Seminar: Work Intensification and Recovery from Demanding Jobs

Date: Thursday, June 14, 2018

Time: 13.30

Location:  5419.0009 (Kapteynborg building)

Title: Work intensification and ageing: Evidence from upper-white collar workers
Prof. Saija Mauno (University of Tampere & University of Jyväskylä, Finland)

Current working life is characterized by acceleration and intensification (Green, 2004; Kubicek et al., 2015; Rosa, 2003). We approach these work-related phenomena via the concept of intensified job demands (IJDs) describing new forms of mental job demands rooted in technological and social acceleration characterizing industrialized societies. IJDs include work intensification, intensified job- and career-related planning, decision-making demands, and intensified knowledge- and skill-related learning demands. Another big challenge in working life is aging workforce. However, we do not yet have a good understanding on how aging employees appraise IJDs. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine IJDs with a particular focus on aging employees (+ 50 years). As IJDs can be conceived as job stressors, the second aim of this study was to examine whether aging employees suffer more from IJDs in terms of occupational well-being (job burnout, work engagement). 

Title: Nature exposure promotes employee well-being
Prof. Kalevi Korpela (University of Tampere, Finland)

Experimental, epidemiological and intervention studies have provided a consistent body of evidence on the restorative, i.e., stress-ameliorating effects of natural settings. Among healthy and normally distressed populations even short exposure to natural environments and “green exercise” can reduce mental fatigue and psychological and physiological stress and improve well-being and vitality more than exposure to built urban environments. 
In our project on recovery from job stress (funded by the Academy of Finland), we brought these results from environmental psychology in connection with work and organizational psychology. I will report results on a) longitudinal associations between different types of nature exposure at work, at home and free-time and employee well-being and b) randomized controlled trials to investigate recovery from work stress within the working day comparing park walks, relaxation exercises and controls.


Title: Recovery from work stress and employee well-being
Prof. Ulla Kinnunen (University of Tampere, Finland) 

In my presentation, I will discuss the importance of work stress recovery from the viewpoint of employee well-being. I will present results of our completed and ongoing recovery projects clarifying the role of internal (occurring during working days) and external (occurring during leisure time) recovery.