Directory UMM :Data Elmu:jurnal:I:International Journal of Educational Management:Vol11.Issue1.1997:
An examination of academic and occupational stress
in the USA
Golnaz Sadri
Asso c iate Pro fe sso r in the De partme nt o f Manage me nt, Califo rnia State
Unive rsity, Fulle rto n, Califo rnia, USA
George A. M arcoulides
De partme nt o f Manage me nt Sc ie nc e , Califo rnia State Unive rsity,
Fulle rto n, Califo rnia, USA
Attempts to identify some
important variables that
contribute to occupational
and academic stress and to
estimate their direct and
indirect effects on various
outcome measures (such as
mental health, physical
health, job satisfaction and
scholastic grade point average). Based on previous
research, proposes and tests
a model of academic and
occupational stress, using
data collected from 247
individuals employed in
diverse organizations in the
Orange County and Los Angeles areas, who were enrolled
in either undergraduate or
graduate courses at a major
university in the southern
California region. Claims that
the results of the analysis
support the proposed model
of stress. Outlines the implications of the fi ndings for
research and practice in
education and management.
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 ,1 [ 1997] 3 2 –4 3
© MCB Unive rsity Pre ss
[ ISSN 0951-354X]
[ 32 ]
Introduction
Str ess m ay be defi n ed a s a situ a tion wh er ein
fa ctor s in ter a ct w ith a per son to ch a n ge (i.e.
disr u pt or en h a n ce) h is/ h er psych ologica l
a n d/ or ph ysiologica l con dition , su ch th a t th e
per son is for ced to devia te fr om n or m a l fu n ction in g (Beeh r a n d N ew m a n , 1978). Alth ou gh
th e liter a tu r e on str ess is va st, m ost r esea r ch er s wou ld a gr ee th a t a n in ter a ction ist
per spective, wh er e str ess is seen a s a pr odu ct
of th e r ela tion sh ip between a per son a n d
h is/ h er en vir on m en t, is r eleva n t to th e stu dy
of both occu pa tion a l a n d a ca dem ic str ess
(Ca pla n et a l., 1975; Gr een h a u s a n d P a r a su r a m a n , 1987; La za r u s, 1991; Stogdill, 1974; Wh itm a n et a l., 1984). Per son va r ia bles in clu de
both a spects of in dividu a l per son a lity a n d
m eth ods of copin g, wh ile envir on m en ta l
va r ia bles a r e depicted a s a r a n ge of poten tia l
str essor s. Th e even tu a l ou tcom e of th e
per son -en vir on m en t in ter a ction is lik ely to
a ffect, in tu r n , th e per son a n d h is/ h er en vir on m en t (Beeh r a n d N ew m a n , 1978; Cooper,
1986; Cooper a n d P ayn e, 1978; Cooper et a l.,
1988; Gr een h a u s a n d P a r a su r a m a n , 1987;
Robbin s, 1993).
Th er e is a gr ea t dea l of eviden ce th a t excessive levels of str ess h ave a n e ga tive im pa ct on
stu den ts. N u m er ou s stu dies h ave sh ow n th a t
stu den ts u n der h igh levels of str ess lea r n less
th a n th ose u n der m oder a te levels (e.g.
Hock ey, 1979; Silver, 1968). Ca m pu s psych ia tr ists n ote th a t sch ool-r ela ted str ess r esu lts in
a n in a bility to do sch ool wor k a n d th e fea r of
a ca dem ic fa ilu r e (E llis, 1969). Un for tu n a tely,
for m a n y stu den ts th is fea r is r ea lized. In fa ct,
a s m a n y a s 50 per cen t of en ter in g fr esh m en
h ave been r epor ted n ot to fi n ish colle ge fou r
yea r s la ter (Hir sch a n d Ken iston , 1970). Oth er
m a n ifesta tion s of str ess a m on g stu den ts
in clu de a lcoh ol u se, dr u g a bu se, pr em a tu r e
pr e gn a n cy a n d su icide (Sh ipm a n , 1987). With
r espect to su icide, sta tistics fr om th e USA
sh ow th a t ever y 90 m in u tes a per son between
th e a ges of 15 a n d 24 yea r s com m its su icide
(D’Au r or a a n d F im ia n , 1988). Appr oxim a tely
50,000 you n g people in th e USA a ttem pt su icide ea ch yea r a n d over 5,000 su cceed in
k illin g th em selves (J en n in gs, 1984).
E xcessive levels of str ess in th e wor k pla ce
a lso cr ea te sever e econ om ic con sequ en ces.
For exa m ple, in th e USA, occu pa tion a l str essr ela ted expen ses tota l in excess of $150 billion
a n n u a lly. In fa ct, str ess-r ela ted disa bility
cla im s h ave r isen by a ppr oxim a tely 700 per
cen t over th e pa st five yea r s w ith th e dir ect
cost of r esolvin g a sin gle str ess cla im estim a ted a t between $10,000 a n d $15,000 (Steven s,
1992). Th e N a tion a l In stitu te for Occu pa tion a l
Sa fety a n d Hea lth (N IOSH) r a tes str ess a s on e
of th e ten lea din g wor k -r ela ted disea ses
(Min ter, 1991).
N ot su r pr isin gly, m u ch r esea r ch h a s been
devoted to th e topic of str ess m a n a gem en t in
wor k a n d a ca dem ic settin gs. In gen er a l, m ost
m eth ods for copin g w ith wor k pla ce str essor s
m ay be cla ssified a s eith er pr im a r y (str essor
r edu ction ), secon da r y (str ess m a n a gem en t)
or ter tia r y (em ployee a ssista n ce pr ogr a m m es; Mu r ph y, 1988). Str essor r edu ction
m eth ods wou ld in clu de ch a n ges in or ga n iza tion design , str u ctu r e, en h a n ced com m u n ica tion levels, in cr ea sed em ployee pa r ticipa tion
a n d em ployee em power m en t. Str ess m a n a gem en t m eth ods in clu de m edita tion a n d deep
r ela xa tion , exer cise, better n u tr ition a n d
oth er pr even tive str ess m a n a gem en t tech n iqu es. E m ployee a ssista n ce pr ogr a m m es
a n d in -h ou se cou n sellin g ser vices r epr esen t a
ter tia r y tech n iqu e for copin g w ith str ess –
th ey a r e essen tia lly cu r a tive a s opposed to
pr even tive. Meth ods for dea lin g w ith a ca dem ic str essor s in clu de in for m in g stu den ts in
a dva n ce of th e difficu lties th ey m ay fa ce,
im pr ovin g ca m pu s m en ta l h ea lth ser vices,
or ga n izin g peer cou n sellin g a n d self-h elp
gr ou ps, im pr oved or ien ta tion for n ew stu den ts, gr ea ter flexibility in cor e cou r se
r equ ir em en ts, expa n din g th e r ole of fa cu lty
a dviser s, givin g ea r lier a n d m or e fr equ en t
exa m s a n d de-em ph a sizin g gr a des (Wh itm a n
et a l., 1984).
Th e pu r pose of th is stu dy w a s to iden tify
som e im por ta n t per son a n d en vir on m en ta l
va r ia bles wh ich con tr ibu te to a ca dem ic a n d
occu pa tion a l str ess a n d to estim a te th eir
dir ect a n d in dir ect effects on va r iou s r eleva n t
ou tcom es (su ch a s m en ta l h ea lth , ph ysica l
h ea lth , job sa tisfa ction a n d sch ola stic gr a de
poin t aver a ge). In pa r ticu la r, th is stu dy
focu sed on two r esea r ch qu estion s. F ir st, ca n
th e str ess pr ocess be m ea su r ed on th e ba sis
of in for m a tion a bou t a n in dividu a l’s
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
per son a lity a n d th e m eth ods th a t people
a dopt to cope w ith str ess? Sim ila r to
Ma r cou lides a n d Sa dr i (1995), Sa dr i a n d
Ma r cou lides (1994a ; b) a n d Sa dr i et a l. (1996),
it w a s h ypoth esized th a t a t lea st som e elem en ts of th e str ess pr ocess ca n be m ea su r ed.
Secon d, ca n a m odel be developed con sisten t
w ith pr eviou s th eor y th a t estim a tes th e
effects of sever a l dim en sion s th ou gh t to
r epr esen t a ca dem ic a n d occu pation a l str ess?
It w a s h ypoth esized th a t, th r ou gh str u ctu r a l
equ a tion m odellin g tech n iqu es, a m odel of
th e dim en sion s of th e str ess pr ocess cou ld
be developed wh ich wou ld be con sisten t
w ith pr eviou s r esea r ch a n d wh ich wou ld
per m it u s to a n a lyse a n in dividu a l’s psych ologica l, ph ysiologica l a n d beh aviou r a l ou tcom es.
Th e r em a in in g pa per is divided in to th r ee
section s. Th e fir st section pr esen ts a con ceptu a liza tion of th e m odel u sed to exa m in e th e
effects of va r iou s com pon en ts of per son a lity,
a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess on ou tcom e
m ea su r es. Th e secon d section focu ses on th e
m eth ods u sed in ga th er in g th e da ta a n d pr esen ta tion of th e r esu lts. Th e fin a l section
discu sses th e im plica tion s of th e fi n din gs for
im pr ovin g r esea r ch a n d pr a ctice in edu ca tion
a n d m a n a gem en t.
Testing a model of the stress
process
F igu r e 1 pr esen ts ou r pr oposed th eor etica l
m odel of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess.
Th e ou tcom es of in ter est a r e m en ta l a n d
ph ysica l h ea lth , sch ola stic gr a de poin t aver a ge (GPA) a n d job sa tisfa ction . Th e pr oposed
m odel posits th e existen ce of sever a l la ten t
va r ia bles wh ich togeth er com pr ise va r iou s
a spects of a n in dividu a l’s per son a lity a n d
str essor s th a t, in con cer t, a r e believed to
in flu en ce str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es. Type A
beh aviou r, locu s of con tr ol (LOC) a n d copin g
a r e a ll seen a s exogen ou s va r ia bles, in th a t
th eir va r ia bility is deter m in ed by fa ctor s
ou tside th e m odel. Str essor s (a ca dem ic a n d
occu pa tion a l) a r e viewed a s en dogen ou s, in
th a t th eir va r ia bility is deter m in ed by oth er
va r ia bles in th e m odel. Th e exogen ou s va r ia bles, th er efor e, a r e seen a s in dir ectly a ffectin g th e ou tcom e th r ou gh th e en dogen ou s
va r ia bles in th e m odel. Th is gr ou p of la ten t
va r ia bles is viewed a s loosely com pr isin g th e
fou r gr ou ps of per son a lity, copin g, str essor s
a n d ou tcom es or igin a lly su ggested by Cooper
a n d Ba glion i (1988), Rober tson et a l. (1990)
a n d Sa dr i a n d Ma r cou lides (1994a ).
Precursors of stress
Th er e a r e th r ee la ten t va r ia bles th a t a r e con sider ed pr ecu r sor s of str ess. Th ese in clu de
type A beh aviou r, locu s of con tr ol (LOC) a n d
copin g. As pr esen ted in F igu r e 1, it is pr oposed th a t per son a lity va r ia bles (i.e. type A
beh aviou r a n d LOC) a n d m eth ods of copin g
deter m in e th e per ception of occu pa tion a l a n d
a ca dem ic str ess.
Type A behaviour
Type A beh aviou r is ch a r a cter ized by a
ch r on ic sen se of tim e u r gen cy a n d a n excessive com petitive dr ive. P a st r esea r ch h a s
dem ostr a ted th a t th is type of beh aviou r h a s a
clea r lin k w ith str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es (e.g.
Zyla n sk i a n d J en k in s, 1970). Type A in dividu a ls u n der estim a te th e tim e r equ ir ed to
a ccom plish ta sk s a n d, th er efor e, exper ien ce
tim e pr essu r es. Th ey wor k qu ick ly a n d sh ow
im pa tien ce a n d decr ea sed wor k per for m a n ce
if for ced to wor k slow ly. Type As ign or e, su ppr ess or den y ph ysica l or psych ologica l sym ptom s wh ile wor k in g u n der pr essu r e, a n d
r epor t su ch sym ptom s on ly wh en th e wor k is
fin ish ed. Th ey wor k h a r der a n d exper ien ce
ph ysiologica l a r ou sa l wh en a ta sk is
per ceived a s ch a llen gin g; expr ess h ostility
a n d ir r ita tion in r espon se to a th r ea t; a n d
n eed to be in con tr ol of th e im m edia te en vir on m en t to su ch a n exten t th a t a la ck of con tr ol m ay elicit a h ostile, com petitive r espon se
(F r iedm a n a n d Rosen m a n , 1974; F r ogga tt a n d
Cotton , 1987; Ga n ster et a l., 1989; Willia m s,
1989).
Locus of control
Locu s of con tr ol (LOC) is r epr esen ted by a
con tin u u m w ith in dividu a ls wh o believe th a t
th ey a r e m a ster s of th eir fa te fa llin g on th e
in ter n a l side of th e con tin u u m , a n d th ose
wh o believe th a t th eir lives a r e r elia n t on
lu ck , ch a n ce, fa te or power fu l oth er s fa llin g
on th e exter n a l side (Rotter, 1966). A n u m ber
of stu dies im ply th a t in ter n a ls per ceive th eir
jobs to be less str essfu l th a n do exter n a ls (e.g.
Gem m ill a n d Heisler, 1972). In ter n a ls r epor t
fewer psych ologica l str a in s r esu ltin g fr om
job specifi city, fewer som a tic com pla in ts a s a
r esu lt of r ole con flict, a n d a r e less lik ely to
r espon d to n or m a l or ga n iza tion a l fr u str a tion s w ith a ggr ession , sa bota ge or
w ith dr aw a l th a n a r e exter n a ls (An der son et
a l., 1977; F u silier et a l., 1987; Gem m ill a n d
Heisler, 1972; Ma r in o a n d Wh ite, 1985; Stor m s
a n d Spector, 1987).
Th er e is a distin ction in th e liter a tu r e on
wh eth er LOC is m ea su r ed a s a sta te or a tr a it
va r ia ble (P a r k es, 1984). Tr a it m ea su r es r epr esen t a gen er a lized belief a bou t th e exten t to
[ 33 ]
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Figure 1
Pro po se d mo de l o f ac ade mic and o c c upatio nal stre ss
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
wh ich im por ta n t ou tcom es a r e con tr olla ble
(Rotter, 1966). Th e m ea su r e u sed in th e pr esen t stu dy r epr esen ts a sta te m ea su r e, or a
su bjective a ppr a isa l of con tr ol of th e in dividu a l’s wor k situ a tion a n d h a s dem on str a ted a
r ela tion sh ip w ith im por ta n t a spects of th e
in dividu a l’s wor k exper ien ce a n d wellbein g
(Ma r cou lides a n d Sa dr i, 1995; Rees a n d
Cooper, 1992; Sa dr i a n d Ma r cou lides, 1994a ).
Con sequ en tly, a lin k is su ggested between
th is sta te m ea su r e of LOC a n d wor k str essor s,
bu t n on e w ith a ca dem ic str essor s (a s sh ow n
in F igu r e 1).
Coping methods
Copin g r efer s to beh aviou r th a t m edia tes th e
im pa ct th a t societies h ave on th eir m em ber s
th r ou gh pr otectin g people fr om bein g psych ologica lly h a r m ed by pr oblem a tic socia l exper ien ce (Pea r lin a n d Sch ooler, 1978). Th e pr esen t m odel su ggests th a t th er e a r e lik ely to be
in dividu a l differ en ces in th e m eth ods th a t
people a dopt to cope w ith given situ a tion s,
a n d th a t th e copin g a lter n a tives wh ich a r e
per ceived to be ava ila ble to ea ch per son w ill
a ffect h is/ h er su bsequ en t per ception of
str essfu l even ts. Th er e is pr ior eviden ce th a t
copin g is a n a ctive, con tin u ou s for ce, sh a pin g
wh a t w ill occu r du r in g su bsequ en t copin g
episodes, a n d th a t in dividu a ls a r e r ela tively
[ 34 ]
con sisten t in th e copin g str a te gies wh ich th ey
a dopt (Coh en a n d E dw a r ds, 1988; Dola n a n d
Wh ite, 1988; F leish m a n , 1984). Resea r ch a lso
in dica tes th a t th e m er e existen ce of som e
for m s of copin g, su ch a s socia l su ppor t n etwor k s (ir r espective of wh eth er or n ot th ey a r e
u sed), ser ves to a ct a s a bu ffer a ga in st str ess
(Cu m m in gs, 1990; Hou se, 1981; J aya r a tn e et
a l., 1988).
In th is stu dy, six m eth ods wh ich people
com m on ly a dopt to cope w ith str ess a r e m ea su r ed:
1 socia l su ppor t (th e de gr ee to wh ich in dividu a ls r ely on oth er s a s a m ea n s of copin g
w ith str ess);
2 ta sk str a te gies (th e de gr ee to wh ich in dividu a ls cope th r ou gh str a te gies dir ected a t
r eor ga n izin g th eir wor k , su ch a s pla n n in g
a h ea d, settin g pr ior ities a n d dele ga tin g);
3 logic (copin g th r ou gh a ttem pts to be r a tion a l a n d h a n dle situ a tion s in a n objective
m a n n er );
4 h om e a n d wor k r ela tion sh ip (th e exten t to
wh ich h om e is viewed a s a r efu ge, a n d th e
existen ce of in ter ests a n d a ctivities th a t a
per son en ga ges in ou tside of wor k );
5 tim e (th e in dividu a l’s u se of tim e, e.g.
wh eth er h e/ sh e dea ls w ith pr oblem s
im m edia tely r a th er th a n sta llin g);
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
6 in volvem en t (th e de gr ee to wh ich th e in dividu a l for ces h im self/ h er self to com e to
ter m s w ith r ea lity, th r ou gh str a te gies lik e
r ecogn izin g h is/ h er lim ita tion s, bein g a ble
to r elea se ten sion , a n d con cen tr a tin g on
specific pr oblem s).
Stressors
Th e pr esen t stu dy is con cer n ed w ith both
a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str essor s. Fou r
poten tia l sou r ces of a ca dem ic str ess a n d six
sou r ces of occu pa tion a l str ess a r e exa m in ed.
As pr esen ted in F igu r e 1, it is su ggested th a t
a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str essor s w ill
n e ga tively a ffect a n in dividu a l’s h ea lth , gr a de
poin t aver a ge a n d job sa tisfa ction . In a ddition , it is believed th a t h igh er levels of a ca dem ic str essor s w ill lea d to th e exper ien ce of
h igh er levels of occu pa tion a l str ess.
Occupational stressors
Th er e a r e a r a n ge of en vir on m en ta l fa ctor s,
in th e wor k pla ce a n d a t th e wor k / n on -wor k
in ter fa ce, wh ich h ave been lin k ed to str essr ela ted ou tcom es (Cooper, 1986; Cooper a n d
Ma r sh a ll, 1976; F r ew a n d Br u n in g, 1987; J a ck son a n d Sch u ler, 1985; Va n Sell et a l., 1981).
Th e pr esen t pa per exa m in es six poten tia l
sou r ces of str ess. Th ese in clu de str ess a r isin g
fr om :
1 fa ctor s in tr in sic to th e job, e.g. h avin g too
m u ch wor k to do, a n d h avin g to wor k lon g
h ou r s;
2 a la ck of power a n d in flu en ce, a m bigu ity,
con flictin g ta sk s a n d dem a n ds a r isin g
fr om m u ltiple r oles th a t th e in dividu a l
plays;
3 r ela tion sh ips w ith oth er people, su ch a s
copin g w ith office politics, h avin g to
su per vise oth er s, la ck of su ppor t fr om
collea gu es a n d la ck of en cou r a gem en t
fr om su per ior s;
4 h ow va lu ed people feel a n d wh eth er or n ot
th ey a r e sa tisfied w ith th eir oppor tu n ities
for a dva n cem en t a t wor k ;
5 th e str u ctu r e or clim a te of a n or ga n iza tion , in ter m s of in a dequ a te gu ida n ce fr om
su per ior s, poor qu a lity tr a in in g a n d developm en t pr ogr a m m es a n d eviden ce of discr im in a tion or favou r itism ; a n d
6 th e h om e-wor k in ter fa ce, wh ich m ay
in clu de th in gs lik e h avin g to ta k e wor k
h om e, or in a bility to for get a bou t wor k
wh en th e in dividu a l is a t h om e.
Academic stressors
Th er e a r e a n u m ber of fa ctor s in th e a ca dem ic en vir on m en t wh ich h ave been lin k ed to
str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es (Ca h ir a n d Mor r is,
1991; F im ia n et a l., 1989; Ga dzella , 1994;
Wh itm a n et a l., 1984). Th e pr esen t stu dy
exa m in es fou r poten tia l sou r ces of a ca dem ic
str ess. Th ese in clu de str ess a r isin g fr om :
1 fr u str a tion s wh ich a stu den t m ay exper ien ce, su ch a s da ily h a ssles wh ich in ter r u pt
th e a tta in m en t of goa ls or fa ilu r es in
a ccom plish in g th e goa ls th a t a stu den t h a s
set;
2 con flicts a r isin g fr om differ en t a ca dem ic
exper ien ces, su ch a s con flicts pr odu ced by
two or m or e desir a ble a lter n a tives, or
con flicts wh en a goa l h a d both positive a n d
n e ga tive a lter n a tives;
3 pr essu r es a s a r esu lt of com petition , dea dlin es or in ter per son a l r ela tion sh ips;
4 ch a n ges ow in g to a ca dem ic life wh ich
stu den ts m ay exper ien ce a s u n plea sa n t or
disr u ptive.
F igu r e 1 sh ow s th a t a ca dem ic str essor s a r e
pr edicted to h ave a n e ga tive im pa ct on r eleva n t ou tcom es su ch a s h ea lth a n d sch ola stic
gr a de poin t aver a ge (GPA). A lin k is a lso
pr edicted between a ca dem ic str essor s a n d
occu pa tion a l str essor s, su ch th a t th e exper ien ce of gr ea ter levels of a ca dem ic str ess w ill
lea d to gr ea ter exper ien ces of str ess a t wor k .
Th is ca u sa l flow is pr edicted beca u se th e
su bjects in clu ded in th e pr esen t stu dy a r e
essen tia lly stu den ts wh o wor k la r gely a s a
m ea n s to pay for th eir sch ool a n d oth er livin g
expen ses. Th e va st m a jor ity view th eir jobs
a s tem por a r y.
Outcomes
Most r esea r ch er s stu dyin g th e str ess pr ocess
typica lly ca te gor ize th e con sequ en ces a ssocia ted w ith th e exper ien ce of str essfu l even ts
u n der th e h ea din gs of ph ysiologica l, psych ologica l a n d beh aviou r a l ou tcom es. Th e pr esen t stu dy a ttem pted to exa m in e a ll th r ee
str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es.
Ill health
Th e m ea su r e of ill h ea lth in th is stu dy is
essen tia lly a sym ptom ch eck list wh ich exa m in es ph ysica l a n d m en ta l h ea lth . P h ysiologica l sym ptom s m ea su r ed in clu de h ea da ch es,
in digestion , sh or tn ess of br ea th , in cr ea ses in
blood pr essu r e a n d feelin gs of exh a u stion .
P sych ologica l sym ptom s in clu de a n in a bility
to th in k clea r ly, feelin g r estless a n d feelin gs
of ir r ita bility. Beh aviou r a l sym ptom s m ea su r ed in clu de ch a n ges in ea tin g, dr in k in g,
sleepin g a n d sm ok in g pa tter n s.
As n oted a bove, h igh er levels of str ess h ave
a n e ga tive im pa ct on stu den t lea r n in g
th r ou gh su ch m ech a n ism s a s a n in a bility to
per for m sch ool wor k , fea r s of fa ilu r e a n d
h igh er a ttr ition r a tes (E llis, 1969; Hir sch a n d
Ken iston , 1970; Hock ey, 1979; Silver, 1968).
[ 35 ]
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
F igu r e 1 sh ow s a lin k between both wor k
str ess, a ca dem ic str ess a n d GPA. It is pr edicted th a t th e h igh er th e level of str ess exper ien ced, th e lower w ill be th e stu den t’s GPA.
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
Job satisfaction
F ive a spects of job sa tisfa ction a r e in clu ded
in th e stu dy. Th ese in clu de sa tisfa ction w ith :
1 th e exten t to wh ich on e is va lu ed a n d
oppor tu n ities for gr ow th ;
2 a spects of th e job itself (e.g. secu r ity);
3 or ga n iza tion design a n d str u ctu r e;
4 or ga n iza tion a l pr ocesses (e.g. su per vision ); a n d
5 r ela tion sh ips w ith oth er s (e.g. peer s, su per ior s, su bor din a tes).
Method
Subjects
Da ta wer e collected fr om 247 colle ge stu den ts
em ployed in diver se com pa n ies in th e Or a n ge
Cou n ty a n d Los An geles a r ea s. All su bjects
wer e en r olled in eith er u n der gr a du a te or
gr a du a te cou r ses a t a m a jor u n iver sity in th e
sou th er n Ca lifor n ia a r ea . Th e r espon se r a te
for th e sa m ple w a s a ppr oxim a tely 95 per cen t.
Beca u se th e a u th or s wer e in ter ested in developin g a gen er a l m odel th a t wou ld lin k com pon en ts of occu pa tion a l a n d a ca dem ic str ess to
ou tcom es, th ey a ttem pted to sa m ple a w ide
va r iety of stu den ts a n d or ga n iza tion s. Th e
or ga n iza tion s va r ied a lon g sever a l im por ta n t
dim en sion s. In ter m s of ou tpu t type, 37 per
cen t m a n u fa ctu r ed pr odu cts, 59 per cen t pr ovided ser vices a n d 4 per cen t did both . Th e
com pa n ies a lso r a n ged in size: 34 per cen t of
th e sa m ple wor k ed for sm a ll com pa n ies (less
th a n 50 em ployees); 25 per cen t for m ediu m sized com pa n ies (50-250 em ployees); a n d 41
per cen t for la r ge com pa n ies (over 250
em ployees). In ter m s of ow n er sh ip, 62 per
cen t wer e pr iva tely-ow n ed fi r m s a n d 38 per
cen t pu blicly ow n ed. Th e m a in objective w a s
pr ofit for 85 per cen t of th e com pa n ies
in clu ded h er e, wh ile 15 per cen t wer e n on pr ofit or ga n iza tion s.
Th e stu den ts wer e 53 per cen t m a le a n d 47
per cen t fem a le. Th e m edia n a ge of th e
sa m ple w a s 21-25 yea r s a t th e tim e of da ta
collection (66 per cen t fell in to th is ca te gor y).
Th e m a jor ity (65 per cen t) wor k ed pa r t-tim e,
w ith a w ide r a n ge of h ou r s spen t a t wor k (52
per cen t wor k ed 16-30 h ou r s per week ; 32 per
cen t wor k ed 31-45 h ou r s; 10 per cen t wor k ed
over 45 h ou r s; a n d 6 per cen t wor k ed 0-15
h ou r s per week ).
Questionnaires
Mu ltiple obser ved in dica tor s wer e u sed to
m ea su r e a ll of th e va r ia bles in clu ded in th e
[ 36 ]
m odel a s pr escr ibed in th e liter a tu r e (e.g.
Ha r r is a n d Sch a u br oeck , 1990). All su bjects
com pleted a da pted ver sion s of th e occu pa tion a l str ess in dica tor (OSI) a n d th e stu den t
str ess in ven tor y (SSI) (see descr iption s
below ). Th e qu estion n a ir es took a ppr oxim a tely 40 m in u tes to com plete.
OSI
Th e OSI h a s been sh ow n to h ave excellen t
psych om etr ic pr oper ties a n d is r ela ted to a
r a n ge of occu pa tion s (Cooper a n d Ma r sh a ll,
1976; Cooper et a l., 1988; Kir k ca ldy a n d
Hoda pp, 1989; Sch u ler, 1980). Th e OSI is m a de
u p of six qu estion n a ir es m ea su r in g differ en t
dim en sion s of str ess: type A per son a lity
(eigh t item s); locu s of con tr ol (12 item s); copin g str a te gies (28 item s); sou r ces of pr essu r e
(61 item s); job sa tisfa ction (22 item s); a n d
cu r r en t sta te of h ea lth (30 item s). Descr iption s of th e obser ved va r ia bles gr ou ped
a ccor din g to th e con str u cts th ey a r e pr oposed
to m ea su r e a r e pr ovided in th e Appen dix. Th e
obser ved va r ia bles a r e pa r a ph r a sed fr om th e
or igin a l qu estion n a ir e u sed in th e stu dy
(Cooper et a l., 1988).
SSI
Th e SSI con sists of 20 qu estion s exa m in in g
fou r poten tia l sou r ces of str ess a r isin g fr om
bein g a colle ge stu den t (Ga dzella , 1994). Th ese
in clu de: fr u str a tion s (seven item s), con flicts
(fou r item s), pr essu r es (six item s) a n d
ch a n ges (th r ee item s). Aga in , descr iption s of
th e obser ved va r ia bles gr ou ped a ccor din g to
th e la ten t va r ia bles th ey a r e posited to m ea su r e a r e pr ovided in th e Appen dix. Th e
obser ved va r ia bles a r e pa r a ph r a sed fr om th e
or igin a l qu estion n a ir e u sed in th e stu dy
(Ga dzella , 1994).
Analysis and results
Str u ctu r a l equ a tion m odellin g (SE M) tech n iqu es a r e con sider ed today to be a m a jor
com pon en t of a pplied m u ltiva r ia te a n a lyses.
In fa ct, it h a s been su ggested th a t th e developm en t of SE M is per h a ps th e m ost im por ta n t
a n d in fl u en tia l sta tistica l r evolu tion to h ave
r ecen tly occu r r ed in th e scien tific a r en a
(Cliff, 1983; Ma r cou lides a n d Sch u m a ck er,
1996). A str u ctu r a l m odel ca n be viewed a s a
gu ide th a t a llow s on e to deter m in e th e r ela tive str en gth of ea ch va r ia ble in clu ded in
expla in in g a desir ed set of ou tcom es. In its
br oa dest sen se, SE M is con cer n ed w ith testin g com plex m odels of fu n ction a l r ela tion sh ips between obser ved va r ia bles a n d la ten t
va r ia bles. Th e fu n ction a l r ela tion sh ips a r e
descr ibed by pa r a m eter s th a t in dica te th e
m a gn itu de of th e effect (eith er dir ect or
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
in dir ect) th a t in depen den t va r ia bles h ave on
depen den t va r ia bles. Alth ou gh th er e a r e
cu r r en tly a n u m ber of excellen t com pu ter
pa ck a ges ava ila ble for th e a n a lysis of SE M,
two sta n d a pa r t fr om th e r est in ter m s of
popu la r ity a n d w idespr ea d u se: E QS (Ben tler,
1994) a n d LISRE L (J ör eskog a n d Sör bom ,
1993).
Th e pr oposed m odel in th is stu dy w a s
tested u sin g LISRE L VIII (J ör eskog a n d
Sör bom , 1993). In th e specifica tion of th e
m odel, Lom a x’s (1982) r ecom m en da tion s wer e
followed: pa r a m eter s r ela tin g r efer en ce
obser ved va r ia bles to u n der lyin g con str u cts
wer e con str a in ed to equ a l on e (1.0), a n d th e
cor r espon din g er r or m ea su r em en t pa r a m eter s for th ose va r ia bles wer e fixed a t zer o (0.0).
In Ta ble I a n d F igu r e 2, we pr esen t th e
LISRE L pa r a m eter estim a tes of th e pr oposed
m odel. Th ese pa r a m eter estim a tes a r e in dices
th a t r epr esen t th e sim u lta n eou s con tr ibu tion
of ea ch obser ved a n d la ten t va r ia ble to th e
over a ll m odel. Wh ile th ese estim a tes pr ovide
im por ta n t in for m a tion a bou t th e str u ctu r a l
com pon en ts of occu pa tion a l a n d a ca dem ic
str ess a n d th eir r ela tion sh ip to th e ou tcom e
Table I
Parame te r e stimate s fo r pro po se d stre ss mo de l
Variable
Construct
Y1
Y2
Y3
Y4
Y5
Y6
Oc c upational stressors
Estimate
0.96
0.96
1.00
0.92
0.91
0.83
Y7
Y8
Y9
Y10
Ac ademic stressors
0.93
0.87
1.00
0.87
Y11
Y12
Health
1.00
0.81
Y13
Grade point average
1.00
Y14
Y15
Y16
Y17
Y18
Job satisfac tion
0.89
0.92
0.98
1.00
0.92
X1
X2
Type A behaviour
1.00
0.50
X3
X4
X5
Loc us of c ontrol
0.48
1.00
0.15
X6
X7
X8
X9
X10
X11
Coping strategies
0.48
1.00
0.42
0.44
0.46
0.67
m ea su r es, th ey do n ot pr ovide a n y in dica tion
of th e a ssessm en t of th e fit of th e h ypoth esized m odel to th e a ctu a l da ta . Sin ce a n a
pr ior i defin ed m odel w a s posited to be tested,
pr im a r y in ter est is in th e m odel fit. On ce th e
m odel fi t is deter m in ed, th e sign ifica n ce of
th e va r iou s pa r a m eter estim a tes ca n be a scer ta in ed. With ou t a sign ifica n t m odel fi t, h ow ever, th e m odel wou ld h ave to be r econ ceptu a lized.
Ta ble II pr esen ts th e cr iter ia descr ibin g th e
over a ll fit of th e m odel. Th e coefficien t of
deter m in a tion (COD) for th e m ea su r em en t
m odel is 0.92, su ggestin g a r ela tively str on g
r ela tion sh ip between th e obser ved va r ia bles
a n d th e la ten t va r ia bles in clu ded in th e
m odel. Th is coefficien t m ay be con sider ed a s
a m ea su r e of th e r elia bility for th e wh ole
m ea su r em en t m odel, in dica tin g h ow well th e
obser ved va r ia bles join tly ser ve a s in str u m en ts for m ea su r in g th e la ten t va r ia bles.
Assessm en t of fit m ay a lso be deter m in ed by
th e goodn ess-of-fit in dex (GF I) a n d th e com pa r a tive fit in dex (CF I). It is gen er a lly r ecogn ized th a t va lu es close to or a bove 0.90 in dica te a good m odel fit. For th is m odel th e GF I
is 0.92 a n d th e CF I is 0.96, wh ich in dica te a
r ea son a bly good m odel fit. Th ese in dices a r e
m ea su r es of th e r ela tive a m ou n t of va r ia n ce
a n d cova r ia n ce in th e da ta a ccou n ted for by
th e m odel u n der exa m in a tion . In con tr a st,
th e r oot m ea n squ a r e (RMS) r esidu a l is a
m ea su r e of th e aver a ge u n expla in ed va r ia n ces a n d cova r ia n ces in th e m odel. Th is
in dex sh ou ld be close to zer o if th e m odel fits
th e da ta well. For th is m odel, th e RMS is 0.08,
sim ila r ly in dica tin g th a t ver y few of th e va r ia n ces a n d cova r ia n ces a r e left u n expla in ed.
Th e r a tio of th e ch i-squ a r e to th e de gr ees of
fr eedom (χ2/ df) ca n a lso be u sed to exa m in e
th e fit of th e m odel. It is gen er a lly r ecogn ized
th a t a r a tio of th e ch i-squ a r e th a t is less th a n
2 in dica tes a r ea son a ble fit of th e m odel. In
th is stu dy th e obser ved r a tio is 1.36. F in a lly,
pa r a m eter estim a tes w ith t-r a tios th a t a r e
gr ea ter th a n 2 a r e con sider ed to pr ovide eviden ce th a t th e pa r a m eter is sign ifica n tly
differ en t fr om zer o a n d im por ta n t to th e pr oposed m odel. Th e estim a tes of th e dir ect a n d
in dir ect effects between va r ia bles in th e
m odel wer e tested th r ou gh t r a tios (th e r a tio
of th e estim a te to its sta n da r d er r or ), a n d a ll
wer e fou n d to be sign ifica n t (p < 0.01). Given
th e va r iety of tests th a t wer e u sed to a ssess
th e fit of th e m odel, it is con sider ed th a t th e
pr oposed m odel fa ir ly a ccu r a tely a ccou n ts for
th e va r ia bility obser ved in th e da ta .
Discussion
In th is stu dy we pr oposed a m odel of h ow
per son a lity, locu s of con tr ol a n d th e m eth ods
[ 37 ]
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Figure 2
Parame te r e stimate s fo r pro po se d mo de l
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
Table II
Me asure s o f mo de l fit
Coefficient of determination (COD)
Goodness of fit index (GFI)
Comparative fit index (CFI)
Chi-square degrees of freedom ratio (536/ 393)
0.92
0.92
0.96
1.36
wh ich people a dopt to cope w ith str ess a ffect
per ception s of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l
str essor s a n d, in tu r n , h ow th ey a ffect m en ta l
a n d ph ysica l h ea lth , gr a de poin t aver a ge, a n d
job sa tisfa ction . In th is section we exa m in e
th e de gr ee to wh ich ou r r esu lts a r e con sisten t
w ith oth er r esea r ch fin din gs, a n d offer som e
th ou gh ts on th e im plica tion s of th ese fi n din gs
for im pr ovin g r esea r ch a n d pr a ctice in th e
fields of edu ca tion a n d m a n a gem en t.
Ba sed on th e m odel pr esen ted in F igu r e 1, we
a im ed to test seven h ypoth eses th r ou gh th e
pr esen t a n a lysis. Ou r fi r st h ypoth esis pr edicted th a t type A beh aviou r – expecta tion s of
con tr ol over th e wor k en vir on m en t a n d
m eth ods of copin g – wou ld dir ectly a ffect
per ception s of occu pa tion a l str essor s. Th is
h ypoth esis w a s pa r tly su ppor ted by ou r fi n din gs. As pr edicted, in dividu a ls r epor tin g
m or e type A beh aviou r exper ien ced gr ea ter
levels of occu pa tion a l str ess a n d th ose w ith
[ 38 ]
less per ceived con tr ol over th eir wor k en vir on m en t (exter n a l sta te LOC) a lso exper ien ced m or e occu pa tion a l str ess. However, we
did n ot fi n d th a t gr ea ter levels of copin g led to
lower exper ien ces of occu pa tion a l str ess.
Secon d, we pr edicted th a t type A beh aviou r
a n d th e existen ce of copin g m ech a n ism s
wou ld dir ectly a ffect per ception s of a ca dem ic
str essor s. Aga in , th is w a s pa r tia lly su ppor ted
th r ou gh ou r fin din gs. In dividu a ls h igh er in
type A beh aviou r r epor ted h igh er levels of
a ca dem ic str ess. However, h igh er levels of
copin g did n ot lea d to lower exper ien ces of
a ca dem ic str ess for th e pr esen t sa m ple.
Th ir d, we pr edicted th a t h igh er levels of occu pa tion a l str ess wou ld lea d to gr ea ter levels of
m en ta l a n d ph ysica l ill h ea lth , lower GPAs
a n d lower levels of job sa tisfa ction . Two of
th ese r ela tion sh ips wer e su ppor ted by ou r
fin din gs.
Wh ile h igh er levels of occu pa tion a l str ess
wer e fou n d to lea d to m or e sym ptom s of ill
h ea lth (su ch a s in a bility to sleep, h ea da ch es,
in digestion a n d feelin gs of a n xiety) a n d lower
job sa tisfa ction , gr ea ter exper ien ces of occu pa tion a l str ess did n ot lea d to lower GPAs in
th is sa m ple.
Ou r fou r th h ypoth esis pr edicted th a t a ca dem ic str essor s wou ld in flu en ce th e exper ien ce
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
of occu pa tion a l str essor s a n d n e ga tively
a ffect h ea lth a n d GPA. Th ese r ela tion sh ips
wer e su ppor ted by ou r r esu lts. In fa ct, two of
th e str on gest fin din gs in th is r esea r ch wer e
th e in flu en ce of exper ien ces of a ca dem ic
str ess on exper ien ces of str ess a t wor k (0.22)
a n d th e n e ga tive in fl u en ce of stu den t str ess
on h ea lth (0.32).
F ifth , we h ypoth esized th a t m en ta l a n d
ph ysica l ill h ea lth wou ld be h igh er for in dividu a ls exper ien cin g m or e a ca dem ic a n d
occu pa tion a l str ess, for type As, th ose w ith a n
exter n a l LOC a n d th ose wh o pr a ctised fewer
copin g m ech a n ism s. Th e dir ection of th ese
r ela tion sh ips w a s su ppor ted for a ll fi ve of th e
pr edictor va r ia bles; h owever, type A beh aviou r w a s a ver y wea k pr edictor of ill h ea lth in
th e pr esen t r esea r ch (0.06). Aca dem ic str ess
w a s th e h igh est pr edictor (0.32) followed by
wor k str ess (0.24) a n d exter n a l LOC (0.18).
Sixth , we pr edicted th a t GPA wou ld be
lower for in dividu a ls exper ien cin g h igh er
levels of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess.
Aca dem ic str ess did sh ow a n e ga tive r ela tion sh ip w ith GPA (–0.18), wh ile occu pa tion a l
str ess w a s n ot fou n d to a ffect GPA a dver sely.
Ou r seven th a n d fin a l h ypoth esis w a s th a t
job sa tisfa ction wou ld be lower for in dividu a ls exper ien cin g m or e occu pa tion a l str ess,
for type As, th ose w ith a n exter n a l LOC a n d
th ose wh o pr a ctised fewer copin g m ech a n ism s. All of ou r pr ediction s wer e su ppor ted
bu t, a s w ith ill h ea lth , type A beh aviou r
em er ged a s a wea k pr edictor of job sa tisfa ction for th e pr esen t sa m ple. Th e str on gest
pr edictor of job sa tisfa ction w a s LOC (–0.29),
followed by occu pa tion a l str ess (–0.24).
Str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es h ave been viewed
a s eith er a fu n ction of m a la da ptive per son a l
lifestyles or a s a con sequ en ce of en vir on m en ta l fa ctor s (DeF r a n k a n d Cooper, 1987; N ea le
et a l., 1982). Th e pr esen t stu dy sh ow s th a t
str ess is a fu n ction of both th e in dividu a l a n d
h is/ h er en vir on m en t. Th u s, a ttem pts to cope
w ith th e ou tcom es of str ess n eed to focu s on
th e en vir on m en t a s well a s th e in dividu a l.
For th e pr esen t sa m ple, th e str essor s en cou n ter ed in th e a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l en vir on m en ts a r e th e two str on gest pr edictor s of
ill h ea lth . Ou r r esu lts sh ow th a t th e exper ien ce of a ca dem ic str ess is dysfu n ction a l for
stu den ts; it lea ds to exper ien ces of distr ess in
oth er a spects of th eir lives (su ch a s th eir
wor k ), lea ds to lower levels of ph ysica l a n d
m en ta l h ea lth , a n d lower GPAs. Th is gen er a l
pa tter n of fin din gs is con sisten t w ith pr eviou s r esea r ch wh ich h a s dem on str a ted th a t
stu den ts u n der h igh levels of str ess lea r n less
th a n th ose u n der m oder a te levels (Hock ey,
1979; Silver, 1968), th a t sch ool-r ela ted str ess
r esu lts in a n in a bility to do sch ool wor k a n d
th e fea r of a ca dem ic fa ilu r e (E llis, 1969), a n d
th a t, a s a con sequ en ce, m a n y stu den ts
(a ppr oxim a tely 50 per cen t of en ter in g fr esh m en ) do n ot fin ish colle ge fou r yea r s la ter
(Hir sch a n d Ken iston , 1970).
A n u m ber of en vir on m en t-focu sed m eth ods
to h elp stu den ts cope w ith th eir a ca dem ic
str ess wer e ou tlin ed ea r lier in th is a r ticle. As
in dica ted, su ch tech n iqu es m igh t in clu de
r edu cin g th e a m bigu ity a n d con fu sion
in volved w ith bein g a n ew stu den t by im pr ovin g n ew stu den t or ien ta tion s a n d in for m in g
stu den ts in a dva n ce of th e difficu lties wh ich
th ey m ay fa ce. For existin g stu den ts, r edu ced
en vir on m en ta l str ess m igh t be a ch ieved
th r ou gh gr ea ter flexibility in cor e cou r se
r equ ir em en ts, expa n din g th e r ole of fa cu lty
a dviser s, givin g ea r lier a n d m or e fr equ en t
exa m s a n d de-em ph a sizin g gr a des (Wh itm a n
et a l., 1984). Th e pr esen t r esu lts sh ow th a t a ll
of th e a ca dem ic str essor s m ea su r ed h er e a r e
dysfu n ction a l for stu den ts (i.e. fr u str a tion s,
con flicts, pr essu r es a n d ch a n ges). N ever th eless, th e two fa ctor s wh ich loa d h igh est on th e
a ca dem ic str ess fa ctor a r e fr u str a tion s a n d
pr essu r es. Redu cin g som e of th e pr essu r es
a n d fr u str a tion s exper ien ced by stu den ts
wou ld a ssist in lower in g th eir exper ien ces of
a ca dem ic str ess a n d, th er eby, im pr ove th e
qu a lity of th eir a ca dem ic lives.
Ou r r esu lts a lso sh ow th a t la ck of con tr ol
over th e wor k en vir on m en t is dysfu n ction a l –
it lea ds to gr ea ter sym ptom s of ill h ea lth
(0.18), h igh er per ception s of occu pa tion a l
str essor s (0.19) a n d lower levels of job sa tisfa ction (–0.29). Th e a bove-m en tion ed r esu lt
a lso su ppor ts pr ior r esea r ch fi n din gs in to th e
str ess pr ocess (e.g. An der son et a l., 1977;
F u silier et a l., 1987; Gem m ill a n d Heisler,
1972; Sa dr i a n d Ma r cou lides, 1994a ; b; Sa dr i et
a l., 1996; Spector, 1987). We r ecom m en d th a t
or ga n iza tion s a ttem pt to give people m or e
con tr ol over th eir wor k en vir on m en ts by
pr ovidin g extr a in for m a tion on r eleva n t
issu es (su ch a s a ssessm en t pr ocedu r es, com pa n y policies a n d r e gu la tion s a n d or ga n iza tion a l ch a n ge). Con tr ol over th e wor k en vir on m en t ca n a lso be en h a n ced by per m ittin g
em ployees to pa r ticipa te in decision m a k in g
(e.g. developin g wor k sch edu les colla bor a tively), pr ovidin g gr ea ter job a u ton om y a n d
em power in g em ployees wh er e possible. P r ior
stu dies h ave dem on str a ted th a t in cr ea sin g
th e con tr ol wh ich wor k er s h ave over th eir
en vir on m en t r esu lts in positive in dividu a l
a n d or ga n iza tion a l ou tcom es (J a ck son , 1983;
Ma r cou lides a n d Heck , 1993; P ier ce a n d N ew str om , 1983; Wa ll a n d Cle gg, 1981).
In dividu a l-focu sed m eth ods to h elp stu den ts cope w ith th eir a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess wou ld in clu de tech n iqu es
design ed to h elp stu den ts im pr ove th eir copin g sk ills a n d a da pt th eir lifestyles. Im pr oved
[ 39 ]
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
[ 40 ]
ca m pu s m en ta l h ea lth ser vices, peer cou n sellin g a n d self-h elp gr ou ps wou ld a ll h elp to
a ccom plish th is. Cou n sellin g tech n iqu es h ave
a lso pr oved su ccessfu l in wor k settin gs (e.g.
Copper a n d Sa dr i, 1991). An in ter estin g fin din g fr om th e pr esen t r esu lts is th a t in dividu a ls h igh er in type A beh aviou r sh ow
in cr ea sed per ception s of both a ca dem ic (0.23)
a n d occu pa tion a l str ess (0.18). As m en tion ed
pr eviou sly, type A in dividu a ls fr equ en tly
u n der estim a te th e tim e r equ ir ed to a ccom plish ta sk s a n d so exper ien ce tim e pr essu r es;
th ey wor k qu ick ly a n d sh ow im pa tien ce a n d
decr ea sed wor k per for m a n ce if for ced to wor k
slow ly. Type As ign or e, su ppr ess, or den y
ph ysica l or psych ologica l sym ptom s wh ile
wor k in g u n der pr essu r e; th ey often expr ess
h ostility a n d ir r ita tion in r espon se to a th r ea t
a n d n eed to be in con tr ol of th e im m edia te
en vir on m en t to su ch a n exten t th a t a la ck of
con tr ol m ay elicit a h ostile, com petitive
r espon se (F r iedm a n a n d Rosen m a n , 1974;
F r ogga tt a n d Cotton , 1987; Ga n ster et a l., 1989;
Willia m s, 1989). Wor k sh ops m ay be pr ovided
to stu den ts in or der to r a ise aw a r en ess of
th eir possible type A beh aviou r a l ten den cies
a n d to en cou r a ge th em to ch a n ge a spects of
th eir beh aviou r wh ich m ay be dysfu n ction a l
for th em .
Th e pr esen t r esu lts a lso h elp to iden tify th e
r ole of copin g beh aviou r in th e lives of stu den ts. Wh ile copin g h a s little effect on th e
per ception of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l
str essor s a n d on levels of job sa tisfa ction , it
does a ppea r to pr even t ill h ea lth . Mem ber s of
ou r sa m ple wh o in dica ted th a t th ey m a de
gr ea ter a ttem pts to cope w ith th eir str ess
r epor ted fewer sym ptom s of m en ta l a n d ph ysica l ill h ea lth . Th e m eth ods of copin g m ea su r ed h er e (socia l su ppor t, ta sk str a te gies,
logic, h om e-wor k r ela tion sh ip, tim e m a n a gem en t a n d in volvem en t) a ll a ppea r im por ta n t
to th e pr esen t sa m ple, in pa r ticu la r, th e developm en t of ta sk str a te gies a n d in cr ea sin g th e
level of in volvem en t (i.e. for cin g on eself to
com e to ter m s w ith r ea lity, r ecogn izin g on e’s
lim ita tion s a n d focu sin g on specifi c pr oblem s). Aga in , ba sed on th e pr esen t r esu lts,
ca m pu s fa cilities wh ich tea ch a n y of th ese
differ en t sk ills to th e ca m pu s popu la tion do
fu lfil a n im por ta n t fu n ction a n d sh ou ld be
both su ppor ted a n d pr om oted.
Despite th e im por ta n t fi n din gs wh ich
em er ged fr om th is stu dy, th er e a r e som e pr oblem s w ith th e pr esen t r esea r ch . F ir st, it is
difficu lt to gen er a lize th e pr esen t fin din gs to
sa m ples ou tside th e USA, a n d fu tu r e r esea r ch
n eeds to test ou r m odel w ith sa m ples dr aw n
fr om oth er cou n tr ies. Secon d, we h ave pr esen ted a m odel of occu pa tion a l a n d a ca dem ic
str ess a n d sa m pled a gr ou p of wor k in g stu den ts. Con sequ en tly, gen er a lizin g th e
obser ved r esu lts to gr ou ps of stu den ts wh o do
n ot wor k a n d go to sch ool a t th e sa m e tim e
m ay a lso be pr oblem a tic. F in a lly, th e m a jor ity
of ou r m ea su r es a r e self-r epor t in dices a n d
th is open s u p th e possibility of bia s in ou r
fin din gs. As su ch , a n y fu tu r e r esea r ch on
m odels of th is n a tu r e sh ou ld in clu de m or e
beh aviou r a l in dices su ch a s m edica l r ecor ds
a n d wor k pr odu ctivity. N ever th eless, th e
r esu lts pr esen ted in th is stu dy r epr esen t a n
in itia l step tow a r ds descr ibin g a n d eva lu a tin g im por ta n t a spects of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess. E xpa n din g on th is be gin n in g
w ill be a pr ofita ble goa l for fu tu r e r esea r ch in
edu ca tion a n d m a n a gem en t.
References and further reading
An der son , C.R., Hellr ie gel, D. a n d Slocu m , J .W.
(1977), “Ma n a ger ia l r espon se to en vir on m en ta l in du ced str ess”, A ca d em y of M a n a gem en t
J ou r n a l, Vol. 6, pp. 260-72.
Ba u wen s, J . a n d Hou r ca de, J .J . (1992), “Sch oolba sed sou r ces of str ess a m on g elem en ta r y a n d
secon da r y a t-r isk stu den ts”, T h e S ch ool Cou n selor , Vol. 40, pp. 97-102.
Beeh r, T.A. a n d N ew m a n , J .E . (1978), “J ob str ess,
em ployee h ea lth , a n d or ga n iza tion a l effectiven ess: a fa cet a n a lysis, m odel a n d liter a tu r e
r eview ”, Person n el Psych olog y, Vol. 31, pp. 66599.
Ben tler, P.M. (1994), EQS S tru ctu ra l Equ a tion s
Progra m M a n u a l, Mu ltiva r ia te Softw a r e, In c.,
E n cin o, CA.
Ben tler, P. a n d Bon ett, D. (1980), “Sign ifica n ce
tests a n d goodn ess-of-fi t in th e a n a lysis of
cova r ia n ce str u ctu r es”, Psych ologica l
B u lletin , Vol. 88, pp. 588-606.
Byr n e, B.M. (1989), A Pr im er on L IS R EL ,
Spr in ger -Ver la g, N ew Yor k , N Y.
Ca h ir, N. a n d Mor r is, R.D. (1991), “Th e psych ology
of stu den t str ess qu estion n a ir e”, J ou r n a l of
Clin ica l Psych olog y, Vol. 47, pp. 414-17.
Ca pla n , R.D., Cobb, S., F r en ch , J .R.P., Va n Ha r r ison , R. a n d P in n ea u , S.R. (1975), J ob Dem a n d s
a n d Work er Hea lth , Hea lth E du ca tion Welfa r e,
Wa sh in gton , DC, pp. 75-160.
Cliff, N. (1983), “Som e ca u tion s con cer n in g th e
a pplica tion of ca u sa l m odelin g m eth ods”,
M u ltiva r ia te B eh a viora l R esea rch , Vol. 18, pp.
115-26.
Coh en , S. a n d E dw a r ds, J .R. (1988), “Per son a lity
ch a r a cter istics a s m oder a tor s of th e r ela tion sh ip between str ess a n d disor der ”, in N eu feld,
R.J . (E d.), A dva n ces in th e In v estiga tion of
Psych ologica l S tress, Wiley, N ew Yor k , N Y.
Cooper, C.L. (1986), “J ob distr ess: r ecen t r esea r ch
a n d th e em er gin g r ole of th e clin ica l occu pa tion a l psych ologist”, B u lletin of th e B r itish
Psych ologica l S ociety, Vol. 39, pp. 325-31.
Cooper, C.L. a n d Ba glion i A.J . J r (1988), “A str u ctu r a l m odel a ppr oa ch tow a r d th e developm en t
of a th eor y of th e lin k between str ess a n d
m en ta l h ea lth ”, B r itish J ou r n a l of M ed ica l
Psych olog y, Vol. 61, pp. 87-102.
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
Cooper, C.L. a n d Ma r sh a ll, J . (1976), “Occu pa tion a l sou r ces of str ess: a r eview of th e liter a tu r e r ela tin g to cor on a r y h ea r t disea se a n d
m en ta l ill-h ea lth ”, J ou r n a l of Occu pa tion a l
Psych olog y, Vol. 49, pp. 11-28.
Cooper, C.L. a n d P ayn e, R. (1978), S tress a t Work ,
J oh n Wiley, Lon don .
Cooper, C.L. a n d Sa dr i, G. (1991), “Th e im pa ct of
str ess cou n sellin g a t wor k ”, J ou r n a l of S ocia l
B eh a vior a n d Person a lity, Vol. 6 N o. 7,
pp. 411-23.
Cooper, C.L., Cooper, R.D. a n d E a k er, L.H. (1988),
L ivin g w ith S tress, Pen gu in Book s, Middlesex.
Cooper, C.L., Sloa n , S.J . a n d Willia m s, S. (1988),
Occu pa tion a l S tress In d ica tor M a n a gem en t
Gu id e, N F E R-N elson , Oxfor d.
Cooper, C.L., Sa dr i, G., Allison , T. a n d Reyn olds, P.
(1990), “Str ess cou n sellin g in th e Post Office”,
Cou n sellin g Psych olog y Qu a r terly, Vol. 3 N o. 1,
pp. 3-11.
Cu m m in gs, R.C. (1990), “J ob str ess a n d th e bu ffer in g effect of su per visor y su ppor t”, Grou p a n d
Orga n iz a tion S tu d ies, Ma r ch , pp. 92-104.
D’Au r or a , D.L. a n d F im ia n , M.J . (1988), “Dim en sion s of life a n d sch ool str ess exper
in the USA
Golnaz Sadri
Asso c iate Pro fe sso r in the De partme nt o f Manage me nt, Califo rnia State
Unive rsity, Fulle rto n, Califo rnia, USA
George A. M arcoulides
De partme nt o f Manage me nt Sc ie nc e , Califo rnia State Unive rsity,
Fulle rto n, Califo rnia, USA
Attempts to identify some
important variables that
contribute to occupational
and academic stress and to
estimate their direct and
indirect effects on various
outcome measures (such as
mental health, physical
health, job satisfaction and
scholastic grade point average). Based on previous
research, proposes and tests
a model of academic and
occupational stress, using
data collected from 247
individuals employed in
diverse organizations in the
Orange County and Los Angeles areas, who were enrolled
in either undergraduate or
graduate courses at a major
university in the southern
California region. Claims that
the results of the analysis
support the proposed model
of stress. Outlines the implications of the fi ndings for
research and practice in
education and management.
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 ,1 [ 1997] 3 2 –4 3
© MCB Unive rsity Pre ss
[ ISSN 0951-354X]
[ 32 ]
Introduction
Str ess m ay be defi n ed a s a situ a tion wh er ein
fa ctor s in ter a ct w ith a per son to ch a n ge (i.e.
disr u pt or en h a n ce) h is/ h er psych ologica l
a n d/ or ph ysiologica l con dition , su ch th a t th e
per son is for ced to devia te fr om n or m a l fu n ction in g (Beeh r a n d N ew m a n , 1978). Alth ou gh
th e liter a tu r e on str ess is va st, m ost r esea r ch er s wou ld a gr ee th a t a n in ter a ction ist
per spective, wh er e str ess is seen a s a pr odu ct
of th e r ela tion sh ip between a per son a n d
h is/ h er en vir on m en t, is r eleva n t to th e stu dy
of both occu pa tion a l a n d a ca dem ic str ess
(Ca pla n et a l., 1975; Gr een h a u s a n d P a r a su r a m a n , 1987; La za r u s, 1991; Stogdill, 1974; Wh itm a n et a l., 1984). Per son va r ia bles in clu de
both a spects of in dividu a l per son a lity a n d
m eth ods of copin g, wh ile envir on m en ta l
va r ia bles a r e depicted a s a r a n ge of poten tia l
str essor s. Th e even tu a l ou tcom e of th e
per son -en vir on m en t in ter a ction is lik ely to
a ffect, in tu r n , th e per son a n d h is/ h er en vir on m en t (Beeh r a n d N ew m a n , 1978; Cooper,
1986; Cooper a n d P ayn e, 1978; Cooper et a l.,
1988; Gr een h a u s a n d P a r a su r a m a n , 1987;
Robbin s, 1993).
Th er e is a gr ea t dea l of eviden ce th a t excessive levels of str ess h ave a n e ga tive im pa ct on
stu den ts. N u m er ou s stu dies h ave sh ow n th a t
stu den ts u n der h igh levels of str ess lea r n less
th a n th ose u n der m oder a te levels (e.g.
Hock ey, 1979; Silver, 1968). Ca m pu s psych ia tr ists n ote th a t sch ool-r ela ted str ess r esu lts in
a n in a bility to do sch ool wor k a n d th e fea r of
a ca dem ic fa ilu r e (E llis, 1969). Un for tu n a tely,
for m a n y stu den ts th is fea r is r ea lized. In fa ct,
a s m a n y a s 50 per cen t of en ter in g fr esh m en
h ave been r epor ted n ot to fi n ish colle ge fou r
yea r s la ter (Hir sch a n d Ken iston , 1970). Oth er
m a n ifesta tion s of str ess a m on g stu den ts
in clu de a lcoh ol u se, dr u g a bu se, pr em a tu r e
pr e gn a n cy a n d su icide (Sh ipm a n , 1987). With
r espect to su icide, sta tistics fr om th e USA
sh ow th a t ever y 90 m in u tes a per son between
th e a ges of 15 a n d 24 yea r s com m its su icide
(D’Au r or a a n d F im ia n , 1988). Appr oxim a tely
50,000 you n g people in th e USA a ttem pt su icide ea ch yea r a n d over 5,000 su cceed in
k illin g th em selves (J en n in gs, 1984).
E xcessive levels of str ess in th e wor k pla ce
a lso cr ea te sever e econ om ic con sequ en ces.
For exa m ple, in th e USA, occu pa tion a l str essr ela ted expen ses tota l in excess of $150 billion
a n n u a lly. In fa ct, str ess-r ela ted disa bility
cla im s h ave r isen by a ppr oxim a tely 700 per
cen t over th e pa st five yea r s w ith th e dir ect
cost of r esolvin g a sin gle str ess cla im estim a ted a t between $10,000 a n d $15,000 (Steven s,
1992). Th e N a tion a l In stitu te for Occu pa tion a l
Sa fety a n d Hea lth (N IOSH) r a tes str ess a s on e
of th e ten lea din g wor k -r ela ted disea ses
(Min ter, 1991).
N ot su r pr isin gly, m u ch r esea r ch h a s been
devoted to th e topic of str ess m a n a gem en t in
wor k a n d a ca dem ic settin gs. In gen er a l, m ost
m eth ods for copin g w ith wor k pla ce str essor s
m ay be cla ssified a s eith er pr im a r y (str essor
r edu ction ), secon da r y (str ess m a n a gem en t)
or ter tia r y (em ployee a ssista n ce pr ogr a m m es; Mu r ph y, 1988). Str essor r edu ction
m eth ods wou ld in clu de ch a n ges in or ga n iza tion design , str u ctu r e, en h a n ced com m u n ica tion levels, in cr ea sed em ployee pa r ticipa tion
a n d em ployee em power m en t. Str ess m a n a gem en t m eth ods in clu de m edita tion a n d deep
r ela xa tion , exer cise, better n u tr ition a n d
oth er pr even tive str ess m a n a gem en t tech n iqu es. E m ployee a ssista n ce pr ogr a m m es
a n d in -h ou se cou n sellin g ser vices r epr esen t a
ter tia r y tech n iqu e for copin g w ith str ess –
th ey a r e essen tia lly cu r a tive a s opposed to
pr even tive. Meth ods for dea lin g w ith a ca dem ic str essor s in clu de in for m in g stu den ts in
a dva n ce of th e difficu lties th ey m ay fa ce,
im pr ovin g ca m pu s m en ta l h ea lth ser vices,
or ga n izin g peer cou n sellin g a n d self-h elp
gr ou ps, im pr oved or ien ta tion for n ew stu den ts, gr ea ter flexibility in cor e cou r se
r equ ir em en ts, expa n din g th e r ole of fa cu lty
a dviser s, givin g ea r lier a n d m or e fr equ en t
exa m s a n d de-em ph a sizin g gr a des (Wh itm a n
et a l., 1984).
Th e pu r pose of th is stu dy w a s to iden tify
som e im por ta n t per son a n d en vir on m en ta l
va r ia bles wh ich con tr ibu te to a ca dem ic a n d
occu pa tion a l str ess a n d to estim a te th eir
dir ect a n d in dir ect effects on va r iou s r eleva n t
ou tcom es (su ch a s m en ta l h ea lth , ph ysica l
h ea lth , job sa tisfa ction a n d sch ola stic gr a de
poin t aver a ge). In pa r ticu la r, th is stu dy
focu sed on two r esea r ch qu estion s. F ir st, ca n
th e str ess pr ocess be m ea su r ed on th e ba sis
of in for m a tion a bou t a n in dividu a l’s
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
per son a lity a n d th e m eth ods th a t people
a dopt to cope w ith str ess? Sim ila r to
Ma r cou lides a n d Sa dr i (1995), Sa dr i a n d
Ma r cou lides (1994a ; b) a n d Sa dr i et a l. (1996),
it w a s h ypoth esized th a t a t lea st som e elem en ts of th e str ess pr ocess ca n be m ea su r ed.
Secon d, ca n a m odel be developed con sisten t
w ith pr eviou s th eor y th a t estim a tes th e
effects of sever a l dim en sion s th ou gh t to
r epr esen t a ca dem ic a n d occu pation a l str ess?
It w a s h ypoth esized th a t, th r ou gh str u ctu r a l
equ a tion m odellin g tech n iqu es, a m odel of
th e dim en sion s of th e str ess pr ocess cou ld
be developed wh ich wou ld be con sisten t
w ith pr eviou s r esea r ch a n d wh ich wou ld
per m it u s to a n a lyse a n in dividu a l’s psych ologica l, ph ysiologica l a n d beh aviou r a l ou tcom es.
Th e r em a in in g pa per is divided in to th r ee
section s. Th e fir st section pr esen ts a con ceptu a liza tion of th e m odel u sed to exa m in e th e
effects of va r iou s com pon en ts of per son a lity,
a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess on ou tcom e
m ea su r es. Th e secon d section focu ses on th e
m eth ods u sed in ga th er in g th e da ta a n d pr esen ta tion of th e r esu lts. Th e fin a l section
discu sses th e im plica tion s of th e fi n din gs for
im pr ovin g r esea r ch a n d pr a ctice in edu ca tion
a n d m a n a gem en t.
Testing a model of the stress
process
F igu r e 1 pr esen ts ou r pr oposed th eor etica l
m odel of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess.
Th e ou tcom es of in ter est a r e m en ta l a n d
ph ysica l h ea lth , sch ola stic gr a de poin t aver a ge (GPA) a n d job sa tisfa ction . Th e pr oposed
m odel posits th e existen ce of sever a l la ten t
va r ia bles wh ich togeth er com pr ise va r iou s
a spects of a n in dividu a l’s per son a lity a n d
str essor s th a t, in con cer t, a r e believed to
in flu en ce str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es. Type A
beh aviou r, locu s of con tr ol (LOC) a n d copin g
a r e a ll seen a s exogen ou s va r ia bles, in th a t
th eir va r ia bility is deter m in ed by fa ctor s
ou tside th e m odel. Str essor s (a ca dem ic a n d
occu pa tion a l) a r e viewed a s en dogen ou s, in
th a t th eir va r ia bility is deter m in ed by oth er
va r ia bles in th e m odel. Th e exogen ou s va r ia bles, th er efor e, a r e seen a s in dir ectly a ffectin g th e ou tcom e th r ou gh th e en dogen ou s
va r ia bles in th e m odel. Th is gr ou p of la ten t
va r ia bles is viewed a s loosely com pr isin g th e
fou r gr ou ps of per son a lity, copin g, str essor s
a n d ou tcom es or igin a lly su ggested by Cooper
a n d Ba glion i (1988), Rober tson et a l. (1990)
a n d Sa dr i a n d Ma r cou lides (1994a ).
Precursors of stress
Th er e a r e th r ee la ten t va r ia bles th a t a r e con sider ed pr ecu r sor s of str ess. Th ese in clu de
type A beh aviou r, locu s of con tr ol (LOC) a n d
copin g. As pr esen ted in F igu r e 1, it is pr oposed th a t per son a lity va r ia bles (i.e. type A
beh aviou r a n d LOC) a n d m eth ods of copin g
deter m in e th e per ception of occu pa tion a l a n d
a ca dem ic str ess.
Type A behaviour
Type A beh aviou r is ch a r a cter ized by a
ch r on ic sen se of tim e u r gen cy a n d a n excessive com petitive dr ive. P a st r esea r ch h a s
dem ostr a ted th a t th is type of beh aviou r h a s a
clea r lin k w ith str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es (e.g.
Zyla n sk i a n d J en k in s, 1970). Type A in dividu a ls u n der estim a te th e tim e r equ ir ed to
a ccom plish ta sk s a n d, th er efor e, exper ien ce
tim e pr essu r es. Th ey wor k qu ick ly a n d sh ow
im pa tien ce a n d decr ea sed wor k per for m a n ce
if for ced to wor k slow ly. Type As ign or e, su ppr ess or den y ph ysica l or psych ologica l sym ptom s wh ile wor k in g u n der pr essu r e, a n d
r epor t su ch sym ptom s on ly wh en th e wor k is
fin ish ed. Th ey wor k h a r der a n d exper ien ce
ph ysiologica l a r ou sa l wh en a ta sk is
per ceived a s ch a llen gin g; expr ess h ostility
a n d ir r ita tion in r espon se to a th r ea t; a n d
n eed to be in con tr ol of th e im m edia te en vir on m en t to su ch a n exten t th a t a la ck of con tr ol m ay elicit a h ostile, com petitive r espon se
(F r iedm a n a n d Rosen m a n , 1974; F r ogga tt a n d
Cotton , 1987; Ga n ster et a l., 1989; Willia m s,
1989).
Locus of control
Locu s of con tr ol (LOC) is r epr esen ted by a
con tin u u m w ith in dividu a ls wh o believe th a t
th ey a r e m a ster s of th eir fa te fa llin g on th e
in ter n a l side of th e con tin u u m , a n d th ose
wh o believe th a t th eir lives a r e r elia n t on
lu ck , ch a n ce, fa te or power fu l oth er s fa llin g
on th e exter n a l side (Rotter, 1966). A n u m ber
of stu dies im ply th a t in ter n a ls per ceive th eir
jobs to be less str essfu l th a n do exter n a ls (e.g.
Gem m ill a n d Heisler, 1972). In ter n a ls r epor t
fewer psych ologica l str a in s r esu ltin g fr om
job specifi city, fewer som a tic com pla in ts a s a
r esu lt of r ole con flict, a n d a r e less lik ely to
r espon d to n or m a l or ga n iza tion a l fr u str a tion s w ith a ggr ession , sa bota ge or
w ith dr aw a l th a n a r e exter n a ls (An der son et
a l., 1977; F u silier et a l., 1987; Gem m ill a n d
Heisler, 1972; Ma r in o a n d Wh ite, 1985; Stor m s
a n d Spector, 1987).
Th er e is a distin ction in th e liter a tu r e on
wh eth er LOC is m ea su r ed a s a sta te or a tr a it
va r ia ble (P a r k es, 1984). Tr a it m ea su r es r epr esen t a gen er a lized belief a bou t th e exten t to
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An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Figure 1
Pro po se d mo de l o f ac ade mic and o c c upatio nal stre ss
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wh ich im por ta n t ou tcom es a r e con tr olla ble
(Rotter, 1966). Th e m ea su r e u sed in th e pr esen t stu dy r epr esen ts a sta te m ea su r e, or a
su bjective a ppr a isa l of con tr ol of th e in dividu a l’s wor k situ a tion a n d h a s dem on str a ted a
r ela tion sh ip w ith im por ta n t a spects of th e
in dividu a l’s wor k exper ien ce a n d wellbein g
(Ma r cou lides a n d Sa dr i, 1995; Rees a n d
Cooper, 1992; Sa dr i a n d Ma r cou lides, 1994a ).
Con sequ en tly, a lin k is su ggested between
th is sta te m ea su r e of LOC a n d wor k str essor s,
bu t n on e w ith a ca dem ic str essor s (a s sh ow n
in F igu r e 1).
Coping methods
Copin g r efer s to beh aviou r th a t m edia tes th e
im pa ct th a t societies h ave on th eir m em ber s
th r ou gh pr otectin g people fr om bein g psych ologica lly h a r m ed by pr oblem a tic socia l exper ien ce (Pea r lin a n d Sch ooler, 1978). Th e pr esen t m odel su ggests th a t th er e a r e lik ely to be
in dividu a l differ en ces in th e m eth ods th a t
people a dopt to cope w ith given situ a tion s,
a n d th a t th e copin g a lter n a tives wh ich a r e
per ceived to be ava ila ble to ea ch per son w ill
a ffect h is/ h er su bsequ en t per ception of
str essfu l even ts. Th er e is pr ior eviden ce th a t
copin g is a n a ctive, con tin u ou s for ce, sh a pin g
wh a t w ill occu r du r in g su bsequ en t copin g
episodes, a n d th a t in dividu a ls a r e r ela tively
[ 34 ]
con sisten t in th e copin g str a te gies wh ich th ey
a dopt (Coh en a n d E dw a r ds, 1988; Dola n a n d
Wh ite, 1988; F leish m a n , 1984). Resea r ch a lso
in dica tes th a t th e m er e existen ce of som e
for m s of copin g, su ch a s socia l su ppor t n etwor k s (ir r espective of wh eth er or n ot th ey a r e
u sed), ser ves to a ct a s a bu ffer a ga in st str ess
(Cu m m in gs, 1990; Hou se, 1981; J aya r a tn e et
a l., 1988).
In th is stu dy, six m eth ods wh ich people
com m on ly a dopt to cope w ith str ess a r e m ea su r ed:
1 socia l su ppor t (th e de gr ee to wh ich in dividu a ls r ely on oth er s a s a m ea n s of copin g
w ith str ess);
2 ta sk str a te gies (th e de gr ee to wh ich in dividu a ls cope th r ou gh str a te gies dir ected a t
r eor ga n izin g th eir wor k , su ch a s pla n n in g
a h ea d, settin g pr ior ities a n d dele ga tin g);
3 logic (copin g th r ou gh a ttem pts to be r a tion a l a n d h a n dle situ a tion s in a n objective
m a n n er );
4 h om e a n d wor k r ela tion sh ip (th e exten t to
wh ich h om e is viewed a s a r efu ge, a n d th e
existen ce of in ter ests a n d a ctivities th a t a
per son en ga ges in ou tside of wor k );
5 tim e (th e in dividu a l’s u se of tim e, e.g.
wh eth er h e/ sh e dea ls w ith pr oblem s
im m edia tely r a th er th a n sta llin g);
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USA
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6 in volvem en t (th e de gr ee to wh ich th e in dividu a l for ces h im self/ h er self to com e to
ter m s w ith r ea lity, th r ou gh str a te gies lik e
r ecogn izin g h is/ h er lim ita tion s, bein g a ble
to r elea se ten sion , a n d con cen tr a tin g on
specific pr oblem s).
Stressors
Th e pr esen t stu dy is con cer n ed w ith both
a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str essor s. Fou r
poten tia l sou r ces of a ca dem ic str ess a n d six
sou r ces of occu pa tion a l str ess a r e exa m in ed.
As pr esen ted in F igu r e 1, it is su ggested th a t
a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str essor s w ill
n e ga tively a ffect a n in dividu a l’s h ea lth , gr a de
poin t aver a ge a n d job sa tisfa ction . In a ddition , it is believed th a t h igh er levels of a ca dem ic str essor s w ill lea d to th e exper ien ce of
h igh er levels of occu pa tion a l str ess.
Occupational stressors
Th er e a r e a r a n ge of en vir on m en ta l fa ctor s,
in th e wor k pla ce a n d a t th e wor k / n on -wor k
in ter fa ce, wh ich h ave been lin k ed to str essr ela ted ou tcom es (Cooper, 1986; Cooper a n d
Ma r sh a ll, 1976; F r ew a n d Br u n in g, 1987; J a ck son a n d Sch u ler, 1985; Va n Sell et a l., 1981).
Th e pr esen t pa per exa m in es six poten tia l
sou r ces of str ess. Th ese in clu de str ess a r isin g
fr om :
1 fa ctor s in tr in sic to th e job, e.g. h avin g too
m u ch wor k to do, a n d h avin g to wor k lon g
h ou r s;
2 a la ck of power a n d in flu en ce, a m bigu ity,
con flictin g ta sk s a n d dem a n ds a r isin g
fr om m u ltiple r oles th a t th e in dividu a l
plays;
3 r ela tion sh ips w ith oth er people, su ch a s
copin g w ith office politics, h avin g to
su per vise oth er s, la ck of su ppor t fr om
collea gu es a n d la ck of en cou r a gem en t
fr om su per ior s;
4 h ow va lu ed people feel a n d wh eth er or n ot
th ey a r e sa tisfied w ith th eir oppor tu n ities
for a dva n cem en t a t wor k ;
5 th e str u ctu r e or clim a te of a n or ga n iza tion , in ter m s of in a dequ a te gu ida n ce fr om
su per ior s, poor qu a lity tr a in in g a n d developm en t pr ogr a m m es a n d eviden ce of discr im in a tion or favou r itism ; a n d
6 th e h om e-wor k in ter fa ce, wh ich m ay
in clu de th in gs lik e h avin g to ta k e wor k
h om e, or in a bility to for get a bou t wor k
wh en th e in dividu a l is a t h om e.
Academic stressors
Th er e a r e a n u m ber of fa ctor s in th e a ca dem ic en vir on m en t wh ich h ave been lin k ed to
str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es (Ca h ir a n d Mor r is,
1991; F im ia n et a l., 1989; Ga dzella , 1994;
Wh itm a n et a l., 1984). Th e pr esen t stu dy
exa m in es fou r poten tia l sou r ces of a ca dem ic
str ess. Th ese in clu de str ess a r isin g fr om :
1 fr u str a tion s wh ich a stu den t m ay exper ien ce, su ch a s da ily h a ssles wh ich in ter r u pt
th e a tta in m en t of goa ls or fa ilu r es in
a ccom plish in g th e goa ls th a t a stu den t h a s
set;
2 con flicts a r isin g fr om differ en t a ca dem ic
exper ien ces, su ch a s con flicts pr odu ced by
two or m or e desir a ble a lter n a tives, or
con flicts wh en a goa l h a d both positive a n d
n e ga tive a lter n a tives;
3 pr essu r es a s a r esu lt of com petition , dea dlin es or in ter per son a l r ela tion sh ips;
4 ch a n ges ow in g to a ca dem ic life wh ich
stu den ts m ay exper ien ce a s u n plea sa n t or
disr u ptive.
F igu r e 1 sh ow s th a t a ca dem ic str essor s a r e
pr edicted to h ave a n e ga tive im pa ct on r eleva n t ou tcom es su ch a s h ea lth a n d sch ola stic
gr a de poin t aver a ge (GPA). A lin k is a lso
pr edicted between a ca dem ic str essor s a n d
occu pa tion a l str essor s, su ch th a t th e exper ien ce of gr ea ter levels of a ca dem ic str ess w ill
lea d to gr ea ter exper ien ces of str ess a t wor k .
Th is ca u sa l flow is pr edicted beca u se th e
su bjects in clu ded in th e pr esen t stu dy a r e
essen tia lly stu den ts wh o wor k la r gely a s a
m ea n s to pay for th eir sch ool a n d oth er livin g
expen ses. Th e va st m a jor ity view th eir jobs
a s tem por a r y.
Outcomes
Most r esea r ch er s stu dyin g th e str ess pr ocess
typica lly ca te gor ize th e con sequ en ces a ssocia ted w ith th e exper ien ce of str essfu l even ts
u n der th e h ea din gs of ph ysiologica l, psych ologica l a n d beh aviou r a l ou tcom es. Th e pr esen t stu dy a ttem pted to exa m in e a ll th r ee
str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es.
Ill health
Th e m ea su r e of ill h ea lth in th is stu dy is
essen tia lly a sym ptom ch eck list wh ich exa m in es ph ysica l a n d m en ta l h ea lth . P h ysiologica l sym ptom s m ea su r ed in clu de h ea da ch es,
in digestion , sh or tn ess of br ea th , in cr ea ses in
blood pr essu r e a n d feelin gs of exh a u stion .
P sych ologica l sym ptom s in clu de a n in a bility
to th in k clea r ly, feelin g r estless a n d feelin gs
of ir r ita bility. Beh aviou r a l sym ptom s m ea su r ed in clu de ch a n ges in ea tin g, dr in k in g,
sleepin g a n d sm ok in g pa tter n s.
As n oted a bove, h igh er levels of str ess h ave
a n e ga tive im pa ct on stu den t lea r n in g
th r ou gh su ch m ech a n ism s a s a n in a bility to
per for m sch ool wor k , fea r s of fa ilu r e a n d
h igh er a ttr ition r a tes (E llis, 1969; Hir sch a n d
Ken iston , 1970; Hock ey, 1979; Silver, 1968).
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An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
F igu r e 1 sh ow s a lin k between both wor k
str ess, a ca dem ic str ess a n d GPA. It is pr edicted th a t th e h igh er th e level of str ess exper ien ced, th e lower w ill be th e stu den t’s GPA.
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Job satisfaction
F ive a spects of job sa tisfa ction a r e in clu ded
in th e stu dy. Th ese in clu de sa tisfa ction w ith :
1 th e exten t to wh ich on e is va lu ed a n d
oppor tu n ities for gr ow th ;
2 a spects of th e job itself (e.g. secu r ity);
3 or ga n iza tion design a n d str u ctu r e;
4 or ga n iza tion a l pr ocesses (e.g. su per vision ); a n d
5 r ela tion sh ips w ith oth er s (e.g. peer s, su per ior s, su bor din a tes).
Method
Subjects
Da ta wer e collected fr om 247 colle ge stu den ts
em ployed in diver se com pa n ies in th e Or a n ge
Cou n ty a n d Los An geles a r ea s. All su bjects
wer e en r olled in eith er u n der gr a du a te or
gr a du a te cou r ses a t a m a jor u n iver sity in th e
sou th er n Ca lifor n ia a r ea . Th e r espon se r a te
for th e sa m ple w a s a ppr oxim a tely 95 per cen t.
Beca u se th e a u th or s wer e in ter ested in developin g a gen er a l m odel th a t wou ld lin k com pon en ts of occu pa tion a l a n d a ca dem ic str ess to
ou tcom es, th ey a ttem pted to sa m ple a w ide
va r iety of stu den ts a n d or ga n iza tion s. Th e
or ga n iza tion s va r ied a lon g sever a l im por ta n t
dim en sion s. In ter m s of ou tpu t type, 37 per
cen t m a n u fa ctu r ed pr odu cts, 59 per cen t pr ovided ser vices a n d 4 per cen t did both . Th e
com pa n ies a lso r a n ged in size: 34 per cen t of
th e sa m ple wor k ed for sm a ll com pa n ies (less
th a n 50 em ployees); 25 per cen t for m ediu m sized com pa n ies (50-250 em ployees); a n d 41
per cen t for la r ge com pa n ies (over 250
em ployees). In ter m s of ow n er sh ip, 62 per
cen t wer e pr iva tely-ow n ed fi r m s a n d 38 per
cen t pu blicly ow n ed. Th e m a in objective w a s
pr ofit for 85 per cen t of th e com pa n ies
in clu ded h er e, wh ile 15 per cen t wer e n on pr ofit or ga n iza tion s.
Th e stu den ts wer e 53 per cen t m a le a n d 47
per cen t fem a le. Th e m edia n a ge of th e
sa m ple w a s 21-25 yea r s a t th e tim e of da ta
collection (66 per cen t fell in to th is ca te gor y).
Th e m a jor ity (65 per cen t) wor k ed pa r t-tim e,
w ith a w ide r a n ge of h ou r s spen t a t wor k (52
per cen t wor k ed 16-30 h ou r s per week ; 32 per
cen t wor k ed 31-45 h ou r s; 10 per cen t wor k ed
over 45 h ou r s; a n d 6 per cen t wor k ed 0-15
h ou r s per week ).
Questionnaires
Mu ltiple obser ved in dica tor s wer e u sed to
m ea su r e a ll of th e va r ia bles in clu ded in th e
[ 36 ]
m odel a s pr escr ibed in th e liter a tu r e (e.g.
Ha r r is a n d Sch a u br oeck , 1990). All su bjects
com pleted a da pted ver sion s of th e occu pa tion a l str ess in dica tor (OSI) a n d th e stu den t
str ess in ven tor y (SSI) (see descr iption s
below ). Th e qu estion n a ir es took a ppr oxim a tely 40 m in u tes to com plete.
OSI
Th e OSI h a s been sh ow n to h ave excellen t
psych om etr ic pr oper ties a n d is r ela ted to a
r a n ge of occu pa tion s (Cooper a n d Ma r sh a ll,
1976; Cooper et a l., 1988; Kir k ca ldy a n d
Hoda pp, 1989; Sch u ler, 1980). Th e OSI is m a de
u p of six qu estion n a ir es m ea su r in g differ en t
dim en sion s of str ess: type A per son a lity
(eigh t item s); locu s of con tr ol (12 item s); copin g str a te gies (28 item s); sou r ces of pr essu r e
(61 item s); job sa tisfa ction (22 item s); a n d
cu r r en t sta te of h ea lth (30 item s). Descr iption s of th e obser ved va r ia bles gr ou ped
a ccor din g to th e con str u cts th ey a r e pr oposed
to m ea su r e a r e pr ovided in th e Appen dix. Th e
obser ved va r ia bles a r e pa r a ph r a sed fr om th e
or igin a l qu estion n a ir e u sed in th e stu dy
(Cooper et a l., 1988).
SSI
Th e SSI con sists of 20 qu estion s exa m in in g
fou r poten tia l sou r ces of str ess a r isin g fr om
bein g a colle ge stu den t (Ga dzella , 1994). Th ese
in clu de: fr u str a tion s (seven item s), con flicts
(fou r item s), pr essu r es (six item s) a n d
ch a n ges (th r ee item s). Aga in , descr iption s of
th e obser ved va r ia bles gr ou ped a ccor din g to
th e la ten t va r ia bles th ey a r e posited to m ea su r e a r e pr ovided in th e Appen dix. Th e
obser ved va r ia bles a r e pa r a ph r a sed fr om th e
or igin a l qu estion n a ir e u sed in th e stu dy
(Ga dzella , 1994).
Analysis and results
Str u ctu r a l equ a tion m odellin g (SE M) tech n iqu es a r e con sider ed today to be a m a jor
com pon en t of a pplied m u ltiva r ia te a n a lyses.
In fa ct, it h a s been su ggested th a t th e developm en t of SE M is per h a ps th e m ost im por ta n t
a n d in fl u en tia l sta tistica l r evolu tion to h ave
r ecen tly occu r r ed in th e scien tific a r en a
(Cliff, 1983; Ma r cou lides a n d Sch u m a ck er,
1996). A str u ctu r a l m odel ca n be viewed a s a
gu ide th a t a llow s on e to deter m in e th e r ela tive str en gth of ea ch va r ia ble in clu ded in
expla in in g a desir ed set of ou tcom es. In its
br oa dest sen se, SE M is con cer n ed w ith testin g com plex m odels of fu n ction a l r ela tion sh ips between obser ved va r ia bles a n d la ten t
va r ia bles. Th e fu n ction a l r ela tion sh ips a r e
descr ibed by pa r a m eter s th a t in dica te th e
m a gn itu de of th e effect (eith er dir ect or
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
in dir ect) th a t in depen den t va r ia bles h ave on
depen den t va r ia bles. Alth ou gh th er e a r e
cu r r en tly a n u m ber of excellen t com pu ter
pa ck a ges ava ila ble for th e a n a lysis of SE M,
two sta n d a pa r t fr om th e r est in ter m s of
popu la r ity a n d w idespr ea d u se: E QS (Ben tler,
1994) a n d LISRE L (J ör eskog a n d Sör bom ,
1993).
Th e pr oposed m odel in th is stu dy w a s
tested u sin g LISRE L VIII (J ör eskog a n d
Sör bom , 1993). In th e specifica tion of th e
m odel, Lom a x’s (1982) r ecom m en da tion s wer e
followed: pa r a m eter s r ela tin g r efer en ce
obser ved va r ia bles to u n der lyin g con str u cts
wer e con str a in ed to equ a l on e (1.0), a n d th e
cor r espon din g er r or m ea su r em en t pa r a m eter s for th ose va r ia bles wer e fixed a t zer o (0.0).
In Ta ble I a n d F igu r e 2, we pr esen t th e
LISRE L pa r a m eter estim a tes of th e pr oposed
m odel. Th ese pa r a m eter estim a tes a r e in dices
th a t r epr esen t th e sim u lta n eou s con tr ibu tion
of ea ch obser ved a n d la ten t va r ia ble to th e
over a ll m odel. Wh ile th ese estim a tes pr ovide
im por ta n t in for m a tion a bou t th e str u ctu r a l
com pon en ts of occu pa tion a l a n d a ca dem ic
str ess a n d th eir r ela tion sh ip to th e ou tcom e
Table I
Parame te r e stimate s fo r pro po se d stre ss mo de l
Variable
Construct
Y1
Y2
Y3
Y4
Y5
Y6
Oc c upational stressors
Estimate
0.96
0.96
1.00
0.92
0.91
0.83
Y7
Y8
Y9
Y10
Ac ademic stressors
0.93
0.87
1.00
0.87
Y11
Y12
Health
1.00
0.81
Y13
Grade point average
1.00
Y14
Y15
Y16
Y17
Y18
Job satisfac tion
0.89
0.92
0.98
1.00
0.92
X1
X2
Type A behaviour
1.00
0.50
X3
X4
X5
Loc us of c ontrol
0.48
1.00
0.15
X6
X7
X8
X9
X10
X11
Coping strategies
0.48
1.00
0.42
0.44
0.46
0.67
m ea su r es, th ey do n ot pr ovide a n y in dica tion
of th e a ssessm en t of th e fit of th e h ypoth esized m odel to th e a ctu a l da ta . Sin ce a n a
pr ior i defin ed m odel w a s posited to be tested,
pr im a r y in ter est is in th e m odel fit. On ce th e
m odel fi t is deter m in ed, th e sign ifica n ce of
th e va r iou s pa r a m eter estim a tes ca n be a scer ta in ed. With ou t a sign ifica n t m odel fi t, h ow ever, th e m odel wou ld h ave to be r econ ceptu a lized.
Ta ble II pr esen ts th e cr iter ia descr ibin g th e
over a ll fit of th e m odel. Th e coefficien t of
deter m in a tion (COD) for th e m ea su r em en t
m odel is 0.92, su ggestin g a r ela tively str on g
r ela tion sh ip between th e obser ved va r ia bles
a n d th e la ten t va r ia bles in clu ded in th e
m odel. Th is coefficien t m ay be con sider ed a s
a m ea su r e of th e r elia bility for th e wh ole
m ea su r em en t m odel, in dica tin g h ow well th e
obser ved va r ia bles join tly ser ve a s in str u m en ts for m ea su r in g th e la ten t va r ia bles.
Assessm en t of fit m ay a lso be deter m in ed by
th e goodn ess-of-fit in dex (GF I) a n d th e com pa r a tive fit in dex (CF I). It is gen er a lly r ecogn ized th a t va lu es close to or a bove 0.90 in dica te a good m odel fit. For th is m odel th e GF I
is 0.92 a n d th e CF I is 0.96, wh ich in dica te a
r ea son a bly good m odel fit. Th ese in dices a r e
m ea su r es of th e r ela tive a m ou n t of va r ia n ce
a n d cova r ia n ce in th e da ta a ccou n ted for by
th e m odel u n der exa m in a tion . In con tr a st,
th e r oot m ea n squ a r e (RMS) r esidu a l is a
m ea su r e of th e aver a ge u n expla in ed va r ia n ces a n d cova r ia n ces in th e m odel. Th is
in dex sh ou ld be close to zer o if th e m odel fits
th e da ta well. For th is m odel, th e RMS is 0.08,
sim ila r ly in dica tin g th a t ver y few of th e va r ia n ces a n d cova r ia n ces a r e left u n expla in ed.
Th e r a tio of th e ch i-squ a r e to th e de gr ees of
fr eedom (χ2/ df) ca n a lso be u sed to exa m in e
th e fit of th e m odel. It is gen er a lly r ecogn ized
th a t a r a tio of th e ch i-squ a r e th a t is less th a n
2 in dica tes a r ea son a ble fit of th e m odel. In
th is stu dy th e obser ved r a tio is 1.36. F in a lly,
pa r a m eter estim a tes w ith t-r a tios th a t a r e
gr ea ter th a n 2 a r e con sider ed to pr ovide eviden ce th a t th e pa r a m eter is sign ifica n tly
differ en t fr om zer o a n d im por ta n t to th e pr oposed m odel. Th e estim a tes of th e dir ect a n d
in dir ect effects between va r ia bles in th e
m odel wer e tested th r ou gh t r a tios (th e r a tio
of th e estim a te to its sta n da r d er r or ), a n d a ll
wer e fou n d to be sign ifica n t (p < 0.01). Given
th e va r iety of tests th a t wer e u sed to a ssess
th e fit of th e m odel, it is con sider ed th a t th e
pr oposed m odel fa ir ly a ccu r a tely a ccou n ts for
th e va r ia bility obser ved in th e da ta .
Discussion
In th is stu dy we pr oposed a m odel of h ow
per son a lity, locu s of con tr ol a n d th e m eth ods
[ 37 ]
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Figure 2
Parame te r e stimate s fo r pro po se d mo de l
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
Table II
Me asure s o f mo de l fit
Coefficient of determination (COD)
Goodness of fit index (GFI)
Comparative fit index (CFI)
Chi-square degrees of freedom ratio (536/ 393)
0.92
0.92
0.96
1.36
wh ich people a dopt to cope w ith str ess a ffect
per ception s of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l
str essor s a n d, in tu r n , h ow th ey a ffect m en ta l
a n d ph ysica l h ea lth , gr a de poin t aver a ge, a n d
job sa tisfa ction . In th is section we exa m in e
th e de gr ee to wh ich ou r r esu lts a r e con sisten t
w ith oth er r esea r ch fin din gs, a n d offer som e
th ou gh ts on th e im plica tion s of th ese fi n din gs
for im pr ovin g r esea r ch a n d pr a ctice in th e
fields of edu ca tion a n d m a n a gem en t.
Ba sed on th e m odel pr esen ted in F igu r e 1, we
a im ed to test seven h ypoth eses th r ou gh th e
pr esen t a n a lysis. Ou r fi r st h ypoth esis pr edicted th a t type A beh aviou r – expecta tion s of
con tr ol over th e wor k en vir on m en t a n d
m eth ods of copin g – wou ld dir ectly a ffect
per ception s of occu pa tion a l str essor s. Th is
h ypoth esis w a s pa r tly su ppor ted by ou r fi n din gs. As pr edicted, in dividu a ls r epor tin g
m or e type A beh aviou r exper ien ced gr ea ter
levels of occu pa tion a l str ess a n d th ose w ith
[ 38 ]
less per ceived con tr ol over th eir wor k en vir on m en t (exter n a l sta te LOC) a lso exper ien ced m or e occu pa tion a l str ess. However, we
did n ot fi n d th a t gr ea ter levels of copin g led to
lower exper ien ces of occu pa tion a l str ess.
Secon d, we pr edicted th a t type A beh aviou r
a n d th e existen ce of copin g m ech a n ism s
wou ld dir ectly a ffect per ception s of a ca dem ic
str essor s. Aga in , th is w a s pa r tia lly su ppor ted
th r ou gh ou r fin din gs. In dividu a ls h igh er in
type A beh aviou r r epor ted h igh er levels of
a ca dem ic str ess. However, h igh er levels of
copin g did n ot lea d to lower exper ien ces of
a ca dem ic str ess for th e pr esen t sa m ple.
Th ir d, we pr edicted th a t h igh er levels of occu pa tion a l str ess wou ld lea d to gr ea ter levels of
m en ta l a n d ph ysica l ill h ea lth , lower GPAs
a n d lower levels of job sa tisfa ction . Two of
th ese r ela tion sh ips wer e su ppor ted by ou r
fin din gs.
Wh ile h igh er levels of occu pa tion a l str ess
wer e fou n d to lea d to m or e sym ptom s of ill
h ea lth (su ch a s in a bility to sleep, h ea da ch es,
in digestion a n d feelin gs of a n xiety) a n d lower
job sa tisfa ction , gr ea ter exper ien ces of occu pa tion a l str ess did n ot lea d to lower GPAs in
th is sa m ple.
Ou r fou r th h ypoth esis pr edicted th a t a ca dem ic str essor s wou ld in flu en ce th e exper ien ce
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
of occu pa tion a l str essor s a n d n e ga tively
a ffect h ea lth a n d GPA. Th ese r ela tion sh ips
wer e su ppor ted by ou r r esu lts. In fa ct, two of
th e str on gest fin din gs in th is r esea r ch wer e
th e in flu en ce of exper ien ces of a ca dem ic
str ess on exper ien ces of str ess a t wor k (0.22)
a n d th e n e ga tive in fl u en ce of stu den t str ess
on h ea lth (0.32).
F ifth , we h ypoth esized th a t m en ta l a n d
ph ysica l ill h ea lth wou ld be h igh er for in dividu a ls exper ien cin g m or e a ca dem ic a n d
occu pa tion a l str ess, for type As, th ose w ith a n
exter n a l LOC a n d th ose wh o pr a ctised fewer
copin g m ech a n ism s. Th e dir ection of th ese
r ela tion sh ips w a s su ppor ted for a ll fi ve of th e
pr edictor va r ia bles; h owever, type A beh aviou r w a s a ver y wea k pr edictor of ill h ea lth in
th e pr esen t r esea r ch (0.06). Aca dem ic str ess
w a s th e h igh est pr edictor (0.32) followed by
wor k str ess (0.24) a n d exter n a l LOC (0.18).
Sixth , we pr edicted th a t GPA wou ld be
lower for in dividu a ls exper ien cin g h igh er
levels of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess.
Aca dem ic str ess did sh ow a n e ga tive r ela tion sh ip w ith GPA (–0.18), wh ile occu pa tion a l
str ess w a s n ot fou n d to a ffect GPA a dver sely.
Ou r seven th a n d fin a l h ypoth esis w a s th a t
job sa tisfa ction wou ld be lower for in dividu a ls exper ien cin g m or e occu pa tion a l str ess,
for type As, th ose w ith a n exter n a l LOC a n d
th ose wh o pr a ctised fewer copin g m ech a n ism s. All of ou r pr ediction s wer e su ppor ted
bu t, a s w ith ill h ea lth , type A beh aviou r
em er ged a s a wea k pr edictor of job sa tisfa ction for th e pr esen t sa m ple. Th e str on gest
pr edictor of job sa tisfa ction w a s LOC (–0.29),
followed by occu pa tion a l str ess (–0.24).
Str ess-r ela ted ou tcom es h ave been viewed
a s eith er a fu n ction of m a la da ptive per son a l
lifestyles or a s a con sequ en ce of en vir on m en ta l fa ctor s (DeF r a n k a n d Cooper, 1987; N ea le
et a l., 1982). Th e pr esen t stu dy sh ow s th a t
str ess is a fu n ction of both th e in dividu a l a n d
h is/ h er en vir on m en t. Th u s, a ttem pts to cope
w ith th e ou tcom es of str ess n eed to focu s on
th e en vir on m en t a s well a s th e in dividu a l.
For th e pr esen t sa m ple, th e str essor s en cou n ter ed in th e a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l en vir on m en ts a r e th e two str on gest pr edictor s of
ill h ea lth . Ou r r esu lts sh ow th a t th e exper ien ce of a ca dem ic str ess is dysfu n ction a l for
stu den ts; it lea ds to exper ien ces of distr ess in
oth er a spects of th eir lives (su ch a s th eir
wor k ), lea ds to lower levels of ph ysica l a n d
m en ta l h ea lth , a n d lower GPAs. Th is gen er a l
pa tter n of fin din gs is con sisten t w ith pr eviou s r esea r ch wh ich h a s dem on str a ted th a t
stu den ts u n der h igh levels of str ess lea r n less
th a n th ose u n der m oder a te levels (Hock ey,
1979; Silver, 1968), th a t sch ool-r ela ted str ess
r esu lts in a n in a bility to do sch ool wor k a n d
th e fea r of a ca dem ic fa ilu r e (E llis, 1969), a n d
th a t, a s a con sequ en ce, m a n y stu den ts
(a ppr oxim a tely 50 per cen t of en ter in g fr esh m en ) do n ot fin ish colle ge fou r yea r s la ter
(Hir sch a n d Ken iston , 1970).
A n u m ber of en vir on m en t-focu sed m eth ods
to h elp stu den ts cope w ith th eir a ca dem ic
str ess wer e ou tlin ed ea r lier in th is a r ticle. As
in dica ted, su ch tech n iqu es m igh t in clu de
r edu cin g th e a m bigu ity a n d con fu sion
in volved w ith bein g a n ew stu den t by im pr ovin g n ew stu den t or ien ta tion s a n d in for m in g
stu den ts in a dva n ce of th e difficu lties wh ich
th ey m ay fa ce. For existin g stu den ts, r edu ced
en vir on m en ta l str ess m igh t be a ch ieved
th r ou gh gr ea ter flexibility in cor e cou r se
r equ ir em en ts, expa n din g th e r ole of fa cu lty
a dviser s, givin g ea r lier a n d m or e fr equ en t
exa m s a n d de-em ph a sizin g gr a des (Wh itm a n
et a l., 1984). Th e pr esen t r esu lts sh ow th a t a ll
of th e a ca dem ic str essor s m ea su r ed h er e a r e
dysfu n ction a l for stu den ts (i.e. fr u str a tion s,
con flicts, pr essu r es a n d ch a n ges). N ever th eless, th e two fa ctor s wh ich loa d h igh est on th e
a ca dem ic str ess fa ctor a r e fr u str a tion s a n d
pr essu r es. Redu cin g som e of th e pr essu r es
a n d fr u str a tion s exper ien ced by stu den ts
wou ld a ssist in lower in g th eir exper ien ces of
a ca dem ic str ess a n d, th er eby, im pr ove th e
qu a lity of th eir a ca dem ic lives.
Ou r r esu lts a lso sh ow th a t la ck of con tr ol
over th e wor k en vir on m en t is dysfu n ction a l –
it lea ds to gr ea ter sym ptom s of ill h ea lth
(0.18), h igh er per ception s of occu pa tion a l
str essor s (0.19) a n d lower levels of job sa tisfa ction (–0.29). Th e a bove-m en tion ed r esu lt
a lso su ppor ts pr ior r esea r ch fi n din gs in to th e
str ess pr ocess (e.g. An der son et a l., 1977;
F u silier et a l., 1987; Gem m ill a n d Heisler,
1972; Sa dr i a n d Ma r cou lides, 1994a ; b; Sa dr i et
a l., 1996; Spector, 1987). We r ecom m en d th a t
or ga n iza tion s a ttem pt to give people m or e
con tr ol over th eir wor k en vir on m en ts by
pr ovidin g extr a in for m a tion on r eleva n t
issu es (su ch a s a ssessm en t pr ocedu r es, com pa n y policies a n d r e gu la tion s a n d or ga n iza tion a l ch a n ge). Con tr ol over th e wor k en vir on m en t ca n a lso be en h a n ced by per m ittin g
em ployees to pa r ticipa te in decision m a k in g
(e.g. developin g wor k sch edu les colla bor a tively), pr ovidin g gr ea ter job a u ton om y a n d
em power in g em ployees wh er e possible. P r ior
stu dies h ave dem on str a ted th a t in cr ea sin g
th e con tr ol wh ich wor k er s h ave over th eir
en vir on m en t r esu lts in positive in dividu a l
a n d or ga n iza tion a l ou tcom es (J a ck son , 1983;
Ma r cou lides a n d Heck , 1993; P ier ce a n d N ew str om , 1983; Wa ll a n d Cle gg, 1981).
In dividu a l-focu sed m eth ods to h elp stu den ts cope w ith th eir a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess wou ld in clu de tech n iqu es
design ed to h elp stu den ts im pr ove th eir copin g sk ills a n d a da pt th eir lifestyles. Im pr oved
[ 39 ]
Go lnaz Sadri and
Ge o rge A. Marc o ulide s
An e xaminatio n o f ac ade mic
and o c c upatio nal stre ss in the
USA
Inte rnatio nal Jo urnal o f
Educ atio nal Manage me nt
1 1 / 1 [1 9 9 7 ] 3 2 –4 3
[ 40 ]
ca m pu s m en ta l h ea lth ser vices, peer cou n sellin g a n d self-h elp gr ou ps wou ld a ll h elp to
a ccom plish th is. Cou n sellin g tech n iqu es h ave
a lso pr oved su ccessfu l in wor k settin gs (e.g.
Copper a n d Sa dr i, 1991). An in ter estin g fin din g fr om th e pr esen t r esu lts is th a t in dividu a ls h igh er in type A beh aviou r sh ow
in cr ea sed per ception s of both a ca dem ic (0.23)
a n d occu pa tion a l str ess (0.18). As m en tion ed
pr eviou sly, type A in dividu a ls fr equ en tly
u n der estim a te th e tim e r equ ir ed to a ccom plish ta sk s a n d so exper ien ce tim e pr essu r es;
th ey wor k qu ick ly a n d sh ow im pa tien ce a n d
decr ea sed wor k per for m a n ce if for ced to wor k
slow ly. Type As ign or e, su ppr ess, or den y
ph ysica l or psych ologica l sym ptom s wh ile
wor k in g u n der pr essu r e; th ey often expr ess
h ostility a n d ir r ita tion in r espon se to a th r ea t
a n d n eed to be in con tr ol of th e im m edia te
en vir on m en t to su ch a n exten t th a t a la ck of
con tr ol m ay elicit a h ostile, com petitive
r espon se (F r iedm a n a n d Rosen m a n , 1974;
F r ogga tt a n d Cotton , 1987; Ga n ster et a l., 1989;
Willia m s, 1989). Wor k sh ops m ay be pr ovided
to stu den ts in or der to r a ise aw a r en ess of
th eir possible type A beh aviou r a l ten den cies
a n d to en cou r a ge th em to ch a n ge a spects of
th eir beh aviou r wh ich m ay be dysfu n ction a l
for th em .
Th e pr esen t r esu lts a lso h elp to iden tify th e
r ole of copin g beh aviou r in th e lives of stu den ts. Wh ile copin g h a s little effect on th e
per ception of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l
str essor s a n d on levels of job sa tisfa ction , it
does a ppea r to pr even t ill h ea lth . Mem ber s of
ou r sa m ple wh o in dica ted th a t th ey m a de
gr ea ter a ttem pts to cope w ith th eir str ess
r epor ted fewer sym ptom s of m en ta l a n d ph ysica l ill h ea lth . Th e m eth ods of copin g m ea su r ed h er e (socia l su ppor t, ta sk str a te gies,
logic, h om e-wor k r ela tion sh ip, tim e m a n a gem en t a n d in volvem en t) a ll a ppea r im por ta n t
to th e pr esen t sa m ple, in pa r ticu la r, th e developm en t of ta sk str a te gies a n d in cr ea sin g th e
level of in volvem en t (i.e. for cin g on eself to
com e to ter m s w ith r ea lity, r ecogn izin g on e’s
lim ita tion s a n d focu sin g on specifi c pr oblem s). Aga in , ba sed on th e pr esen t r esu lts,
ca m pu s fa cilities wh ich tea ch a n y of th ese
differ en t sk ills to th e ca m pu s popu la tion do
fu lfil a n im por ta n t fu n ction a n d sh ou ld be
both su ppor ted a n d pr om oted.
Despite th e im por ta n t fi n din gs wh ich
em er ged fr om th is stu dy, th er e a r e som e pr oblem s w ith th e pr esen t r esea r ch . F ir st, it is
difficu lt to gen er a lize th e pr esen t fin din gs to
sa m ples ou tside th e USA, a n d fu tu r e r esea r ch
n eeds to test ou r m odel w ith sa m ples dr aw n
fr om oth er cou n tr ies. Secon d, we h ave pr esen ted a m odel of occu pa tion a l a n d a ca dem ic
str ess a n d sa m pled a gr ou p of wor k in g stu den ts. Con sequ en tly, gen er a lizin g th e
obser ved r esu lts to gr ou ps of stu den ts wh o do
n ot wor k a n d go to sch ool a t th e sa m e tim e
m ay a lso be pr oblem a tic. F in a lly, th e m a jor ity
of ou r m ea su r es a r e self-r epor t in dices a n d
th is open s u p th e possibility of bia s in ou r
fin din gs. As su ch , a n y fu tu r e r esea r ch on
m odels of th is n a tu r e sh ou ld in clu de m or e
beh aviou r a l in dices su ch a s m edica l r ecor ds
a n d wor k pr odu ctivity. N ever th eless, th e
r esu lts pr esen ted in th is stu dy r epr esen t a n
in itia l step tow a r ds descr ibin g a n d eva lu a tin g im por ta n t a spects of a ca dem ic a n d occu pa tion a l str ess. E xpa n din g on th is be gin n in g
w ill be a pr ofita ble goa l for fu tu r e r esea r ch in
edu ca tion a n d m a n a gem en t.
References and further reading
An der son , C.R., Hellr ie gel, D. a n d Slocu m , J .W.
(1977), “Ma n a ger ia l r espon se to en vir on m en ta l in du ced str ess”, A ca d em y of M a n a gem en t
J ou r n a l, Vol. 6, pp. 260-72.
Ba u wen s, J . a n d Hou r ca de, J .J . (1992), “Sch oolba sed sou r ces of str ess a m on g elem en ta r y a n d
secon da r y a t-r isk stu den ts”, T h e S ch ool Cou n selor , Vol. 40, pp. 97-102.
Beeh r, T.A. a n d N ew m a n , J .E . (1978), “J ob str ess,
em ployee h ea lth , a n d or ga n iza tion a l effectiven ess: a fa cet a n a lysis, m odel a n d liter a tu r e
r eview ”, Person n el Psych olog y, Vol. 31, pp. 66599.
Ben tler, P.M. (1994), EQS S tru ctu ra l Equ a tion s
Progra m M a n u a l, Mu ltiva r ia te Softw a r e, In c.,
E n cin o, CA.
Ben tler, P. a n d Bon ett, D. (1980), “Sign ifica n ce
tests a n d goodn ess-of-fi t in th e a n a lysis of
cova r ia n ce str u ctu r es”, Psych ologica l
B u lletin , Vol. 88, pp. 588-606.
Byr n e, B.M. (1989), A Pr im er on L IS R EL ,
Spr in ger -Ver la g, N ew Yor k , N Y.
Ca h ir, N. a n d Mor r is, R.D. (1991), “Th e psych ology
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