Relationship between Job Stress and Self-Rated Health among Japanese Full-Time Occupational Physicians

Abstract

Objectives: We investigated relationships between job stress and self-rated health among Japanese full-time occupational physicians (OPs).
Methods: In 2000, we mailed self-administrated questionnaires to 716 OPs. Of these OPs, 349 (49%) returned sufficiently completed questionnaires for analyses. Oblique-rotated principal factor analysis of the job stress questionnaire extracted three components; low understanding of occupational health services in companies (low understanding), conflicts between occupational physicians and their coworkers (conflicts), and discrepancies between occupational physicians’ routine work and occupational health services (discrepancies).
Results: The model, in which low understanding contributed to self-rated health through job satisfaction and self-rated health was influenced by job satisfaction and discrepancies, provided a good fit to the data.
Conclusions: We found that a potential relationship between job stress and self-rated health among Japanese full-time OPs. The present results implied that among full-time OPs, low understanding contributed negatively to self-rated health through job satisfaction, and that self-rated health was influenced positively by job satisfaction and negatively by discrepancies.