance task than participants in the control condition. In addition, I hypothesized that participants listening to beta …

Coping Experiences Of 911 Communication Workers, Sarah G. Horsford

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This research explored coping experiences among emergency communications personnel. Ten individuals from a communication centre of a policing unit in Ontario participated in semi-structured interviews. Seven themes emerged to form the content analysis including Meaning-Focused Coping, Emotion-Focused Coping, Problem-Focused Coping, Reappraisal, Comm Centre Culture, Occupational Dimensions and Organizational Structure. Themes were compared to workplace stress, coping and burnout literature in addition to literature regarding organizational interventions and emergency responders. Implications were presented for counselors working with communications personnel and emergency responders.

Team Coordination As A Mediator Of Stress Appraisals And Team Performance, Gaea Megan Payton

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Threat stress appraisals can negatively affect individuals by decreasing performance (Gildea, Schneider, & Shebilske, 2007). Performance is also influenced by a team's ability to coordinate tasks (Entin & Serfaty, 1999). This study investigated the link between team stressor appraisals, coordination, and performance. Using a simulated team environment, teams were evaluated on their perceived stress appraisals, coordination as indicated through instant messaging, and team performance. Findings showed that team stressor appraisals were marginally related to coordination and significantly related to performance. Coordination was related to team performance. Further research should be performed using varied levels of a stressful scenario to evaluate …

Work-Life Role Integration: A Construct Validation Study, Tonya Alicia Miller

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Two studies were conducted to define and validate the theoretical construct, role integration. Study 1 focused on producing a theoretical definition and a psychometrically sound measure. Content, convergent, and discriminant validity evidence was collected. Study 2 provided further validity evidence for the role integration construct by testing a conceptual model and refining the role integration measure. Study 1 and Study 2 established a psychometrically sound 12-item, two-factor role integration measure. The first factor focused on knowledge, skills, and experiences (KSE). The second factor focused on values, beliefs, and attitudes (VBA).

The conceptual model in Study 2 added the role integration …

The Effects Of Life Stress And Risk-Taking Style On Risk Perception And Driver Performance, Christine B. Philput

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

This study examined the effects of risk-taking style, stress level, and highway environment on driver performance. In Phase I, 50 subjects were assessed for risk-taking style and stress level. In Phase II, the same subjects were presented with slides of traffic situations that varied in terms of risk of accident. This was a paired comparison task in which they rank-ordered ten highway sites, producing a measure of subjective risk. No significant relationships were identified between these subjective risk judgments and objective data regarding those sites (accidents and fatalities), though this is most likely due to problems with the slide presentation. …

The Effects Of Environmental Stress On Financial Planning For Retirement, Gerald Lee Gamache

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

During the past several decades vast changes have occurred in the labor market. Unusually high unemployment rates, changes in labor force composition and the migration of workers to new industries, are typical topics of concern. This study deals with the development of a model to explain the consequences of environmental stress and psychological strain on retirement financial planning behaviors, an area of investigation which has received little or no attention in the literature, but in which as much importance portends as the traditional topics of concern. Several measures of environmental stress, psychological strain and measures of coping behaviors are developed …