Andrew J. Tattersall

Level of Operator Control and Changes in Heart Rate Variability during Simulated Flight Maintenance

The demands of dynamic monitoring and fault diagnosis for flight engineer trainees were examined in relation to changes in heart rate (HR) and two spectral analysis measures (midfrequency: 0.07-0.14 Hz; high frequency: 0.15-0.40 Hz) of heart rate variability (HRV). Eleven trainee flight engineers were studied, as part of their training and assessment, over three 3-h sessions in a cockpit simulator. During each session, faults and incidents programmed into the system had to be detected, diagnosed, and corrected. Electrocardiograms were taken, and each session was recorded on videotape. Work phases were classified from video analysis of flight maintenance activities, using Rasmussens cognitive control taxonomy, into monitoring, routine (rule-based), and problem-solving (knowledge-based) phases. HR and HRV were found to be sensitive to different phases of the work environment. HRV was suppressed during the mentally demanding problemsolving mode of the level flight phase, but only for the midfrequency component. Elevated heart rate, in contrast, was associated with the more generally stressful takeoff and landing phases. The findings support both the use of HRV as a physiological index of mental effort and its value in operational contexts, and the value of ecologically derived methods of evaluating differences in work demands in complex systems.

Stress in nurses: coping, managerial support and work demand

One hundred and six ward-based nurses of 340 approached completed questionnaires measuring sources of stress within their work, the managerial support available to them, the strategies they used to cope with work stress and levels of anxiety, depression, and work satisfaction. Univariate analysis identified consistent relationships between work stress and each of these outcomes. Lack of managerial support was also associated both with negative mood states and, particularly, with low levels of work satisfaction. Multivariate analyses showed the key predictors of negative affect to be lack of management support, job overspill, having to make decisions under time pressure and lack of recognition by the organisation. These data fit well into existing models of work stress, and their implications for organisational change are discussed. Copyright

Pupil and Staff Perceptions of Bullying in Secondary Schools: Comparing Behavioural Definitions and Their Perceived Seriousness.

Background: How bullying is understood by members of the school community is important because differences in definitions could result in an inconsistent approach and affect the success of intervention work. Research evidence suggests that pupils and teachers may have different interpretations of what constitutes bullying. This evidence has, however, been largely obtained from investigations in which the two groups have been questioned in different ways. This means that some of the differences obtained could be functions of methodology, rather than functions of differing perceptions. In addition, the perceptions of support staff have been largely neglected in the literature to date. Purpose: This study examines the perceptions of bullying of pupils held by pupils, teachers and school support staff in English secondary schools by the use of identical questionnaires for each group. Sample: A total of 1302 individuals participated in the research from four urban secondary schools. These four schools came from the same Local Education Authority in North West England. The sample consisted of 685 Year 8 pupils aged 12–13 years (341 males, 324 females, 20 unspecified), 415 Year 11 pupils aged 15–16 years (212 males, 187 females, 16 unspecified), 144 teachers (59 males, 81 females, 4 unspecified) and 58 support staff (14 males, 37 females, 7 unspecified). Design and methods: The study utilised a survey design whereby written responses to scenario-based questionnaires were scored. The scenarios described a range of direct bullying, indirect bullying and ambiguous behaviours. Respondents were asked whether they thought the behaviour described was bullying and how serious it was if experienced by a male or a female pupil. Questionnaires were completed by pupils during supervised class time. Staff questionnaires were distributed to staff members individually and completed independently. Results: Indirect bullying behaviours were less likely to be defined as bullying and were regarded as less serious than direct bullying behaviours. Scenarios with a female victim were rated more seriously than those with a male victim, and female respondents rated the behaviours more seriously than males. Teachers and support staff considered a wider range of scenarios to constitute bullying compared to pupils and also rated these to be more serious. Differences between schools indicated that perceptions could be affected by school factors. Conclusions: The differences in perceptions of bullying between pupils and staff indicate that teachers need to invest more time in talking with pupils about the nature of bullying. Indirect behaviours in particular need more attention to ensure they are included in definitions of bullying, and taken seriously. Further research is needed to investigate how school factors may influence perceptions of bullying.

An experimental evaluation of instantaneous self-assessment as a measure of workload

Instantaneous self-assessment (ISA) is a technique that has been developed as a measure of workload to provide immediate subjective ratings of work demands during the performance of primary work tasks such as air traffic control. This paper reports a study that compared the results of ISA with those gathered from other established workload evaluation techniques; subjective ratings collected at the end of the task, mean heart rate and heart rate variability, and error in the primary task of tracking. ISA ratings were found to be correlated significantly with the post-task ratings of workload, heart rate variability, and task performance. Generally each of the techniques was sensitive to variations in task difficulty. However, performance on the primary tracking task was found to be poorer during periods when ISA responses were required, regardless of whether they were spoken or manual responses. This finding suggests that the usefulness of the technique is limited in comparison to less intrusive measures of workload.

Stress and coping in hospital doctors

To investigate the role of coping in the relationship between job stress and well-being in hospital doctors, a survey was conducted in a large teaching hospital. Questionnaires were completed by 170 hospital doctors (house officers to consultants) from a range of specialties. Psychological distress, as measured by the General Health Questionnaire and depression and anxiety scales, was associated with both particular work situations and specific coping strategies. Distress increased with greater job constraints, management issues and problems of diagnosis and treatment. Higher levels of distress were associated with coping strategies that involved emotional distancing from stressors in contrast to actively dealing with them. Clearly, while some stresses encountered by doctors are intrinsic to the job, others (such as hours worked) may be modified. Some doctors may reduce the stress associated with these factors by the use of appropriate coping strategies. Copyright

Assessing the impact of computer workload on operator stress: the role of system controllability

This paper considers the impact of working with computer-based systems in terms of mental workload and the well-being of operators. In particular, the paper focuses on issues of controllability in human-computer systems as they relate to operator stress. Through the adoption of a state control model of stress regulation, it becomes apparent that while general usability criteria are necessary for the design of controllable systems, they may not be sufficient to guarantee controllability. The implications for research and system design are discussed, with reference to the assessment of operator workload, controllability and stress. A methodology for assessing computer stress is described, based on the analysis of stressful computer-related episodes and their accompanying affective and cognitive states. This technique allows the relationship between workload and controllability to be studied in particular computer work environments, in relation to individual work goals and coping strategies.

Working in the public sector: a case study of social services

• Summary: This article explores working conditions and quality of life in social services. The article focuses on the qualitative findings generated throughout a phased study comprising: in-depth interviews (n = 8) used to develop an original questionnaire; a large survey (n = 1237) of staff in two social service departments in the UK; and focus groups (n = 4) used in Children and Families Division to develop a better understanding of the difficulties experienced and develop context-specific interventions aimed at reducing or eliminating these stressors. It also reports quantitative findings in respect stress (measured using the General Health Questionnaire — GHQ-12). • Findings: The survey findings indicated that 36 percent (n = 392) of the respondents were considered to be suffering from mental distress. Children and Families Division was worst affected, reporting the highest levels of absenteeism and poorest well-being. The qualitative findings were summarized into five broad themes: organizational culture and function; control; lack of resources; responsibility for people; and the rate and pace of change, which were incorporated into a model. • Application: The article suggests that during times of change a thorough understanding of working conditions in the public sector are a fundamental prerequisite to developing interventions aimed at improving them. Additionally, the model clearly identifies a number of factors that are ‘organizational’, rather than being intrinsic to working in social services.

Output buffer storage and the modality of recall

In two experiments, subjects were presented with two lists of visual items simultaneously, both of which were to be recalled. The order of recall of the lists was manipulated. In Experiment 1, subjects were required to recall one list by speaking it and the other by writing it down. Prior knowledge of the particular mode of output required for each list resulted in significantly higher levels of recall than in a condition in which the output mode for each list was not known until after presentation. This result suggests that there may be at least two modality-specific output buffers. Experiment 2 employed the same method of presentation, but spoken recall of both lists was required. In addition, the priority of the lists was manipulated, and articulatory suppression was required in half of the trials. There was an effect of priority and of recall order, together with an interaction between the two. In contrast to the results of FitzGerald and Broadbent (1985a), however, who carried out a similar experiment but with written recall, articulatory suppression significantly reduced the priority and recall order interaction. It is concluded that there is one form of output buffer storage for written or manual output and one for spoken output.

Designing a stress management intervention in social services

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present an evaluation of the design of a stress management intervention (rather than an evaluation of the implementation and outcomes of the programme).Design/methodology/approach – This paper uses data generated from a large study carried out in two social service departments in the UK. The study is carried out in three phases: first, a problem diagnosis phase, comprising the development of a questionnaire and survey (n=1,234); second, focus groups (n=16) to develop interventions in a participatory way from the baseline established; and finally, an evaluation of the processes involved in phases one and two.Findings – Key barriers include: major changes are currently taking place within the organisations; staff are distrustful of management and sceptical of the value of the research; lack of resources; and difficulties translating the findings into actions. Key factors necessary for success include: strong commitment from senior management; willingness by staff to...

Occupational stress and negative affectivity in Maltese nurses: Testing moderating influences

Abstract Whereas some researchers conclude that negative affectivity is merely a nuisance variable and should be controlled for in future stress investigations, there is evidence that negative affectivity may occupy diverse roles, including a moderating role in which the level of NA may alter the nature of the relationship between stressors and strain. This study aims to sustain these findings by investigating such a model among a sample of 201 Maltese nurses. Variables including stressors, stress-related outcomes and negative affectivity were assessed, and data collected, by means of a questionnaire. Significant relationships were found between all three variable categories. In addition, moderator regression analyses revealed that negative affectivity could play the role of a ‘vulnerability’ factor in certain stressor-strain relationships, thus supporting the alternative-role theory of negative affectivity.