We published a new paper from PLoS ONE.
Abstract
Backgrounds
Recent evidence has suggested that in Japan, professionals and
managers have a higher risk of poor health than other workers (e.g.,
clerks and manual laborers), and this effect may be stronger among
women than men. Low organizational justice, which is known to be a
potential risk factor for poor health among employees, may explain the
gender-specific association.
Methods
We examined the associations between perceived organizational justice
and psychological distress and stress-related behaviors (smoking and
heavy drinking) in 2,216 female and 7,557 male employees aged 18 to 69
years from the Japanese Study of Health, Occupation, and Psychosocial
Factors Related Equity. We measured both procedural and interactional
justice, and compared managers and professionals with other employees.
Results
After adjusting for demographic characteristics and occupational
stress, low levels of perceived procedural and interactional justice
were found to be associated with a high prevalence of psychological
distress for both women and men, regardless of occupational status.
Among female managers and professionals, perceived interactional
justice (measured as the levels of supports by supervisors, etc.) was
significantly associated with smoking, whereas no such association was
observed among other workers. When interactional justice was perceived
to be low, the prevalence of smoking was 6.5 percentage points higher
among managers and professionals than among others. Neither procedural
nor interactional justice was associated with risk of heavy drinking.
Conclusions
Female managers and professionals in a workplace with unsupportive
supervisors may be more likely to engage in unhealthy coping behaviors
to manage their stress. Creating supportive workplaces may be
beneficial in increasing workers’ health, especially for female
managers and professionals.
Kobayashi Y, Kondo N (2019) Organizational justice, psychological
distress, and stress-related behaviors by occupational class in female
Japanese employees. PLoS ONE 14(4): e0214393.
https://doi.org/10.1371/