SUNY Downstate researchers find three stressful work characteristics increasing in the U.S.

May 24 2017

Researchers at SUNY Downstate Medical Center's School of Public Health have determined that two stressful work characteristics, low job control and "job strain" -- that is, high-demand, low-control work -- have been increasing in the U.S. since 2002.

The findings were presented at the Seventh International Commission on Occupational Health (ICOH) Conference on Work Environment and Cardiovascular Diseases, in Varese, Italy, by Paul A. Landsbergis, PhD, EdD, MPH, associate professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, and earlier by lead author and SUNY Downstate Doctor of Public Health candidate Stephanie Myers at SUNY Downstate Research Day in Brooklyn, NY.

Dr. Landsbergis said, "We determined that two stressful work characteristics, low job control, and 'job strain,' or high-demand, low-control work, have been increasing in the U.S. since 2002. Both of these job stressors are risk factors for cardiovascular disease, or CVD."

He continued, "This may help to explain why the years-long declines in the incidence of CVD and mortality from CVD have slowed." Dr. Landsbergis added, "We also found an increase in 'work-family conflict,' which likely reflects increasing burdens faced by working parents in the U.S."

This is the first analysis looking at trends in work characteristics over 12 years using Quality of Work Life (QWL) surveys developed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The four surveys analyzed (2002, 2006, 2010, and 2014) are based on representative samples of the U.S. employed population.