Is new tech a pain in the neck? The impact of introducing new technologies in home-care on neck pain: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Home healthcare services are increasingly utilizing novel technologies to enhance quality and efficiency of caregiving, to reduce workloads and compensate for expected labor shortages in the future due to ageing populations. However, rapid, ongoing implementation of new technologies may demand considerable adaptation for employees. The objective of this study was to prospectively examine associations of newly introduced work technologies with neck pain complaints. METHODS: With a nationally representative prospective sample of home-care workers in Norway (N = 887), we estimated effects of 1) introducing new technologies and 2) the appraised quality of training during implementation on neck pain eight months after. RESULTS: A majority of employees reported new technologies having been introduced the previous 12 months (73.8%). This was not by itself associated with neck pain. However, perceived high quality of training was associated with less subsequent neck pain, also after adjustment for job demands and job control. The strongest effect was seen for "very good" versus "very poor" quality training (OR 0.35, 95% CI 0.17,0.71, in the fully adjusted model). Cross-lagged path analyses ruled out potential reverse causation stemming from the influence of pain on needs for or appraisals of training. CONCLUSION: The present findings suggest the introduction of new work technologies has a significant impact on home-care workers' health, depending on the quality of training during implementation. This highlights the need to include training programs in risk assessments when implementing new technologies.

Longitudinal associations of effort and reward at work with changes in cognitive function: evidence from a national study of U.S. workers.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to examine longitudinal associations of workplace effort and reward with changes in cognitive function among United States workers. METHODS: Data from the national, population-based Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study with a 9-year follow-up were used. Validated workplace effort and reward scales were measured at baseline, and cognitive outcomes (including composite cognition, episodic memory, and executive functioning) were measured with the Brief Test of Adult Cognition by Telephone (BTACT) at baseline and follow-up. Multivariable linear regression analyses based on generalized estimating equations (GEE) examined the longitudinal associations under study. RESULTS: Among this worker sample of 1,399, after accounting for demographics, socioeconomics, lifestyle behaviors, health conditions, and job control, high reward at baseline was associated with increased composite cognition (regression coefficient: 0.118 [95% CI: 0.049, 0.187]), episodic memory (0.106 [0.024, 0.188]), and executive functioning (0.123 [0.055, 0.191]) during follow-up. The joint exposure of 'high effort and high reward' was also associated with increased composite cognition (0.130 [0.030, 0.231]), episodic memory (0.131 [0.012, 0.250]), and executive functioning (0.117 [0.017, 0.216]), while the combination of 'low effort and high reward' was associated with increased composite cognition (0.106 [0.009, 0.204]) and executive functioning (0.139 [0.042, 0.235]). CONCLUSION: Findings suggest that workplace high reward is related to improved cognitive scores among United States workers. Future research should investigate larger cohorts over longer timespans and expand into disease outcomes such as dementia. If these findings emerge as causal, relevant workplace rewards to promote worker cognitive health should be considered.

Impact of psychosocial work factors on risk of medically certified sick leave due to common mental disorders: a nationwide prospective cohort study of Norwegian home care workers.

BACKGROUND: The Norwegian home care services experience a high level of sick leave, a large proportion of which is due to common mental disorders. A substantial number of such cases can be attributed to psychosocial factors at work, but more knowledge about occupation-specific risk factors is needed to develop targeted preventive measures to reduce sick leave levels. The aim of this study is to identify the most prominent psychosocial work factors influencing the risk of sick leave spells due to common mental disorders. METHODS: Employees from a random sample of 130 Norwegian home care services (N = 1.819) completed a baseline survey on 15 psychosocial work factors. Participants were subsequently followed up for 26 months using registry data on sick leave. The outcome measure was the number of medically certified sick leave spells due to common mental disorders during follow-up in the Norwegian social insurance database. Incidence risk ratios (IRR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using negative binomial regression with robust standard errors. RESULTS: Emotional dissonance (IRR 1.30, 95% CI 1.05-1.60) and emotional demands (IRR 1.35, 95% CI 1.14-1.58) were associated with an excess risk of sick leave, while control over work pacing (IRR 0.78, 95% CI 0.62-0.98) was associated with a reduced risk. An estimated 30% (95% CI 8.73-48.82) of sick leave cases were attributable to emotional dissonance and 27% (95% CI 4.80-46.33) were attributable to emotional demands. Control over work pacing was estimated to have prevented 20% (95% CI 1.32-37.78) of the sick leave cases. CONCLUSIONS: This study found that emotional dissonance and emotional demands were robust risk factors for sick leave due to common mental disorders, and that control of work pacing constituted a robust protective factor against sick leave.

Psychosocial work factors affecting mental health of young workers: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: For the general working population, robust evidence exists for associations between psychosocial work exposures and mental health. As this relationship is less clear for young workers, this systematic review aims at providing an overview of the evidence concerning psychosocial work factors affecting mental health of young workers. METHODS: The electronic databases used were PubMed, Web of Science, and PsycINFO and were last searched in October 2021. The eligible outcomes included depression-, stress-, burnout- and anxiety-related complaints, and fatigue, excluding clinical diagnoses and suicide-related outcomes. Only studies with workers aged 35 years or younger were included, which reported at least one association between a psychosocial work factor as exposure and a mental health complaint as outcome. Studies had to be in English, German or Dutch. Risk of bias was assessed using an instrument from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Data synthesis was conducted using GRADE. RESULTS: In total 17 studies were included in this systematic review, including data from 35,600 young workers in total. Across these studies 86 exposure-outcome associations were reported. Nine exposure-outcome associations could be synthesised. The application of the GRADE framework led to one "low" assessment for the association between psychosocial job quality and mental health. The certainty of evidence for the other eight associations in the synthesis was very low. CONCLUSIONS: The current systematic review disclosed a high degree of uncertainty of the evidence due to conceptually fuzzy outcomes and exposures as well as large heterogeneity between studies.

Prospective associations of psychosocial work factors with sickness absence spells and duration: Results from the French national working conditions survey.

BACKGROUND: Some psychosocial work factors are associated with sickness absence, however little information is available on the associations of various psychosocial work factors and multiple exposures with sickness absence spells and duration, and gender differences. METHODS: Data were from the French working conditions survey conducted on a nationally representative sample of the working population. The study sample included 17,437 employees (7292 men, 10,145 women) followed from 2013 to 2016 and/or from 2016 to 2019. Occupational exposures (20 psychosocial work factors, 4 working time/hours factors, 4 physical work exposures) were measured at the beginning of each follow-up period. Hurdle and multinomial models were used to study the associations with the number of days and spells of sickness absence. RESULTS: Most of the psychosocial work factors predicted the risk of at least 1 day of sickness absence. Stronger associations were found among women than men for some factors. Psychosocial work factors were more likely to predict the number of spells than the number of days of sickness absence. Some physical work exposures predicted sickness absence spells and days, whereas shift work in women predicted the risk of at least 1 day of sickness absence. Dose-response associations were found between multiple psychosocial work exposures and sickness absence spells, and between multiple physical exposures and sickness absence spells and days. CONCLUSION: Comprehensive prevention policies oriented toward the whole psychosocial and physical work environment should be useful to reduce sickness absence among men and women.

Multiple psychosocial work exposures and well-being among employees: prospective associations from the French national Working Conditions Survey.

Aims: Working conditions, especially psychosocial work factors (PWFs), are thought to influence mental health outcomes among working populations, but there have been few studies on well-being per se. We assessed the prospective associations between a wide variety of occupational factors, including PWFs, multiple exposure to these factors, and well-being among employees in France. Methods: This study was based on a nationally representative sample of 15,776 employees, including 6595 men and 9181 women, followed up from 2013 to 2016. Psychological well-being was assessed using the WHO-5 Well-Being Index. Occupational factors included 20 PWFs, 4 factors related to working time/hours, and 4 physical work exposures. The associations of occupational exposures with poor well-being were estimated using weighted robust Poisson regression models in men and women separately. Results: Among the employees who rated their well-being as good in 2013, 10.3% of men and 16.8% of women had a poor well-being 3 years later. Most PWFs in 2013 were associated with poor well-being in 2016 among women, and half of them among men. An increase in the risk of poor well-being with the number of PWFs was found. Noise exposure was associated with poor well-being in women. Conclusions: The occupational factors associated with psychological well-being were mainly those related to the psychosocial work environment. A linear association was observed between the number of exposures to PWFs and well-being. Preventive policies focused on PWFs may be beneficial for well-being. More attention should be given to multiple exposures to these factors.

Prospective associations between psychosocial work factors and self-reported health: study of effect modification by gender, age, and occupation using the national French working conditions survey data.

BACKGROUND: Prospective studies exploring the effects of psychosocial work factors on self-reported health (SRH) are lacking, especially those studying effect modifications. The objectives were to examine the prospective associations of these factors, and multiple exposures to these factors, with SRH in a national representative sample, and effect modifications by gender, age, and occupation. METHODS: The prospective study relied on the three data collection waves (2013, 2016, and 2019) of the national French Working Conditions survey and was based on a sample of 15,971 employees, in good SRH at the beginning of the follow-up period. The occupational exposures were time-varying variables measured in 2013 and 2016, and included: 20 psychosocial work factors grouped into 5 broad domains, 4 exposures related to working time/hours and 4 physical-biomechanical-chemical exposures. The incidence of poor SRH three years later was the outcome. Discrete time Poisson regression models were performed using weighted data and with adjustment for gender, age, marital status, life events, and occupation. RESULTS: Almost all the studied psychosocial work factors were predictive of poor SRH. Some physical-biomechanical-chemical exposures were found to predict poor SRH. Only rare effect modifications were observed according to gender, age, and occupation. Dose-response associations between multiple exposures and the incidence of poor SRH were observed for 4 among 5 domains of psychosocial work factors. CONCLUSIONS: Our study underlined the effects of psychosocial work factors, as well as multiple exposure effects, on the incidence of poor SRH. However, most of these effects were the same across population groups related to gender, age, and occupation.

Update of the fractions of cardiovascular diseases and mental disorders attributable to psychosocial work factors in Europe.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to provide the fractions of cardiovascular diseases and mental disorders attributable to five psychosocial work exposures, i.e. job strain, effort-reward imbalance, job insecurity, long working hours, and bullying in Europe (35 countries, including 28 European Union countries), for each one and all countries together, in 2015. METHODS: The prevalences of exposure were estimated using the sample of 35,571 employees from the 2015 European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) for all countries together and each country separately. Relative risks (RR) were obtained via literature reviews and meta-analyses already published. The studied outcomes were: coronary/ischemic heart diseases (CHD), stroke, atrial fibrillation, peripheral artery disease, venous thromboembolism, and depression. Attributable fractions (AF) for each exposure and overall AFs for all exposures together were calculated. RESULTS: The AFs of depression were all significant: job strain (17%), job insecurity (9%), bullying (7%), and effort-reward imbalance (6%). Most of the AFs of cardiovascular diseases were significant and lower than 11%. Differences in AFs were observed between countries for depression and for long working hours. Differences between genders were found for long working hours, with higher AFs observed among men than among women for all outcomes. Overall AFs taking all exposures into account ranged between 17 and 35% for depression and between 5 and 11% for CHD. CONCLUSION: The overall burden of depression and cardiovascular diseases attributable to psychosocial work exposures was noticeable. As these exposures are modifiable, preventive policies may be useful to reduce the burden of disease associated with the psychosocial work environment.

Psychosocial factors at work from the job strain model and preventable mortality in France: The STRESSJEM prospective study.

The study aimed to explore the prospective associations between psychosocial factors at work from the job strain model and preventable mortality, including smoking- and alcohol-related mortality as well as external causes of death. The study was based on prospective data and relied on a sample of 1,511,456 individuals for which data on job history, mortality and causes of death were linked over the 1976-2002 period. Exposures were the factors from the job strain model imputed through a job-exposure matrix. Various time-varying measures of exposure were used including current exposure and two measures of cumulative exposure. Preventable mortality was defined using the OECD/Eurostat list of preventable causes of death. The associations between exposures and outcomes were studied using Cox proportional hazards models. Effect modification by gender was also assessed. Over the study period, 57,264 preventable deaths occurred before the age of 75 years. Low decision latitude, low social support, job strain, iso-strain, passive job, and high strain were associated with preventable mortality, and associations of stronger magnitude were found for job strain and isostrain among men. Stronger associations were observed for alcohol-related mortality than for smoking-related mortality and external causes of death. The fractions of preventable mortality attributable to current exposure to job strain and isostrain were significant among men only (5.1% and 3.3%). Psychosocial factors at work from the job strain model may play a role on preventable mortality. Intensifying research and prevention towards the psychosocial work environment may be helpful to reduce risky health-related behaviours and related mortality.

Associations of multiple occupational exposures with major depressive and generalized anxiety disorders: Findings from the French National Working Conditions Survey.

BACKGROUND: There have been numerous studies on the associations between psychosocial work factors and mental health, but very few of them explored the cumulative effects of these factors. The objectives were to study the associations between multiple occupational exposures and two common mental disorders, major depressive episode (MDE) and generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), among employees in France. METHODS: The data came from the 2016 French National Working Conditions Survey based on a representative sample of 20,430 employees (8579 men and 11,851 women) aged 15-65 years. MDE and GAD were assessed using the MINI (Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview) standardized diagnostic interview. Occupational exposures included 21 psychosocial work factors grouped into five dimensions, four factors related to working time/hours, and four physical work exposures. Logistic regression modeling for weighted data was performed to evaluate the associations of occupational exposures with MDE and GAD in men and women separately. RESULTS: The prevalence of MDE and GAD was higher among women (8.6% and 8.7%, respectively) than among men (4.3% and 4.6%). Most psychosocial work factors were associated with MDE and/or GAD. A linear increase in the risk of MDE/GAD with the number of psychosocial work factors was found for each dimension, except workplace violence. The risk of MDE also increased linearly with multiple physical work exposures. CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed that a wide variety of occupational exposures were associated with clinical depression and anxiety, and that the risk of disease increased with multiple exposures to psychosocial and physical factors at work.

Older working adults in the HEAF study are more likely to report loneliness after two years of follow-up if they have negative perceptions of their work quality.

BACKGROUND: Loneliness is an important public health issue associated with mortality and morbidity. Often researched amongst older people, less is known about risk factors for loneliness among adults aged 50-64 years who are in work. We investigated (a) if exit from the workforce increases the odds of loneliness; (b) whether adverse psychosocial work factors are associated with increased odds of loneliness over 2 years of follow-up; and (c) whether the association is stronger among subjects still working compared with those who have exited the workforce. METHODS: Data came from the Health and Employment After Fifty (HEAF) study, a large population cohort who provided questionnaire information about work and health at baseline and 2 annual follow-ups. Logistic regression was used to explore the association between psychosocial risk factors and loneliness at follow-up 2, with adjustment for loneliness at baseline, sex, age, self-rated health, living alone, and mental health diagnosis. RESULTS: Of the initial 8134 participants, 4521 were working at baseline and provided data for this analysis. Of those, 507 (11.2%) were defined as lonely at 2 years' follow-up. Exiting the workforce was not significantly associated with loneliness (OR = 1.1, 95%CI: 0.7-1.7). However, negative psychosocial work factors predicted loneliness at follow-up. After mutual adjustment, lack of choice at work (OR: 1.5, 95%CI: 1.1-1.9), often lying awake worrying about work (OR: 1.4, 95%CI: 1.0-1.9) and perceived not coping with physical demands of the job (OR: 1.3, 95%CI: 1.0-1.7) were independent predictors, with associations robust to adjustment for demographic factors and health. Associations were only slightly altered when we restricted the sample to those who remained in work until the end of follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Loneliness amongst middle-aged working adults is not predicted by permanent work exit but is predicted by individuals' perceptions about their work. Provision of good-quality work, matched to the capacity of the older worker, could prevent loneliness.

Leaving and staying with the employer-Changes in work, health, and work ability among older workers.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this prospective study was to examine employer changes among older workers and to relate them to psychosocial work factors, health, and work ability. Four groups of employees as elaborated by Hom et al. (2012) were distinguished: Enthusiastic leavers (EL), reluctant leavers (RL), enthusiastic stayers (ES), and reluctant stayers (RS). METHODS: Repeated Measures ANOVA analyses were based on data from the second and third waves (2014, 2018) of the German lidA Cohort Study, a representative study of employees born in 1959 or 1965. RESULTS: The largest proportion of participants was ES (73.3%), 13.2% stayed with their employer although they would have preferred to leave (RS). 7.1% changed employer between 2014 and 2018 voluntarily (EL), 6.4% involuntarily (RL). Analyses confirmed that the four groups already differed in 2014 in terms of health, work ability, and psychosocial work factors and that these outcomes change in different characteristic patterns over time. Most outcomes improved substantially following the change among EL. RS already reported poor outcomes in 2014 and exhibited a further deterioration while staying at the undesired workplace. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that an employer change is followed by improvements of work, health, and work ability. We conclude that an inclusive labor market policy for older workers allowing for high job mobility may have the potential to contribute to considerable improvements of workers' individual working conditions, health, and work ability, thereby increasing the work participation. Also, the considerable group of RL requires increased political and scientific attention.

Psychosocial work exposures and suicide ideation: a study of multiple exposures using the French national working conditions survey.

BACKGROUND: Our study aimed to explore the associations between psychosocial work exposures, as well as other occupational exposures, and suicide ideation in the French national working population. An additional objective was to study the cumulative role of occupational exposures in this outcome. METHODS: The study was based on a nationally representative sample of the French working population of 20,430 employees, 8579 men and 11,851 women (2016 French national Working Conditions survey). Occupational exposures included 21 psychosocial work factors, 4 factors related to working time/hours and 4 factors related to the physical work environment. Suicide ideation within the last 12 months was the outcome. The associations between exposures and outcome were studied using weighted logistic regression models adjusted for covariates. RESULTS: The 12-month prevalence of suicide ideation was 5.2% among men and 5.7% among women. Among the occupational exposures, psychosocial work factors were found to be associated with suicide ideation: quantitative and cognitive demands, low influence and possibilities for development, low meaning at work, low sense of community, role conflict, job insecurity, temporary employment, changes at work, and internal violence. Some rare differences in these associations were observed between genders. Linear associations were observed between the number of psychosocial work exposures and suicide ideation. CONCLUSIONS: Psychosocial work factors were found to play a major role in suicide ideation, and their effects were cumulative on this outcome. More research on multiple and cumulative exposures and suicide ideation and more prevention towards the psychosocial work environment are needed.

A framework for studying risk factors for lower extremity musculoskeletal discomfort in nurses.

Lower extremity musculoskeletal discomfort (MSD) is prevalent, but understudied, in nurses. A comprehensive, theoretical, aetiological model of lower extremity work-related MSD in hospital in-patient staff nurses was developed through a review of the literature to provide a framework for aetiological and intervention research. The framework informed the design of a survey of 502 hospital staff nurses. Symptom prevalence ranged from 32% in hip/thigh to 59% in ankle/foot regions. Logistic regression modelling using survey data showed that different work and personal factors were associated with discomfort in different regions of the lower extremity. Individual factors (e.g. older age, higher BMI or having any foot condition), physical factors (e.g. higher frequency of patient handling), psychosocial factors (e.g. lower job satisfaction) were associated with discomfort in one or more parts of the lower extremity. Future research should target these factors for intervention, to attempt to reduce occurrence of lower extremity discomfort in nurses. Practitioner Summary: Practitioners may find useful the illustrated, theoretical aetiological model of factors that could influence the prevalence of lower extremity discomfort in nurses. The model could guide conversations with nurses and observational analyses of nursing work. The model and survey results may provide ideas for intervention exploration. Abbreviations: MSD: musculoskeletal discomfort; BMI: body mass index; MSK: musculoskeletal; ICU: intensive care unit; NLERF: nurses' lower extremity MSD risk factor; NASA-TLX: NASA-task load index.

Emotional demands and exhaustion: cross-sectional and longitudinal associations in a cohort of Danish public sector employees.

PURPOSE: To examine cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between content-related emotional demands at work and exhaustion, and to investigate if these associations were modified by other psychosocial work characteristics. METHODS: In 2007, 4489 Danish public service employees participated in the PRISME study by completing postal questionnaires, and 3224 participated in the follow-up in 2009. Content-related emotional demands were measured by a scale (scored 1 to 5) based on five work-content-related items, and exhaustion was measured with the general exhaustion scale from the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory (CBI) (scored 1 to 5). The cross-sectional and longitudinal associations with exhaustion were analysed in the same model and adjusted for effects of potential confounders. Effect modifications were examined separately for self-reported emotional enrichment, meaningful work, job control, social support at work and quantitative demands. RESULTS: Exhaustion increased with increasing emotional demands, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally. However, although statistically significant, the effect was small. In the longitudinal analysis, a one unit increase in emotional demands was associated with a 0.03 unit (95% CI: 0.01-0.06) increase in exhaustion. We found statistically significant effect modification for three of six potentially modifying work characteristics. The effect of emotional demands on exhaustion was lower for participants with high levels of emotional enrichment (cross-sectionally and longitudinally), high levels of meaningful work (longitudinally), and higher for high levels of quantitative demands (cross-sectionally). CONCLUSIONS: Increasing content-related emotional demands were associated with increasing levels of exhaustion, cross-sectionally and longitudinally. This effect was reduced if the work was experienced as emotionally enriching and meaningful.

Does early identification of work-related stress, combined with feedback at GP-consultation, prevent sick leave in the following 12 months? a randomized controlled trial in primary health care.

BACKGROUND: Experiencing work-related stress constitutes an obvious risk for becoming sick-listed. In primary health care, no established method to early identify, advise and treat people with work-related stress exists. The aim was to evaluate if the use of the Work Stress Questionnaire (WSQ) brief intervention, including feedback from the general practitioner (GP), had an impact on the level of sickness absence. METHOD/DESIGN: In total 271 (intervention group, n = 132, control group, n = 139) non-sick-listed employed women and men, aged 18 to 64 years, who had mental and physical health complaints and sought care at primary health care centers participated in this two-armed randomized controlled trial. The main outcomes were the number of registered sick leave days and episodes, and time to first sick leave during the 12-months follow-up. The intervention included early identification of work-related stress by the WSQ, GP awareness supported by a brief training session, patients' self-reflection by WSQ completion, GP feedback at consultation, and initiation of preventive measures. RESULTS: The mean days registered for the WSQ intervention group and the control group were 39 and 45 gross days respectively, and 31 and 39 net days respectively (ns). No statistical significant difference for the number of sick leave episodes or time to first day of sick leave episode were found between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: The WSQ brief intervention combined with feedback and suggestions of measures at patient-GP-consultation was not proven effective in preventing sick leave in the following 12 months compared to treatment as usual. More research is needed on methods to early identify, advise and treat people with work-related stress in primary health care, and on how and when GPs and other professionals in primary health care can be trained to understand this risk of sick leave due to work-related stress, on how to prevent it, and on how to advise and treat employees at risk. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov. Identifier: NCT02480855 . Registered 20 May 2015.

Prolonged or serious conflicts at work and incident dementia: a 23-year follow-up of the Copenhagen City Heart Study.

PURPOSE: Only a few studies have investigated the impact of negative aspects of social relations on cognitive function, and they have shown mixed results. Conflicts at work are part of the negative aspects of social relations, but the impact of experiencing conflicts at work has not yet been investigated as a risk factor for dementia. Therefore, we investigated whether experiencing prolonged or serious conflicts with a supervisor or colleagues at work was associated with incident dementia in old age. METHODS: We analyzed data of 6,436 men and women from the third survey of the Copenhagen City Heart Study. At baseline in 1991-1994, the participants reported whether they had ever had a prolonged or serious conflict at work. The participants were followed until 2014. We used Poisson regression to estimate incidence rate ratios (IRR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: After adjusting for potential confounders, the IRR for dementia was 1.53 (95% CI 0.77-3.03) among participants who had reported having prolonged or serious conflicts both with a supervisor and colleagues compared with participants who had never had such conflicts. In separate analyses stratified by sex, the IRRs were 2.14 (95% Cl 0.97-4.71) for men and 0.98 (95% Cl 0.29-3.32) for women. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings did not support an overall association between experiencing prolonged or serious conflicts at work and incident dementia. However, because of the large differences in the point estimates for men and women, future research could aim at investigating potential sex differences regarding the association between conflicts at work and dementia.

Effects of psychosocial work factors on number of pain sites: The role of sleep quality as mediator.

BACKGROUND: Objective of the current study was to determine which of thirteen specific psychosocial work factors were related to number of musculoskeletal pain sites (NPS) prospectively over a two-year time span. Furthermore, the study aimed to explore possible mediation of these prospective relationships through sleep problems. METHODS: The study was a two-wave full panel study. Participants included 6277 employees of Norwegian companies, representing a wide range of occupations. Structural equation modelling was employed to analyze direct and indirect effects of thirteen specific psychological- and social work factors on sleep problems and NPS. RESULTS: Out of the thirteen work factors studied, positive challenges at work, role conflict, decision control, superior support, coworker support, empowering leadership, and social climate were statistically significantly related to subsequent NPS, both directly and indirectly through sleep quality. Sleep quality was related to NPS in all analyses. Most psychosocial work factors exhibited direct effects on either sleep or number of pain sites. Decision demands and control over work pacing were not statistically significantly related to sleep or pain. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the results suggested sleep quality to be involved in the mechanisms by which work affects the number of pain complaints employees experience. SIGNIFICANCE: Findings from this study suggest sleep may play a role in the complex mechanism from work stressors to musculoskeletal pain. Workplace interventions aiming to reduce musculoskeletal pain may wish to target work factors described in this study, as they affect sleep and may thereby increase number of musculoskeletal pain sites.

Can psychosocial work factors influence psychologists' positive mental health?

BACKGROUND: Working in healthcare can entail intense emotional demands that increases susceptibility to occupational risk factors. Psychosocial risk assessment can contribute to promoting awareness of the effects of work on positive mental health. AIMS: To explore and analyse the influence of psychosocial work factors on positive mental health among psychologists. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of 339 psychologists was conducted. Two instruments were used for data collection: the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF) to assess well-being and the Health and Work Survey (INSAT) to assess psychosocial work factors. RESULTS: This study identified psychosocial work factors that affect psychologists' positive mental health, namely, emotional well-being was affected by 'Need help from colleagues' (ß = -1.091), 'Have no one I can trust' (ß = -1.253) and 'Complex work' (ß = 0.751); psychological well-being was affected by 'Intense work pace' (ß = 1.151), 'Not able to participate in decisions' (ß = -3.695) and 'Complex work' (ß = 1.520); and social well-being was affected by 'Always changing roles and tasks' (ß = -1.810) and 'Not able to participate in decisions' (ß = -2.470). CONCLUSIONS: Psychosocial work factors such as work organization, work relationships and emotional demands influence psychologists' positive mental health. Social support at the workplace and having challenging and autonomous work can promote mental health. It is important to develop better organizational practices to promote mental health and well-being among these professionals.

Occupational gender composition and mild to severe depression in a Swedish cohort: The impact of psychosocial work factors.

AIMS: The aim of the present study was to investigate associations between occupational gender composition, psychosocial work factors and mild to severe depression in Swedish women and men with various educational backgrounds. METHODS: The study included 5560 participants from two waves of the Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health, an approximately representative sample of the Swedish working population. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals of mild to severe depression in 2014 were estimated for five strata of occupational gender composition with >20-40%, >40-60%, >60-80% and >80-100% women, using 0-20% women as the reference. Analyses were stratified by gender and education. Job strain, organisational injustice, poor social support and effort-reward imbalance in 2012 were added in separate models, and changes in OR of mild to severe depression for strata of occupational gender composition were evaluated. RESULTS: Among women, the odds of mild to severe depression did not vary by occupational gender composition. Among men with low to intermediate education, the odds were higher in the stratum with >80-100% women, and among men with high education, the odds were higher in strata with >20-40% and >60-80% women. Psychosocial work factors affected the odds ratios of mild to severe depression, but most of the variation remained unexplained. CONCLUSIONS: Odds of mild to severe depression appeared to vary by occupational gender composition among Swedish men but not women. This variation seemed only to a small extent to be explained by psychosocial work factors.