This chapter examines the impact of the psychosocial work environment on the mental health of people who work. It examines the impact of a different category of workplace hazards, namely, psychosocial hazards. In examining the research bearing on the impact of psychosocial working conditions on mental health, the chapter is largely confined to higher quality longitudinal studies, many of which have been population, based, and have controlled for workers’ psychological functioning at the first wave of data collection. Occupational health psychology (OHP)-related research on mental health has focused largely on the relation of psychosocial working conditions to three types of outcomes: psychological distress, depression and burnout. Social support fits well with research concerning the relation of psychosocial workplace factors to mental health because coworker and supervisor support are psychosocial workplace factors. OHP researchers face a number of challenges when studying the mental health impact of psychosocial working conditions.

This chapter examines the coining of the term “occupational health psychology”. It also examines the historical antecedents of OHP as well as its institutional history. The chapter focuses on the psychological impact of combat on soldiers in two world wars. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, n. d.), occupational health psychology (OHP) involves “the application of psychology to improving the quality of work life, and to protecting and promoting the safety, health and well-being of workers”. OHP is quintessentially interdisciplinary. Interdisciplinary research requires robust institutional support. An institutional development affected the course of the social sciences. Public health-oriented OHP researchers have been intent on characterizing objective features of the psychosocial work environment that affect the health of workers. OHP involved the application of psychological theory and knowledge to prevent, diagnose, and treat “physical disease and dysfunction” that arise from workplace conditions.

Occupational health psychology (OHP) is an exciting field with a bright future. One part of that bright future is in the excitement of conducting research that aims to uncover knowledge on the interplay of work and health. The other part of that bright future is in the application of that knowledge to making the lives of working people healthier. OHP is likely to see advances in research that better integrate mental health outcomes and working conditions with assessments of individual differences. OHP research on the relation of psychosocial working conditions to intermediate outcomes such as relatively small elevations in blood pressure does not negate the need for research on biological endpoints such as heart attack and stroke. OHP-related research has done much to document the baleful effects of unemployment and job insecurity, which include psychological distress, depression, suicide, and heart disease.

This chapter focuses on two factors that help define the functioning of organizations climate and leadership. It also focuses on key climate and leadership variables that are relevant to the occupational health and safety of employees. The early research on organizational climate tended to focus on two important themes: distinguishing levels of analysis and identifying dimensions of the workplace that relate to employees’ social well-being. In terms of levels of analysis, early research on organizational climate focused on individual climate perceptions of objective organizational characteristics or personal experiences and examined the relationships between these perceptions and individual outcomes. In addition to differentiating between psychological and organizational climate constructs, contemporary research on organizational climate has drawn from multilevel theory and identified important guidelines concerning the aggregation of individual perceptions. This chapter discusses three contemporary leadership theories: transformational leadership, leader-member exchange, and abusive supervision and their linkages with occupational health psychology (OHP) related topics.

This chapter examines the impact of psychosocial working conditions on medical-related outcomes, concentrating on cardiovascular disease (CVD). It explores the relation of psychosocial working conditions to musculoskeletal problems. The chapter examines three health-related outcomes: sickness absence, self-rated health, and fatigue. The term “CVD” refers to a set of conditions including atherosclerosis, ischemic heart disease, myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, and hypertension. The first general pathway from psychosocial working conditions to CVD is potentially through the health behaviors. The second general pathway involves chains of biological links from psychosocial stressors to CVD. The relation of psychosocial working conditions to depression and distress is not always acknowledged in research on working conditions and CVD. Research findings suggest that psychosocial factors, apart from the physical demands of the workplace, play a role in the development of musculoskeletal problems. The DC factors likely influence health beyond their impact on depression, heart disease, and musculoskeletal problems.

This chapter focuses on the principal designs used in occupational health psychology (OHP) research. It emphasizes the value of the random allocation of research participants to experimental and control conditions in research evaluating the efficacy of workplace interventions. A goal of OHP researchers is to generate and organize knowledge bearing on the relationship between work-related psychosocial factors and the health of workers. There are a variety of research designs. These designs include the experiment, quasi-experiment, cross-sectional study, various longitudinal study designs, and so forth. Meta-analyses provide a foundation for making generalizations that is broader than the conclusions OHP researchers can draw from results involving a specific sample. Like all professionals, OHP investigators must adhere to ethical standards. The American Psychological Association has ethical standards regarding publication credit once a research effort has concluded and a group of investigators has decided to write a paper about its findings.

This chapter reviews occupational health psychology (OHP) related interventions that promote worker health, safety, and well-being. It discusses a general framework for understanding different approaches to interventions within OHP. The chapter summarizes interventions designed to support work-family balance, enhance workers’ physical safety and health, and promote workers’ psychological health and well-being. Interventions are classified according to three categories: primary interventions, secondary interventions and tertiary interventions. Primary interventions to improve workers’ physical health and safety may involve general health- and safety-promotion programs and training efforts that are applicable to an entire organization. Secondary interventions aimed at improving psychological health and well-being target workers in specific occupations who are at risk for experiencing high levels of stress. Tertiary interventions are designed to assist individuals who suffer severe stress symptoms and reduce these detrimental psychological effects of occupational exposures.

This chapter explores the psychological impact of violence exposure, a major consequence of workplace violence is physical injury. It examines large cross-sectional studies that provide estimates of the extent of the problem of workplace aggression and identify jobs in which incumbents are at increased risk. The chapter focuses on factors that increase violence exposure, and is devoted to theory and research on risk factors for engaging in aggressive behavior. It provides a close-up look at three occupational groups that have been subject to the threat of violence: nurses, teachers, and bus drivers. Psychological aggression in the workplace is more common than outright violence, with estimates of psychological aggression being as high as 40% per year in certain occupations. The investigators found that having experienced workplace constraints increased the risk of later psychological aggression. Violence in the workplace can lead to physical injury, it can also give rise to psychological injury.

Occupational safety is an important topic area within occupational health psychology (OHP). This chapter reviews the fields that aim to identify and control risks associated with the physical work environment, and then discuss how the theories and practices associated with OHP complement other disciplinary approaches to improving occupational safety. The approaches that focus on the physical threats to occupational safety include industrial hygiene and ergonomics. Total Worker Health (TWH) integrates the traditional programs of occupational safety and health protection with workplace practices that focus on enhancing physical wellness and psychological well-being. OHP researchers regard occupational safety as embedded within a psychosocial and interpersonal context. Workers with sleep disorders had a higher likelihood of involvement in occupational accidents. Research supports the view that shift work and associated sleep disruptions have negative effects on occupational safety, including reductions in safety performance and increased risk for accidents and injuries.