| Background: Evidence shows that job stress potentially has adverse effect on individuals’ health and organizational productivity. It has, therefore, become an important issue in the occupational health context. The aims of this study were to investigate job stress dimensions among nurses of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS) hospitals and comparing the results with the findings of the previous studies conducted in other countries. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 385 randomly selected nurses of SUMS participated. The Persian version of Job Content Questionnaire (P-JCQ) and demographic questionnaire were used for data collection. The linguistic validity and psychometric properties of P-JCQ have been assessed and approved in a previous study. One sample t-test was used to examine the differences between means of job stress dimension scores of the present and those of the previous studies carried out in other countries. Results: The means (SD) of decision latitude, psychological job demands, social support, physical job demands and job insecurity were found to be 58.15 (6.50), 38.19 (5.14), 22.67 (3.67), 16.03 (2.58), and 7.74 (3.85), respectively. The results revealed that decision latitude and social support dimensions were in a low level among the study subjects. In contrast, psychological job demand, physical job demand, and job insecurity dimensions were shown to be in a high level. Conclusion: The SUMS hospital environment collectively imposes higher job stress on the nurses as compared to that of other countries. To prevent harmful effects of job stress on the nurses’ health and job performance, developing macro-ergonomic strategies in this working environment, such as enhancing job control, reducing job demands, and providing supportive climate, seem necessary. | 
					| 
		Li J, Yang W, Liu P, Xu Z, Cho SI. Psychometricevaluation of the Chinese (mainland) version of JobContent Questionnaire: a study in university hospitals.Ind Health 2004; 42(2): 260-7.LaDou J. Occupational & environmental medicine. 2nded. New York, Stamford: Prentice-Hall International;McGraw-Hill, 1997. p. 585-601.Levy BS, Wegman DH, Baron SL, Sokas RK.Occupational and environmental health: recognizingand preventing disease and injury. 5th ed. Philadelphia,Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, 2006. p. 382-395.Stellman JM. Encyclopedia of occupational health andsafety. 4th ed. Geneva, International Labor Office,p. 34.2-34.28.Karasek RA, Theörell T. Healthy work-stress,productivity, and the reconstruction of working life.New York, Basic Book, 1990.Magnago TSBS, Lisboa MTL, Griep RH, KirchhofALC, Guido LA. Psychosocial aspects of work andmusculoskeletal disorders in nursing workers. RevLatino-Am Enfermagem 2010; 18(3): 429-35.Josephson M, Lagerström M, Hagberg M, WigaeusHjelm E. Musculoskeletal symptoms and job strainamong nursing personnel: a study over a three yearperiod. Ocup Environ Med 1997; 54(9): 681-5.Menzel NN. Psychosocial factors in musculoskeletaldisorders. Crit Care Nurs Clin Am 2007; 19(2): 145-53.Chiu YL, Chung RG, Wu CS, Ho CH. The effects ofjob demands, control, and social support on hospitalclinical nursesâ intention to turn over. Appl NursingRes 2009; 22(4): 258-63.Kain J, Jex S. Karasekâs (1979) Job Demands-Control Model: a summary of current issues andrecommendations for future research. In: PerrewePL, Ganster DC. New developments in theoreticaland conceptual approaches to job stress. UK, EmeraldGroup Publishing Limited, 2010, p. 237-67.Karasek R, Brisson C, Kawakami N, Houtman I,Bongers P, Amick B. The Job Content Questionnaire(JCQ): an instrument for internationally comparativeassessments of psychosocial job characteristics. JOccup Health Psychol 1998; 3(4): 322-55.Hanse JJ, Forsman M. Identification and analysisof unsatisfactory psychosocial work situations: aparticipatory approach employing video-computerinteraction. Appl Ergon 2001; 32(1): 23-9.Nomura K, Nakao M, Takeuchi T, Yano E. Associationsof insomnia with job strain, control, and support amongmale Japanese workers. Sleep Med 2009; 10(6): 626-9.Hansen AM, Hogh A, Persson R, Karlson B, GardeAH, Ãrbaek P. Bullying at work, health outcomes,and physiological stress response. J PsychosomaticRes 2006; 60(1): 63-72.Sinokki M, Hinkka K, Ahola K, Koskinen S, KivimäkiM, Honkonen T, et al. The association of social supportat work and in private life with mental health andantidepressant use: t he health 2000 study. J A ffectDisord 2009; 115(1-2): 36-45.Barzideh M, Choobineh AR, Tabatabaee SHR. Job stressdimensions and their relationship to musculoskeletaldisorders in Iranian nurses. Work 2014; 47(4): 423-9.World Medical Association declaration of Helsinki,Finland, June 1964, and amended by the 59thWMA General Assembly, Seoul, Korea, OctoberAvailable from http://www.wma.net/ en/30publications/10policies/b3/ (Accessed December, 2011).Karasek RA. Job Content Questionnaire and userâsguide. Lowell, Massachusetts, Department of WorkEnvironment, University of Massachusetts, 1985.Choobineh AR, Ghaem H, Ahmadinejad P. Validityand reliability of the Persian (Farsi) version of the JobContent Questionnaire: a study among hospital nurses.EMHJ 2011; 17(4): 335-41.Morgan DG, Semchuk KM, Stewart NJ, DâArcy C.Job strain among staff of rural nursing homes. Acomparison of nurses, aides, and activity workers.JONA 2002; 32(3): 152-61.Tominaga MT, Miki A. A longitudinal study of factorsassociated with intentions to leave among newlygraduated nurses in eight advanced treatment hospitalsin Japan. Ind Health 2010; 48(3): 305-16.Eum KD, Li J, Jhun HJ, Park JT, Tak SW, Karasek R,et al. Psychometric properties of the Korean versionof the Job Content Questionnaire: data from healthcare workers. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 2007;(6): 497-504.Shen HC, Cheng Y, Tsai PJ, Lee SH, Guo YL.Occupational stress in nurses in psychiatric institutionsin Taiwan. J Occup Health 2005; 47(3): 218-25.Ortiz VG. Assessment of psychosocial stressors at work:psychometric properties of the JCQ in Colombian workers.Revista Latinoamericana de Psicologia 2011; 43: 329-42.Ibrahim S, Smith P, Muntaner C. A multi-group crosslaggedanalyses of work stressors and health usingCanadian national sample. Soc Sci Med 2009; 68(1):-59.
 |