Stress Management

INTRODUCTON: -

The evolutionary emphasis of mankind has been to adapt

and survive in the hostile environment. In fact men and women are the
most adaptive creature on the face of the earth. Since the evolution of
mankind man has developed a nervous system, which responds
powerfully to any perceived threat or danger. This response is called
‘Fight or Flight Mechanism’. Our ancestors who lived in the jungle
often had to face immediate, life threatening events involving
dangerous animal and human enemies. For survival the cave man had
to fight or simply run away Although this mechanism was useful as a
primitive means of survival the Fight or Flight Response is not useful
for most of the stress situation in modern life because we have few
physical battle to fight and almost no where to run. Today the rate of
change in our life is accelerating .The people, who are most likely to
survive and succeed in this, will be those who can find enjoyment in
adapting to a rapid changing world. Today man struggles to contain his
nervous reaction. Stress management is a change in life style and a
new way of viewing the world we live in.

Stress in general term applied to the pressures people feel in life. The
presence of stress at work is almost inevitable in many jobs. However,
individual differences account for a wide range of reaction to stress.
When pressure begins to build up it can cost adverse strain on a
persons emotions, thought processes, and physical conditions.

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MEANING:-

Stress has many meanings, but most people think of stress as the
demands of life. Technically, these demands are called stressors and the
actual wear and tear on our body is called stress. Stress is the term used
for a reaction to a situation which you perceive you will be unable to
cope with successfully and which results in unwanted physical mental or
emotional deterioration .The demand or challenges of life can come
from people and events around us, as well as from our inner thoughts
and struggles. When this demand increase, people often feel that they are
under stress.

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Stress leads to physical disorders, because the internal body system

changes to try to cope with stress. Some physical disorders are short
range, such as an upset stomach. Others are longer range, such as
stomach ulcer. Stress over a prolong time also leads to degenerative
diseases of the heart, kidneys, blood vessels and other part of the body.
It can result in angina and tension headaches. Therefore it is important
that stress, both on and off the job be kept at a level enough for most
people to tolerate without developing either emotional or physical stress.

Definition of Stress:
There are numerous definitions and much debate about the meaning of
stress. Stress in individual is defined as any interference that disturbs a
person healthy mental and physical well-being. It occurs when the body
is required to perform beyond its normal range of capabilities. The result
of stress is harmful to individuals, families, society and organization.

It is also important to point out what STRESS is not:

1. Stress is not simply anxiety:
Anxiety operates solely in the emotional and psychological sphere,
whereas stress operates there and also in the physiological sphere.
Thus, stress may be accompanied by anxiety, but the two should not
be equated.

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2. Stress is not simply nervous tension:

Like anxiety, nervous tension may result from stress but the two are
not the same. Unconscious people have exhibited stress, and some
people may keep it “bottled up” and not reveal it through nervous
tension.
3. Stress is not necessarily something damaging bad or to be avoided:
Stress is not damaging or bad and is something people should seek
out rather than avoid. The key of course is how the person handles
the stress. Stress is inevitable, distress that may be prevented or can
be effectively controlled.

TYPES OF STRESS :

1) Emotional stress.

2) Social stress

3) Job stress.

4) Physical stress.

5) Change stress.

6) Decision stress.

7) Commuting stress.

8) Phobic stress.

9) Personal and family stress.

10) Chemical and nutritional.

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1) EMOTIONAL STRESS: -

When we think what has happened or what might has happen

and when we knows that we cannot run from our anxieties or
physically fight our fears we undergoes emotional stress.

• EMOTIONAL STRESSORS:

1) We know that we cannot change or stop certain things from

happening or we cannot change certain thing that has already
taken place. Neither can we run away from them. And then we
keep on worrying about such things, which are beyond our
control, and this causes emotional stress.

2) The messages that we give to ourselves about our actions and

the actions of others are emotional stressors.

3) Telling ourselves how awful we are going to do some activity is

an emotional stressor

4) Knowing deadline but consistently denying that we need to be

prepared is also the cause of emotional stress

5) Thinking too much about tomorrow and procrastinating about

today’s activities can trigger emotional stress.

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• SYMPTOMS OF EMOTIONAL STRESS :

The following are the symptoms of emotional stress

1) Most of the time the person suffering from emotional stress is

tensed and confused.

2) A person suffering from emotional stress doesn’t often laugh and

enjoy the life around him.

3) He view neutral events negatively and develop negative attitude.

4) A person feels tired, depressed and dull without any sparkle.

5) A person suffering from emotional stress began to feel isolated and

paranoid.

6) The people suffering from emotional stress find they are near tears
and cry either for no apparent reasons or over minor incident.

• EFFECTS OF EMOTIONAL STRESS:

SHORT TERM EFFECTS:

1) Emotional stress can interfere with productivity, learning and

interpersonal relationship.

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2) Our ability to interact and understand other people is

disrupted.
3) Our adaptive energy reserves get exhaust and we become
more suspectable to disease.

LONG TERM EFFECTS

1) Many hormones are elevated during the stress response.

Three of them are nor epinephrine, epinephrine, and cortisol. In
response to emotional stress there is increase in all three of the
hormones.

2) Nor epinephrine, epinephrine and cortisol produce higher

levels of fats, cholesterol, and sugar in blood stream.

3) High level of circulating blood cholesterol increases the risk

of coronary heart diseases, strokes, and hypertension and may cause
sudden cardiac death.

4) Increase in cortical impairs the function of the immune

system, thus making a person vulnerable to even minor illness such as
cold or flu.

5) Increase in norepinephrine, epinephrine close down the

digestive tract by diverting blood away from it so if on

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try to eat while stressed, he experience problem such as

indigestion, nausea and diarrhoea.

6) Adult diabetes may commonly begin after a stressful period

due to extra strain put on the pancreas by high blood sugar level.

2) SOCIAL STRESS:

Social stress involves stress caused during interaction with

other people. Social stress is the feeling that we have the place in the
social order.

• SOCIAL STRESSORS:

1) Attending functions and parties as a formality or social

obligation may be stressful for the person who likes quiet evening.

2) Asking a person to give speech.

3) Asking a person to give sudden presentation.

4) Unhealthy negotiations and conversation can also cause social

stress.

• SYMPTOMS OF SOCIAL STRESS:

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1) Avoiding attending parties, functions, meetings and get together.

2) Avoiding interaction with people.

3) Avoiding being a part of social group.

4) Avoiding taking leadership and initiative.

• EFFECTS OF SOCIAL STRESS:

SHORT TERM EFFECTS:

1) A person suffering from social stress avoids being a part of

public and therefore lacking confidence to express him in
public.

2) A person suffering from social stress feel anxious, ignored,

hurt, manipulated and is disappointed with him.

LONG TERM EFFECTS:

1) A Person suffering from social stress gets the habit of push over.

2) The other people get disgusted and frustrated with people who don’t
like to be a part of their group.

3) People lose respect for the person who suffers from social stress
as the person suffering from social stress gets into the habit of
pushing and directing his responsibility to others.

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4) A person suffering from social stress keeps on procrastinating

himself and suffering in silence. They start doing things
halfheartedly as formality and become sloppy.

5) Loneliness and isolation become common in such peoples life.

3) JOB STRESS OR WORK STRESS:

Work stress is the tension or pressure we experience because

of our work and work environment. Scholars in a wide range of
academic disciplines have studied the nature of the job stress.
Physicians, Psychiatrists and researchers in management have
studied its causes and its symptoms and have defined the term in a
variety of different way .Job stress is defined as the reaction of an
individual to new or threatening factors in there work environment.
An important characteristic of job stress is that it can either be
positive or negative. Some new situation can bring us positive
challenges and excitement, while others are very threatening.
The changing nature of our working world is a major
contributor to stress. As business flourishes, the hierarchy of staff in
the organization keeps on changing. So the employees found it

difficult to have personal contact with each other and therefore they
find it frustrating to meet or communicate with each other .The
sexual composition of the work force is also changing.

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Nearly fifty percent of the women over sixteen years of age are
now in labour market. This group includes half of all the mothers
with school age children. It is comparatively more hectic to handle
office and home at one time. Many a times it happens that the work
environment gets influence by personal matters of the employees
and vice versa. This however leads to stress.

The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health

complied a list of the some occupations, which are most susceptible
and least susceptible to stress related diseases.

• MOST STRESSFUL OCCUPATIONS:

Secretary

Inspector

Call centre employees

Clinical lab technician

Office manager

Foreman

Manager or administrator

Salesperson

Machine operator

Farm owner

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Miner

Waitress or waiter

• LEAST STRESSFUL OCCUPATIONS:

Tailor

Supervisor

Stock handler

Craftsmen

Maid

Farm labourer

Childcare worker

Freight handler

• JOB STRESSORS:
Job stress is caused mainly because of 3 factors:

1) The nature of the job.

2) The working condition.

3) The working relationship.

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 The nature of the job:

The following are the factors relating to the nature of the job
which are potential sources of job stress?

- Career development stressors

1) Lack of opportunity.

2) Frustration and boredom with current role.

3) Lack of job security.

4) Insufficient training.

5) No proper promotion policies.

6) Performance appraisal.

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- Workload:

1) Too much or too little work.

2) Time pressure and deadline.

3) Frequent change in working method.

4) Introduction of new technology or method.

5) Lack of relevant information support and advice.

6) Discipline.

7) Travelling.

- Responsibilities towards clients and colleagues

- Limit of authority

- Unclear defined task and role

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An employee enjoys his work as long as he can exercise

control, has enough time and doesn’t experience frustrating
delays. However if the things go in the reverse way out an
employee experiences stress in his work. Similarly if an employee
feels the need of training but perceived that he couldn’t afford the
time or it is beyond his control to arrange the training then a
situation of stress may develop.

Similarly if people are not seen to be productive they often

feel that they may be seen as being inefficient. This perception
sometimes creates stress in people with respect to their workload.
In the similar way if employees don’t adapt to the new technology
or is unclear about deadlines, the fear of being exposed begins to
become more stressful and problem result.

 The working condition:

The following are the factors relating to the working condition,

which are the sources of job stress:
- Rewards:

1) Insufficient monetary benefits

2) Less perks

3) Unsuitable and non flexible timing

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4) Long working hours

5) Insufficient allowance

- Office environment:

1) Uncomfortable sitting arrangement/ergonomics

2) Unbalanced temperature / no proper ventilation

3) Noisy environment

4) Colour schemes and environment and interior of the office

 The working relationship:

The following are the factors, which affect the relationship

between employees and between employer and employee.

1) Interference in the work

2) Dominating employer

3) Non-supportive boss

4) Jealousy between departments

5) Discrimination between sex, age, race etc

6) Unhealthy competition

7) More criticism than praising the work

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The relationship of a person with other person depends very

much on our own attitudes and depending upon whom we are
dealing with. If the employee is praised at the appropriate time, he
feels valued and would continue to thrive .If not he will become
despondent and uninterested and may experience stress.

• SYMPTOMS OF JOB STRESS:

 Physical signs:

1) Tense posture.

2) Increased smoking and cups of tea or coffee

3) Breathlessness

4) Inarticulate in a speech

5) Nail biting

6) Body language

7) Tone of voice

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 B
ehavioral signs and emotional signs:

1) Late for work.

2) Long lunch breaks.

3) Reduction in output

4) Mistakes.

5) Loss temper, mood swings, over reaction.

6) Poor decision-making.

7) Failure to make deadlines.

8) Increased absenteeism.

9) Making less realistic judgments.

• EFFECTS OF JOB STRESS:

Short-term effects:

- Emotional effects

1) Anxious

2) Tense

3) Under confident

4) Poor self-image

5) Depression

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- Behavioral effects

1) Poor concentration

2) Confusion

3) Lack of awareness

4) Poor planning

5) Not completing task

6) Ambiguous communicate

7) Lack of time

- Physical effect:

1) Poor posture

2) Rapid breathing

3) Indigestion

4) Cramps

5) Shoulder and neck pain

6) Headaches

7) Pupils dilate

8) Sweating and clammy feeling

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LONG TERM EFFECTS:-

The effects of the long-term stress can be devastating. Long-term

Stress not only affects our bodies but it also affects the way we feel
and think. Under long-term stress our personalities seem to change.
We may suffer from depression and feel hopeless and helpless.
Occasionally we may find ourselves compulsively repeating
meaningless task in an attempt to control our lives .At time we act
impulsively without thinking about the consequences.

The long-term effects of job stress on our physical health:

The prolonged effects of stress may lead to stress related

disease. The cardio vascular, the digestive, and the immune system are
well known areas where the disease develops.

Stress related disease of cardio vascular system:

Nor epinephrine, Epinephrine, and cortisol are elevated during

stress response .Due to them higher levels of fats; cholesterol and
sugar are produced in blood stream, which builds fatty plaques. These
fatty plaques narrow the diameter of blood vessel. Therefore a high
level of circulating blood cholesterol increases the risk of coronary
heart disease, strokes, and hypertension and may even cause sudden
cardiac death.

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Stress and digestive system:

Norepinephrine, Epinephrine closes down the digestive track by

diverting blood away from it. So if one tries to eat while stressed, he
may experience problem such as indigestion, nausea, and diarrhoea.

LONG TERM EFFECTS:-

• Physical

BREATHING:

1) Hyperventilation

2) Visual disturbance

3) Chest pain

POSTURE

1) Risk of back injury

2) Neck pain

IMMUNE SYSTEM

1) Indigestion

2) Developing ulcers

3) Flue

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4) Arthritis

• Emotional:

1) Depression and dull

2) Anger and irritation

3) Isolation

4) Loss of ability to feel care

• Behavioral:

1) Long breaks

2) Clock watching

3) Staying late

4) Loss of libido

5) Untidy appearance

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• STRESS SPIRAL :

Stress spiral illustrates how events, feeling and health have an

accelerating effect on one another without our realizing it.

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Headache
Bid for Irritable Drinking Boss Demands
major with staff Smoking more
contract

Chance for Decrease

promotion their output Falling behind
concentration

Working Fail to reach

late targets Failure, Bad nights
Despondent, sleep-tired in the
Despair, morning
Depressed,
Home late; No Deceased
argue with Promotion
partner and
family Can't stop
members thinking

Breathing Feel hurt /angry, Lack of

Breathing short
short and support, and understanding.
and shallow
shallow Earning money for family

4) Physical Stress:

Physical stress is the stress that results in the change in the state the
of the bodies and that is mainly caused due to increase in physical

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demand. Physical stress is caused due to strain we put on our body

by physical overextending ourselves.

• PHYSICAL STRESSORS

1) Physically overextending our self

2) Lack of enough sleep

3) Lack of adequate diet

4) Injury

5) Accidents

6) Disease

7) Pregnancies and menstrual discomforts are example of physical

stressor

An abrupt change from high-sustained activity to the boredom of

low activity can also be stressor.
E.g.: Heart attacks occur immediately after a busy period of time
when a person has a chance of rest.

• SYMPTOMS OF PHYSICAL STRESS:

1) Faster heart beats

2) Increase sweating or butterflies in stomach

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3) Feeling of nausea

4) Cold hands and feet

5) Rapid breathing

6) Dry mouth

7) Diarrhea

• EFFECTS OF PHYSICAL STRESS

-SHORT TERM EFFECTS

1) Physical stress interferes with clear judgment and makes it

difficult to take the time to make good decision.
2) Reduces enjoyment of quality of life.

3) Damages self-confidence.

4) Disrupts focus and concentration.

- LONG TERM EFFECTS:

1) Fatigue and exhaustion.

2) Depression

3) Burnout (loss of interest and motivation).

4) Unhealthy lifestyle.

5) Nervous breakdown.

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6) Mental breakdown.

5) CHANGE STRESS

We experience change stress when we alter anything

important in our lives. When we leave a job, a house, or a
relationship, part of our adjustment to our loss or to our new
situation involves stress. When we move from one part of the
country or city to another we experience the change of
uprooting .The loss of our social network and supports can be
stressful. Technological advances and the shifting framework of
tradition and customs can also lead to change stress.

• CHANGE STRESSORS

 Change in relationship:

1) Change in health of family members

2) Gain of new family member

3) Death of a family member or friend

4) Change in number of argument with family member or friend.

 Change in work:

1) Change to a different line of work.

2) Change in responsibility

3) Change in authority etc.

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 Change in lifestyle:

1) Change in eating habits

2) Change in social activities.

3) Change in recreation.

4) Change in residence.

5) Change in personal habits.

• EFFECTS OF CHANGE STRESS:

Change stressors like work stressors differ from person to

person and so do the effect of change stressors. Some people
take change positively whereas some negatively. The
negative effect of change stress disturbs the relationship
between spouse, children, other family members, and boss
and work colleagues. This led to change in mental attitude or
may lead to lack of sleep, which affects the physical health,
as well as work life of the individual. However sometimes
the individuals are not ready mentally or physically for

change. In such cases they do take help of chemical

stimulants like tobacco, alcohol, caffeine and other
stimulating drugs, which have detrimental effects on the
body.

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In short change stress result in change in attitude, behavior,

lifestyle, and habits of the individual.

6) DECISION STRESS:

It has become more and more difficult to make decision both on

job and off job because the number of choices we have is
overwhelming. Rational decision depends on the ability to predict
the consequences of the actions. And the ability to make the best
prediction is often compromised by other alternatives available to
us.

• DECISION STRESSORS:

1) Too much responsibility.

2) Too little authority.

3) Ambiguity and conflicting job demands.

4) Unpredictable future as the world is changing at the

alarming rate.

• EFFECTS OF DECISION STRESS:

Decision stress is experience by many of us in today’s world

as we humans have limited capacity to receive, process, and
remember information. But the alternative and possibilities to

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consider are comparatively more in number. So it is but

natural for an individual to get confused during analyzing the
alternatives and their consequences to take the decision.

However such confusion and study of long list of alternatives

makes the person stressed.

7) COMMUTING STRESS:

Commuting stress is the stress, which one suffers due to

traveling many people commute long distances to work. Some
people drive in rush hour traffic daily. Others spend hours in
crowded bus or trains. A person suffers from commuting stress
because of traffic jams, increasing pollution and the overcrowded
mode of travel.

8) PHOBIC STRESS:

Many people have exaggerated fears of certain animal,

places, objects or situation, which they pose no immediate danger.
These intense fears are called phobias. And the stress which one
experiences because of such phobias is called phobic stress. Some
of the common one and the objects of the unreasonable fear

include acrophobia (heights), aqua phobia (water), school phobia

(in children) etc .We often experience social phobia. Social
phobia is the fear of specific activities such as speaking in front of
large group, meeting new people, making presentation etc.

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However the person having such phobia can overcome his phobic
anxiety only if he heals himself without any fear. Avoiding doing
activities doesn’t over come the fear in fact it conditions the fear.

9) PERSONAL AND FAMILY STRESS:

The family structure is changing drastically and so is the

culture. The marriage was once a strong, supportable force that
could help the family members to understand and adjust with each
other. But today around 30 % of all marriages end in divorce and
this force the children to spend the part of their youth with only
single parent. Youngsters leave their family to stay away to enjoy
their independence and to get the privacy .M any stay away from
their homes and family to make money. Interaction with family
members in such cases can be stressful. Stress can also be created
between parents and children because of difference in their
thinking due to generation gap.

10) CHEMICAL AND NUTRITIONAL STRESS:

Chemical and nutritional stress is the stress, which an

employee faces because of the addiction to any drug. We often
come across the problems, stress suffered by the patients while

giving up certain addiction like addiction of cigarettes, liquor, hot

beverages, sweets etc. Such stress is also called chemical and
nutritional stress.

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• CHEMICAL AND NUTRITIONAL STRESSORS:

Sweetness in foods.

Caffeine.

Nicotine.

Alcohol.

Cigarettes.

• EFFECTS OF CHEMICAL AND NUTRITIONAL

STRESS:
1) Caffeine and in coffee, tea and chocolate simulates the nervous
system due to acid production, which also leads to increase in
heart rate.

2) Acid production in stomach can lead to indigestion and

aggravation of ulcers.

3) Alcohol affects the heart and blood vessels, damages the liver,
and also leads to weight problems.

4) Tobacco and drugs are often used as ways of coping with stress
although they ultimately compound it by reducing coping
ability.

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5) Chemical and nutritional stress affects our behavior. The effects

on behavior include disturbed sleep patterns, irritability, and
loss of mental alertness, poor relationships and loss of self-
esteem.

STRESS IN CALL CENTRES

Today world is moving towards its progress at a very fast rate.

The size of the industry from textile to I. T is growing at an alarming

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rate. However this industry today adopts capital-intensive modern

technology to give required quality and quantity output. Today in order
to survive in the throat-cutting world of competition, use of these
techniques has become the need of time. Due to the use of the capital-
intensive technology the number of employment opportunities
available in the production field has decreased. However in order to
get competitive edge over other competitors, the company today
concentrates on improving their quality of work and service .to
customers. This has given rise to call Center. This either supports the
production and distribution process or provides services to customers.

There are two types of call centers, domestic call center and
international call center .The domestic call center deals with the work
of clients within India, whereas the international call center works for
the clients located in foreign countries. We today have number of call
centers both domestic and international in India. These call centers
attracts large number of youngsters by paying them handsome salary
along with other fringe benefits like car facility etc .We do perceive
call center as the easiest way to earn money but we are not aware of
the work culture and timings of the call centers .The employees
working in the domestic call centers have to face comparatively less
stress than the one working in the international call centers.

The main reason of this is, that International call centers work
largely during the night to coincide with the day hours of the country.
This is supported by the fact that one third of the employees working
in call centers face stress due to frequent change in their work shifts.

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So now let study in detail what are the reasons or factors that are
responsible to give different types of stress to the employees working
in the call centers. It are the factors, which make the employees
working in international call centers more stressed than the employees
working in call centers.

1) Nature of the work:

The nature of the work is the main cause of job stress .The
workday of the call center is designed for 8 to 9 hours a day. Most
of the call center employees in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, for
instance budget at least 1hrs travel up or down to get on work every
day. So the call center employee has to spend in all 11 hours a day
on work. Some call center encourages its employee to work
overtime if the workload is more or important. So some time
employee may have to work for long 13 to 14 hours a day. In
international call centers operational heads may tend to put 16 to 18
hours on a regular basis to stay back for customer conference call
from us and other foreign countries. Working for long hours may
lead to job stress.

2) Workload:
Though the number of hours a day a call center employee
works is the same in call centers and other organizations, it is the
pace at which work tends to happen that makes work load an issue.

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The employees working in different industry with different field

may spent more hours at work than the call center employees but it
shall be noted that these hours are often interspersed with tea
breaks, chat with colleagues, and visit to other department.
However the call floor employees have no such luck. Though
International codes suggest five minutes off every hour, no such
codes are practiced in reality even in International call centers.
The workload with insufficient breaks leads to job stress and
physical stress.

3) Holidays:
The employees in domestic call centers get holiday on all
national holidays of India. Some domestic call center does give
holiday on weekends. But the number of such call centers is
comparatively very less. The International call centers do give
holiday on weekend but it should be noted that the International call
centers don’t have holidays on our Indian national holidays.
The International call center have holiday have off on the
national holidays of the country for which they work.

4) Strict rules regarding leave and absenteeism:

Today no call center employee is given permanent job in call
centers. According to the Company’s law if the employee works for
more than 240 days in a call center then he is entitled to get all the

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benefits of the permanent employee. So these call centers give

breaks to the employees after completing 240 days and call them
back after a short or long break. Most of the employees themselves
leave the call center job because of the job stress, which they face.
Only 28 paid leave are given to call center employees annually.
However during the training period the employees are not allowed
to take any leave.

5) Change in lifestyle and habits:

After appointment of any employee for a call center job, training
is given to him. This training includes personality development
programmers Ascent training programmers and stress management
programmers etc. This help to develop the personality of the
employee. Besides this the handsome salary and other fringe benefits
improves the standard of living of the employee. But simultaneously
the chances of getting addicted to habits like smoking, drinking
liquor, and drugs also increase. These interns affect the personal life
of an employee and may lead to personal and family stress.

6) No job security:
Call center employs a large number of people at a time as a
result these call center require a lot of real estate and therefore such
big call centers are often situated at the outskirts of town. The

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International call centers do provide bus and car facility to its

employees but generally this facility is not given to the employees
working in domestic call center (some domestic call centers do
provide bus facility) Even the Bus and the cars of these call centers
get struck into traffic jams and has to face the problem of pollution.
So nearly 1 to 2 hours is spend by the call center employee just to
get on work daily. Traveling is the commuting stressor and
therefore such long hectic traveling may lead to commuting stress.

7) Lack of career development opportunity:

During the training programmers the assent and voice
training is given to the employee. Besides this a call center
employee learns how to interact with the customer and clients. His
communication skill do develop after working in call centers but
besides this the call center employee has no better opportunity to
develop his career, as he has to repeat the same process taught to
him at the time of training. So there is less scope for career
development in call center job. Lack of career development
opportunity leads to job stress. It also affects the personal life of the
employee and therefore may sometimes become personal stressor.

8) No job security:
Today no call center employee is given a permanent job.
According to the company law if the employee works for more than
240 days in call centers he is entitled to get the benefits of the

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permanent employee. In order to avoid giving such benefits call

center avoids making its employees permanent .So there is no job
security for the employee working in the call center. No security of
job stress leads to job stress and emotional stress.

9) Irate customer:
It is the call center employee who has to directly interact
with customers and clients .The team leaders and the other seniors
do not directly interact with customer and therefore very few of
them actually get burnt .The job of the call center employee is to
deal and interact with clients and the customers. Most customers
call when they have a problem. Often they are further irritated by
long call queues. In such cases the customers get irritated and
remove their frustration on the call center employee. So irate
customer again increases the stress of call center employees.

10) Disturbance in natural cycle:

Our biological clock requires us to rest between 10 pm and 8
am. This is when the body assimilates and digests all nutrients and
repairs wear and tear. Unfortunately this is the time when call
center employees are working under high stress conditions.

And there fore none of the natural cycle is followed and therefore
the body functioning goes out sync. The nature of the work requires
employees to be glued to their seats for 9 hours and their every
move whether taking a leak or spending a few moments at water

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cooler are monitored on weekly basis, making it a high pressure

job. Individuals are likely to turn to food and alcohol to ‘unwind’.
They are highly susceptible to degenerative diseases like cancer,
diabetes, blood pressure arthritis and obesity.

PRODUCTS OF STRESS

Stress can be either temporary or long term either mild or

severe. The effects on an employee depend mostly on how long its
causes continue, how powerful they are and how strong the employees’
recovery powers are. If the stress is temporary and mild, most people
can handle it or at least recover from its effects rather quickly. The
inflated salaries that call center employees enjoy don’t come without
paying a price. Spondylitis, backaches, soreness and dryness of eyes,
blurred vision and headache is some of the serious illness that they
tend to complaint about
In call center there are different teams. Each team is given different
target to achieve. Each team has the team leader who monitors, control
and guides the employees in the team. These team leaders are more
susceptible to stress since they put in more long hours than regular

employees. Further irregular eating habits and the tendency to binge

when stressed, due to constant performance monitoring gives rise to
digestive problems.

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1. Burnout
In contrast to temporary stress there are some major pressures that
result in stress that is sustained for long periods. Problems
predictably arise when high intensity stress continues for an
extended duration. The human body cannot instantly rebuild its
ability to cope with stress once it is depleted. As a result, people
become physically and psychologically weakened from trying to
combat it. This condition is called burn out- a situation in which
employees are emotionally exhausted, become detached from their
clients and their work and feel that they are unable to accomplish
their goals

• Symptoms of burn out:

When employees become burned out, they are more likely to
complain to attribute their errors to others and to be highly
irritable. The tendency to think negatively increases. The
employee gets emotionally exhausted and feels that they are
weak and so are unable to accomplish their goals.

• Effects of burn out:

When workers become burned out, they attribute their errors to
others and become highly irritable .The alienation they feel drive

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many call center employees to think about leaving their job

performance.

1) A
ggression :
Aggression is one of the common reactions to stress. Whenever
employees are stress they are likely to become aggressive. When
the workload is more and if the employee fails to reach the desired
target they are likely to become frustrated. They become more
irritable; develop an uneasy feeling in stomach etc. Whenever the
call centre employee gets aggressive it affects his voice tone and the
ability to interact with the customer and clients. There are
possibilities whereas the employee may become aggressive in
dealing in even small issues.

Stress damages the positive framework of mind that is required for

high quality work by promoting negative thinking, damaging self
confidence, narrowing attention, disrupting focus and concentration
and making it difficult to cope with distractions, anxiety, frustration
and temper. This is the energy that should be devoted to work.

THE NUMBER CRUNCH

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The call center employees ranked high for attrition due to health
reasons:
For sleeping disorder: 83 %

Voice loss: 39.5%

Ear problems: 8.5%

Digestive disorders: 14.9 %

Eyesight problems: 10.6%

APPROACHES TO STRESS MANAGEMENT:

Stress is a factor that everybody has to content with both in the work
and non-work spheres of life. It is important for every individual to
mange the stress, since the body has only a limited capacity to respond
to stress. There are several ways in which stress can be handled
effectively that is, relaxation, meditation, physical exercise and
engaging in sports activities, etc. In addition to this, there is technique
known as “Managing work – to – home transitions” which is also
helpful in combating stress. This strategy emphasizes that it would be
beneficial to psychologically shift attention from stressful work
situation to a relaxed evening at home in the family environment as
one reaches the end of the working day. This is instead of carrying the
pressure of the work to the home the suggestion is to finish the courses

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of the work during the last working hour and enter the home in a
relaxed and peaceful frame of life.

Both call centers and individuals are highly concerned about

stress and its effects. In the attempt to manage the stress they have two
broad options preventing and coping with stress. Call center can seek
to improve communication skills, empower employees to through
participation, redesign jobs to be more fulfilling or implement calcite
development programs. These steps are aimed at reducing or
eliminating stressors for employees several approaches also exist for
coping with stress. These often involve cooperative efforts among
employees and management and may include social support, relaxation
efforts, biofeedback and personal wellness.

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• Social support
Call center employees put in long 9 hours in work and that
too sometimes against the biological clock as a result they are
detached from the world around them; they lack warm interpersonal
relationship Individuals with driving ambition and a strong need for
independence may fail to develop close attachments to friends and
colleagues. To achieve their success, they often sacrifice fulfillment
of their social need. Their lack of social attachments may result in
anger, anxiety and loneliness all producing stress in their lives.
A powerful antidote to this problem lies in the presence of
social support at work. Social support is the network of helpful
activities, interaction and relationships that provides an employee
with the satisfaction of important needs. Call centers celebrates
various events like food festivals like special days like traditional
day blank & white day. They also encourage, develop and nurture
there social support network at work by arranging picnics, get to
gather function at parties and regular interval to reduce stress in
their lives.

• Relaxation:
Relaxation some employees turn to various means of mental
relaxation to adjust to the stresses in their lives for that purpose
many call centers held counseling sessions at regular intervals.
Basically these counseling secessions are held once or twice a
week. . Where as the counselor interacts with the employees to
understand their mental and physical state at work there by he also

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suggest necessary exercise for mental relaxation and physical

relaxation. Many call centers conduct physical fitness programmed
exercise classes and progressive relaxation programmes. Such
programmers help employees to learn how to relaxation learn the
techniques to control dishonesty like anxiety, headache, backaches
and hypertension. Physical relaxation is pleasant ant tents to live the
individual with the sense of refreshment.

Relaxation also involves meditation. Meditation involves

concentration on inner thought in order to rest the body physically
and emotionally. Its helps to remove employees temporarily from
the stress full world and reduce their symptoms of stress. Some of
the easiest way of meditation is as follows:

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1. Focus on breathing –
Concentrating on breaths in and out, counting breaths and
visualizing images of the number changing with each breath.

2. Focus on object –
Looking at the immense detail of the object for entire
meditation. Examining the shape, colors differences, texture,
temperature, and movements of the object.

• Imagery training-
The work life of the call center employee is hectic. Further
the long hours of work and irate customers add to the stress.

Thoughts about the problems keep on spinning in minds, one

idea lead to another and soon the employee turned down in a
frazzle. For a call center employee mental relaxation is equally
important as physical relaxation. Imagery training helps to reduce
and control mental anxiety. In imagery training, training is given to
the employees to visualize pleasant images in mind. Visualizing the
successful dreams helps to produce a state of calm. Practicing
imagery regularly helps to control upsetting thoughts and enjoys a
deep state of physical relaxation.

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• Biofeedback:
The word ‘Bio’ refers to leaving organisms. “Feed” means
to give or in this case display. ‘Back ‘refers to the direction in
which this information is provided. Thus biofeedback is simply a
term for the modern technology of measuring a persons internal
(bio) response and giving the person immediate knowledge (feed
back) about that response.

Earlier it was thought that people could not control their

involuntary nervous system which in turn controls internal
processes such as heart beat, oxygen consumption, stomach acid
flow etc. However today employee under medical guidance learns
from instrumental feedback to influence symptoms of stress, such
as increased heart rate or severe headaches. Many call centers have
in-house doctors on call who give feedback to the employees
regarding their health whenever require. Further many call centers
have their dietician to plan out the diet of the employees as per their
work schedule.

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• Employee appreciation program/incentives/contest:

Call centers keeps on introducing various incentives and
contest to encourage its employees to give better performance. This
contest not only encourages employee but also increases the
confidence and competition among the employees. Various
employees appreciation programmer are held in call centers on
small and large basis. Small meeting or party appreciates some
times the work of the employee or group during the break time or
otherwise special party is arranged to appreciate to work
employees.
Employees get a sense of satisfaction through appreciation
programmed as they feel that their efforts are recognize by the
employer and are paid off regular.

• Personal wellness:
Many call centers have there own well ness centers. This
wellness center this includes fitness centers health education
programmers and in-house court or indoor games. Many call
centers have there on health care specialist and dietician who
recommend practices to encourage changes in life style such as
breathing regulation muscle relaxation, positive imagery, nutrition
management and exercise embalming employee to use more of their
full potential.

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ANNEXURE

(STUDY ON INTELENT GLOBAL SERVICES)

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INTELENET GLOBAL SERVICES

Intelenet is a leading BPO service provider which focus on providing

solutions to global organization seeking to reduce cost while consistently
maintaining superior levels of services .Their solutions extends across all
strata of BPO ,technology and consulting and it can be applied to
organization in industries diverse as Banking , Finance, Insurance, Retail,
Telecom and hospitality. Intelenet Global services have in all 4500
employees working for international call center and 6000 employees
working for domestic call center.

Two leading global investors – HDFC and Barclays – provide financial

backing that Intelenet needs to lead in a global market place. HDFC is
India’s leading financial services conglomerate, while Barclays is a
venerable financial services group headquartered in UK ranking among top
ten Bank’s in the world based on market capitalization. At the same time
there combined financial strength provides Intelenet with the ability to
remain on cutting edge of call centre processes while simultaneously
maintaining corporate growth and achieving the goals and objectives set
forth by their customer.

Intelenet currently operates four state-of-the-art facilities in India and has

access to more than 40 additional service centers in Europe and the UK.
With 100% redundancy, these facilities continually provide clients with
99.99% uptime.

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They currently have four centers in India; Two in Mumbai region and Two
in Chennai.

The values that employees of Intelenet embody are etched in their HR

mission are:
To build a Performing Organization that creates a
competitive advantage for our clients, by focusing on
People, Customers, Excellence and thereby creating
value.

The Intelenet work culture embodies:

1. An open door policy
2. Conducive work environment
3. Concern and empathy
4. Touch & feel Leadership
5. Work hard – play hard ethic

How training helps Intelenet employees to reduce stress?

All employees at Intelenet undergo an intensive training program,
where along with their core values, soft-skills training and relevant process
knowledge is imparted. Apart from this, refresher programs are also
conducted on a regular basis.

A “Train the Trainer” model by which Intelenet trainers are

certified, trains new team members. This facilitates smooth mapping and
documentation of processes and procedure.

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Intelenet has developed in-house customized training modules for

culture sensitization, voice & accent training and client specific back office
training. They also use customized training modules on finance &
accounting, insurance and banking domains to equip employees with in-
depth knowledge of the different verticals that they would eventually
service.

Thus proper training facility helps to the employees to work more

comfortably and efficiently and thus reduces the level of job stress faced by
them.

How proper a performance appraisal and compensation plan

helps the Intelenet to control the stress of employees?

Intelenet has a detailed measurement system for measuring employee

performance and facilitating development. Individual reviews are conducted
every quarter to assess the performance of all employees across the
organization.

At Intelenet compensation is linked to performance. They have

instituted a variable compensation plan, linked to both individual and
company performance.

Thus Intelenet encourages their employees to give better performance

by introducing such compensation plans and fair performance appraisal.

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How Intelenet provides career development opportunities for

its employees?
Due emphasis is also given to continuous training programs so that
employees are fully trained and effective at all times. Intelenet also conducts
programs like STEP (Strive Towards Excellence Program) and LEAD
(Leadership Excellence Accreditation & Development) to help associates
and Team Leaders in their career advancement.

They also help people evolve into better professionals by not only
training them on industry standard and client specific programs but also by
encouraging them to get a business management certification. This program
is run by one of Mumbai's premier management institutes at Intelenet's
campuses.

What facilities are provided to the employees?

At Intelenet, employees enjoy state-of-the-art facilities that match or
exceed industry-best standards. Infact Intelenet is one of its kinds that own
an entire building for its working (call center).

A world-class working environment and facilities such as:-

o 24-hour cafeteria services with subsidized food.
o 24x7 transport.
o An in-house doctor (visiting 2 – 3 days a week).
o Coffee machines are available at each floor.

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Tie-ups with local hospitals for immediate attention to employee health

issues:
o In-house counselor.
o ATM machine.
o Well Equipped Gymnasium.
o Yoga Center.
o Concierge services.

Tie-Ups with local boutiques, restaurants, health clubs for employee

discounts.

In addition to the above services, Intelenet provides subsidized company

accommodations to all outstation candidates who become part of the
Intelenet family. This enables their employees to use more of their full
potential in working.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Organizational Behaviour - John. W. Newstrom.

• Stress Management – Edward. A. Charlesworth and Ronald G Nathan

• Coping with Executive Stress – G. S. Das

• Managing Pressure At Work – Helen. Frogatt and Paul stamp.

• Articles from Mid day

• Organizational Behaviour-Hugh Jarnold

• Organizational Behaviour-Stephen Robbins

• www.google.com

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