CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Stress is a pervasive and insidious part of everyday life and in the work environment (Leka, Griffiths, and Cox, 2003). According to United States National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, work stress is defined as “the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, responses, or needs of the worker” (Leka et al, 2003). Work-related stress (WRS) is simply stress, which is caused or made worse by working. Job stress is a substantial and growing concern for workers, their advocates, employers, occupational health and safety regulators, and workers’ compensation programs (Ugoji, 2003). Different personality styles, gender difference, age, context, family history, emotional state, understanding of self and general social awareness will all influence each person’s stress level. Usually, the effects of stress can be categorized as: Mental, physical, behavioral, and cognitive. Among the poor signs of WRS are the poor physical and mental health of the organization employees, poor attendance and less commitment to work, less productivity, distress and irritability and lastly the organization becomes less likely to be successful in a competitive market with poor image to stakeholders.
Nursing is generally perceived as a stressful and demanding profession. There is substantial evidence that nursing is a stressful occupation, which can lead to disruptions in both psychological and physical health and can impair professional practice. There is a growing body of evidence, which validates that health care providers particularly nurses experience stress in the course of carrying out their work without exception (Rogers, 2003). Various studies have shown that nursing is a strenuous job and WRS is prevalent among nurses (Lee and Wang, 2002). The prevalence rates of stress among nursing staff vary across studies with researchers reporting rates of 29-40% in Nigeria.
Nevertheless, stress has been regarded as an occupational hazard since the mid-1950s (Kahn, Wolfe and Quinn, 2009). In fact, occupational stress has been cited as a significant health problem. Work stress in nursing was first assessed in 1960 when Menzies identified four sources of anxiety among nurses: patient care, decision making, taking responsibility, and change. The nurse’s role has long been regarded as stress-filled based upon the physical labor, human suffering, work hours, staffing, and interpersonal relationships that are central to the work nurses do. Since the mid-1980s, however, nurses’ work stress may be escalating due to the increasing use of technology, continuing rises in health care costs, and turbulence within the work environment.