In fact, some persons will not perform well unless they experience some level of stress. On the other hand, some people have very low level of tolerance for stress and they become paralyzed when they have to interface with some non-routine factors that appear undesirable to them.
Basically there are three types of stress:
(1) Physical Stress : This happens when the body as a whole suffers due to stressful situation. There are many symptoms like headache, strain in the neck, forehead and shoulder muscles. Long period of stress can cause other serious symptoms like ulcer, nervousness, excessive sweating, heart ailments and hair loss as well.
(2) Emotional Stress: These responses are due to stress affecting the mind and include anxiety, anger, depression, irritation, frustration, etc.
(3) Psychological Stress : Long term stress can cause psychological problems in some individuals. Symptoms may include social isolation, phobias, eating disorders and night terrors.
Causes of Stress: Performing almost all types of jobs causes stress, though the intensity may vary from job to job. Job performance depends upon effective management of stress in addition to the other factors which in turn depend upon identification of sources of stress. Conditions which cause stress are called stressors. According to sources, major sources of stress are job releated like low salary and family related which includes divorce, death of child or spouse.
(1.) Personal Factors : These are as follows:
(a) Physical and Psychological Factors: It includes physical and psychological factors like excessive desire for power, self esteem and status, job security, career development – status incongruity (under or over promotion and frustration).
(b) Life Changes : Life and career changes are stress producing. Fast changes are more dangerous than slow changes. Heart attacks are commonly observed in the case of fast changes in life and careers. Economic and social problems are attached with fast changes. The people who believe in work are more stress prone than people who depend on God for success and failure.
(c) Role Perceptions : A person has to work as a father, friend, brother, boss, junior etc. It is difficult to perform equally well in all the diverse roles.
(2) Situational Factors: It may be conflicts, accidents, competition, poor communication, role conflicts, work pressure, support from sensors.
(3) Environmental Factors: It includes natural calamities like floods,
earthquake, tsunami etc.
There are so many causes of stress:
(a) Family problem.
(b) Workload.
(c) High expectation.
(d) Job insecurity.
(e) Communication gap.
(f) Unhealthy working conditions.
(g) Misbehaviour from management and peers.
(h) Financial insecurity.
(4) Organisational Factors: (a) Pressures to avoid errors or complete tasks in a given time period, work overload, a demanding and insensitive boss and unpleasant coworkers are a few examples.