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Volume 54 (2016)
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- Issue 5 Pages 387-
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Volume 54, Issue 3
Displaying 1-12 of 12 articles from this issue
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Editorial
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Nobuo YANAGISAWAArticle type: Editorial
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 191-193
Published: 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSDownload PDF (654K)
Original Articles
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Kumi HIROKAWA, Machiko MIWA, Toshiyo TANIGUCHI, Masao TSUCHIYA, Norito ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 194-203
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: December 01, 2015JOURNAL FREE ACCESSLevels of job stress have been shown to be inversely associated with testosterone levels, but some inconsistent results have been documented. We investigated the moderating effects of testosterone levels on associations between job stress-factors and psychological stress responses in Japanese medical workers. The participants were 63 medical staff (20 males and 43 women; mean age: 30.6 years; SD=7.3) in Okayama, Japan. Their job-stress levels and psychological stress responses were evaluated using self-administered questionnaires, and their salivary testosterone collected. Multiple regression analyses showed that job demand was positively associated with stress responses in men and women. An interaction between testosterone and support from colleagues had a significant effect on depression and anxiety for women. In women with lower testosterone levels, a reducing effect of support from colleagues on depression and anxiety was intensified. In women with higher testosterone levels, depression and anxiety levels were identical regardless of support from colleagues. Testosterone may function as a moderator between perceived work environment and psychological stress responses for female medical workers.View full abstractDownload PDF (873K) -
Bala Murali SUNDRAM, Maznah DAHLUI, Karuthan CHINNAArticle type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 204-214
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: December 26, 2015JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) as part of a Worksite Health Promotion Program on self-perceived stress, anxiety and depression among male automotive assembly-line workers through a quasi-experimental trial. Two assembly plants were chosen with one receiving PMR therapy and the other Pamphlets. Intention-to-treat analysis was conducted to test the effectiveness of the relaxation therapy. Stress, Depression and Anxiety levels were measured using the shortened DASS-21 questionnaire. Data were analyzed using Chi-square, Independent sample t test and Repeated-measures analysis of variance to test the significance of the effects of intervention (time * group) for the measures of Stress, Depression and Anxiety. Significant favourable intervention effects on stress were found in the PMR group (Effect size=0.6) as compared to the Pamphlet group (Effect size=0.2). There was a significant group *time interaction effect (p<0.001) on Stress levels. Depression and Anxiety levels were minimal at baseline in both the groups with mild or no reduction in levels. The improvement in stress levels showed the potential of PMR therapy as a coping strategy at the workplace. Further research in this field is necessary to examine the beneficial effects of coping strategies in the workplace.View full abstractDownload PDF (1571K) -
Yong-Mei TANG, Dao-Gang WANG, Jun LI, Xing-Hua LI, Qian WANG, Nan LIU, ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 215-223
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: April 16, 2016JOURNAL FREE ACCESSWe aimed to examine the effect of micronutrient losses through sweat on blood pressure (BP) among heat-exposed steelworkers. A total of 224 heat-exposed male steelworkers from an ironworks facility were evaluated in July 2012. We measured the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature Index to evaluate the level of heat stress in the workplace. We collected sweat from the workers during an eight-hour work, and then we measured the micronutrients in the sweat. We also measured the BP of each worker. The results revealed that vitamin C, potassium, and calcium losses in sweat were positively correlated with systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure (all P<0.05). A linear stepwise regression analysis revealed that potassium, and calcium losses in sweat adversely affected SBP and DBP (all P<0.05). An analysis of covariance showed that SBP increased when potassium or calcium losses in sweat were >900 mg, or >100 mg, respectively. Further, DBP increased when potassium or calcium losses in sweat were >600 mg or >130 mg, respectively. Therefore, vitamin C, potassium, and calcium losses in sweat may adversely effect BP. To help steelworkers maintain healthy BP, facilities with high temperatures should try to lower environmental temperatures to reduce vitamin C, potassium, and calcium losses in sweat. Additionally, heat-exposed steelworkers may need to increase their dietary intakes of vitamin C, potassium, and calcium. Further research is needed to confirm these findings and support these recommendations.View full abstractDownload PDF (806K) -
Koji WADA, Toru YOSHIKAWA, Jong Ja LEE, Toshihiro MITSUDA, Kiyoshi KID ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 224-229
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: December 01, 2015JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe aim of this study was to identify how doctors and nurses experienced sharps injuries in operating rooms and the risks for these injuries by analyzing data from 78 Japanese hospitals participating in the nationwide EPINet surveillance system. The years of professional experience of the cases were classified into tertiles separately for doctors and nurses. Suture needles accounted for 54.9% of injuries in doctors and 48.3% of injuries in nurses. Among doctors, injuries occurred most frequently during the use of an item (range: 58.1–64.3%), while among nurses, injuries occurred most frequently (range: 24.7–29.0%) between steps of a multi-step procedure. The frequency of injury by a suture needle held by someone else was 41.1–47.3% (range) among doctors, and 27.0–48.1% (range) among nurses. In conclusion, sharps injuries in the operating room need to address the circumstances of injury and holder of devices based on the specific risk for doctors and nurses to decrease the number of injuries.View full abstractDownload PDF (748K) -
Takayuki SAWADA, Ko MATSUDAIRA, Yumiko MUTO, Tadashi KOGA, Masaya TAKA ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 230-236
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: January 30, 2016JOURNAL FREE ACCESSKatakori is a Japanese word, and there is no clear English translation. Katakori consists of two terms, Kata means neck and shoulder, kori means stiffness. Consequently, Katakori is defined as neck and shoulder discomfort or dull pain. Katakori is a major somatic complaint and has a large impact on workers. To examine the association between onset of severe Katakori and potential risk factors in Japanese workers, a prospective cohort study, entitled "Cultural and Psychosocial Influence on Disability (CUPID)", was conducted. Self-administered questionnaires were distributed twice: at baseline and 1 year after baseline. Logistic regression was used to explore the risk factors of onset of severe Katakori. Of those 1,398, the incidence of severe Katakori onset after 1 year was 3.0% (42 workers). Being female (adjusted odds ratio: 2.39, 95% confidence interval: 1.18–4.86), short sleep duration (adjusted odds ratio: 2.86, 95% confidence interval: 1.20–6.82) and depressed mood with some issues at work (adjusted odds ratio: 3.11, 95% confidence interval: 1.38–7.03) were significantly associated with onset of severe Katakori. Psychosocial factors as well as gender difference were associated with onset of severe Katakori. We suggest that mental health support at the workplace is important to prevent severe Katakori.View full abstractDownload PDF (938K) -
Bum-Joon LEE, Dirga Kumar LAMICHHANE, Dal-Young JUNG, So-Hyun MOON, Se ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 237-245
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: December 26, 2015JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThis study was conducted to examine how each psychosocial factor on working conditions is related to a worker's well-being. Data from the 2011 Korean Working Conditions Survey were analyzed for 33,569 employed workers aged ≥15 years. Well-being was evaluated through the WHO-5 questionnaire and variables about occupational psychosocial factors were classified into eight categories. The prevalence ratios were estimated using Poisson regression model. Overall, 44.3% of men and 57.4% of women were in a low well-being group. In a univariate analysis, most of the psychosocial factors on working conditions are significantly related with a worker's low well-being, except for insufficient job autonomy in both genders and job insecurity for males only. After adjusting for sociodemographic and structural factors on working conditions, job dissatisfaction, lack of reward, lack of social support, violence and discrimination at work still showed a statistically significant association with a worker's low well-being for both genders. We found that psychosocial working conditions were associated with the workers' well-being.View full abstractDownload PDF (808K) -
Seitaro SUZUKI, Koichi YOSHINO, Atsushi TAKAYANAGI, Yoichi ISHIZUKA, R ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 246-253
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: December 26, 2015JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThis cross-sectional study was conducted to examine tooth loss and associated factors among professional drivers and white-collar workers. The participants were recruited by applying screening procedures to a pool of Japanese registrants in an online database. The participants were asked to complete a self-reported questionnaire. A total of 592 professional drivers and 328 white-collar workers (male, aged 30 to 69 years) were analyzed. A multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify differences between professional drivers and white-collar workers. The results showed that professional drivers had fewer teeth than white-collar workers (odds ratio [OR], 1.74; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.150–2.625). Moreover, a second multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that several factors were associated with the number of teeth among professional drivers: diabetes mellitus (OR, 2.68; 95% CI, 1.388–5.173), duration of brushing teeth (OR, 1.66; 95% CI, 1.066–2.572), frequency of eating breakfast (OR, 2.23; 95% CI, 1.416–3.513), frequency of eating out (OR, 1.70; 95% CI, 1.086–2.671) and smoking status (OR, 2.88; 95% CI, 1.388–5.964). These findings suggest that the lifestyles of professional drivers could be related to not only their general health status, but also tooth loss.View full abstractDownload PDF (762K) -
Katinka TUISKU, Marianna VIRTANEN, Jessica DE BLOOM, Ulla KINNUNENArticle type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 254-262
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: January 30, 2016JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThis study explored the relationship between cultural leisure activities, recovery experiences and two outcomes among hospital workers. The differences in recovery experiences (detachment, relaxation, mastery and control) and outcomes (work engagement and subjective recovery state) among hospital personnel (N=769) were analysed by the type (receptive or creative) and frequency of cultural activities. The cross-sectional data were collected by a digital questionnaire. Employees who reported both receptive and creative cultural leisure activities on a weekly basis had the highest relaxation, mastery and control experiences during off-job time. In addition, those with weekly creative activities had beneficial mastery experiences. There were no differences in recovery outcomes after adjustment for age, except in work engagement. Cultural leisure activities, and creative activities in particular, play an important role in certain aspects of recovery.View full abstractDownload PDF (731K) -
Saki NAKAMURA, Hironori SOMEMURA, Norio SASAKI, Megumi YAMAMOTO, Mika ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 263-271
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: February 10, 2016JOURNAL FREE ACCESSOrganizational justice (OJ) influences the well-being of employees of organizations. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to examine whether or not brief management training increases OJ for subordinates. Study participants were managers and subordinates working in the private manufacturing sector. Randomization at the departmental level generated an intervention group of 23 departments (93 managers and 248 subordinates) and a control group of 23 departments (91 managers and 314 subordinates). Managers in the intervention group received a 90-min training session to investigate the attitudes and behavior of managers and help increase OJ. Subordinates completed self-administered OJ questionnaire surveys on procedural, interpersonal, and informational justice before and 3 months after intervention. For all subordinates, the interaction between group and time in OJ scores obtained before and 3 months after intervention were not significant. However, in subgroup analyses of the lowest tertile group in relation to the baseline of each of the three OJ subscales and total scores, the lowest tertile group of the interpersonal justice subscale showed significant improvement. The results of this study suggest that brief management training in OJ for managers significantly improves a low rating from subordinates in interpersonal justice. Further studies are required to develop a specific intervention method to increase OJ.View full abstractDownload PDF (913K) -
Mariko SAKKA, Iori SATO, Mari IKEDA, Hirofumi HASHIZUME, Masayo UEMORI ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 272-281
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: January 30, 2016JOURNAL FREE ACCESSWe examined the differences in family-to-work spillover between employed women who did and did not have caregiving responsibilities for elderly parents and the relationship between family-to-work spillover and negative and positive appraisals of caregiving using moderation analysis. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with middle-aged employed women (age ≥40 years) from four large companies. Negative and positive family-to-work spillover (FWNS and FWPS, respectively) and negative and positive appraisals of caregiving were measured. Data from 386 non-caregivers and 82 caregivers were analyzed using Fisher's exact tests, Welch's t-tests, and hierarchical multiple regression. Results showed that FWNS was higher in caregivers than in non-caregivers, while there was no significant difference in FWPS. Caregiver "fulfillment from the caregiving role" (a subscale of positive appraisal) buffered the effects of caregiver "feelings of social restriction" (a subscale of negative appraisal) on FWNS. On the other hand, caregiver "commitment to caregiving tasks" (another positive subscale) intensified the effects of "feelings of social restriction" on FWNS. However, there was no relationship between negative and positive appraisals of caregiving and FWPS. These findings suggest that both negative and positive appraisals of caregiving are important contributors to FWNS among employed women caring for their parents.View full abstractDownload PDF (965K) -
Akihito SHIMAZU, Ko MATSUDAIRA, Jan DE JONGE, Naoya TOSAKA, Kazuhiro W ...Article type: Original Article
2016 Volume 54 Issue 3 Pages 282-292
Published: May 31, 2016
Released on J-STAGE: June 10, 2016
Advance online publication: January 30, 2016JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThis study examined whether a higher level of psychological detachment during non-work time is associated with better employee mental health (Hypothesis 1), and examined whether psychological detachment has a curvilinear relation (inverted U-shaped pattern) with work engagement (Hypothesis 2). A large cross-sectional Internet survey was conducted among registered monitors of an Internet survey company in Japan. The questionnaire included scales for psychological detachment, employee mental health, and work engagement as well as for job characteristics and demographic variables as potential confounders. The hypothesized model was tested with moderated structural equation modeling techniques among 2,234 respondents working in the tertiary industries with regular employment. Results showed that psychological detachment had curvilinear relations with mental health as well as with work engagement. Mental health improved when psychological detachment increased from a low to higher levels but did not benefit any further from extremely high levels of psychological detachment. Work engagement showed the highest level at an intermediate level of detachment (inverted U-shaped pattern). Although high psychological detachment may enhance employee mental health, moderate levels of psychological detachment are most beneficial for his or her work engagement.View full abstractDownload PDF (1056K)
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