Review of Related Literature of Stress

Stress has been defined in different ways by different people. The business person may define stress as frustration or emotional tension; the air traffic controller may define it as a problem of alertness and concentration, while the biochemist may define stress as a purely chemical event (Ivancevich and Mattenson, 1990). Psychologists and biologists think of stress as any strain that interrupt the functioning of an organism (The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2007). Medical professionals think of stress as a factor that causes tension and disease (Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 2003).

From a layperson’s perspective, stress can be defined as feeling tense, pressure, and worry (Ivancevich, Konopaske and Mattenson, 2008). However, Selye (1956), a pioneering expert on the study of stress, defined stress as “the rate of wear and tear within the body at any one time because this is the immediate nonspecific result of function and damage” (p. 55). Bunge (1989), on the other hand, defined stress as “a person’s psychological and physiological response to the perception of a demand or challenge” (p. 93).

According to Decenzo and Robbins (1999, p. 438), “stress is a dynamic condition in which an individual is confronted with an opportunity, constraint or demand, related to what he or she desires and for which the outcome is perceived to be both uncertain and important”. Ivancevich, Konopaske and Mattenson (2008), defined stress as“an adaptive response, moderated by individual differences that is a consequence of any action, situation or event that places special demands on a person” (p. 224).

According to the Dictionary of Psychology by Ray Corsini (2002), performance is an “activity or behaviour that leads to a result such as a change in the environment”. In relation to job, Jamal (1984) defined performance as “an activity in which an individual is able to accomplish successfully the task/goal assigned to him, subject to normal constraint of the reasonable utilisation of available resources”

Studying stress is important to make the organizations aware that they have a moral and legal obligation to provide a work environment in which stress is kept to manageable levels (Jex, 1998). Being aware on the extent of stress in the library workplace, library administrators could design a necessary preventive technique for their staff to deal with stress.

This can help the library staff to cope positively with different stressors in their workplace which may result in better performance and high level of well being. On the other hand, policy makers could formulate a guideline which is not too complex so that employees can follow them effectively without being stress.

Read more: http://www.ukessays.com/essays/psychology/review-of-related-literature-psychology-essay.php#ixzz2MmhA1Dgf http://www.ukessays.com/essays/psychology/review-of-related-literature-psychology-essay.php Literature Review for Nursing Stress Interventions

By Christine Ross
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Stress is a well-known and identified problem within the nursing profession. According to Atkinson stress occurs when one is faced with events or encounters that they perceive as an endangerment to their physical or psychological well being (as sited in McGowan, 2001). Additionally stress levels will increase when controllability and predictability in a situation decrease. There is an inverse relationship between stress and job satisfaction, as stress goes up, job satisfaction falls. As a result this increased stress could commonly results in decreased job satisfaction and decreased quality of life.

This could potentially contribute to nurses leaving the profession and as an end consequence, account for the current nursing shortage. The cause of stress for nurses has found to be related to the nature of the profession. Included in these stressors are an intense work environment with extended work hours, weekends, night and holidays. According to Ruggiero (2003) stress could be related to variables of shift work, which is both physically and mentally taxing. This study also found varying degrees of depression in nurses ranging from mild to severe.

Finally this study revealed that nurses were indifferent and disconnected to the job by feeling neither satisfied nor unsatisfied with the work. Results such as these expose how large a problem stress is for the profession of nursing. Factors of the intense emotional support that is needed for the patient and family is yet another burden of stress placed on nurse. In addition, exposures to pain, suffering and traumatic life events that the nurse experience on a daily basis can contribute to stress (Cohen-Katz, Capuano, Baker, & Shapiro, 2005).

These concerns can lead to emotional exhaustion for nurses. The lack of organizational support and involvement, which are outside of the control of nurses can greatly affect job satisfaction (McGowan, 2001). There is also a lack of control and power in an environment predominantly controlled by physicians. These stressors can contribute to psychological exhaustion and increased stress.

There were also illustrations comparing different styles of management and how nursing stress is affected. Magnet organizations were compared with traditional organization (Upenieks, 2003). The results of this particular study did prove that positive and supportive administration could make a difference in the levels of stress but again no specific stress intervention measures were used There is a clear recognition and acknowledgement of the problem of stress in nursing but there is a significant lack of information that actually addressed the problem with potential positive interventions.

References
Bormann, J. E., Becker, S., Gershwin, M., Kelly, A., Pada, L., & Smith, T. L. et al. (2006). Relationship of frequent mantram repetition to emotional and spiritual well-being in healthcare workers. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 37(5), 218-224. Retrieved October 3, 2006, from Ovid data base Bost, N., & Wallis, M. (2006). The effectiveness of a 15 minute weekly massage in reducing physical and psychological stress in nurses. Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing, 23(4), 28-33. Retrieved September 6, 2006, from Ovid data base Cohen-Katz, J., Capuano, T., Baker, D. M., & Shapiro, S. (2005). The effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction on nurse stress and burnout, part II. Holistic Nursing Practice, , 26-35. Retrieved September 27, 2006, from Ovid data base Haraway, D. L.,