Organizational approach to studies of job demands, control and health

This paper presents an organizational approach to studies of job demands, control, and health. The main issue is whether the two dimensions, demands and control, are rooted in organizational conditions or in factors related to the individual person. In this paper, theoretical support and empirical evidence for organizational determinants of job stress are described, and conclusions for future studies of job stress are drawn. It was concluded that organizational approaches facilitate evaluations of exposure–outcome relationships in light of contextual factors, and knowledge about the organizational factors involved in shaping healthy work conditions is of great value in preventing job stress. Therefore, several levels of data and analysis should be involved in empirical studies. In addition, more knowledge is needed about the processes that give both managers and workers in organizations the discretion to act in ways that lead to healthy workplaces.