Higher stress A SURVEY OF STRESS AND WELL-BEING AMONG STAFF IN AIGHER EDUCATION GAIL KINMAN and SIOBHAN WRAY JULY 2013 UCU University and College Union
GAIL KINMAN and SIOBHAN WRAY JULY 2013 Higher stress A SURVEYOF STRESS AND WELL-BEING AMONG STAFF IN HIGHEREDUCATION
Contents Summary 3 Introduction Findings 1 Biographical information 11 2 Responses to HSE stress questionnaire 12 Demands 12 Control 15 Manager's support 18 Peer support 20 Relationships 22 Role 24 Change 26 3 Overall perceptions of stress 28 4 Work-life balance and stress 30 5 Sickness absence 32 Differences between groups 33 7 Conclusion 34 Endnote:Tackling occupational stress 36 References 37 Appendix:The questionnaire 39 Dr Gail Kinman is Professor of Occupational Health Psychology at the University of Bedfordshire. Siobhan Wray is a PhD Researcher at the University of Bedfordshire. University and College Union(UCU) is the largest trade union and professional association for academics,lecturers trainers,researchers and academic-related staff working in further and higher education throughout the UK. www.ucu.org.uk
Summary 3 Introduction 5 Findings 1 Biographical information 11 2 Responses to HSE stress questionnaire 12 Demands 12 Control 15 Manager's support 18 Peer support 20 Relationships 22 Role 24 Change 26 3 Overall perceptions of stress 28 4 Work-life balance and stress 30 5 Sickness absence 32 6 Differences between groups 33 7 Conclusion 34 Endnote: Tackling occupational stress 36 References 37 Appendix: The questionnaire 39 Dr Gail Kinman is Professor of Occupational Health Psychology at the University of Bedfordshire. Siobhan Wray is a PhD Researcher at the University of Bedfordshire. University and College Union (UCU) is the largest trade union and professional association for academics, lecturers, trainers, researchers and academic-related staff working in further and higher education throughout the UK. www.ucu.org.uk Contents
Summary Nearly three-quarters of the sample agreed or strongly agreed with the statement'I find my job stressful'.More than half indicated that their general level of stress was high or very high,and more than one third said they often or always experienced levels of stress they found unacceptable. Only 2%of the sample reported that they never experienced unacceptable levels of stress at work. Findings indicate that levels of perceived stress remain high in the higher education sector.In the present survey,the proportion of respondents from higher education who agreed or strongly agreed with the statement'I find my job stressful'was one percentage point lower than that found in a national survey of the sector conducted in 2008. Working hours remain high in higher education.More than three-quarters of respondents employed on a full-time contract worked over 40 hours a week, and more than one third in excess of 50 hours a week.More than one quarter of the respondents from higher education exceeded the 48 hour maximum number of working hours stipulated by the EU Working Time Directive(HMSO,1998). On all but one of the Health and Safety Executive stressor categories,UCU members in higher education reported lower well-being than the average for those working in the target group industries(including education).The biggest 'well-being gaps'related to work demands,change management, management support and role clarity.This is a similar pattern to that which emerged in UCU's 2008 study,but the well-being gaps in relation to all stressors apart from control have widened,highlighting particular problems in these areas. As in the 2008 survey,levels of control in the higher education sector exceeded the benchmark from the HSE's target group industries(including education),and the HSE's interim target benchmark.Nonetheless,overall perceptions of well-being related to work-related control have reduced since 2008. UCU members in higher education who had a bigger well-being gap on the HSE stressor categories tended to perceive more work-related stress and have a poorer work-life balance Respondents with poorer well-being on the HSE stressor categories in relation to relationships,control and demand,and who reported higher levels of perceived stress,had taken more days off sick in the previous 12 month period. The work-life balance of UCU members from higher education is generally poor.The majority of respondents from HE appeared unable to set an acceptable boundary between their work and home life.More than half indicated that they often neglected their personal needs because of the demands of their work.Those who had a poorer work-life balance and weaker boundaries between work and home tended to report higher levels of work-related stress. 3
3 n Nearly three-quarters of the sample agreed or strongly agreed with the statement ‘I find my job stressful’. More than half indicated that their general level of stress was high or very high, and more than one third said they often or always experienced levels of stress they found unacceptable. Only 2% of the sample reported that they never experienced unacceptable levels of stress at work. n Findings indicate that levels of perceived stress remain high in the higher education sector. In the present survey, the proportion of respondents from higher education who agreed or strongly agreed with the statement ‘I find my job stressful’ was one percentage point lower than that found in a national survey of the sector conducted in 2008. n Working hours remain high in higher education. More than three-quarters of respondents employed on a full-time contract worked over 40 hours a week, and more than one third in excess of 50 hours a week. More than one quarter of the respondents from higher education exceeded the 48 hour maximum number of working hours stipulated by the EU Working Time Directive (HMSO, 1998). n On all but one of the Health and Safety Executive stressor categories, UCU members in higher education reported lower well-being than the average for those working in the target group industries (including education). The biggest ‘well-being gaps’ related to work demands, change management, management support and role clarity. This is a similar pattern to that which emerged in UCU’s 2008 study, but the well-being gaps in relation to all stressors apart from control have widened, highlighting particular problems in these areas. n As in the 2008 survey, levels of control in the higher education sector exceeded the benchmark from the HSE’s target group industries (including education), and the HSE’s interim target benchmark. Nonetheless, overall perceptions of well-being related to work-related control have reduced since 2008. n UCU members in higher education who had a bigger well-being gap on the HSE stressor categories tended to perceive more work-related stress and have a poorer work-life balance. n Respondents with poorer well-being on the HSE stressor categories in relation to relationships, control and demand, and who reported higher levels of perceived stress, had taken more days off sick in the previous 12 month period. n The work-life balance of UCU members from higher education is generally poor. The majority of respondents from HE appeared unable to set an acceptable boundary between their work and home life. More than half indicated that they often neglected their personal needs because of the demands of their work. Those who had a poorer work-life balance and weaker boundaries between work and home tended to report higher levels of work-related stress. Summary
On the whole,UCU members employed in teaching-and-research roles reported lower levels of well-being relating to demands,control and peer support and higher levels of work-life conflict and stress than those employed in teaching or research jobs. UCU members employed in academic roles reported poorer well-being in relation to all of the HSE stressor categories than academic-related staff, together with higher levels of stress and work-life conflict. g
n On the whole, UCU members employed in teaching-and-research roles reported lower levels of well-being relating to demands, control and peer support and higher levels of work-life conflict and stress than those employed in teaching or research jobs. n UCU members employed in academic roles reported poorer well-being in relation to all of the HSE stressor categories than academic-related staff, together with higher levels of stress and work-life conflict. 4
Introduction Work-related stress is defined as'The adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them at work'(HSE, nd1).It is one of the most commonly reported health problems experienced by employees.According to data from the Labour Force Survey,work-related stress,depression or anxiety caused or made worse by the employee's current or most recent job,for people working in the preceding 12 months,affected an estimated 369,000 employees in 2011/12 in the UK,with a total of 9,072,000 working days lost(HSE,nd2).Within that total,teaching and educational professionals reported the highest average number of days lost per worker due to work-related stress depression and anxiety. As well as ill health and sickness absence,work-related stress has also been associated with reduced levels of job satisfaction,motivation and commitment, increased employee turnover,impaired job performance and creativity,and a range of counterproductive workplace attitudes and behaviours such as cynicism,incivility and sabotage(Kinman Jones,2001;Spector et al.,2005). The negative impact of work-related stress is also likely to 'spill over'into the home domain and limit opportunities for relaxation and recovery,leading to impaired health and job performance(Allen et al.,2000). The incidence of workplace stress has generally risen since the mid-1990s, especially among public sector workers.There is evidence,however,that people working in education are at greater risk of work stress and stress-related absence than most other occupational groups(as noted above).Unsurprisingly, education has been identified as a priority area for the reduction of work- related stress(Tyers et al.,2009).Several studies conducted in recent years indicate that work-related stress is widespread in post compulsory education in the UK(Villeneuve-Smith,Munoz McKenzie,2008:Court Kinman,2009a. 2009b,2009c). Moreover,recently published European research indicates that British aca- demic employees are,by a large margin,the least satisfied in Europe and the most likely to regret their choice of career(Hohle Teichler,in press).Several studies conducted in the higher education sector have associated work-related stress with low levels of job satisfaction (e.g.Kinman,1998;McClenahan,Giles Mallet,2007;Byrne et al.,2012).Reflecting these findings,the European study also reported that 61%of senior academics and 56%of junior academics from the UK described their job as 'a considerable source of strain'. Several factors are likely to have contributed towards the poor work-related well- being of UCU members.Post-compulsory education in the UK has undergone a period of considerable change that has challenged the resources of organisations and employees.The nature of academic and academic-related roles has changed considerably and demands have increased substantially. Student numbers have increased more than 2.5-fold over the last 20 years,and a more diverse student population holding an increasingly 'consumer oriented' approach to their studies has been documented(CHERI,2007;2011).The introduction of student fees has led to a reassessment of 'value for money', and competition between universities and colleges for home and international students has increased.The introduction of national and global rankings of
Work-related stress is defined as ‘The adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them at work’ (HSE, nd1). It is one of the most commonly reported health problems experienced by employees. According to data from the Labour Force Survey, work-related stress, depression or anxiety caused or made worse by the employee’s current or most recent job, for people working in the preceding 12 months, affected an estimated 369,000 employees in 2011/12 in the UK, with a total of 9,072,000 working days lost (HSE, nd2). Within that total, teaching and educational professionals reported the highest average number of days lost per worker due to work-related stress depression and anxiety. As well as ill health and sickness absence, work-related stress has also been associated with reduced levels of job satisfaction, motivation and commitment, increased employee turnover, impaired job performance and creativity, and a range of counterproductive workplace attitudes and behaviours such as cynicism, incivility and sabotage (Kinman & Jones, 2001; Spector et al., 2005). The negative impact of work-related stress is also likely to ‘spill over’ into the home domain and limit opportunities for relaxation and recovery, leading to impaired health and job performance (Allen et al., 2000). The incidence of workplace stress has generally risen since the mid-1990s, especially among public sector workers. There is evidence, however, that people working in education are at greater risk of work stress and stress-related absence than most other occupational groups (as noted above). Unsurprisingly, education has been identified as a priority area for the reduction of workrelated stress (Tyers et al., 2009). Several studies conducted in recent years indicate that work-related stress is widespread in post compulsory education in the UK (Villeneuve-Smith, Munoz & McKenzie, 2008; Court & Kinman, 2009a, 2009b, 2009c). Moreover, recently published European research indicates that British academic employees are, by a large margin, the least satisfied in Europe and the most likely to regret their choice of career (Hohle & Teichler, in press). Several studies conducted in the higher education sector have associated work-related stress with low levels of job satisfaction (e.g. Kinman, 1998; McClenahan, Giles & Mallet, 2007; Byrne et al., 2012). Reflecting these findings, the European study also reported that 61% of senior academics and 56% of junior academics from the UK described their job as ‘a considerable source of strain’. Several factors are likely to have contributed towards the poor work-related wellbeing of UCU members. Post-compulsory education in the UK has undergone a period of considerable change that has challenged the resources of organisations and employees. The nature of academic and academic-related roles has changed considerably and demands have increased substantially. Student numbers have increased more than 2.5-fold over the last 20 years, and a more diverse student population holding an increasingly ‘consumer oriented’ approach to their studies has been documented (CHERI, 2007; 2011). The introduction of student fees has led to a reassessment of ‘value for money’, and competition between universities and colleges for home and international students has increased. The introduction of national and global rankings of 5 Introduction