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The modern
world, which is said to be a world of achievement, is also a
world of stress. One finds stress everywhere, whether it be a
family, a military station, a government set-up or any other
social or economic organisation. Stress is an inevitable
consequence of socio-economic complexity and, to some extent
it’s stimulant as well. People experience stress as they can
no longer have complete control over what happens to their
lives. The delay or denial of expected promotion and posting,
job pressure, behaviour of section commanders/peers, sickness,
marital disharmony, poor performance of children at school etc
could be the causes of stress. Even trifles such as telephone
going out of order, power shut down and irregular water supply
can give rise to stress. But then stress is necessary for
human progress. It is like the strings of a musical instrument
where an optimum amount of stress is necessary to produce good
music. Loose wires (less stress) would not produce the notes
and too much of tension (excessive stress) would lead to
screening.
The potential sources
of stress are following :
Environmental Factors
: Environ- mental factors i.e.
posting to a place under field conditions, tough climatic
conditions etc can be stress- inducing. Technological
uncertainty like induction of new aircraft, radar, machinery
and inventions in medical science can also cause stress
because new machinery, equipment and inventions can make
employees’ skill and experience obsolete in a very short
period of time. Computers, office automation and similar
technological innovations could be a source of stress to many.
Organisational Factors
: Pressure to avoid error,
completion of task in limited time, work overload, demanding
and insensitive section commander and unplanned workers are a
few examples of organisational factors. Poor inter-personnel
relationship and lack of support from colleagues can cause
considerable stress expecially among persons with high social
need.
Individual Factors :
In the IAF, an individual generally works for about 40-42
hours a week. The problems that people encounter in other 108
non-working hours each week can spill over to the job.
Individual factors generally encompass factors in the employee’s
personal life. These could be marital difficulties, family
issues, economic problems, inherent personality
characteristics, medical problems of relatives etc that create
stress for employees when they arrive at work.
Stress has an
addictive phenomenon. It builds up. Each new and persistent
stressor adds to an individual's stress level. A single
stressor may seem relatively unimportant in itself, but if it
is added to an already high level of stress, it can be
disastrous.
The consequences of
stress on individuals are not same. The same set of conditions
that create stress for one person may have little or no effect
on another person. The effect of stress is visible in a number
of ways. For example, an individual who is experiencing a high
level of stress may develop high blood pressure, gastric
ulcers, difficulty in making decisions, loss of appetite,
accident proneness etc. Stress could create change in
metabolism, increase in heart and breathing rate and blood
pressure, headache and may induce heart attack. Stress can
also cause job dissatisfaction and may create tension,
anxiety, irritation and procrastination. It can cause changes
in food habit, increased smoking, high consumption of alcohol
and sleep disorders and can lead even to suicide.
The relationship
between stress and job performance can be expressed as
inverted-U relationship. Low to moderate levels of stress
stimulate the body and increases its ability to react. Under
such circumstances individuals perform their task better with
greater precision and rapidity. Excessive stress places
unattainable demand or constraints on a person which results
in lowering the level of performance. A moderate level of
stress can also have a negative effect on performance over a
long term as continued intensity of stress wears downs the
individual and saps his energy resources. For example,
performance of an individual put on guard duty continuously
for long period of time may deteriorate after 2-3 days. This
is the main reason for rotating guards at regular intervals.
The present-day
researcher visualises the phenomenon of stress in a new
perception. Each individual needs a moderate amount of stress
to be alert and capable of functioning effectively in an
organisation. Stress is inherent in the concept of creativity
and entrepreneurship. Stress is like electricity. It can make
a bulb glow and provide brilliant illumination. However, if
voltage is higher than the bulb can take and the coping
mechanism for higher voltage are ineffective, it results in
loss of effectiveness or burnout. A burnout can be defined as
the end result of stress experienced, not properly coped with,
resulting in exhaustion, irritation, ineffectiveness, problems
of health etc. The opposite phenomenon of glow up occurs when
stress is properly channelised resulting in a feeling of
challenge, job satisfaction, creativity, effectiveness and
better adjustment to work and life.
When individuals
express stress, they try to adopt ways of dealing or coping
with it as they cannot remain in a constant state of tension.
They think over the stressful event and devise ways and means
to adjust to such stressful events. Transformational coping
involves altering the events so that they are less stressful.
One has to interact with the events so that they are steered
towards a less stressful direction. Regressive coping, on the
other hand, includes a strategy wherein one thinks about the
events pessimistically and acts evasively to avoid contact
with them.
An individual himself
may reduce his stress level by following time management
techniques, increasing physical exercise, relaxation training
and expanding social support network. A well-organised
individual can accomplish twice as much as compared to a
poorly organised individual. Utilisation of basic time
management principles can help individuals better cope with
tension created by job demands. Few of the well known
time-management principles are : prioritising activities in
terms of importance and urgency, making daily list of
activities and completing most demanding parts of job during
alert and productive period.
Physical exercise like
walking, jogging, swimming and riding a bi-cycle have been
recommended by doctors as a way to deal with excessive stress
level. These physical exercises increase cardiac capacity,
lower heart rate at rest, provide a mental diversion from work
pressure and offer a means to "let off steam".
Individuals can also teach themselves to reduce tension
through meditation or Yoga. Talking to friends, family members
or colleagues provide an outlet when stress level becomes
excessive. Expanding the social network could be a means for
reducing tension.
While the importance
of technology and physical factors in an organisation cannot
be over-emphasised, it is the "human side of the
organisation" that matters most. Studies on
"stress" reveals that the root cause of this problem
is the neglect of human resources. While commanding an air
base a Commanding Officer may not understand how an aircraft
engine works or a radar functions, but he must try to
understand the more complicated piece of machine called
"The Man". He must recognise that human element and
its problems must take precedence over all the considerations.
If a station cannot achieve its task due to technical
inadequacies, it can be back on rail within a short period of
time. But if some damage is caused to the human resource, it
may prove fatal to the organisation and will be very difficult
for it to recover from the shock. The suggested measures are :
*
time management in working of squadron/unit so as to allow
spare time to every individual.
*
regular off to personnel employed on shift duties.
*
improvement
in working/living conditions in messes.
*
proper interaction within the organisation and two-way
communication system.
*
more emphasis on organised games for all personnel and conduct
of annual sports/athletic meets.
*
encouragement for unit/squadron anniversary and variety
entertainment programmes.
*
visit to Airmen Mess, DSC Mess on daily basis by an officer
during meal times and on bar days.
*
regular conduct of welfare meetings and realistic
implementation of decisions.
It is the role of
higher formations to ensure that entitled leave is sanctioned
to individuals posted to stress-prone appointments. Periodical
breaks, like a two-week holiday that takes the individual away
from work place and provides a homely atmosphere, can have an
immense therapeutic effect. Posting profile should be planned
in such a manner that an individual is not posted to such
appointments regularly. The suggested measures are :
*
realistic goal setting for stations unit.
*
system of award/honours is to be so designed that real
achievers are recognised.
*
all functional areas of a station should be given due
importance.
Right from the time of birth till the
last day of life, an individual is invariably exposed to
various stressful situations. The stress can be either a
positive or negative influence on an individual’s
performance. For many people, low to moderate amount of stress
enables them to perform their jobs better by increasing their
work intensity, alertness and ability to react. However, a
high level of stress or even a moderate amount sustained over
a long period of time, eventually takes its toll and level of
performance declines. Even though low to moderate levels of
stress may improve the job performance individual finds stress
dissatisfying. Effective management of stress involves
channelling stress towards productive purposes.
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