Abstract
Previous studies of psychosocial work factors have indicated their importance for workers’ health. However, to what extent health problems can be attributed to the nature of the work environment or other psychosocial factors is not clear. No previous systematic review has used inclusion criteria based on specific medical evaluation of work-related health outcomes and the use of validated instruments for the assessment of the psychosocial (work) environment.The aim of this systematic review is to summarize the evidence assessing the relationship between the psychosocial work environment and workers’ health based on studies that used standardized and validated instruments to assess the psychosocial work environment and that focused on medically confirmed health outcomes. A systematic review of the literature was carried out by searching the databases PubMed, B-ON, Science Direct, Psycarticles, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection and the search engine (Google Scholar) using appropriate words for studies published from 2004 to 2014. This review follows the recommendations of the Statement for Reporting Systematic Reviews (PRISMA). Studies were included in the review if data on psychosocial validated assessment method(s) for the study population and specific medical evaluation of health-related work outcome(s) were presented.In total, the search strategy yielded 10,623 references, of which 10 studies (seven prospective cohort and three cross-sectional) met the inclusion criteria. Most studies (7/10) observed an adverse effect of poor psychosocial work factors on workers’ health: 3 on sickness absence, 4 on cardiovascular diseases. The other 3 studies reported detrimental effects on sleep and on disease-associated biomarkers. A more consistent effect was observed in studies of higher methodological quality that used a prospective design jointly with the use of validated instruments for the assessment of the psychosocial (work) environment and clinical evaluation.More prospective studies are needed to assess the evidence of work-related psychosocial factors on workers´ health.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12995-016-0106-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
The significant changes occurring in the world of work over the last several decades have been associated with profound effects on the health and well-being of workers
The search strategy consisted of a combination of three search strings: terms related to psychosocial work factors; terms related to risk assessment and terms related to workersphysical and mental health outcomes (Additional file 1)
This study offer us two main findings: First, it found that role conflicts, the fourths (25 %) of the work unit corresponding poorest level had a double increase of future sickness absence (RR 2.18; CI 95 % 1.42–2.94), but poor levels of emotional demands, role clarity and quality of leadership too were associated with increase of sickness absence during the follow-up; Second it found that burnout was associated with more than a double increase of long-term sickness absence during the following 11/2 years (RR 2.93; CI 95 % 1.89– 3.96) regarding high level of work burnout and a double increase regarding personal burnout (RR 2.30; CI 95 % 1.58–3.02) after adjusting for confounders
Summary
The significant changes occurring in the world of work over the last several decades have been associated with profound effects on the health and well-being of workers. The European Union (EU) countries are facing escalating health care costs and costs linked to absenteeism, presenteeism and employee turnover, these being determinant factors and considered as issues of great concern to many employers and providers of health care services [1]. According to the Statistical Office of the European Union (EUROSTAT), public health care costs in EU-27 countries amount to an average of 8.3 % of annual gross domestic product each year [1]. Employers are recognizing the competitive advantage that a healthy workplace can provide to them, as the development and maintenance of a healthy working environment and workforce has clear benefits for organizations and employees [3]. International Labour Organization defines psychosocial risk factors as the interactions among job content, work organisation and management, and other environmental and organisational conditions, on the one hand, and the employees’ competencies and needs on the other that prove to have a hazardous influence over employees’ health through their perceptions and experience [4]
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