Toshiyo Taniguchi

Workplace Bullying could Play Important Roles in the Relationships between Job Strain and Symptoms of Depression and Sleep Disturbance

Workplace Bullying could Play Important Roles in the Relationships between Job Strain and Symptoms of Depression and Sleep Disturbance: Jiro Takaki, et al. Department of Public Health, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Evaluation of an internet-based self-help program for better quality of sleep among Japanese workers: a randomized controlled trial.

Evaluation of an Internet‐Based Self‐Help Program for Better Quality of Sleep among Japanese Workers: A Randomized Controlled Trial: Etsuji Suzuki, et al. Department of Epidemiology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences—The effectiveness of Internet‐based self‐help programs for insomnia is still unclear. A randomized controlled trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of an Internet‐based self‐help program for better quality of sleep among adult workers. Forty‐three volunteers were recruited and randomly assigned to either an intervention group (n=21) or a waiting‐list group (n=22). The intervention group participated in a two‐week Internet‐based program, including selecting and daily practicing sleep‐related target behaviors and monitoring those behaviors along with sleep quality. At the same time, each participant received automatically generated, personalized messages and reports both daily and weekly. A total of 12 intervention group participants and 18 waiting‐list group participants completed questionnaires at baseline, post‐intervention, and at a 3‐wk follow‐up. Subjective sleep quality was measured by a self‐reported questionnaire developed for this study. The sleep quality score increased in the intervention group at post‐intervention, with a significant interaction effect [F(1,28)=5.19, p=0.031]. Sleep‐related behaviors also greatly increased in the intervention group at post‐intervention, with a significant interaction effect [F(1,28)=7.14, p=0.012]. Sleep‐onset latency reduced in the intervention group at follow‐up, with a marginally significant effect [F(1,28)=3.52, p=0.071]. The Internet‐based self‐help program improves subjective sleep quality and sleep‐onset latency among adult workers.

Assessment of workplace bullying and harassment: Reliability and validity of a Japanese version of the negative acts questionnaire

Assessment of Workplace Bullying and Harassment: Reliability and Validity of a Japanese Version of the Negative Acts Questionnaire: Jiro Takaki, et al. Department of Public Health, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Effects of Lavender Aroma on Sleep Quality in Healthy Japanese Students

This single-blind randomized study investigated the effectiveness of lavender aroma on quality of sleep in healthy Japanese students. The data of seven participants (2 men, 5 women) in the intervention group and eight participants (3 men, 5 women) in the control group were analyzed (M age = 19.0 yr., SD = 0.9). The total procedure comprised 3 days for pre-intervention assessment, 5 days for the intervention, and 3 days for post-intervention assessment. Lavender exposure was compared with the absence of lavender (control). Information regarding the relaxing effect of aromas was provided to examine expectancy effects. Results showed that lavender aroma improved sleepiness at awakening after the intervention. Sex differences and daily variation in quality of sleep during the intervention period were not observed. The findings suggest that nighttime exposure to lavender aroma relieves sleepiness at awakening.

Associations of workplace bullying and harassment with pain

The aim of this study was to investigate associations of workplace bullying and harassment with headache, stiffness of the neck or shoulders, lumbago, and pain of two or more joints. The subjects in this cross-sectional study were recruited from workers (n = 1,913) at 35 healthcare or welfare facilities in Japan. Because of non-participation or missing data, the number of subjects included in the analysis varied (response rate ≥ 77.1%). Workplace bullying and harassment were assessed using the Negative Acts Questionnaire. Depression was assessed using the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire. The frequency of pain experienced by workers in the previous month was evaluated using a four-point scale. Many of the associations of person-related bullying, work-related bullying, and sexual harassment with headache, stiffness of the neck or shoulders, lumbago, and pain of two or more joints were positive and significant (p < 0.05). Even after adjustment for depression, some of the associations remained significant (p < 0.05). For example, changes in the prevalence ratio for headache associated with a 1-point increase in the work-related bullying score were 1.05 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01 to 1.09) in men and 1.03 (95% CI 1.01 to 1.05) in women after adjustment for age, marital status, employment status, work shift, and depression.

Confirmation of Maslow’s Hypothesis of Synergy: Developing an Acceptance of Selfishness at the Workplace Scale

This study aimed to develop a new Acceptance of Selfishness at the Workplace Scale (ASWS) and to confirm Maslow’s hypothesis of synergy: if both a sense of contribution and acceptance of selfishness at the workplace are high, workers are psychologically healthy. In a cross-sectional study with employees of three Japanese companies, 656 workers answered a self-administered questionnaire on paper completely (response rate = 66.8%). Each questionnaire was submitted to us in a sealed envelope and analyzed. The ASWS indicated high internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.86). Significant (p < 0.001) positive moderate correlations between ASWS scores and job control scores support the ASWS’s convergent and discriminant validity. Significant (p < 0.001) associations of ASWS scores with psychological distress and work engagement supported the ASWS’s criterion validity. In short, ASWS was a psychometrically satisfactory measure. Significant (p < 0.05) interactions between a sense of contribution and acceptance of selfishness at the workplace in linear regression models showed that when those two factors are low, psychological distress becomes high. However, when a sense of contribution and acceptance of selfishness are high, work engagement also becomes high. Thus, Maslow’s hypothesis of synergy was confirmed.

Reliability, validity, and significance of assessment of sense of contribution in the workplace.

The purpose of this study was to assess the validity and reliability of the Sense of Contribution Scale (SCS), a newly developed, 7-item questionnaire used to measure sense of contribution in the workplace. Workers at 272 organizations answered questionnaires that included the SCS. Because of non-participation or missing data, the number of subjects included in the analyses for internal consistency and validity varied from 1,675 to 2,462 (response rates 54.6%–80.2%). Fifty-four workers were included in the analysis of test–retest reliability (response rate, 77.1%). The SCS showed high internal consistency (Cronbach’s α coefficients in men and women were 0.85 and 0.86, respectively) and test–retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.91). Significant (p < 0.001), positive, moderate correlations were found between the SCS score and scores for organization-based self-esteem and work engagement in both genders, which support the SCS’s convergent and discriminant validity. The criterion validity of the SCS was supported by the finding that in both genders, the SCS scores were significantly (p < 0.05) and inversely associated with psychological distress and sleep disturbance in crude and in multivariable analyses that adjusted for demographics, organization-based self-esteem, work engagement, effort–reward ratio, workplace bullying, and procedural and interactional justice. The SCS is a psychometrically satisfactory measure of sense of contribution in the workplace. The SCS provides a new and useful instrument to measure sense of contribution, which is independently associated with mental health in workers, for studies in organizational science, occupational health psychology and occupational medicine.

Associations of workplace bullying and harassment with stress reactions: a two-year follow-up study

The purpose of this prospective study was to investigate the effect of the patterning of workplace bullying and harassment over two time points (chronic, remission, onset, and never) on psychological and physical stress reactions. The subjects were 543 workers at welfare facilities for the elderly in Japan who completed a self-administered questionnaire at Time 1 (from August to September, 2009) and at Time 2 (from September to October, 2011). Workplace bullying and harassment were assessed using the Negative Acts Questionnaire (NAQ). Stress reactions were assessed using the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire. In the multiple logistic regression analyses, onset of person-related bullying was significantly (p<0.05) positively associated with both psychological and physical stress reactions at Time 2. Chronic form of person-related bullying was significantly (p<0.05) positively associated with psychological stress reaction at Time 2. Onset of sexual harassment was significantly (p<0.05) positively, and remission of sexual harassment was significantly (p<0.05) negatively associated with physical stress reaction at Time 2. Onset and chronic form of person-related bullying and onset of sexual harassment can cause stress reactions. Remission of sexual harassment can terminate physical stress reaction.

Moderating effects of salivary testosterone levels on associations between job demand and psychological stress response in Japanese medical workers.

Levels of job stress have been shown to be inversely associated with testosterone levels, but some inconsistent results have been documented. We investigated the moderating effects of testosterone levels on associations between job stress-factors and psychological stress responses in Japanese medical workers. The participants were 63 medical staff (20 males and 43 women; mean age: 30.6 years; SD=7.3) in Okayama, Japan. Their job-stress levels and psychological stress responses were evaluated using self-administered questionnaires, and their salivary testosterone collected. Multiple regression analyses showed that job demand was positively associated with stress responses in men and women. An interaction between testosterone and support from colleagues had a significant effect on depression and anxiety for women. In women with lower testosterone levels, a reducing effect of support from colleagues on depression and anxiety was intensified. In women with higher testosterone levels, depression and anxiety levels were identical regardless of support from colleagues. Testosterone may function as a moderator between perceived work environment and psychological stress responses for female medical workers.