ANTECEDENTS AND CONSEQUENCES OF STRESS -A LITERATURE REVIEW (original) (raw)

Given the importance of human resources in an organization and role in the growth and achievement of organizational goals, addressing the issue of employee productivity is one of the major concerns of today's organizations. Hence, the competence and performance of employees are crucial, holding the key to success and it becomes utmost important for organizations to nurture their employees constantly in today's scenario. The productivity of the workforce is the most decisive factor as far as the success of an organization is concerned. The productivity in turn is dependent on the psychosocial well being of the employees. In an age of highly dynamic and competitive world, man is exposed to all kinds of stressors that can affect him on all realms of life. People experience stress and strain irrespective of the profession in which they are engaged in or the status of their official hierarchy. Stress could be a stimulating experience as long as it is within a controllable limit. When it goes beyond this limit, stress becomes distress and difficult to be managed. Consequently, the actions of the individuals become dull and everything will appear to go wrong. This situation results in reducing his/her efficiency and effectiveness in playing the role entrusted to him in the family or society or workplace. His/her effectiveness may rise up to a particular level of stress, but beyond that level, it invariably drops. Against this background, the present study reviews the studies on the antecedents and consequences of stress. The study is based on secondary data. In conclusion, high work pressure, supervisor control, lacking in autonomy and clarity and low in work resources like little involvement, peer cohesion, or supervisor support are found to be stressors.