ChapterChapter

MANAGING YOUR OWN

BEHAVIOR: CAREERS AND STRESS

SixSix

After reading this chapter you should be able to:

1. Understand socialization, and identify the stages through which it develops.

2. Explain what mentors are, what they do, and the benefits as well as costs of mentoring to both mentors and their protégés.

3. Describe how people choose their careers, and explain how the nature of careers has changed in recent years.

4. Explain how the careers of women and men differ, including the so-called glass ceiling.

5. Define stress and distinguish it from strain.

6. Describe the major organizational and personal causes of stress.

7. Describe the adverse effects of stress, including burnout, and explain how individual differences play roles in such effects.

9. Describe individual as well as organizational techniques for managing stress.

Organizational Socialization: The Process of Learning the Ropes (Pp. 208-211)

Organizational Socialization - the three-step process through which newcomers become full-fledged members who share its major values and understand its policies and procedures

(first encounterswith the neworganization)

(making fullentry into theorganization)

Breaking In

Settling In

(Learning aboutprospective

organizations)

Getting In

Figure 6.2Three Stages ofOrganizationalSocialization

Social

izatio

n

Organizational Socialization: The Process of Learning the Ropes (cont.)

Getting In: What Happens Before People Are Hired? - pre-entry periodHow do we learn about organizations? - several sources

- employees of the organization- published material- representatives of the organization

Reducing entry shock with realistic job previewsEntry shock - confusion and disorientation experienced

by newcomers whose expectations about an organization are not met

Realistic job previews - accurate information aboutwhat working in the organization will be like- increase job satisfaction and reduce voluntary

turnover- caution: best applicants most sensitive to negative

information about the job

Organizational Socialization: The Process of Learning the Ropes (cont.)

Breaking In: The Encounter Stage - begins when employees actuallyassume their new duties- learn what organization expects from them and how to be

participating members of their work group- face several challenges:

- master skills required for the new job- become oriented to practices and procedures within the

organization- organizational culture

Settling In: The Metamorphosis Stage - may be marked by a formal ceremony- employees make permanent adjustments to their jobs- organizations treat them as if they will be long-term members of

the work team

Mentoring: One-On-One Socialization (Pp. 212-215)

Mentoring - process in which a more experienced employee -- a mentor --advises, counsels, and otherwise enhances the personal development(and career) of a new employee -- a protégé- protégés receive more promotions and higher compensation

What Do Mentors Do? - assist protégés in many ways- provide emotional support and inspire self-confidence- nominate protégés for promotions- provide opportunities for protégés to show off their competencies- suggest personal career strategies- protect protégés from the consequences of errors

Mentoring: One-On-One Socialization (cont.)

How Mentoring Relationships Form and Change - result from a complexselection process in which both mentor and protégé play active roles- pass through four distinct phases

Phase 2: Cultivation - lasts an additional 2 to 5 years- bond deepens between mentor and protégé- protégé’s career begins advancing as a result of mentoring

Phase 3: Separation - begins when protégé feels it is time to assertindependence- stressful period for both mentor and protégé

Phase 4: Redefinition - occurs after a successful separation- bond based on friendship- mentor and protégé roles fade away

Phase 1: Initiation - lasts 6 months to a year- learn what to expect from each other

Careers: New Forms, New Strategies (Pp. 215-224)Career - the evolving sequence of a person’s work experiences over time

- people currently hold different conceptions about careers than theydid in the past

Choosing a Job: Making Vocational Choices - influenced by several factorsPerson-job fit - personal characteristics make people more suited to

some jobs than other jobs- better the person-job fit, the greater the job satisfaction

Job opportunities - beliefs about the future of jobs- focus on jobs believed to offer growing opportunities

Changing Nature of Career Plans - single-track career paths are becomingthe exception rather than the rule- careers involve lateral moves, rotation through several different jobs,

geographic relocations, and periods of time spent as anindependent contractor or subcontractor rather than a full-time employee

- employees should view their careers as a series of opportunities forgaining new proficiencies that will increase their value onthe job market

Careers: New Forms, New Strategies (cont.)

Entrepreneurship: Should You Start Your Own Business?Entrepreneur - an individual who starts her/his own business

Entrepreneurship - career path for increasing number of people because of:- low job security in traditional organizational jobs- growing desire for independence and autonomy,

particularly among the young- media coverage of entrepreneurial success stories

- risky career choice- high failure rate- profitability attained only after several years- sharp increase in personal work load

- requires a solid business background and study

Careers: New Forms, New Strategies (cont.)

Careers of Women and Men: How Similar Are They?- benefits of training greater for men than for women- work experience and education provide greater training opportunities

for men than for women- a spouse and dependents enhance experiences of men more than of

women- collegial encouragement more closely related to managerial

advancement for men than for women

Female “style” of managing - less concern with status and hierarchies- greater willingness to compromise and mediate

Glass ceiling - barrier preventing females from reaching top positionsin many organizations- often takes subtle forms rather than overt discrimination- barriers have lessened during recent years, but have not

been eliminated

Careers: New Forms, New Strategies (cont.)

Careers of Women and Men: How Similar Are They? (cont.)

Men Women

Upper-levelpositions

Lower-levelpositions

Figure 6.9The Glass Ceiling

TheGlass

Ceiling

Stress on the Job: Too Important to Ignore (Pp. 224-226)

Stress - a complex pattern of emotional states, physiological reactions, andrelated thoughts occasioned by external demands- can have devastating effects on nearly all aspects of human behavior

and organizational functioning

Stressors - various factors in the external environment that induce stressamong people exposed to themCognitive appraisal - determines whether a factor acts as a stressor

- perception that the situation is threatening- threatening situation is beyond the person’s control

Strain - the accumulated effects of stress, primarily deviations from normalstates or performance, resulting from exposure to stressful events

Figure 6.10Distinguishing Among Stessors, Stress, and Strain

Strain(physiological)

Strain(psychological)

Strain(behavioral)

• Physical ailments

• Emotional ailments

• Impaired job performance

ProlongedExposure

Stressors(physical)

Stressors(psychological)

CognitiveAppraisal

• Threat in the situation

• Beyond control

Stress

Potential Sources of Stress (Pp. 226-233)

Work-Related Causes of Stress - work environments may be highly stressfulOccupational demands - some jobs are more stressful than others

depending upon whether they:- require making decisions- involve constant monitoring- require repeated exchange of information- occur in unpleasant physical conditions- involve performing unstructured tasks- involve dealing with the public

Conflict between work and nonwork - stress produced by competing demandsRole conflict - incompatible demands on an individual

made by different groups of persons- effects lessened by social support in work setting

Role ambiguity - stress produced by uncertainty about how to meetthe requirements of the job- differs greatly from culture to culture

1.75

1.85

1.95

2.05

2.15

2.25

2.35

2.45

2.55

Rol

e A

mb

igu

ity

Au

stra

lia

U.K

.

Fra

nce

Ger

man

y

U.S

.

Kor

ea

Mex

ico

Indo

nesi

a

Nig

eria

In general, role ambiguity ishigher in Western

Figure 6.11Culture and Role Ambiguity

than in Asianand African countries

Potential Sources of Stress (cont.)

Work-Related Causes of Stress (cont.)Overload and underload - stress produced by too much or too little

workQuantitative overload - situation requiring individuals to

accomplish more work than they can in a givenperiod of time

Qualitative overload - belief among employees that they lackthe skills and abilities to perform their jobs

Quantitative underload - situation in which individuals haveso little to do that they spend much of their timedoing nothing

Qualitative underload - lack of mental stimulation thataccompanies many routine, repetitive jobs

Potential Sources of Stress (cont.)

Work-Related Causes of Stress (cont.)Lack of social support - isolation poor situation in which to

experience stress - presence of others can be very effective way of dealing

with stress

Sexual harassment - unwelcome sexual advances, requests forsexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of asexual nature- can be subtle as well as overt- may be increasing in US workplaces

Responsibility for others - motivating, punishing and rewarding,and communicating with other people leads to higher stressthan dealing with other organizational functions

Potential Sources of Stress (cont.)

Causes of Stress Outside Work - events outside work settings often causesstress that persists and may affect work Stressful life events - traumatic events or significant life changes

- more stressful, greater the likelihood of illness- typically are rare events

Hassles of daily life - countless minor irritations that make up fortheir low intensity by their high frequency- more daily hassles experienced, the greater the levels of

self-reported stress

The Major Effects of Stress (Pp. 233-238)

Stress and Task Performance - stress exerts mainly negative effects ontask performance -- even at relatively low levels because:- even relatively mild stress can be distracting- prolonged or repeated exposure to even mild levels of stress may

exert harmful effects on health- may produce high levels of arousal, leading to “choking under

pressure”

Exceptions to the general rule - large individual differences inimpact of stress on task performance- some individuals seem to rise to the occasion

- view stress as a challenge, not a threat

The Major Effects of Stress (cont.)

Stress and Psychological Well-BeingBurnout - a syndrome that results from prolonged exposure to stress

and consists of:Emotional exhaustion - chronic state of physical and

emotional depletionDepersonalization - development of callous, cynical attitudes

about one’s career and workReduced personal accomplishments - tendency to evaluate

accomplishments at work negatively

BurnoutEmotionalExhaustion

Reduced PersonalAccomplishment

Depersonalization

Intense andprolonged

work-relatedstress

Figure 6.13Components of

Burnout Loweredperformance

and othernegativeeffects

Some major causes of burnout- prolonged exposure to stress- belief that one has lost valuable resources that will

reduce the ability to cope with work demands- job conditions suggesting the one’s efforts are useless- feeling that one is trapped in an unfair situation- leadership that does not provide consideration

The Major Effects of Stress (cont.)

Stress and Psychological Well-Being (cont.)

Effects of burnout - has deleterious consequences- impairs one’s physical condition- causes changes in one’s behavior- leads to counterproductive work performance- increases voluntary turnover

Preventing burnout - provide effective ways to cope with stressand inequity

Reversing burnout - short breaks, days off from work, and vacationsall are effective in allowing an individual to recover fromemotional exhaustion and depersonalization due to stress

The Major Effects of Stress (cont.)

Stress and Health: The Silent Killer - strong relationship between stressand personal health- leads to both degenerative as well as infectious diseases

Individual Differences in Resistance to Stress- Type A’s less resistant to effects of stress than Type B’s- other personal characteristics (e.g., “optimism” and “hardiness”)

also influence the effect of stress on personal health

Managing Stress: Some Effective Techniques (Pp. 238-242)

Personal Approaches to Stress ManagementResiliency - learning ways of minimizing the degree to which

stressors adversely affect usPhysiological techniques - relaxation, meditation, and

napping- people can learn to induce relaxation whenever they

feel themselves becoming too tenseCognitive techniques - reduce worrying

- avoid awfulizing and catastrophizing - magnifyingthe effects of failure, imperfection, orthoughts of rejection

Lifestyle management - getting one’s body into proper shape- balancing life activities

Time management - take control over one’s actions- set priorities and stick to them- avoid distraction by others- delegate responsibilities to others

Managing Stress: Some Effective Techniques (cont.)

Organization-Wide Strategies for Managing StressFamily-supportive practices - designed to reduce work-family

role conflict

Special corporate programsStress management programs - systematic efforts by

organizations designed to help employees reduceor prevent stress

Wellness programs - variety of training programs (e.g., exercise, nutrition training) designed to promotehealthy employees

Employee assistance programs - plans that provide employees with assistance with various problems including substance abuse, career planning, financialand legal problems)