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Objective: This study aimed to identify factors associated with suicidal ideation (SI) in adolescents and to explore the mediating role of depression and hopelessness in these predictive relationships. Method: Employing a cross-sectional research design, this study included adolescents aged 14 to 19 from Lorestan Province in Iran. A total of 623 middle-school students were selected through a multi-stage cluster sampling technique. Data were collected using a series of assessment tools, including the Depressive Symptom Index-Suicidality Subscale (DSI-SS), the Psychological Strain Questionnaire, the Hopelessness Scale, the Defeat Scale, and the Thwarted Belongingness Questionnaire. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) in AMOS version 26 and SPSS version 26 was utilized to evaluate the proposed model. Results: The findings revealed that in the context of Iranian adolescents, defeat and psychological strains emerge as significant predictors of SI. Notably, hopelessness was found to mediate the relationship between psychological strains, defeat, and SI. Conclusion: These insights provide valuable knowledge for addressing the issue of SI in Iranian adolescents and may inform future prevention and intervention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent scholarship has shown the prevalence of work–family conflict among social workers caused by their intense job demands. Correspondingly, academics and practitioners alike have recommended work–home segmentation as an effective coping strategy to help social workers deal with work–family conflict. Drawing on the stressor-strain-outcome framework, we first conducted Study 1 using a survey of 504 social workers to test psychological strain as a mediator of the relationship between work–family conflict and job performance, and to examine if work–home segmentation buffered the mediating relationship. Contrary to prior studies, work–home segmentation only alleviated work–family conflict for some social workers, but intensified the psychological strain and reduced the job performance of other social workers. To probe this finding further, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 social workers in Study 2 to understand why work–home segmentation did not reduce their psychological strain. The interviews revealed that most struggled to detach themselves psychologically and emotionally from work at home. The inability to implement work–home segmentation thus became an additional stressor, and they also engaged in after-hours work-related rumination. Therefore, we encourage organisations and managers to adopt a nuanced approach when advocating work–home segmentation as a coping strategy for frontline workers to deal with work–family conflict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reason that some victims of suicide behaviors survived while the others died is unknown, and few studies have been conducted for Chinese populations. We aimed to analyze the effect of suicide intent on outcomes of suicide behaviors, and to explore the impact of psychological strain on suicide intent. Data for this study was derived from two psychological autopsy research projects conducted in China. The same interview procedure and instruments were used in the two projects. Suicide intent was measured by Beck's Suicidal Intention Scale. Information on psychological strain was obtained. A total of 274 suicide deaths and 507 suicide attempters were included in the study. After controlling for socio-demographic variables, suicide intent was significantly associated with suicide death among people having suicide behaviors. Aspiration strain and coping strain were significantly associated with suicide intent. Significant intent-death association and psychological strain-suicide intent association were found in this study. Suicide intent might be an intermediate variable in the pathway from psychological strain to suicide death. Therefore, suicides might be more determined or motivated to die than those attempters who did not die of the act. Future research should continue to explore the mechanism of the psychological strain-suicide intent association, and more efforts on suicide prevention should be made from the perspective of psychological strain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Caregivers who live with a person with dementia who receives care, compared with those who live elsewhere, are often considered to experience greater levels of psychological and affective burden. The evidence for this is, however, only limited to studies employing small sample sizes and that failed to examine caregivers' psychological wellbeing. We address these issues in a large cohort of dementia caregivers. We conducted a cross-sectional study comparing caregivers living with a dementia care recipient (n = 240) to caregivers living elsewhere (n = 255) on caregivers' burden, anxiety, and depression. We found that caregivers living with the care recipient relative to those living elsewhere showed significantly greater burden and depression, but we found no group difference in anxiety. Our study adds to the evidence by showing that cohabiting with a care recipient with dementia is associated with greater burden and poorer psychological wellbeing. Strategies aiming to improve caregivers' burden and psychological wellbeing should take account of caregivers' living arrangements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is growing interest in the area of elite athlete mental health, however brief, valid and reliable screening instruments designed to identify early indictors of athlete-specific distress and potential mental health symptoms are lacking. This study sought to develop a brief screening instrument for athlete populations – the Athlete Psychological Strain Questionnaire (APSQ) – and examine convergent, divergent and construct validity. A two-stage psychometric validation study was undertaken. Self-report data was collected from 1,007 currently competing Australian elite male athletes (M = 23.67, SD = 4.16). The sample was randomly partitioned into calibration (n = 497) and validation (n = 510) samples. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, and tests of differential item functioning were conducted. Exploratory factor analysis, with parallel analysis, conducted on the calibration sample supported a three-factor solution, with subscales assessing Self-Regulation, Performance and External Coping accounting for 50.44% of total scale variance. Confirmatory factor analysis supported this three-factor model, yielding excellent model fit indices (CFI = 0.976, TLI = 0.966, RMSEA = 0.055, SRMR = 0.032), with the Bayesian Information Criterion supporting the superordinate structure. Differential item functioning analysis indicated item-equivalence relative to athletes' level of education and ethnicity. As predicted, a multivariate effect indicated higher APSQ scores for currently injured athletes (p =.040) with a univariate effect on the Performance subscale. The APSQ may help identify early symptoms of athlete psychological strain facilitating timely management. Replication and validation studies in broader samples, including female athletes and comparison with other athlete-specific, coping and stress measures are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The present study examined the role of praise and recognition from one's supervisor in mitigating the extent to which employees with psychological strain intend to engage in stress-related behavioral intentions. Design: Two studies, each using a cross-sectional design, are presented. Method: Both studies utilized self-report data from local government employees (n = 313 Study 1; n = 244 Study 2). Results: In Study 1, moderated regressions with bootstrapping showed a strong positive association between psychological strain and stress-related behavioral intentions for employees with low levels of supervisor praise and recognition. In contrast, this relationship was less marked at high levels of supervisor praise and recognition. Study 2 replicated these findings and further demonstrated that praise and recognition, when given by a supervisor perceived to be high in emotion recognition skills, was the optimal combination. Of particular interest was the finding that high and low combinations of these two supervisor attributes did not compensate for each other and were just as detrimental as supervisors perceived to be low in both. Conclusions: Overall, results suggest that the effectiveness of appreciative behavior from supervisors depends on their emotion recognition skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Working conditions in western economies keep fueling work stress and psychological ill-health among employees. Job resources as well as personal resources play important roles in alleviating the adverse outcomes. In this article, we analyze religiosity as a rather neglected personal resource and its role in the stressor–strain relationship. Five dimensions of religiosity (intellect, ideology, public practice, private practice, and experience) are tested for their buffering effect on the relationship between work stress, measured as effort-reward imbalance, and psychological strain as well as for their direct relationship with psychological strain. The sample consists of 792 helping professionals and a comparison group of 172 non-helping professionals. The results show that public practice is negatively related to psychological strain for helping professionals while none of the religiosity dimensions has an effect among non-helping professionals. A buffering effect of religiosity on the relationship between work stress and psychological strain is not observed. The results contribute to the literature on the model of effort-reward imbalance as well as religiosity in the workplace and the role of personal resources in the stress process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Despite regularly reporting high levels of occupational stress, lawyers are an under‐researched group in this field. The first objective of this research is to develop a short measure assessing two common work stress management techniques (WSMS) commonly employed by lawyers: relaxation and cognitive restructuring. A second objective is to assess the impact of three key job characteristics and two work stress management techniques upon levels of psychological strain, job satisfaction, and work engagement in a sample of lawyers. Method: Drawing on the Job Demands Control‐Support theoretical explanation of occupational stress, we assessed the impact of the two stress management techniques upon three key psychological outcomes, in comparison with three common job characteristics. An anonymous survey was administered to lawyers employed in one Australian state and produced a respondent sample of N = 114. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis produced acceptable psychometric results for the six‐item WSMS. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that job demands was not directly associated with any of the three criterion variables. Importantly, cognitive restructuring was as strongly associated with job satisfaction and work engagement, compared to the three job characteristics. Cognitive restructuring techniques were also associated with high levels of work engagement even when experiencing high job demands. Conclusions: The implications for occupational stress experienced by lawyers, the current popularity of occupational resilience and organisational wellness programs, and the assessment of generic job characteristics are all discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the recuperative efficacy of pre-exercise napping on physical capacity after military sustained operations (SUSOPS) with partial sleep deprivation. Before and after a 2-day SUSOPS, 61 cadets completed a battery of questionnaires, and performed a 2-min lunges trial and a 3,000-m running time-trial. After the completion of SUSOPS, subjects were randomized to either a control [without pre-exercise nap (CON); n = 32] or a nap [with a 30-min pre-exercise nap (NAP); n = 29] group. SUSOPS enhanced perceived sleepiness and degraded mood in both groups. Following SUSOPS, the repetitions of lunges, in the CON group, were reduced by ~ 2.3%, albeit the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.62). In the NAP group, however, the repetitions of lunges were increased by ~ 7.1% (p = 0.01). SUSOPS impaired the 3,000-m running performance in the CON group (~ 2.3%; p = 0.02), but not in the NAP group (0.3%; p = 0.71). Present results indicate, therefore, that a relatively brief pre-exercise nap may mitigate physical performance impairments ensued by short-term SUSOPS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the Effort–Reward Imbalance (ERI) model, employees may accept high-cost/low-gain conditions in their work for a certain time because they anticipate career promotion and related rewards at a later stage (i.e., strategic choice). The current study examines the associations between ERI and psychological strain among interns who seem to fit this condition. In addition, intention to work in their future profession, and therefore receive the aforementioned rewards, was investigated as a moderator of the relationships between ERI and psychological strain. A questionnaire measuring ERI, psychological strain (social dysfunction and anxiety/depression), and intention to pursue a career in accountancy was administered to 172 accounting interns. Regression analyses were conducted to test the proposed relationships and moderating hypotheses. Overcommitment (but not ERI nor ERI × overcommitment) was positively correlated with both social dysfunction and anxiety/depression. Intention moderated the relationships between overcommitment and both social dysfunction and anxiety/depression. The findings emphasize the important role of career dynamics and raise the possibility that employees may show resiliency toward ERI as well as overcommitment when they expect career rewards at a later stage. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objective Preliminary evidence suggests veterinary nurses are an at-risk population for high levels of occupational stress. This study sought to advance knowledge of occupational stress in this under-researched professional group by applying the Job Demands- Resources model to assess predictors of psychological strain, work-related burnout, and work engagement. Method Research participants consisted of 144 veterinary nurses employed within one Australian state (response rate of 41%). Data were obtained via an anonymous self-report questionnaire. All research participation was voluntary. Results Analyses indicated the mean level of work-related burnout in this sample exceeded that of normative samples in human health-care professions. We also found that although both generic and occupation-specific job demands were significantly associated with levels of psychological strain and burnout, generic job demands accounted for a greater proportion of variance. Only direct effects were produced for the association of both workplace social support and job control with work engagement; no evidence was found for the moderating effects of these two job resources. Conclusions The findings both validate and challenge the tenets of the Job Demands- Resources explanation of occupation stress. Theoretical and applied implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We develop two models of the relationships between emotional intelligence (EI), job insecurity, and psychological strain. The moderation model suggests that EI reduces psychological strain by helping individuals cope with job insecurity when it arises. The mediation model suggests that EI reduces psychological strain by enabling individuals to conserve resources, thereby reducing their experience of job insecurity. Our results, based on a sample of 232 real estate agents, show that job insecurity mediates the relationship between EI and psychological strain. Contrary to what the moderation model suggested, the positive relationship between job insecurity and psychological strain was found to be stronger when EI was higher. Overall, the results provide more nuanced insights into the role of EI in psychological strain. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study aimed to deepen our understanding of the motivational mechanisms involved in the relationship between transformational leadership (TFL) and employee functioning. Drawing on the TFL literature, the job demands–resources model and self-determination theory, we propose an integrative model that relates TFL to employee psychological health (burnout and psychological distress), attitudes (occupational commitment and turnover intention) and performance (professional efficacy, self-reported individual and objective organizational performance) through two explanatory mechanisms: perceived job characteristics (job demands and resources) and employee motivation (autonomous and controlled). This research was conducted in two occupational settings (nurses and school principals), using a distinct variable operationalization for each. Results of both studies provide support for the hypothesized model, suggesting that TFL relates to optimal job functioning (psychological health, job attitudes and performance) by contributing to favourable perceptions of job characteristics (more resources and less demands) and high-quality work motivation (more autonomous motivation and less controlled motivation) in employees. Theoretical contributions and managerial implications as well as directions for future research are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The work–life balance literature has recently identified the need for construct refinement. In response to these discussions, this research describes the development and validation of a concise measure of work–life balance, based on individuals' subjective perceptions of balance between their work and other aspects of their lives. The structure, reliability and validity of this unidimensional, four-item measure was confirmed in four independent heterogeneous samples of workers employed in Australia and New Zealand (N = 6983). Work–life balance was negatively associated with work demands, turnover intentions and psychological strain, and positively associated with both family and job satisfaction, confirming the research hypotheses. Evidence of these relationships over time was also demonstrated. This research confirms that this new measure of work–life balance demonstrates robust psychometric properties and predicts relevant criterion variables. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Few studies in work–family interface have explored the work–family experiences of social workers as an occupational group. Further, work–family conflict and its impact on psychological strain have dominated the majority of the literature. The positive effects of participation in work and family roles remain under-researched despite consensus among scholars confirming the benefits of participation in both roles. The present study contributes significantly to the gap in the literature by examining the work–family enrichment experiences of Australian social workers and its association with psychological strain. Data for the study were collected via online survey of the membership of the Australian Association of Social Workers and included one open-ended question asking social workers to comment on their work–family enrichment experiences. The survey yielded a usable sample of 439 responses. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the direct effects of the three forms of work-to-family enrichment (WFE) and family-to-work enrichment (FWE) on psychological strain. The results showed that WFE-Affect, WFE-Capital, and FWE-Affect were significantly associated with reduced psychological strain. The qualitative findings provided further evidence of the benefits associated with participation in work and family roles. The implications of the findings for theory, practice and service provision are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The objective of the study was to determine the relationship between work stress, work-home interference, and perceptions of organisational culture amongst insurance employees in the Zimbabwean context. Data were collected from a sample of 190 employees (females = 46%) who completed the Occupational Stress Inventory-Revised (OSI-R), the Work-Home Interference Questionnaire (SWING), and the Organisational Culture Index (OCI). Data analysis consisted of correlational and standard multiple regression analyses. The results revealed significant positive correlations between the sub-scales Role Overload, Role Insufficiency, Role Ambiguity, Role Boundary, Responsibilities, and Physical Environment of the OSI-R, the sub-scales Positive Work-Home Interference and Negative Work-Home Interference of the SWING, and the sub-scales Bureaucratic, Innovative and Supportive Culture of the OCI. These findings contribute to new knowledge in terms of the work stress experienced by insurance employees who are always under continuous pressure from the industry. Furthermore, it could be used to gain insight to enhance the work-life balance of insurance employees and the effect of organisational culture as perceived by insurance employees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Questionnaire data captured in January–March 2007 were examined in relation to turnover in males and females during the next five years. In general, most of the workplace stressors (such as role conflict or peer support) were not antecedents of turnover in any group. Junior personnel with psychological strain in 2007 had an increased risk of turnover in the next five years. Low commitment to the service in 2007 increased the odds of turnover in male and female juniors and in female officers. Female juniors with less effective skills for coping with stress and who exercised less frequently on a weekly basis were more likely to leave. An incidental finding was that the odds of turnover were three times greater in female officers with children than in female officers with no children. Stress management interventions focusing on effective coping and sports and exercise participation which are targeted appropriately may improve retention. Practitioner Summary:Much is known about the adverse effects of occupational stress on health and well-being. This study demonstrates a link between stress and employee turnover implying that stress management interventions may benefit employers, by reducing turnover. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stress, leading to suicides and homicides, is one of the major problems facing the Indian Border Security Force personnel. Tough working conditions, lack of basic amenities, long working hours, physical separation from the family, tight controls, and rigidly stratified hierarchies have been considered the reasons for the high level of stress. However, no formal study has been conducted to actually ascertain the various causes of stress in the BSF. The present study used the inputs provided by the personnel, of various ranks in the Force, at the field level to understand the causes of stress. The study also aimed to understand the relationship between emotional intelligence (EI) and occupational stress and found a negative correlation between the two. Finally, the study discusses various ways to reduce stress, including use of EI competencies, so as to improve the physical and psychological health of the BSF personnel and to improve the overall efficiency of the Force. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Data on health and lifestyle from the Naval service cohort study of occupational stress form the background to a discussion of employee health and the sustainability of a healthy workforce in relation to secular changes – in particular, the increasing prevalence of obesity. One thousand two hundred and forty-one Naval personnel returned questionnaires in 2007 and 2011 and reported their body mass index (BMI), alcohol consumption and smoking, general health and health conditions such as back pain and high blood pressure on both occasions. Health risk due to high BMI and waist circumference in 2011 was predicted by low participation in exercise in 2007. Those performing physically demanding work in 2007 were more likely to be in the ‘no risk’ category in 2011. High BMI in 2007 was associated with the development of back pain, musculoskeletal conditions and high blood pressure in 2011. The findings are discussed in relation to two aspects of sustainability: the sustainability of current ergonomics practice in relation to health and safety; and the role of ergonomics in sustaining a healthy and productive workforce. Practitioner Summary:Evidence is presented for the benefits of exercise in sustaining employee health and for an association between a high BMI and a number of common health complaints that have traditionally been tackled through workplace ergonomics. This evidence can be used to support the development of workplace design concepts that promote physical activity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The impact of workplace stress and the need for work-life balance are increasingly recognised within social work. Recent theorising on work–family interface suggests that work-related stress cannot be contained within the workplace without it impacting on other life domains such as the family. Similarly, it is claimed that family-related issues also affect what happens at work. The present study examined the impact of different forms of work-to-family conflict (WFC) and family-to-work conflict (FWC) on social workers' psychological strain. An online survey of Australian Association of Social Workers members yielded a final sample of 439 responses. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses examining the direct effects of work–family conflict on psychological strain showed that respondents experienced all three forms of WFC (time, behaviour, and strain) and two forms of FWC (strain and behaviour), and these were significantly associated with psychological strain. These findings may be useful in developing strategies that aim to reduce conflict, thereby enabling social workers to make meaningful contributions in their work and family lives. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Job design has long been found to affect the work-related psychological responses of employees, such as psychological strain, job satisfaction, and turnover intentions, but scholars have begun to question whether established theoretical relations regarding job design continue to hold given the enormous changes in the nature of work during the past two decades. It is also increasingly recognized that individual differences affect work behaviours in substantial ways, but few studies on work design have investigated these differences. We addressed these concerns with a two-wave longitudinal study among 245 technical workers at a telecommunications company in Malaysia, a country that has a collectivist culture and a high power distance between managers and subordinates. We examined the moderating effects of job control and self-efficacy on the relationships between job demands and employee responses. The results failed to support the job demands-control model, as job control variables did not moderate the impact of demands on employee work-related psychological responses. However, self-efficacy moderated their impact on psychological strain (although not on job satisfaction or turnover intentions). Our findings provide insight into the moderating effect of self-efficacy, and suggest that practitioners interested in reducing psychological strain should consider making efforts to increase self-efficacy among employees. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Psychological strain was measured in 592 Naval personnel at four phases using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). The GHQ-12 Likert score was summed to generate a measure of cumulative strain, which was best predicted by the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) score, effort-reward imbalance and a measure of organisational commitment. Point strain at phase IV was best predicted by CFQ score, whereas need for recovery was best predicted by over-commitment to work role. Susceptibility to strain, both cumulatively over 2 years and 12 months in the future appears to depend on a cognitive factor measured by the CFQ. This factor was more strongly associated with strain than with fatigue. Psychosocial stress exposure at work played a lesser role in predicting cumulative and future strain, possibly because these stressors were of an acute nature. The findings are discussed with reference to recent research on attention and anxiety and some of the practical implications are considered. Statement of Relevance: There is renewed interest in intrinsic variables that predict adverse reactions to occupational stress. The paper presents evidence that self-reported cognitive failure is a vulnerability factor for future episodes of psychological strain. The paper strengthens the conclusions of a previous article and adds empirical support to recent research on the links between anxiety and attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Workplace conflict is a potent stressor, but most previous research has focused on its effect on productivity and performance rather than on individual well-being. This paper examines the moderating roles of an individual's internal locus of control and a problem-solving conflict management strategy. In the cross-sectional study, among 774 health care workers in the Netherlands, employees' internal locus of control did moderate the relationship between experienced conflict at work and psychological strain, which was measured using a 13-item Dutch adaptation of the Occupational Stress Indicator. In addition, this moderation was mediated by the active conflict management strategy of problem solving; people with a more internal locus of control use a problem-solving conflict management strategy more often and, as a result, experience less psychological strain in cases of workplace conflict. Implications for conflict theory, for future research, and for practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Naval Service Stress Study (2007-2012) is investigating job strain, its characteristics, causes and distribution in the Service. Data from phases I, II and III of the study (January 2007, June 2007 and January 2008) were analysed to determine the relationship between General Health questionnaire scores and a score on the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ) completed at phase III. Of 791 personnel who completed questionnaires at all phases, 43.6% had no job strain at any phase, whereas 9.9% had strain on all three occasions ('chronic strain'). 27% had strain at one of the three phases and 19% had strain at two of the three phases. The particular phase at which job strain was experienced was not related to CFQ score at phase III, whereas the total strain experienced over the period was related. High strain over the year was the strongest predictor of high CFQ score. A 'strain dose' variable, which combined both the amount of strain exposure and the timing of the exposure, explained little additional variance in CFQ score. The findings might be interpreted to indicate that a high CFQ score is a vulnerability factor for adverse reactions to work stress. The hypothesis that recent job strain elevates CFQ score was not supported. Statement of Relevance:Current models of occupational stress focus on psychosocial factors and much of the advice about stress management in organisations is centred on the identification and control of psychosocial risk factors. The present paper provides evidence that cognitive factors are also important and suggests that support for those with poor executive function should be part of stress management in complex environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was to investigate the role of different aspects of psychological strain in Chinese rural young suicides, so as to test the strain theory of suicide with the Chinese samples. A Psychological Autopsy (PA) was conducted on 105 suicides in rural China. The background and deep reasons for suicide were obtained from in-depth interviews with survivors and close friends. For each suicide, a story is composed out of the provided information, and the stories were content-analyzed with the SPSS Text Analysis for Surveys. Depression or other mental disorders were observed for less than half of the sampled suicides (42.9%). All suicides (100%) had experienced at least one type of the four strains: conflicting values; aspiration and reality; relative deprivation; and coping deficiency. While 24.9% of all suicides experienced only one type of strain, 36.2% experienced two types of strains, 32.4% experienced three types of strains, and only 6.7% of the suicides experienced all four types of strains. Males are more likely than females to experience aspiration and deprivation strains, and the younger suicides (15-22 years of age) were more likely than the older suicides (23-29 years of age) to experience coping strain. Psychological strains are more prevalent than mental disorders among Chinese rural young suicides. Mental illness might be a function of strain resulting from some negative life events, and future studies need to disentangle the relationship between strain and mental disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the study was to determine if office jobs could be characterized by a small number of combinations of stressors that could be related to job-title information and self-report of psychological strain. Two-hundred-and-sixty-two office workers from three public service organizations provided data on nine job stressors and seven indicators of psychological strain. Using cluster analysis on the nine stressors, office jobs were classified into three clusters. The first cluster included jobs with high skill utilization, task clarity, job control and social support and low future ambiguity, but also high on job demands such as quantitative workload, attention and work pressure. The second cluster included jobs with high demands and future ambiguity and low skill utilization, task clarity, job control and social support. The third cluster was intermediary between the first two clusters. The three clusters were related to job-title information. The second cluster was the highest on a range of psychological strain indicators, while the other two clusters were high on certain strain indicators but low on others. The study showed that office jobs could be characterized by a small number of combinations of stressors that were related to job-title information and psychological strain. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]