Mid-life psychosocial working conditions and mental health as predictors of transitions out of paid employment: a 20-year follow-up of the Whitehall II study

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
J Head ◽  
E Carr ◽  
M Stafford ◽  
M Kivimäki ◽  
S Stansfeld
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Psychosocial Working Conditions ◽  
Paid Employment

Joint association of physical and psychosocial working conditions with risk of long-term sickness absence: Prospective cohort study with register follow-up

2020 ◽  
pp. 140349482093642
Author(s):  
Emil Sundstrup ◽  
Lars Louis Andersen
Keyword(s):  
Cohort Study ◽  
Sickness Absence ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Physical Work ◽  
Trend Test ◽  
Psychosocial Working Conditions ◽  
Influence At Work ◽  
Emotional Demands

Aims: The interplay between physical and psychosocial working conditions for the risk of developing poor health is not well understood. This study aimed to determine the joint association of physical and psychosocial working conditions with risk of long-term sickness absence (LTSA) in the general working population. Methods: Based on questionnaire responses about physical working conditions and psychosocial working conditions (influence at work, emotional demands, support from colleagues and support from managers) and two-year prospective follow-up in a national register on social transfer payments, we estimated the risk of incident LTSA of >30 days among 9544 employees without previous LTSA from the Danish Work Environment Cohort Study. The analyses were censored for all events of permanent labour market drop-out (retirement, disability pension, immigration or death) and controlled for potential confounders. Results: In the total cohort, more demanding physical working conditions were associated with risk of LTSA in a dose–response fashion (trend test, p<0.0001). The combination of poor overall psychosocial working conditions (index measure of influence at work, emotional demands, support from managers and support from colleagues) and hard physical working conditions showed the highest risk of LTSA. However, poor overall psychosocial working conditions did not interact with physical working conditions in the risk of LTSA ( p=0.9677). Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that workplaces should strive to improve both psychosocial and physical work factors in order to ensure the health of workers.

scholarly journals Can favourable psychosocial working conditions in midlife moderate the risk of work exit for chronically ill workers? A 20-year follow-up of the Whitehall II study

2017 ◽  
Vol 75 (3) ◽  
pp. 183-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Fleischmann ◽  
Ewan Carr ◽  
Stephen A Stansfeld ◽  
Baowen Xue ◽  
Jenny Head
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Disease ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Chronically Ill ◽  
Cox Models ◽  
Psychosocial Working Conditions ◽  
Working Lives ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Work Social Support ◽  
New Diagnosis

ObjectivesTo investigate if favourable psychosocial working conditions can reduce the risk of work exit and specifically for workers with chronic disease.MethodsMen and women (32%) aged 35–55, working and having no chronic disease at baseline of the Whitehall II study of London-based civil servants were selected (n=9040). We observed participants’ exit from work through retirement, health-related exit and unemployment, new diagnosis of chronic disease (ie, coronary heart disease, diabetes, stroke and cancer) and their psychosocial working conditions in midlife. Using cause-specific Cox models, we examined the association of chronic disease and favourable psychosocial working conditions and their interaction, with the three types of work exit. We adjusted for gender, occupational grade, educational level, remaining in civil service, spouse’s employment status and mental health.ResultsChronic disease significantly increased the risk of any type of work exit (HR 1.27) and specifically the risk of health-related exit (HR 2.42). High skill discretion in midlife reduced the risk of any type of work exit (HR 0.90), retirement (HR 0.91) and health-related exit (HR 0.68). High work social support in midlife decreased the risk of health-related exit (HR 0.79) and unemployment (HR 0.71). Favourable psychosocial working conditions in midlife did not attenuate the association between chronic disease and work exit significantly.ConclusionsThe chronically ill have increased risks of work exit, especially through health-related exit routes. Chronic disease is an obstacle to extended working lives. Favourable working conditions directly relate to reduced risks of work exit.

scholarly journals Psychosocial Working Conditions and Social Participation. A 10-Year Follow-Up of Senior Workers

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (17) ◽  
pp. 9154
Author(s):  
Pia Hovbrandt ◽  
Per-Olof Östergren ◽  
Catarina Canivet ◽  
Maria Albin ◽  
Gunilla Carlsson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Social Participation ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Psychosocial Working Conditions ◽  
Public Health Survey ◽  
The Impact

Social participation is important for health, and it is well known that high strain jobs impact negatively on mental and physical health. However, knowledge about the impact of psychosocial working conditions on social participation from a long-term perspective is lacking. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations between different job types and social participation from a long-term perspective. A comprehensive public health questionnaire “The Scania Public Health Survey”, was used, and psychosocial working conditions were measured with a Swedish translation of the Job Content Questionnaire. Based on data from 1098 working respondents aged 55 at baseline and a 10-year follow-up when the respondents were not working, the analyses revealed that social participation varied by job type. Jobs with high decision latitude, as in active and relaxed jobs, seem to predict high social participation, even after cessation of employment. Besides that, the result suggests that high social participation during working life is a predictor of high social participation from a long-term perspective which promotes healthy aging. Incentives for working longer are strongly related to good working conditions. A supportive work environment with possibilities for employees to participate in decision making, i.e., high control, is vital for a sustainable working life. This may contribute to an extended working life and may also support social participation prior to retirement as well as after retirement and thus to healthy aging.

scholarly journals The moderating role of psychosocial working conditions on the long-term relationship between depressive symptoms and work ability among employees from the Baby Boom generation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeannette Weber ◽  
Hans Martin Hasselhorn ◽  
Daniela Borchart ◽  
Peter Angerer ◽  
Andreas Müller
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Work Ability ◽  
Baby Boom ◽  
Time Lag ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Baby Boom Generation ◽  
Psychosocial Working Conditions ◽  
Leadership Quality

Abstract Objective Mental disorders have been identified as a leading cause for reduced work ability in industrialized countries. Identification of workplace factors that can increase the work ability of employees with depressive symptoms from the Baby Boom generation is, therefore, highly relevant. This study thus aims to investigate whether changes in psychosocial working conditions can moderate the negative association between depressive symptoms and work ability. Methods Two waves with a 3-year time lag of the German lidA cohort study with 3609 participants born in 1959 and 1965 (aged 46 and 52 years at first wave) were analyzed. Self-report data about depressive symptoms at baseline and changes of working conditions from baseline to follow-up were used to calculate main and interaction effects on perceived work ability at follow-up. These analyses were controlled for baseline work ability and working conditions. Results Depressive symptoms were predictive for an unfavorable course of work ability from baseline to follow-up (B = − 0.173, 95% CI = − 0.219 to − 0.128). However, no interaction effect between depressive symptoms and psychosocial working conditions was found. Instead, independent from the level of depressive symptoms, a decrease in quantitative demands (B = − 0.279, 95% CI = − 0.326 to − 0.232) and increases in leadership quality (B = 0.242, 95% CI = 0.192–0.292) and development opportunities (B = 0.177, 95% CI = 0.127–0.277) were related to a more favorable course of work ability. Only small effects were found for social support (B = 0.057, 95% CI = 0.008–0.106) and job control (B = 0.043, 95% CI = − 0.005–0.091). Conclusions The results indicate that the lagged and negative effect of depressive symptoms on work ability was not moderated by changes in psychosocial working conditions. However, the promotion of favorable working conditions may contribute to a positive development of work ability among employees from the Baby Boom generation independently from the level of depressive symptoms.

scholarly journals Mental Health Before and After Retirement—Assessing the Relevance of Psychosocial Working Conditions: The Whitehall II Prospective Study of British Civil Servants

2019 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 403-413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Fleischmann ◽  
Baowen Xue ◽  
Jenny Head
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Job Demands ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Psychosocial Working Conditions ◽  
Decision Authority ◽  
Long Term Changes ◽  
Work Social Support

Abstract Objectives Retirement could be a stressor or a relief. We stratify according to previous psychosocial working conditions to identify short-term and long-term changes in mental health. Method Using data from the Whitehall II study on British civil servants who retired during follow-up (n = 4,751), we observe mental health (General Health Questionnaire [GHQ] score) on average 8.2 times per participant, spanning up 37 years. We differentiate short-term (0–3 years) and long-term (4+ years) changes in mental health according to retirement and investigate whether trajectories differ by psychosocial job demands, work social support, decision authority, and skill discretion. Results Each year, mental health slightly improved before retirement (−0.070; 95% CI [−0.080, −0.059]; higher values on the GHQ score are indicative of worse mental health), and retirees experienced a steep short-term improvement in mental health after retirement (−0.253; 95% CI [−0.302, −0.205]), but no further significant long-term changes (0.017; 95% CI [−0.001, 0.035]). Changes in mental health were more explicit when retiring from poorer working conditions; this is higher psychosocial job demands, lower decision authority, or lower work social support. Discussion Retirement was generally beneficial for health. The association between retirement and mental health was dependent on the context individuals retire from.

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