An organizational-level occupational health intervention: Employee perceptions of exposure to changes, and psychosocial outcomes

• Published in: Work and stress 2014, Vol.28 (2), p.179-197
• Main Authors: Hasson, Henna, Brisson, Chantal, Guérin, Stéphanie, Gilbert-Ouimet, Mahée, Baril-Gingras, Geneviève, Vézina, Michel, Bourbonnais, Renée
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; effort-reward; effort-reward imbalance model; Employee attitude; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Health Sciences; Hälsovetenskap; imbalance model; Intervention; job demand-control-support model; Measurement; Medical and Health Sciences; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Nursing; Occupational health; Occupational psychology; Omvårdnad; perception; process; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; psychosocial; psychosocial work environment; Social support; Work condition. Job performance. Stress; work environment; work-related stress
• ISSN: 0267-8373; 1464-5335; 1464-5335
• DOI: 10.1080/02678373.2014.907370

This study aimed to investigate the association between employees' perceptions of their exposure to an organizational-level occupational health intervention and its psychosocial outcomes. Participants were employees of an insurance firm (N = 1084) in Quebec, Canada. The intervention was designed to reduce adverse psychosocial work factors (high psychological demands, low decision latitude, low social support and low rewards). Departmental managers were responsible for implementing changes to reduce exposure to these factors. Employees' perceptions of exposure to the intervention and its impact on their work were measured in 2007 through questionnaires. Psychological demands, decision latitude, social support and rewards measured in 2005 and 2007 were used to assess outcomes. Employees who perceived that they had been exposed to the intervention changes showed more improvement in outcomes than those who did not perceive changes. The greatest differences in outcomes were found in those participants who perceived that workplace changes had improved their work situation as compared to those who perceived the changes as neutral or negative. The results suggest that measurement of employee-perceived impact of each intervention change on their work situation may be even more important than actual exposure, and should be included in the measurement of exposure to organization-level interventions.