The Impact of Occupational Stress on Job Satisfaction and Counterproductive Work Behaviour

Abstract

The present economical challenges increase the level of demand and pressure on people in their workplaces, eventually affecting the efficiency of organizations. Given the relationship between job strain and individual and organizational outcomes (Robertson, 2009), the present context places an even higher importance on understanding and dealing correctly with these issues. The research at hand examines the predictive value of different occupational sources of pressure on job satisfaction and counterproductive work behaviour, using an occupational sample in the financial services field. The participants were asked to complete two questionnaires: OSI-90 (Cooper, Sloan & Williams, 1996) and Workplace Deviance Scale (Bennett & Robinson, 2000). The results indicate that stressors related to the organizational climate, the work relationships, organizational hassles and workload predict counterproductive work behaviour. Furthermore, job satisfaction was positively related to the high quality of the work relationship and low levels of tension in the organizational climate and hassles, while the level of satisfaction with the organization was associated with the work-family balance and the organizational climate. Implications for developing programs that help employees effectively cope with these sources of stress as well as recommendations for developing healthier organizations are discussed.