Stress Management Intervention based on the Effort-Reward Imbalance Model
Author(s): B. Aust, R. Peter, & J. Siegrist Country: Germany
Is the intervention sector specific?	No
Is the intervention usable with different enterprise sizes?	Yes
Is the intervention equally applicable to both genders?	Yes
Is the intervention based on theory?	Yes
Can the intervention approach be adapted/ tailored?	Yes
Does the intervention promote CSR and how?	The intervention was not explicitly linked to responsible business practices although it does promote employee well-being.
Does the intervention promote social dialogue and how?	Social dialogue was not a key component of this intervention.
Overview (including risk assessment and law – legal requirements etc.): An intervention based on a well-established theory of stress (the effort-reward imbalance model; Siegrist, 1996 ) was developed to educate and train bus drivers in stress management; with the overall objective of decreasing the stress-related illness found in bus drivers.
Implementation: The theory-guided intervention programme was tailored to meet the specific needs of the target group: urban bus drivers. The intervention consists of 12 group sessions (one session per week). Each group was guided by (an) expert(s) with extensive group experience: either a clinical psychologist and/or sociologist. There were two aspects to the stress management intervention: the first part was directed at the individual level and it combined different elements (e.g., progressive muscular relaxation, self-observation, and perception of arousal, coping with anger and self-assertiveness with reduction of overcommitted work-related attitudes and behaviours, high need for control); (b) the second part of the programme addressed adverse job characteristics in terms of workload and occupational rewards, and stimulated the development of suggestions for structural changes by employees; which were subsequently dicussed with upper level management.1. Following the intervention, the occupational health and safety department were primarily responsible for their implementation.
Practical applications: This intervention is an adaptable approach which has been implemented successfully within both the public sector and the healthcare sector. This approach has been used predominantly within medium to large sized organisations, and has not been implemented in smaller sized enterprises. The implementation of the stress management programme requires a trained professional to faciliate its implementation.
Innovative aspects: The intervention and its main components were underpinned by theory; specifically based on a well-established and tested theory of stress (effort-reward imbalance theory).
Evaluation (including process issues, outcomes and sustainability): This stress management intervention was evaluated comparing the participating intervention group with a comparison group; a group of employees who chose not to participate in the intervention. Measurements were taken pre-intervention, post-intervention and three months following. Two types of standardized measures were applied, first those related to an evaluation of the programme (for example, employee participation, satisfaction with programme, and perceived benefits) and secondly, those related to defined outcome criteria: coping behaviour and overall mood and symptoms.
Benefits (including cost effectiveness): The evaluation of the effectiveness of the intervention demonstrated beneficial effects on psychological outcomes; most notably, on critical coping behaviour (need for control).This significant reduction was found to remain stable for 3 months following the completion of the intervention. An observed positive trend toward improvements in mood and symptoms was observed. Subjective measurements of the evaluation of the programme by participants were all positive.
References: Aust, B., Peter, R., & Siegrist, J. (1997). Stress management in bus drivers: A pilot study based on the model of effort-reward imbalance. International Journal of Stress Management, 4 (4), 297-305. Siegrist, J. (1996). Adverse health effects of high effort—low reward conditions at work. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 1, 27-43. Siegrist, J., (1998). Adverse health effects of effort-reward imbalance at work: theory, empirical support and implications for prevention. In C.L. Cooper. (Ed.), Theories of Organizational Stress. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 190- 204. Siegrst, J., Starke, D., Chandola, T., Godin, I., Marmot, M., Niedhammer, I, & Peter, R. (2004). The measurement of effort–reward imbalance at work: European comparisons. Social Science & Medicine, 58, 1483-1499.
Comments: In view of the relatively low costs of the programme this approach may appeal to companies with a high proportion of highly stressed employees, as is the case with inner-city professional drivers; as noted by one of the intervention authors. This internveiton can be classifed as both a secondary and primary level intervention; as it contains elements directly at both the individual (namely stresss managment), and job re-design work organisation. However, only the stress management component was systemically evaluated; therefore it is detailed and outlined herein.