Experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden
Purpose The aim of this qualitative study was to describe experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden. Methods We interviewed 15 employees in the municipal sector in rural northern Sweden using a semi-structured guide and subjected the interv...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2022-12-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2022.2056957 |
| _version_ | 1827048633659293696 |
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| author | Sofia Asplund Johan Åhlin Sture Åström Britt-Marie Lindgren |
| author_facet | Sofia Asplund Johan Åhlin Sture Åström Britt-Marie Lindgren |
| author_sort | Sofia Asplund |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Purpose The aim of this qualitative study was to describe experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden. Methods We interviewed 15 employees in the municipal sector in rural northern Sweden using a semi-structured guide and subjected the interviews to qualitative content analysis. Results Under the main theme of Suffering Through Endless Chaos, we summarized four themes: facing incompatible interests and high demands due to lack of time and resources; feeling powerless, trapped, and ignored due to lack of control; feeling insufficient, insecure, and guilty due to challenging relations and high expectations; and struggling with consequences such as health problems, spillover effects on family life, and difficulty coping. Conclusion Findings from this study suggest the importance of acknowledging suffering among municipal employees in a stressful work environment. An imbalance between job demands and resources is affecting both health and family lives of employees, and also their ability to work. It seems important to improve the work environment through supportive leadership, job control, and reasonable job demands to prevent stress, reduce suffering, and create a healthy organization. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T00:48:33Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-062eb507e1fb49a7bb983e7de9ed3f88 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1748-2623 1748-2631 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-02-18T15:32:57Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being |
| spelling | doaj.art-062eb507e1fb49a7bb983e7de9ed3f882024-10-25T13:48:29ZengTaylor & Francis GroupInternational Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being1748-26231748-26312022-12-0117110.1080/17482631.2022.20569572056957Experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern SwedenSofia Asplund0Johan Åhlin1Sture Åström2Britt-Marie Lindgren3Umeå UniversityUmeå UniversityUmeå UniversityUmeå UniversityPurpose The aim of this qualitative study was to describe experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden. Methods We interviewed 15 employees in the municipal sector in rural northern Sweden using a semi-structured guide and subjected the interviews to qualitative content analysis. Results Under the main theme of Suffering Through Endless Chaos, we summarized four themes: facing incompatible interests and high demands due to lack of time and resources; feeling powerless, trapped, and ignored due to lack of control; feeling insufficient, insecure, and guilty due to challenging relations and high expectations; and struggling with consequences such as health problems, spillover effects on family life, and difficulty coping. Conclusion Findings from this study suggest the importance of acknowledging suffering among municipal employees in a stressful work environment. An imbalance between job demands and resources is affecting both health and family lives of employees, and also their ability to work. It seems important to improve the work environment through supportive leadership, job control, and reasonable job demands to prevent stress, reduce suffering, and create a healthy organization.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2022.2056957work-related stressoccupational healthmunicipal employeerural areassufferingqualitative content analysis |
| spellingShingle | Sofia Asplund Johan Åhlin Sture Åström Britt-Marie Lindgren Experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being work-related stress occupational health municipal employee rural areas suffering qualitative content analysis |
| title | Experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden |
| title_full | Experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden |
| title_fullStr | Experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden |
| title_full_unstemmed | Experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden |
| title_short | Experiences of work-related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern Sweden |
| title_sort | experiences of work related stress among highly stressed municipal employees in rural northern sweden |
| topic | work-related stress occupational health municipal employee rural areas suffering qualitative content analysis |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2022.2056957 |
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