Stress Prevention at Work: Intervention Efficacy and Implementation Process Evaluation (SPA)

Stress-related illnesses are today together with musculoskeletal disorders the predominant cause of production loss and absenteeism. The risks of developing stress-related mental illness is today well established, however, it is less studied how this can be successfully treated or prevented in workplaces through interventions.

The SPA project intends to evaluate the method the Productivity Measurement and Enhancement System (ProMES). The method is mainly evaluated for production improvement, but there are indications that it also has stress-reducing effect on working groups. The method gives employees within health care opportunities to participate actively in productivity-enhancing measures. The employees, along with their immediate supervisors, identify and prioritize responsive and desirable results in all of the activities important dimensions. International studies have shown that participation (participation) has positive effects on employee performance and attitudes.

The aim of this study is to test whether efforts in targeting the organization and work environment can reduce stress and prevent stress-related ill health in the workplace. Primary outcomes of the study are tense work i.e. imbalance between demand and control and other primary indicators of stress, such as sleep and recovery.

The hypothesis in study 1 is that productivity enhancing workplace interventions based on a participative approach also increases employees' sense of control and control over their own work. This in turn means that the method also could be used to reduce the occurrence of tense work and thus affect / reduce the stress-related illness.