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Background Workers with deviating fairness perceptions are likely to be excluded and become isolated at worksites, leading to psychological distress. The study aimed to examine the cross-sectional association between deviation of fairness perception from the group average and serious psychological distress in Japanese worksites. Methods Secondary data analysis of an existing Japanese occupational cohort data using a multilevel logistic regression model was conducted for 8701 workers from 12 companies in Japan who participated in the baseline survey (from April 2010 to March 2012). Individual perception of interactional and procedural fairness was measured with the Japanese version of the Organizational Justice Scale. Group averages were calculated within workers’ reference groups, categorized by company affiliation, age group, gender, and occupational class. Psychological distress was measured using the K6 scale, and serious psychological distress was defined as a total K6 score of 13 or more. Results Both low deviation and high deviation of interactional fairness perception were significantly and positively associated with serious psychological distress (odds ratio (OR) = 1.24, 95% confidence intervals (CI); 1.03–1.49 and OR = 1.57, 95% CI; 1.12–2.19), independently of individual-level fairness perception, group-level mean fairness perception, demographic characteristics, and health-related behaviors. Only high deviation of procedural fairness perception was significantly and positively related to serious psychological distress (OR = 1.51, 95% CI; 1.11–2.06). Conclusions The results indicated that divergent perceptions of fairness at worksites may deserve further exploration for equal achievement of workers’ psychological well-being.

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Existing models of job stress assume consistent appraisals of stressors over the course of a career, and the developing nature of workers is often overlooked. This study explored how workers' self-concepts evolved over the career development process, and the conjoined experience of stress. Semistructured interviews were conducted between April 2017 and October 2018 with 17 engineers employed at a Japanese construction firm. A coding procedure based on grounded theory was used to identify key categories. Early in their careers, workers viewed themselves as mostly carrying out assigned tasks in a passive manner. Over the career course, workers had a growing sense of responsibility toward their work and tried to fulfill their roles as proactive agents. Eventually, workers came to view themselves as making contributions to their jobs by creating unique value. Accordingly, a stressor (e.g., work pressure) was perceived differently as the self-concept evolved, namely as psychological distress, challenge for growth, or opportunity to express one's value. These findings suggest that the psychological management of work-induced distress and eustress should match a worker's development of self-concept over the course of a career.

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