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Organizational Behaviour

Organizational Behavior Assignment

By
ROHAN PHADNIS
1075
BBA First year
Section B

Stress
Understanding and dealing with stress
What is Stress?
Stress has been defined as 'your response to an inappropriate level of pressure'. This is a significant definition in two respects. First, it refers to your response rather than the actual pressure itself. This means that stress has a subjective dimension to it. It will be different for different people. Second, it refers to an inappropriate level of pressure rather than simply too much pressure. This is because, at times, too little pressure or stimulation in our lives can also lead to stress.
Some people use the term stress very loosely to refer to any form of pressure. However, this can be misleading as it fails to recognise that stress can do enormous harm to people, while pressure is a neutral term in the sense that it can do good (as a source of stimulation, motivation and interest). It can also be very negative (leading to physical and mental health difficulties, problems in relationships or work quality, and so on). We, therefore, prefer to reserve the term stress for harmful forms of pressure and people's reactions to them.
It is also important to be clear that stress is not necessarily the sign of an inadequate or incompetent individual. Stress is a very complex psychological, social and organisational matter and not simply an issue of personal pathology. If we do not recognise this, we can create a vicious circle in which persons experiencing stress can be reluctant to raise the issue and seek help for fear of being labelled. This, in turn, can lead to a situation of increased pressure, but with little or no support, thus making the experience of stress worse.
Organisations have responsibility under health and safety legislation to ensure that their staff are protected from undue hazards - and this includes stress. As with other health and safety matters, both employer and employee share...