High-Pressure Jobs Not Always The Worst

The least productive and most unhappy workers are those who feel threatened, frustrated by a lack of resources to do their job well and have no sense of how it benefits others, psychologists say.

Even in mega-stress jobs, bosses can motivate workers to give their best, according to new research to be presented at the American Psychological Association meeting in Washington, D.C.

"You need to know your work is making a difference, and for whom," says Adam Grant of the University of Michigan. Firefighters who say they're motivated to work by economic need or excitement are much less satisfied than those who say they're driven by making a difference in people's lives, Grant says.

Personal contact with beneficiaries seems to make people happier and boost performance. Cafeteria line workers are significantly happier than those who do "back kitchen" tasks, Grant's studies show. Line workers like to see the happy customers, who are missed by those in the back.

In another study, he invited a scholarship student to spend 10 minutes telling university fundraising solicitors about his life. Another group only saw a letter from the student. And a third just kept making phone calls as usual. In the next month, those who met the student raised about twice as much money as the other two groups.

In other reports to be presented at the meeting:

• Workers who exercise vigorously are most committed to their jobs. But most of this benefit disappears if employees feel hamstrung by too little resources or training or by uncooperative co-workers. Feeling threatened or harassed also greatly reduces the boost of exercise, says study leader Christopher Cunningham of Bowling Green State University.

• Feelings of hope about achieving job-related goals correlate with good worker health, says Bret Simmons of North Dakota State University.

• In the military, high morale is linked to a feeling among soldiers that they're doing meaningful work and have confidence in fellow soldiers and leaders, says Clemson University's Thomas Britt, who studied peacekeepers in Kosovo.

More articles related to Stress

Reference Source 129
August 22, 2005

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